Feeling the Heat?

* Another Ohio Republican is leaving his/her elected office.
Dispatch:

Barring an unforeseen event, state Sen. Karen Gillmor, R-Tiffin, will be the latest to leave the Senate early for a new post.

Gillmor, as expected, was nominated to serve on the Industrial Commission of Ohio by Gov. John Kasich last week. If confirmed by fellow Republicans in the Senate, she would replace Kevin R. Abrams, whose term expires on June 30.....

....Other Republican senators to either vacate their seats early or announce intentions to do so are Sen. Jimmy Stewart of Albany, who will leave to become the president of the Ohio Gas Association, and former Sen. Gary Cates of West Chester, who was appointed by Kasich to the Ohio Board of Regents last month....

Do you think Ohio's Republicans are feeling the heat from voters opposed to SB 5?

____________

Oh.  Ethics investigation?????

Dispatch:

A nonpartisan organization in Washington filed an ethics complaint today against House Speaker John Boehner, charging that the West Chester Republican violated federal law when he ordered House officials to pay an outside law firm $500,000 to defend the Defense of Marriage Act.

Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics, said in a statement that “it is ironic that Speaker Boehner -- a fierce critic of government overspending -- did not hesitate to pledge half a million dollars he does not have to defend a law of dubious constitutionality. It seems the speaker believes fiscal responsibility starts at home, but not in the House.”
....Boehner turned to an outside law firm to defend the marriage law after the Obama administration announced it would no longer defend the 1996 law, which declares that the federal government defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman....

This is a complete waste of taxpayer money!  The Justice Department should refuse to compensate Boehner for this ideological lawsuit.

 

 

 

* Republican Josh Mandel's campaign has been receiving contributions already for his run for U.S. Senate.  This doesn't include the money he brought in on Monday when he was in Washington, DC for a special fundraiser with some special people.

FEC.gov:

Recipient's Name	Date	Amount	Image Number
CONTRIBUTIONS
CITIZENS UNITED POLITICAL VICTORY FUND	04/05/2011	5000.00	11931501572
CITIZENS UNITED POLITICAL VICTORY FUND	04/05/2011	5000.00	11931501572

Today's Rant

Once again Ohio's Republicans have demonstrated how truly apathetic they are regarding the people in our state. Think Progress provides us examples:

With Gov. John Kasich (R-OH) at the helm, the Ohio GOP is successfully kneecapping the legs of Ohio’s middle class. The party’s first six months in power brought collective bargaining rights, the minimum wage, the prevailing wage, and education under the knife in the name of an $8 billion state budget deficit and “shared sacrifice.” Last week, the GOP-led state Senate passed Kasich’s $55.7 billion budget — the chief weapon in Kasich’s arsenal “that whacks schools, local governments, higher education, nursing homes, day care for children of low-income parents, the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel, children’s hospitals and work-support programs for the poor.” 

However, as the Columbus Dispatch noted, one group is notably exempt from this “shared sacrifice”: the wealthy. State Republicans coupled massive program cuts with an elimination of the estate tax for Ohio’s richest 8 percent of estates, restored $85 million in school funding for mostly affluent districts, and cut the state income tax so that “the largest dollar reductions” will go to “those with an annual income above $200,000.” TP Economy editor Pat Garofalo noted that measures like the estate tax elimination actually shift taxes on to the middle class. 

When asked exactly “how the rich are being asked to sacrifice in the budget,” GOP lawmakers struggled to justify their lopsided favoritism. Kasich simply asked, “Why we would want to punish success?” and House Speaker William Batchelder (R) simply didn’t answer........

Once again we see that the Republicans continue to provide for the rich, and neglect the middle class, public school children, the poor, the elderly, and the disabled. I still want to know exactly which misguided fools voted for Kasich.

Some people continue to favor the greedy Republicans.  In today's Dispatch, we have evidence that some people in Ohio still like Republican candidates for President:

The first votes for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination are still months away, with candidates bowing in and out of the race by the week, but Ohioans already have given nearly a quarter of a million dollars to would-be candidates.

Buckeye State residents have contributed almost $58,000 to former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's SarahPAC and more than $50,000 to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's Free and Strong America PAC.....

"I think Sarah Palin is a true, patriotic American," said Patricia Alderson, 62, a community organizer for charitable giving from the Cincinnati suburb of West Chester, who gave Palin's political action committee $2,000 in November 2009....

Excuse me.  I just puked.  Most people are patriotic.  As the famous bumper sticker reads, "God is not a Democrat or a Republican."

Here is the graph printed in the Dispatch from the Center from Responsive Politics:

Want to know my opinion (a sixty year old, wife, mother, and grandmother) of these Republicans?

Sarah Palin - ignorant, definitely not a feminist, stupid, doesn't know much about American history (sources: 1, 2,)

Mitt Romney - This guy put his dog in a cage, tied the cage on the top of his car, and went on a long road trip with the family.  I call that animal abuse. I need not say more. (sources: 1, 2, 3.....)

Tim Pawlenty - dull; a disciple of Grover Norquist (see CrooksandLiars), his release of Jeremy Geifer,...

James DeMint -anti-women's rights, anti-diversity, anti-everything...

Rick Santorum - ignorant.  Just Google "Santorum" today.

Mike Huckabee - a fan of cooking squirrels (YouTube); his stance on reproductive rights is a problem....

Mike Pence - wants to forbid women from using birth control (note); against raising minimum wage (note); doesn't believe in climate change (source),....

Michele Bachmann - seriously? bizarre; doesn't know the Constitution; doesn't know much about American history.

Ron Paul - nonsensical

Haley Barbour - doesn't remember much about the Civil Rights Movement (note)

John Thune - who??????

Newt Gingrich - three wives? Notified one wife he was divorcing her while she was recovering from cancer surgery; pompous; would rather go on a Mediterranean cruise than talk with voters.....


There you have it! 

****  Do you need more evidence that Gov. John Kasich is a complete jerk? 
Dispatch:


Gov. John Kasich said he won't have politics on the brain when he tees it up with President Barack Obama on Saturday.
Instead, he'll be thinking about a links triumph over America's golfer in chief.
"Yeah, we're going to try to beat him, of course we are," Kasich said yesterday.....

Kasich, and his pal, Boehner, might beat President Obama on the golf course, but so what?
No matter what happens on the course or the court, we already know that Kasich is a twit, and pompous ass.

