Jim Trakas thinks so

“If you would have asked me on Sept. 10, 2001, I would have said that the sewer district does not need a police force. But in light of what we’ve learned, it’s a matter of public safety and health,” said Republican State Rep. Jim Trakas of Independence, who introduced a bill last month to allow the gun-carrying. “

“Petro says if the courts let him depose Noe, he might be able to recover more of the coin funds missing money.”

Go get him Jim!

“A ballot initiative championed by Secretary of State Ken Blackwell to limit state spending would deprive Cuyahoga County residents of millions of dollars’ worth of services, from health care for the poor to road improvements, a group of civic, political and social-service leaders said Tuesday.
The Coalition for Ohio’s Future, which organized to fight the initiative, said an analysis of the county’s budgets from 1994 through 2003 - when applying a Colorado spending law they say is similar to Blackwell’s proposal - shows the county would have received $169 million less in state money. ”

Point taken, but can some one please explain what the county does with its $1.3 billion budget. It seems that with that kind of money our county could actually get going again. If this amendment passes, i’m sure the county can cut $169 million.

Everytime an article like this is written it just makes many conservatives like Blackwell even more.

But it doesn’t go on the map.

Dear NewsMax Reader:
It's rare that we endorse a candidate for governor.
But Ken Blackwell is no ordinary candidate. As you may know, he played a critical role in George Bush's victory in Ohio during last year's election.
Now, Ken is running for governor in Ohio. The Democrats absolutely hate Ken because he's a solid conservative and an African-American leading others into the Republican Party.
They also know he will keep Ohio, the nation's most key swing state, ”�“Red”? in 2008.
Already Democratic groups backed by billionaire George Soros are pouring millions into the Ohio race to stop Ken Blackwell.
Ken urgently needs your help. You can donate to his worthy cause by Going Here Now.
And please take a moment to read Ken's letter below.
Thank you.
NewsMax.com

Very interesting, look at the words they use to Petro and Betty….

The Republican frontrunner, conservative Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, has the advantage of publicly holding an adversarial relationship with Taft. The other GOP candidates — moderate Atty. Gen. James Petro and liberal state Auditor Betty Montgomery — lack this advantage. Each of them also has a connection to the coin scandal — Petro has an oversight role and Montgomery had the role of auditing and found no irregularities. Petro is also an ally of Cleveland political boss and NAACP Chapter President George Forbes (D), whose daughter is on the board of MDL. Forbes has already appeared at a fundraiser for Petro.

I guess the people in DC think Blackwell is the front runner, we’ll see what his poll says which should be out soon.

Read it HERE.

COLUMBUS (AP) — Ohio’s top lawyer says a coin dealer who lent himself three million dollars from a state coin investment he managed might gone beyond the authority of his contract. Attorney General Jim Petro is overseeing a lawsuit and investigation into money missing from the $58 million-dollar investment in rare coins by the state Bureau of Workers’ Compensation…..

Petro needs to come out of this squeaky clean to maintain his good public image he’s cultivated over the years.

“Rhonda Bohannon, superintendent of the Three Rivers Local School District, opposes the amendment because she thinks it would make it even more difficult for school districts to get levies passed.”

However…

“Limit state and local government annual spending growth to 3.5 percent or the sum of the rate of inflation plus population growth.
Refund any year-end unspent revenue over 10 percent of the budget to taxpayers. If the amendment had been in effect now, that would have meant about $2.5 billion would have been returned to taxpayers this year, according to Blackwell’s office.”

I think we’ll be seeing more and more of this debate as election day draws closer. Read the article HERE.

According to Crain’s former VP candidate John Edwards will be in town at a rally to raise the minimum wage by $1 an hour. The rally is hosted by ACORN (a nice little radical leftist group). I’m sure small business owners all over the state are happy that this man is not making public policy. The rally is at noon at Trinity Catherdral, 2230 Euclid Ave.

BTW…what happened to separation of church and state (which doesn’t exist anyways, but for the sake of argument), this sure smacks like a political rally in a church.

Well he’s close, according to an e-mail sent out he has raised $45,658 from his website with two days left before the filing deadline. For a state wide candidate that’s not bad, but it’s a drop in the buck to Petro’s and Montgomery’s warchests. Well see the final numbers in a few short days. Stay tuned…

Oh this one is too good to pass up

[Harry] “Reid later offered three names of people he said would be good for the court: GOP Sens. Mel Martinez of Florida, Mike DeWine of Ohio and Mike Crapo of Idaho. They “are people who serve in the Senate now who are Republicans who I think would be outstanding Supreme Court members,” Reid said.”

