Saturday, January 12, 2013
Former Lakewood mayor tells the Plain Dealer that Ted Strickland's decision to sit out 2014 “accelerates” his own gubernatorial exploration. Would you vote for him?
Ed FitzGerald, Cuyahoga County Executive and the former Lakewood mayor, is eyeing a run for governor in 2014. According to the Plain Dealer, former governor Ted Strickland's decision to stay out of the race “accelerates” FitzGerald’s own gubernatorial exploration. It would appear as if FitzGerald — a Lakewood resident — is gearing up to challenge Gov. John Kasich. "I don't have a date set for making a final decision," he told the Plain Dealer. During the past year, FitzGerald has hosted a couple political fundraisers in the area and he’s made several appearances around the state. He hasn’t been exactly shy about his political interests. "I wouldn't be surprised if he decided to run," Mayor Michael Summers recently told Lakewood Patch. It'…
Monday, December 10, 2012
House Bill 108 is in your hands — at the touch of a phone
Unless you have been living in a bubble, you've been flooded with a surfeit of food, holiday gift ideas, shopping and holiday music. It doesn't matter if your life marches to the strains of Santa Baby or John Lennon and Yoko Ono asking "..and what have you done" the holiday spirit is all around us. Politicians on the local level are also ready for a break. It is easier to sideline, stall or otherwise delay than to deal with important issues before the upcoming holidays. Like most of us, they have a lot on their plate, both figuratively and literally. Concerned voters still clamor for their voice to be heard while politicians maintain their own agendas. The only ones left with a literal empty plate are those animals who can be intentionally…
Friday, July 20, 2012
Our Republican Insiders say last year's fight over collective bargaining rights could hurt the party's chances at winning Ohio's electoral votes in this November's presidential election.
Will the Republican-led effort to limit collective bargaining rights for government workers in Ohio hurt the GOP's chances in this year's presidential election? More than half of the Republican insiders surveyed by Patch say it's too soon to tell or that they didn't know. But 14 out of 50 of those surveyed think the Senate Bill 5 / Issue 2 effort, led by Republican Gov. John Kasich, will hurt the GOP's chances in Ohio. Only four of 50 responders believe the fight will help the Republicans. Issue 2's effect is also seen in what Ohioans our Republican insiders would like to see as a running mate to Republican nominee Mitt Romney. Only one said they wanted Kasich, perhaps the politician most damaged by the Issue 2 ballot defeat, to be vice …
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Opponents of Senate Bill 5 outmatched supporters in money, motivation and message.
In retrospect, Issue 2 never stood a chance. Opponents outmatched supporters in money, motivation and message. It's no surprise they had more votes, too. On Tuesday, about 60 percent of Ohio voters rejected Issue 2, Gov. John Kasich's plan to severely restrict bargaining rights for Ohio's unionized government workers. And the resounding defeat wasn't delieved with scant turnout during a boring off-year election. Turnout was 46 percent, the highest for an off-year race since 1991. The union-backed opponents were too strong, and cared too much. They viewed the fight to end Senate Bill 5 as a back-against-the-wall fight, and they campaigned that way. Opponents trotted out teachers and firemen and said the law would ruin important government …
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Public workers celebrate Issue 2 victory at Cleveland rally.
Ohio voters overwhelmingly rejected Issue 2 on Tuesday, delivering a haymaker to Republican-led efforts to restrict bargaining rights for government workers and damaging the fortunes of Gov. John Kasich. The lead was so great that We Are Ohio claimed victory just after 9 p.m. Tuesday with only a fraction of the state's precincts reporting. Kasich conceded the race shortly afterward. About 61 percent of voters, or nearly 2.2 million, rejected the law known as Senate Bill 5, according to unofficial results. About 39 percent, or about 1.4 million, voted for the law. Results show Issue 2 lost in 82 of Ohio's 88 counties. At a victory party in Cleveland, public workers cheered loudly and chanted "We won!" as union leaders, including American …
Friday, November 4, 2011
Gov. John Kasich visited Independence to tout the benefits of Issue 2 while opponents chanted and protested outside. Ohio voters will decide on Issue 2 on Nov. 8.
Gov. John Kasich came to the Cleveland area Thursday to rally a crowd of supporters days away from a crucial vote on Issue 2. Kasich is on a tour around the state to rally support for Issue 2, the ballot name for Senate Bill 5, the law that would restrict collective bargaining for public sector unions. Ohio voters will decide the fate of Issue 2 on Nov. 8. Speaking at a Building a Better Ohio event in Independence, Kasich linked the reforms in Issue 2 with the his larger goal of making Ohio more business friendly by removing unnecessary regulations and keeping taxes low. Kasich argued that Issue 2 will help local governments "get their act together" because it gives local officials "the tools they need" to control costs. "You need to tell …
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Gov. John Kasich is expected to attend the Nov. 3 rally being organized by the Southeast Republican Club.
Gov. John Kasich is expected to attend a Nov. 3 rally in Independence to support Issue 2, the governor's plan to reform collective bargaining for public workers. The rally, organized by Pro-Issue 2 group Building a Better Ohio, is set to begin at 5 p.m. at the Independence Civic Center. Issue 2 is by far the biggest issue facing Ohio voters on Nov. 8. Debate over the collective-bargaining law also known as Senate Bill 5 has engulfed Kasich's first year in office and received national attention. In the run-up to the vote, Kasich has been attending rallies to talk about Issue 2. Supporters of the bill argue that it will help governments better control costs, therefore saving jobs and keeping taxes down. But opponents believe Senate Bill 5 is…
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Polls from Quinnipiac University and Public Policy Polling suggest that an already strong opposition to Issue 2 is growing as the election approaches
Two recent opinion polls suggest that Ohio voters are poised to reject Issue 2, Gov. John Kasich's plan to reduce the collective bargaining power of the state's public sector unions. The majority of voters polled earlier this month by Public Policy Polling and Quinnipiac University say they want to repeal Senate Bill 5. Public Policy Polling found that 56 percent of voters surveyed want to reject it while 36 percent support Issue 2. Quinnipiac's poll results were even better for Issue 2 opponents, with 57 percent against the measure and 32 percent for it. In both polls, more Repubicans said they support Issue 2 than any other groups. But that support is lukewarm compared to the opposition of Democrats, who are staunch against it. More than…
Thursday, October 20, 2011
With less than three weeks until the Nov. 8 election, the campaigns for and against Issue 2 are seeking to persuade voters to join their cause.
Supporters and opponents of Issue 2 are waging full-scale war to win your vote. In union-strong Cleveland, police officers, fire fighters and teachers march through the suburbs, knocking on doors and telling voters that Issue 2 will undermine their way of life, union member or not. In Southern Ohio, voters file into town halls to hear conservatives say Issue 2 is necessary if Ohio’s local governments are to keep taxes down. And in living rooms across the state, campaign ads bombard channel-surfing Ohioans with images of proud teachers, stressed families trying to make ends meet and one angry great grandmother. Issue 2 is the ballot referendum that will decide the fate of Senate Bill 5, Gov. John Kasich's controversial proposal to restrict …
Thursday, October 6, 2011
In March, Ohio GOP legislators passed Senate Bill 5, which drastically reduced the bargaining power of public employees' unions. Unionists and their Democratic allies gathered signatures to force a referendum on the law as Issue 2, on Nov. 8.
Read more Patch Issue 2 coverage:
Nancy
11:42 pm on Saturday, January 12, 2013
He's done a very good job as the first County Executive,and I do NOT think he should run out on Cuyahoga County after just two years. more ›