Republicans vs. Women

**** Why are Republicans going out of their way to attack and take rights away from women?  Republican Representatives Steve Stivers (OH-15), a co-sponsor of H.R. 3, appears to be doing his best to make life more difficult for women.  As shocked as we are by this bill, also voting with Stivers were Ohio Republicans Pat Tiberi, Steve Austria, Steve Chabot, Bob Gibbs, Bill Johnson, Jim Jordan, Steve LaTourette, Bob Latta, Jim Renacci, Jean Schmidt, Michael Turner.

Why should women be upset that all the U.S. House Republicans supported H.R. 3?  Addicting info has an analysis of HR 3:

(Rep. Chris) .....Smith promised to remove the language and while it is not technically in the bill, Mother Jones reports that House Republicans used “a sly legislative maneuver” to insert a “backdoor reintroduction” of redefinition language. Essentially, if the bill is challenged in court, judges will look at the congressional committee report to determine intent. The committee report for H.R. 3 says the bill will “not allow the Federal Government to subsidize abortions in cases of statutory rape” — thus excluding statutory rape-related abortions from Medicaid coverage.

– Tax Increase On Women And Small Businesses: H.R. 3 prevents women from using “itemized medical deductions, certain tax-advantaged health care accounts or tax credits included in last year’s health care law to pay for abortions or for health insurance plans that cover abortion.” In doing so, the bill forces women and small businesses that provide health insurance that covers abortion to pay more in taxes than they would otherwise. Both economic conservative Grover Norquist and the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce noted that the bill is basically a tax increase.

– Rape Audits: Because H.R. 3 bans using tax credits or deductions to pay for abortions or insurance, a woman who used such a benefit would have to prove, if audited, that her abortion “fell under the rape/incest/life-of-the-mother exception, or that the health insurance she had purchased did not cover abortions.” Essentially, the bill turns Internal Revenue Service agents into “abortion cops” who would force women to give “contemporaneous written documentation” that it was “incest, or rape, or [her] life was in danger” that compelled an abortion......

Why would a woman have to provide information to the IRS about her rape?  Why are Republicans making such horrifyingly, degrading efforts to minimize a woman's tragic experience of being raped?

**** Did you get the invitation for Republican Rep. James Renacci (OH-16) to go to his fundraiser at the Washington Golf and Country Club?  Here is the info from Politicalpartytime (a project of Sunlight Foundation) about the event hosted by Mastercard and Visa:

• For: James B. Renacci (R, OH-16)
• Hosted by: Mastercard Visa
• When: June 13th, 2011 (12 p.m.)
• Where: Washington Golf and Country Club - 3017 N Glebe Road, Arlington
• Type of Event: Golf Tournament
• Contribution Information: $2,500 PAC Host; $1,500 PAC Host; $1,000 Individual
• Make Checks Payable To: Renacci for Congress - P.O. Box 88 Wadsworth Ohio 44282
• RSVP: Monica Notzon | Maggie Rauck; 202-737-9091; rsvp@bellwethergroup.net
• Distribution Paid for by: Renacci for Congress

Which group will Renacci support in his legislative votes---- constituents or Mastercard and Visa? What do you think?

>>>>  In case you missed it----Republican leader, John Boehner gave the commencement speech yesterday at Ohio State's graduation.  Graduates and parents were not happy with Boehner's selection and there were protests.

-----------------------

ProgressOhio:

We Are Ohio hosted motorcycle riders from all across the state in a Biker Rally and 'Ride to Kill the Bill' around the Statehouse in opposition to Senate Bill 5, the unfair attack on employee rights and worker safety.

We're standing up for the middle class once again, but this time supporters of SB5 didn't just hear our chants and songs.
They heard the deafening sounds of motorcycle mufflers roaring through the streets of Columbus and around the Ohio Statehouse.....

How could you not notice that?

Did you know that......

>  The Republicans are doing something in Ohio that will determine who wins congressional elections.

DGA:

John Kasich and the Republican-controlled legislature are using Karl Rove-style tactics to steal Democratic seats by manipulating the redistricting process.

Every ten years, legislators draw new legislative districts to keep up with population changes. But instead of drawing these districts fairly, Ohio Republicans are going for an all out power grab so they can try to dominate the statehouse and our Congressional delegation for years to come.

Enough! Stand with the DGA against Tea Party Republicans' plans to steal elections through unfair redistricting.....

For more info, click on the DGA link.

*****  It appears that Republican Rep. Steve Stivers (OH-15th) and his staff don't really read their e-mails from their constituents.  Debra Beight writes about the response she got when she voiced her worries about some of the legislation that Stivers has supported.  Unfortunately, the Stivers camp sent Debra Beight a....... Nevermind.  Here is what she has to say about the response she received from the office of the former bank lobbyist.

DebraBeight:

 Thank you for your generic form letter response to my e-mail. In the future you may want to actually read the e-mails before sending out an off-topic, placating response.....

....My concerns were over the attacks against Planned Parenthood and by extension the attacks on women. You have made your position clear on that matter, especially with your affirmative vote on H.R.3.

Women’s health issues are not important to you, don’t tell me they are, if they were, you would not want or encourage government interference in the services that benefit women’s health. You would not support any measures that threatens the reproductive rights of American women, measures that try to remove decision making from women, their own families and physicians and their own insurance companies. Are we children? Incapable of making difficult, practical and personal choices on our own? Because, amazingly, we make difficult choices every day of our lives, and we don’t need government obstructions that trivializes and infantilizes the course of own lives....

Thank you, Debra, for saying exactly what many of us have wanted to say!

_______________

Here is a little insight into who had some input on the Stivers Facebook page-------

Americansdiscussingrepstevestivers:

Comprehensive List of Rep. Steve Stivers' Media Façade Brigade

by Americans Discussing Rep. Steve Stivers on Wednesday, June 1, 2011 at 8:35am

The following media and PR consultants, Republican insiders and taxpayer-paid Republican staffers post to @Rep. Steve Stivers Facebook Page. 