DeWine is the last type of Republican we want on the court. Remember GOP Presidents appointed 7 of the 9 justices, and let me tell you we do not have a conservative court right now. Be careful who you appoint.

If you enjoy reading about Cleveland area media then check out this blog.

So when the state found an extra $1.3 billion last month, it decided to restore those programs and put some money away for a rainy day rather than return it to taxpayers.

Gotta love our Republican legislature. Even though if they decided they wanted to give back part of the money, the press would go ballistic, but who listens to the press anymore?

From a campaign letter….

“Petro sent a letter geared to his 2006 gubernatorial campaign to thousands of Republicans on June 20 informing them of his plans to recover money lost in the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation’s $58 million investment in rare coins, managed by Tom Noe, The Plain Dealer said Tuesday.”

Although some are not happy with this communication from the Petro camp

“Wilkinson said it was unusual for Petro to announce his plans in a political letter. Wilkinson also criticized Petro’s request for an estimate of attorney’s fees and plans to set aside up to $13 million that is missing from the fund.”

Personally, we here don’t see what the big deal is where he announces his intentions. It’s all about actions.

The Eastern Shawnee tribe of Oklahoma sued Monday to regain about 146 square miles of western Ohio the tribe says was illegally taken in 19th century treaties.
The tribe’s attorney said the aim was not to seize cities and dairy farms but to negotiate a deal to open casinos where the tribe has been invited _ a tactic Ohio’s top lawyer insists won’t work.

It’s only a matter of time….tick….tock…..tick…..tock

Look at the taxes coming into states.

Proving he’s not a stereotypical liberal…and that he can read poll results.

“A Marietta Times online poll conducted Friday found that 65 percent of those who participated in the poll support the ban.”

“The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass the amendment 286-130 last Wednesday with the support of U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland.”

31 Counties, for Starters

In his quest for the governor's office, candidate Pete Draganic has traveled 31 of Ohio's counties since February, enjoying Lincoln day dinners, speaking engagements, meet and greets and general campaigning.

This is just the beginning of the campaign effort according to Draganic. He is scheduled to attend many more fairs and events over the next couple of months in dozens more counties across the state. One particular July stretch has him visiting and campaigning at 10 separate county fairs in less than one week.

Draganic says that he wishes every Ohioan knew exactly how much hard work and dedication he is devoting to the campaign. ”�“I want them to know that I am a real candidate with every intention of winning this election”?, he says.

Pete Draganic's campaign schedule is posted on the home page of his website at www.peteforgovernor.com although he advises supporters to check back often as the campaign is constantly adding more events.

When asked how people are receiving him on the campaign trail, Draganic responded, ”�“I am really excited by the response I have gotten from so many of the great Ohioans that I have been privileged enough to meet along the way. Most of them are very unhappy with the other gubernatorial choices and they find me to be an answer to their call for someone different, someone they can trust and believe in.

With typical politics and an onslaught of scandal lately, it's little wonder that a candidate like Pete Draganic would be so well received. He's a personable, down-to-earth guy who turns out to have quite a good head on his shoulders.

Strickland — “Those are the values that I will bring to the governor’s office,” Strickland added. “The people of Ohio deserve the best governor possible, and for 15 long years they have been shortchanged. I want to work with all of you to bring hope back to every Ohioan and to make our state great once again.”

Coleman — “Scandals, as you see each and every day. Corruption, as you read in the paper each and every day. Total and complete mismanagement and failure of leadership…. Arrogance of one-party control — that’s what we see in the state of Ohio today,” he said.”

You make the call.

Defeating Lincoln by .44%!

“The plea from all university presidents is the same: more money please. They argue that if the government invests more money in higher education the economy will grow. In a sense this is true; but, increased funding for universities does not lead to greater prosperity, in fact, it may even reduce it, says Richard Vedder (Forbes).”

I’d much rather have money that supposed to go to higher education be used to lower taxes, and then with that extra money parents can decide which college to send their children. State sponsored universities have more fat in their budgets than the federal government. Force them to be COMPETITIVE!