• Matt Dole, PR Consultant, of Communication Counsel, a GOP media consultancy owned by Mark Weaver
• Jordan Ohler, of King Strategic Communications (KSC)... not even a resident of OH-15
• Sara Donlon, also of King Strategic Communications (KSC)
• Greg Lawson, Statehouse Liaison and Policy Analyst for the right-wing Buckeye Institute, likely associated with KSC through co-worker Holly Karg, former employee of KSC
• Megan Zaffini, Account Strategy Manager at Resource Interactive formerly: Deputy Communications Director at Ohio Republican Party, FB friend to Jordan Ohler, Greg Lawson, Amanda Swank, Matt Dole
• Amanda Swank, Assistant to the Chief of Staff at Franklin County Auditor's (Republican Clarence Mingo) Office
• Patrick Bell, Director of New Media for House Republican Conference (http://www.legistorm.com/person/Patrick_Bell/143394.html ) 

And one more----Jesse Walls, a Stivers staff member (see Legistorm for employee list), has also recorded a "Like" on a post at the Stivers Facebook page.  (Jesse Walls also worked for Voinovich form 2005 to 2010, per Legistorm.) Wow.  He has to stack the deck?  Does he have to pay them to post?

Then, the Americansdiscussingrepstevestivers point to something very interesting---> the Stivers response on a question about the Paul Ryan plan to kill Medicare:

The Stivers You Tube response:




Stivers is wrong.  In a post from the National Journal and DailyKos, we have information that shows everyone will be hurt if the Republicans kill Medicare:

...The policies in the House GOP budget, if enacted, would begin affecting millions of seniors almost immediately by increasing their costs for prescription drugs and probably long-term care. Further, Medicare costs could rise over time if healthier seniors choose to abandon the traditional benefit program....

...Some 9 million seniors qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid benefits, and about two-thirds of all nursing-home residents are covered by Medicaid. The GOP budget proposes cutting some $744 billion from Medicaid over 10 years by turning the system into block grants that limit federal contributions and give states more choice in structuring benefits. No one knows exactly which Medicaid services states would choose to cut back, but senior citizens account for a disproportionate share of Medicaid outlays and would almost certainly bear some of the burden....

The Republicans have been trying to end Medicare and Medicaid since the very beginning.  Don't let them cut off your benefits, or those of your parents or grandparents.  Stephen Colbert said it so well the other night in describing the Republican alternative to Medicare:

Blood in the urine

A tingling down the left arm.

Walk it off, Grandma.

Something to Share

*** Plunderbund has an interesting graph that you might want to share with your neighbors that support charter schools:

Giving money to charter schools is a total waste of our tax money because they are not up to the standards and qualities of Ohio's public schools.


****  It never surprises me when I see that Republican Rep. Steve Stivers (OH-15) is doing the bidding for his campaign contributors.  According to OpenSecrets, Stivers received the following contributions from American Electric Power:

Top 5 Contributors, 2009-2010, Campaign Cmte

Contributor	Total	Indivs	PACs
American Electric Power	$52,450	$47,450	$5,000

Here is what the Dispatch has today in a story about AEP (American Electric Power):

Proposed federal clean-air rules could have a profound impact on American Electric Power, leading to an increase in electricity bills, the closing or partial closing of 11 power plants and the loss of 600 jobs, the company said.....

....Environmental advocates say that Ohioans would be much better off if AEP shuts down its oldest and most-polluting plants to comply with the rules and replaces them with cleaner technology.....

...U.S. Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Columbus, opposes the EPA rules. He thinks higher electricity bills will contribute to job losses, and he would like to see Congress take action. But he doesn't expect any consensus this year....

Isn't that cozy?  AEP has Stivers to represent them.  Stivers, a former bank lobbyist, appears to be working as a lobbyist for AEP!

Haiku For You?

Stephen Colbert presented the Republican health care haiku:

Blood in the urine

A tingling down the left arm

Walk it off, Grandma.

Absolutely perfect! 

* The Ohio Senate passed the state budget but.....

PlainDealer:

....Clocking in at about 5,000 pages, the state spending document for 2012-13 is highlighted by privatization pushes for a half-dozen state prisons, state liquor operations, lottery operations and the turnpike as well as cuts of nearly $2 billion dollars for local governments and schools.... 

...Senate Minority Leader Capri Cafaro, a Youngstown-area Democrat, called the state budget "a fractured fairy tale" and a "political play at the expense of Ohio's future" in how it privatizes state assets such as prisons and liquor operations and lays the groundwork for leasing the state turnpike. 

"The only way to push them through is to bury them in mounds of paper," Cafaro said. "I'm still looking for the jobs in this so-called jobs budget among these 5,000 pages."

Where are the jobs?  Ohio voters will remember how Kasich and the Republicans ruined this state.

_______________

***  Republican Rep. Steve Stivers (OH-15th) is wasting our tax money.

FoxBusiness:

....Freshman Steve Stivers from Ohio spent more than $50,000 on teaching his district Civics 101 - the pamphlets were literally titled: "How a Bill Becomes a Law." Aren't there videos on that out there already?....

$50,000?????  If Stivers were really writing legislation to create jobs, he would have saved us money.  

>>>>>  Something has almost totally disappeared----birtherism!  According to an article in the WashingtonPost, birtherism has decreased in numbers:

The number of Americans saying President Obama was born in another country has been sliced in half, according to a new Washington Post poll. 

In interviews following the public release the president’s “long-form” birth certificate last week, fully 70 percent of Americans say Obama was born in Hawaii, a big bump-up from the 48 percent who said so a year ago. Even more say he was U.S.-born, or call that their best guess, for a total of 86 percent.

Overall, 10 percent of Americans say Obama was likely born abroad, down from 20 percent in an April 2010 Post-ABC poll. Almost all those who now say Obama was born in a foreign country say that it’s only their “suspicion;” just 1 percent claim “solid evidence” that the president was born elsewhere (9 percent said so last year).....

Amazing.

We're Still Cleaning Up After Bush!!!!!

Here is an interesting video that explains how the U.S. got into this debt crisis.

Posted at CrooksandLiars and YouTube:




Ask the Republicans how many times they voted to raise the debt when George W. Bush was President.  In an article from a few days ago at Crooks and Liars, we have this little tidbit:

.....Republicans Voted Seven Times to Raise Debt Ceiling for President Bush
"Reagan," Vice President Dick Cheney famously declared in 2002, "proved deficits don't matter." Not, that is, unless a Democrat is in the White House.

As Donny Shaw documented in January 2010, Republican intransigence on the debt ceiling only began in earnest when Bush left the White House for good....


The Republicans are doing all they can to try to derail the administration and the country. This is not patriotic----it is partisan.

Isn't Mandel Ever Going to Finish a Term?

Josh Mandel, the ambitious Republican Ohio Treasurer, just doesn't seem to be satisfied with his current elected position.  Mandel, who is positioning himself to run as a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate against Sen. Sherrod Brown, Democrat.  Mandel has been hit with an FEC complaint.

Toledo Blade:

The Ohio Democratic Party filed a complaint Monday with the Federal Elections Commission against Republican Josh Mandel, the Ohio state treasurer and potential U.S. Senate candidate.


The complaint alleges his Senate campaign committee has taken material from his 2010 state treasurer campaign -- including the Web site and e-mail list -- without paying for it. The complaint says that under FEC regulations, candidates' committees must pay fair-market value for the assets they take over from other committees.

It also alleges he is using material produced for his state treasurer Web site at taxpayer expense and transferring it to his Senate campaign site illegally.....

Mandel and his sponsors are ready to pour money into a Senate campaign, even though he just took the office of the Treasurer a few months ago.  To date, Mandel has publicly refused to say whether he supports SB 5, which might make voters wary of supporting him for any office.  Mandel has been making appearances in Hawaii, and Las Vegas, meeting with other Republicans to discuss his future and possible federal candidacy.  According to the Plain Dealer, has a fundraiser scheduled soon in Washington, DC.  Mandel already has a campaign committee formed and registered at the FEC: CITIZENS FOR JOSH MANDEL

 _________

 **** Now that we've seen that the Bush tax cuts have been a total failure because they did not spark economic growth in the ten years that they were passed, why do Republicans continue to want more tax cuts?

_____

----->  Republican Rep. Steve Stivers (OH-15) is on a list at Tell the Truth on Them: in which he is named as one of the "....most dangerous people in Congress..." because he wants to end Medicare for Vouchercare.

    ....These 42 are among the most dangerous people in Congress.  They are: Martha Roby of Alabama, Tim Griffin of Arkansas, Paul Gosar of Arizona, Cory Gardner and Scott Tipton of Colorado, Sandy Adams, Dennis Ross, and Allen West of Florida, Rob Woodall of Georgia, Robert Dold, Randy Hultgren, Adam Kinzinger, Bobby Schilling and Joe Walsh of Illinois, Todd Young of Indiana, Kevin Yoder of Kansas, Jeff Landry of Louisiana, Andy Harris of Maryland, Bill Huizenga of Michigan, Alan Nunnelee and Steve Palazzo of Mississippi, Billy Long and Vicky Hartzler of Missouri, Frank Guinta of New Hampshire, Jon Runyan of New Jersey, Chris Gibson and Tom Reed of New York, Renee Ellmers of North Carolina, Bill Johnson and Steve Stivers of Ohio, James Lankford of Oklahoma, Lou Barletta and Patrick Meehan of Pennsylvania, Trey Gowdy and Tim Scott of South Carolina, Kristi Noem of South Dakota, Diane Black of Tennessee, Bill Flores and Blake Farenthold of Texas, Sean Duffy and Reid Ribble of Wisconsin and Scott Rigell of Virginia.  Not only did these 42 join every House Republican present in voting for the Ryan Plan, they also complained, in writing, when the Democrats explained it to the American people....

....Nobel Prize winning economist, Paul Krugman, knocked on out of the park in his June 6^th New York Times article entitled, Vouchercare Is Not Medicare!  Krugman is brilliant and I have often recommended reading him.....

(In case you missed it..... I highlighted Steve Stivers name.)

Deceptive Numbers

* The Kasich administration's math continues to confuse people.
The News-Messenger:

Any attempt to understand Ohio's budget begins with a puzzling mathematical question: How do you subtract nearly $8 billion but end up $5 billion higher?

....Although Kasich's proposed budget and the House and Senate versions of it comprise hundreds of pages filled with tens of thousands of statistics, the overview of the state's fiscal road map for the next two years focuses on several major issues:

» What is the source of the nearly $8 billion budget gap and how was it filled?

» How did the current $50.7 billion general revenue fund budget grow to $55.6 billion, a figure that could rise slightly by the time the legislature approves it?

» And if there is more spending, where's it going?

What can you expect from a governor that worked on Wall Street?  Plunderbund was on this Kasich math problem last month and it had to do with staff salaries. 
Plunderbund:




Even in February, Plunderbund demonstrated that Kasich's math on SB 5 is "...junk science and faulty math..."  (See Plunderbund's analysis of SB 5.)

Is it possible that people in this Republican administration have been reading and memorizing passages of the book, How to Lie With Statistics, in order to come up with their completely inaccurate, unbalanced budget?  I'm just wondering why it took state legislators so long to figure out that the Kasich budget doesn't add up.  Will Republicans vote to pass it anyway, even if they know that it is flawed, erroneous, and deceptive?

Doing the Math

* Here is an interesting fact from Education.Ohio.com about how much money per year David Brennan, charter school mogul/owner of White Hat Management, gets per year from the state of Ohio:

...Brennan enrolls nearly 10,000 Ohio children in his 31 schools, including an online school. Together, they are on track to receive at least $74 million in tax money this school year, according to state records.....

$74,000,000! He gets that money despite the fact that a majority of the schools that he owns perform below the averages for public schools.


>>>Ohio Gov. John Kasich needs to get his facts straight. Once again, Kasich has been using inaccurate, out-of-date, statistics in describing Ohio's taxes.  PolitiFact has the details:

"If we don’t lower our taxes, we’re not competitive," Kasich told a GOP-friendly crowd inside a local ice cream parlor. "We’re the seventh highest taxed state in America. And that’s not just state, it’s local as well."

....A more recent Feb. 23, 2011 report from the group, entitled Special Report #189, ranks Ohio 18th in tax burden among the 50 states and suggests Ohio hasn’t been as high as seventh in tax burden since 2005. So why did a Jan. 2010 report from the group say Ohio was currently seventh?
 

....Kasich said Ohio had the seventh highest state and local tax burden in the country, relying on a study of the conservative-leaning Tax Foundation study. However, that figure was for 2005 and the study has been updated with the most recent set of rankings showing the state to have the 18th highest state and local tax burden.....

PolitiFact has rated Kasich's claim that Ohio has the 7th highest tax burden as "False" in their article dated today, June 6, 2011. 

Ohioans have to remember that Kasich is using out of date information to try to get things his way.  We all know that the last thing we need is a state that fits Kasich's goals of anti-public school, low taxes for corporations and millionaires, higher taxes for the middle class, no safety net for the poor/elderly/sick, natural resources and state assets that are controlled by corporations, less regulations regarding environmental protections, and a state that is anti-firefighter, anti-police officer, anti-nurses, and anti-minimum wage. 

Charter Schools Dictating Legislation?

* Hmmmmm.  Why does Republican Rep. Steve Stivers (OH-15th) have ads showing up on blogs? Does Stivers want people to call/email him to ask why he voted to kill Medicare?  If you haven't had the chance to contact the office of Republican Rep. Steve Stivers, here are some telephone numbers that you might find handy:  (614) 771-4968   or   (202) 225-2015 or
website to send him a message http://stivers.house.gov asap.

Stivers might be viewing some recent polls that show he is very vulnerable considering his push to overturn some consumer protection reforms and his vote to kill Medicare.  Is the former bank lobbyist getting a little nervous because he hasn't created one job bill?  Is Stivers concerned because Ohio Republicans are about as popular as bed bugs?


*** The Columbus Dispatch had a story that told us what most of us already knew:  David Brennan, charter school owner/mogul, and his lobbyists, are having direct contact with Republican members of the Ohio House in order to push certain legislation.  Are those Republicans trying to provide their services for the money Brennan has provided to them for their campaigns?

Dispatch:

...Records examined by The Dispatch show that dozens of friendly email exchanges, calls and meetings involving the lobbyists and aides to House Speaker William G. Batchelder started shortly after Republicans took control of the chamber in January.

For example, a Feb. 6 email from Chad Hawley, policy director for the House GOP caucus, told Tom Needles, Brennan's top lobbyist, that Brennan's charter-school proposals "look like great ideas and exactly the kind of things we are hoping to do."

....House staff members ran a number of charter-school-related amendments by Brennan's lobbyists. On April 19, nine days before the initial House budget changes were unveiled, lobbyist (and Needles associate) Colleen Grady sent Lisa Valentine, the top education policy adviser for the House Republicans, her opinion of 11 different amendments......

Isn't that amazing!  Rather than ask teachers and educators about input on education policy, the Ohio House Republicans are getting feedback from charter school lobbyists on which items look good and those that do not.

Is this further proof that the Ohio Republicans will do anything, even take lobbyist submitted legislation, to please their campaign contributors?  Are we back to the Bob Taft  days of "pay to play" politics?

Friday's Notes....

* We mourn the passing of Franklin County Sheriff Jim Karnes. We extend our sympathy to his family, friends, and those with the Sheriff's Department.  We've lost a great man whose contributions to central Ohio will not be forgotten.

* If you haven't visited ProtectOhioFamilies, make sure you click over there to see how you can join the opposition to Kasich and Republican's SB5: ProtectOhioFamilies.

>>>>>OMG!  Ken Blackwell appears to be the frontrunner for the GOP nomination for their candidate for U.S. Senator to run against Sen. Sherrod Brown.  Plunderbund has the full details, including a completely incredible video that attacks Elmo......

YouTube




If Ken Blackwell is the GOP nominee, this should be interesting.


*  Looks like Republican Josh Mandel has joined the jet-set.  Mandel, who has yet to express his views on SB5, flew in and out of Hawaii for a quick dinner to meet with some big shot GOP power brokers, including Mufi Hannemann, former Mayor of Honolulu and Hawaii State Senate President, Shan Tsutsui.

HawaiiReporter:


....Hannemann and Tsutsui weren’t the only politicians seeking a higher grade of steak and interesting company. Former Gov. Linda Lingle, who may be a GOP candidate for U.S. Senate in 2012, was there with a small group of supporters including House Minority Leader Gene Ward and Senate Minority Leader Sam Slom.

They gathered at Lingle’s invitation to meet 33- year-old Ohio State Treasure and U.S. Senate GOP candidate Josh Mandel.  Mandel, a former U.S. Marine who completed two tours in the Middle East and served on the city council in Cleveland and in the state legislature for two terms, has been described as a “young powerhouse” on the rise by the Washington Post. His would likely take on Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, one of the most liberal members of the U.S. Senate.

Mandel met Lingle at a Las Vegas political event several months ago and she was so impressed with him, she offered to help his candidacy gain support. He was only in Hawaii briefly, picked up at the airport by Lingle in her new Nissan Leaf at around 6 p.m., escorted to the Honolulu restaurant and driven back in time to catch an 8:50 p.m. flight.....

Wow!  I wonder which person bankrolled Mandel's expensive little trip?


>>>>>Here is an interesting list-----House Seats - Safe and Unsafe.  Do you recognize anyone under the Unsafe list? This is posted at Firedoglake:

Unsafe
Austria, Steve, Ohio, 7th
Chabot, Steve, Ohio, 1st
Gibbs, Bob, Ohio, 18th
Johnson, Bill, Ohio, 6th
Kucinich, Dennis J., Ohio, 10th
LaTourette, Steven C., Ohio, 14th
Latta, Robert E., Ohio, 5th
Renacci, Jim, Ohio, 16th
Stivers, Steve, Ohio, 15th
Sutton, Betty, Ohio, 13th
Tiberi, Pat, Ohio, 12th
Turner, Michael, Ohio, 3rd

Kasich Preparing to Sell Off More State Stuff

Gov. John Kasich may have said that he would not allow lobbyists to dictate events in the state government, but actions speak louder than words.  Plunderbund has a must read article about how a lobbyist provided the written legislation to privatize the state lottery.  Plunderbund cites an article by Mark Naymik in the Cleveland Plain Dealer on how the operation was handled.

Plain Dealer:

....The Ohio Senate's latest version of the state budget bill includes language to privatize the Ohio Lottery that is nearly identical to legislation drafted by a gaming company hoping to manage the $2.5 billion agency's day-to-day operations. 

The language, drafted by GTECH, an industry giant that once ran the Ohio Lottery's back-office operations, was added to the massive budget bill virtually unchanged and without any public hearing. The inclusion of the ready-made language, submitted to Senate Republicans by GOP operative and GTECH lobbyist Mike Dawson, raises questions about the relationships between lawmakers and lobbyists and illustrates the power that special interests can have over the budget-writing process, critics say.....

.....And like GTECH's proposal, the Senate budget bill would exempt the company that wins the lottery contract from paying taxes on its fees.... 

Imagine that!  Lobbyists writing legislation for the Republicans!  We wouldn't expect anything less from the Ohio GOPers.

>>>>Toledo's workers don't want to see Kasich in town when the President is scheduled to appear later this week.

ToledoOntheMove:

.....George Tucker is the executive secretary of Greater Northwest Ohio AFL-CIO union said Kasich “was against the loans to the auto indutry that created over 600,000 jobs nationwide.”  Tucker said the governor should not attend because he “didn’t have a part in” the jobs saved and created because of the bailout. 

Shortly before the crowd gathered, Kasich's camp responded stating he would not be at the plant on Friday, because the governor had pre-existing plans.

    But it didn't stop the group of union workers and city officials from “calling the governor out" on what they believe are inconsistencies.  Just last month Kasich appeared at the Toledo GM Transmission Plant, and even though he campaigned against government bailouts, Councilman Dean Collins said Kasich “spoke as if he played a major role in the salvation of GM,” Collins.....

*** Republicans just don't seem to get it that Americans like Medicare.  A new poll, CNN/Opinion Research Corporation, has the numbers. 
Politicalticker:

.....According to a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey, a majority also don't think the GOP has cooperated enough with President Barack Obama and, for the first time since they won back control of the House last November, the number of Americans who say that Republican control of the chamber is good for the country has dropped below the 50 percent mark.

The poll indicates that 58 percent of the public opposes the Republican plan on Medicare, with 35 percent saying they support the proposal. The survey's Wednesday release comes as the president met with House Republicans to discuss, among other things, Medicare reform....

...."Half of those we questioned say that the country would be worse off under the GOP Medicare proposals and 56 percent think that GOP plan would be bad for the elderly," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Opposition is highest among senior citizens, at 74 percent, suggesting that seniors are most worried about changes to Medicare even if those changes are presented as ones that would not affect existing Medicare recipients."

Today, on the news, I saw Republicans say that Democrats did not have a plan. The Democratic plan is called MEDICARE.  The Republican plan is called an end to Medicare.  Besides, the Republican voucher plan would add $5 to 6 BILLION TO THE NATIONAL DEBT!!!!!!  A vote for a Republican, is a vote to end Medicare.

Don't Believe the Ohio GOP

The Republicans in the Ohio Senate are playing around with some of the wording on the budget. Even though it appears that they've restored some funding cuts, don't believe it for a second that Gov. Kasich will let it pass this way (see Dispatch).  It might be that some of the Republicans in the Ohio Senate and House are feeling some of the pressure from their constituents and have tried to restore some funding.  However, throwing a few extra bucks to some schools and making horrifying major cuts to the old, sick, and disabled in skilled nursing homes, won't save them.  Besides, Kasich will convince them to see things his way.

With word that the $8 billion dollar deficit never really existed, Kasich is trying to make cuts based on that number and his plans to destroy public education.  Have you wondered how it is possible that the owners of the largest charter schools in Ohio, White Hat Management, have become so wealthy from their charter schools that they can give boatloads of money to Republican candidates?  What the hell is going on with the money????

Here is a comparison between a public school district and a charter school in the same area.  Are the citizens getting their money's worth?

According to wediducan.com, part of the White Hat charter school organization in Ohio, the following school is part of their group:

Akron Life Skills

"Proficiency Test Results (Building)" for "Life Skills Center Of Akron"

Proficiency Test Results (Building) Test Grade Subject Metrics Proficient Pct 10th Grade Reading 50.0% Writing 64.5% Mathematics 50.0% Social Studies 58.8% Science 29.7% 11th Grade Reading 56.3% Writing 50.0% Mathematics 40.0% Social Studies 47.1% Science 43.8% 12th Grade Reading 67.9% Writing 60.7% Mathematics 44.8% Social Studies 55.2% Science 44.8%

Akron City Public Schools
"Proficiency Test Results (District)" for "Akron City"
Proficiency Test Results (District)

Grade...Subject...Dist. Prof. %.....State Prof.%

10th Grade Reading 74.2%...... 83.0% Writing 77.4%...... 84.1% Mathematics 69.4%...... 80.4% Social Studies 67.9%...... 79.6% Science 58.0%...... 73.0% 11th Grade Reading 87.2%...... 91.6% Writing 90.0%...... 93.2% Mathematics 82.8%...... 89.2% Social Studies 81.7%...... 88.7% Science 76.3%...... 85.1% 12th Grade Reading 92.8%...... 94.9% Writing 92.6%...... 95.3% Mathematics 88.1%...... 92.5% Social Studies 88.9%....... 92.7% Science 83.9%....... 90.0%

Compare Akron City Schools 12th Grade Proficiency Test Results and the Life Skills School in the same geographical area:

12th Grade (Public School)...Charter School.....State Average
Math.............88% Prof.................44.8% Prof..........92.5% Prof
Soc. Studies..88.9% Prof.............55.2% Prof...........92.7% Prof
Science.........83.9% Prof.............44.8% Prof............90.0% Prof

When I was in school, percentages as seen under the charter school column would be considered failures. Of course, this is only one public school district compared to one charter school in the same area, and it might not hold up everywhere.  Ohio taxpayers need to ask why we should send our tax money to poorly performing charter schools.  What are Kasich's motives in supporting failing charter schools?  What do you think?


In my very humble opinion, hiring less experienced teachers and college grads with temporary teaching certificates, paying them slightly above the minimum wage, providing less than stellar books/supplies/support, and removing the examples of highly qualified, certified, experienced teachers as mentors, will create school factories where excellence does not exist.  This is what Kasich and the Republicans want-----poorly educated citizens who watch their news channel and believe it is news and the truth.  Is that what you want for your children?

Kasich and Republicans Trying to Eliminate Fairness

* Ohio Gov. John Kasich and the Republican elected officials in the General Assembly are working very hard to bring in favoritism, cronyism, and good old-fashioned corruption into the state government.  Kasich and the GOP sheeple are trying to pretty much do away with civil service fairness in public jobs.  According to the SpringfieldNewsSun, the budget bill contains some of the following stipulations:


....The changes would:
• Allow the director of DAS, who is appointed by the governor, to write rules on when an agency could hire workers without using competitive exams.
• Allow agencies to hire anyone who scores in the top 25 percentile on an exam, rather than be required to hire off an eligibility list of 10 applicants.
• Remove exams and seniority as criteria for internal promotions in state government; instead base promotions on merit and conduct in office.....

Although the Republicans claim that their changes are intended to "modernize" civil service, do not believe it for a single second that these actions are going to improve anything.  The Republicans are turning the Ohio government into their well-oiled, crony-run, cash machine.  They'll be doing away with certain aspects of state services and awarding them to their contributors who just happen to own companies that would provide services.  Will the state of Ohio provide state workers to plow our highways?  Is it possible that Kasich will allow a company like Kokosing (huuuuuuge GOP contributors) to do the snow plowing instead?  We'll see what happens.

How Low Can It Go?

*   Public Policy Polling gives us an indication that Gov. John Kasich is not regarded very highly by Ohio voters.  As a matter of fact, his approval rating is going lower.

PublicPolicyPolling


-John Kasich, already unpopular in Ohio when PPP polled the state in March, has seen his numbers continue to head even further in the wrong direction and is now tied with Florida Governor Rick Scott as the least popular Governor in the country out of 38 that we have polled on. Just 33% of voters in the state now approve of Kasich to 56% who disapprove. In March it was a 35/54 spread. Kasich's numbers are basically identical to where they were then with independents, and he's actually ticked up a little bit with Democrats. What's really plunging him is that Republicans aren't even all that enthused about him anymore- he's gone from a +53 (71/18) spread with them in March to now +30 (58/28) with them in May. That 23 point decline within his own party is largely responsible for his overall drop.

Ohio voters are having some serious, serious buyer's remorse about voting for Kasich. They now say if they could do it over again they'd vote for Ted Strickland by a 25 point margin over Kasich, 59/34. Our final poll before the election last fall, which hit the results on the head, found Kasich winning independents by 18 points. Now they say they would vote for Strickland by 16. And while only 9% of Republicans crossed party lines to support Strickland last year, now 26% say they would if they had the chance to do it over again.

-Kasich and his first term Republican brethren across the Midwest may be the best thing that's ever happened to Barack Obama's reelection chances.....


Those people that supported Kasich probably get a queasy feeling in their stomachs every single time the governor opens his mouth and talks about what he plans to do next.  So far, despite his bragging and running all over Ohio in state-owned aircraft, we have yet to see any job creation.  Those jobs created at the Toledo Chrysler plant had nothing to do with Kasich.  The jobs are developing because President Barack Obama pushed for and got loans to American automakers.  As the story at the Plain Dealer notes-----


President Barack Obama returns to Ohio late next week, with plans to visit a Chrysler plant in Toledo. The White House has released few details but says the visit will be on Friday, June 3.....

.....Democrats say that Chrysler's repayment of government bridge loans, as well as General Motors' payments, and their continuing operation and gradual expansion, show that Obama made the right decision.....


Ohio Republicans and Kasich were against the Obama auto bailout.


>>>>  Republicans in the U.S. Senate voted to end Medicare this evening, according to TalkingPointsMemo.  Fortunately, it did not pass.  Those of us getting close to retirement must remember this----

A vote for a Republican is one vote closer to end Medicare.

Absolutely Ridiculous!

Here is something that will make you shake your head and wonder how much more will Gov. John Kasich do to destroy the state and the citizens of Ohio.  Dispatch:

John Kasich used to be a banker. Now, Ohio's Republican governor is studying a possible tax cut for the state's financial institutions.

Banks, savings and loans and most other Ohio financial institutions still pay a corporate franchise tax, a 13-mill tax based on net worth. Kasich, a former executive at Lehman Brothers, suggested yesterday that altering the tax could reduce costs for banks and generate more loans.

"I mean, taxing people on the basis of net worth instead of net income is something that's not all that appealing to me," Kasich told about 300 bank executives at the Ohio Bankers' Day Conference at the Crowne Plaza Columbus North.....


Isn't this exactly what Ohioans don't want to see-------helping out bankers?  Kasich's mindset is one that obviously favors bankers over average people.  His support for SB 5 demonstrates that he continues to side with businesses over the rights of firefighters, police officers, teachers, nurses, and public employees.  Kasich and the Republicans even want to defund the office of Ohio Consumers' Council, which protects citizens from unscrupulous businesses and the unfair utility rate hikes.  Even though the Republicans cut tax rates under former Gov. Bob Taft for corporations, we've seen no actual improvement in job creation since the Taft tax cuts.  When corporations and CEO's get tax cuts, we've seen them reward themselves with bonuses instead of investing in adding jobs.

In 2005, PolicyMatters warned Taft that tax breaks were not the way to proceed:

 ...It creates new fiscal problems instead of solving them. The income-tax cut will
reduce state revenues by nearly $1 billion during the FY 2006-2007 biennium, and by $2
billion a year when it is fully implemented in 2010. This makes it difficult to pay for crucial services and investments, and increases the chances of another state budget shortfall in the future. It also is likely to lead to higher local taxes, as local governments attempt to
make up for lesser state support.

It takes revenue out of the state. One-seventh of the tax cut will leave Ohio, lost to
federal taxes because taxpayers who itemize will have lower state income tax to write off
on their U.S. returns. This amounts to $280 million a year when the cuts are fully
implemented. This will hurt Ohio s economy.....

....It favors the wealthy. According to a study conducted by the Institute on Taxation and
Economic Policy (ITEP), if you make more than $274,000, then you are part of that 1% of
Ohioans who on average will get more than $8,000 apiece from it. This small group will
receive almost a quarter of the benefit from the income-tax rate cut. On the other hand,
the 60% who make less than $43,000 a year will get just 14% of the total income tax
break. Ohioans who make less than $16,000 a year a fifth of all taxpayers on average
will see a reduction of just $19 a year.....


Taft did not do anything to grow jobs in Ohio and it looks like Kasich is following in his footsteps.  Taft's tax policy helped create the mess we are experiencing today.  Kasich just wants to make the hole deeper.

_______

*  Looks like the Republican weasels that supported SB 5 are dropping out as fast as they can.  Apparently, they cannot handle the payback they are receiving from Ohio's hardworking men and women who oppose SB 5:  Karen Gillmor (see Facebook)  and Jimmy Stewart (see Garfield Reporter).  Which Republican weasel will be next?  Opponents of
SB 5 need to keep up the pressure on those Republicans who oppose workers' rights.

<-------  Ohio Republican weasel

Republicans Going After Women, Infants, and Children

John Boehner and the Republicans, want to balance the budget on the backs of the same targets they've gone after previously--- poor people, women, infants, and children.  Although, John Boehner cries at the mention of children, he apparently doesn't care about poor, hungry children.

Huffington Post:

...In a bill released Monday, Republicans proposed cutting $832 million – or 12 percent – from this year's budget for the federal nutrition program that provides food for low-income mothers and children. The 2012 budget proposal for food and farm programs also includes a decrease of almost $457 million, or 31 percent, from an international food assistance program that provides emergency aid and agricultural development dollars to poor countries.
The legislation would provide $71 billion for food stamps, $2 billion less than the Obama administration projected would be necessary for next year.....

....Hunger advocates have warned against stripping those programs of those reserves. Two analysts from the liberal research and advocacy group Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Zoe Neuberger and Robert Greenstein, said Monday that the cuts could mean turning away as many as 475,000 people from the Women, Infants and Children program if food prices continue to rise.
Almost 9 million low-income mothers and children participate in the WIC program....

It might be time for Boehner to wise up and notice that cuts to WIC and food programs for the poor will reduce the health and well-being of many people.  

>>>>  Here are some statistics to make you wonder if we don't have too many lobbyists in Ohio....

Ohio JLEC-OLIG:

	Legislative	Executive	Retirement
Registered Agents	1332	988	122
Registered Employers	1370	1279	63
Total Engagements	3363	2988	133

With statistics like that, you know someone is making out on these deals.  Following the story in the Dispatch that indicates that Kasich's buddies are very popular, you wonder how much influence these lobbyists have with various parts of the state government.  How many lobbyists are providing written legislation that favors their clients?  I have a feeling that when Kasich's term is over, we will find the state government has been privatized, cut, and re-organized to such a degree that citizens won't recognize it. 

Numbers in the News

* A new Quinnipiac poll on Ohio has some noteworthy statistics.

Vindy:

...Overall, Kasich’s approval ratings have risen slightly, though 49 percent of voters still disapprove of his work in office, versus 38 percent now approve of it. That compares to a 46 percent disapproval-30 percent approval in March.

But 53 percent said they disapproved of his handling of the state budget and Kasich’s proposals are unfair.

Fifty-four percent also said they believed Senate Bill 5 should be repealed, versus 36 percent who said the new law should go into effect....

Wouldn't you like to know who those people are that approve of Kasich's job?

An interesting comment by State Sen. Shannon Jones, SB 5 bill's author, as reported at Cincinnati.com:

State Sen. Shannon Jones, who sponsored Senate Bill 5, challenged today’s Quinnipiac University Poll that found a majority of Ohioans (54 percent) say the collective bargaining law should be repealed, while 36 percent support it.

“Public opinion on statewide ballot issues is notoriously unpredictable,” said Jones, a Republican who represents all of Warren County and part of Hamilton County....

It might be a good idea for Shannon Jones to stop talking to lobbyists and Republican campaign contributors  and start talking to regular working people.  She needs to get out of her bubble.

>>>> John Kasich is a big supporter of charter schools and has been especially happy to receive all those campaign contributions from their owners.  Now, a new investigative report shows that some charter schools are being investigated by federal authorities.

5onyourside:

An exclusive 5 On Your Side investigation has uncovered a money trail of Ohio tax dollars leading overseas that  paid for illegal immigration fees and expenses associated with charter schools across the state.


Our investigation also reveals that the U.S. Department of Labor is investigating one charter school located in Cleveland for its use of so-called "H1-B visas" issued by the U.S. government for "highly trained" employees to work in the United States.

An extensive review of financial audits uncovered that in one case, the cash was finding its way to Istanbul, Turkey, where nearly $600,000 is winding up paying for monthly rent for a charter school back in Dayton......

Newsnet5-



*****  Ohio.com has information on the quality of education found at White Hat charter schools in the state:

Since 2008, Akron-based White Hat Management, has collected around $230 million to run charter schools in Ohio. The company has grown into a national chain and reports that it has about 20,000 students across the country.....

.....Government data suggest that schools with for-profit managers have somewhat worse academic results than charters without management companies, and a number of boards have clashed with managers over a lack of transparency in how they are using public funds.

Only 2 percent of White Hat's students have made the progress expected under federal education law. The company declined comment about the performance of its schools.....

$230 million to White Hat Management and yet their schools are not producing quality education?  OMG!

I Know the Real Bully

* Gov. John Kasich still wants you to take care of your elderly, sick parents in your home so that he can save enough money to give his rich buddies tax cuts.  Kasich cried and complained when Ohio's nursing home lobby ran an ad that accused him of trying to pull the plug on Grandma and Grandpa.  Then he cried more crocodile tears until the ad was removed from TV stations in the state.  Kasich accused the nursing home lobby of being bullies!!!! OMG!

Some people don't have options like the ones Mrs. Kasich had with her mother. They had enough money to keep the grandmother in her home with nursing care around the clock. Most people who have parents in nursing homes in Ohio do not have the money, nursing training, the physical strength, or money to care for loved ones at home.

Here are some ideas to consider---
1. How many people does it take to move an immobile patient from a bed to a wheel chair?

2. What happens to the other patients while one patient is being moved/fed/bathed/changed/picked up off the floor?

3. What aide to patient ratio does Kasich think is appropriate?  1 to 36? 1 to 50? 1 to 100?

4. What services should nursing homes provide to indigent patients who need skilled nursing care?  Does Kasich want to set up "death panels" to decide which patients get into care facilities and which do not?

5. Would Gov. Kasich like to spend the day following a nurse's aide in a nursing home's dementia unit?  (I'm sure it could be arranged that either the governor or one of his over paid staff could shadow a nursing home employee.) How many adult diapers would have to be changed in an 8 hr. shift?  How many times per day are urine soaked clothing/beds changed? How many meals are served/fed to residents during a shift?  If the nurse's aide ratio is low in these type of units, residents can have falls, a higher number of infections, and other complications that will result in a larger amount of hospitalizations.

6. Does Gov. Kasich really want to take away care for the poor and elderly? 

I realize that tough decisions must be made to balance the state's budget.  Unfortunately, Gov. Kasich is bullying old sick people and school children by trying to balance the budget by cutting their funding (while he gives millions of dollars to a gaming expert). 

If you have a loved one in a nursing home or care facility in Ohio, you must do the following:

1) Read the article at Cleveland.com about Kasich's planned cuts at nursing homes.

2) Call your relatives and ask them which months of the year are they willing to take care of your mother/father/grandparent in their homes because of Kasich's cuts?  Will they be able to stay home and provide 24/7 care, food, and medical care for that loved one?

3) Call  members of the Ohio Senate, the Ohio House, and the governor's office and let them hear your complaints about the planned cuts to nursing homes.

4) Contact the Ohio Academy of Nursing Homes and ask them how you can stop these cuts that endanger the life of your loved one:

Telephone: 614.461.1922
Toll Free: 800.999.6264
Fax: 614.461.0434
Email: coneal@oanh.org