State of the Union

At least show some respect, Mr. Hackett

Ohio Republican Party Chairman Bob Bennett called on Democratic Congressional candidate Paul Hackett to issue a public apology to President Bush and the voters of the 2nd District for verbally insulting the President with an expletive.

According to USA Today, Democrat Paul Hackett said, “I've said that I don't like the son-of-a-b—— that lives in the White House…” (Bill Nichols, USA Today, 7/28/05). Hackett had previously called the President “the biggest threat to America,” according to the Cincinnati Post (Cincinnati Post, Friday June 10, 2005, front page graphic) and, according to the New York Times, attacked the President’s military record by calling him a “chicken hawk” (James Dao, New York Times, 7/27/05).

“These insulting comments show an enormous disrespect not only for Mr. Hackett’s commander in chief but also for the nation’s highest elective office,” Bennett said.  “The people of the 2nd District deserve a better representative in Congress than a man who can’t talk about substantive ideas without engaging in foul language, personal attacks and name-calling.  These comments are only motivating our base to defend the President and send Mr. Hackett a strong message that we don’t need another Democrat spewing hateful rhetoric in the halls of Congress.”

Bennett also called on the Hackett campaign to immediately cease and desist airing a deceptive television ad which links Hackett favorably to President Bush and falsely implies the president’s endorsement.  “I find it ironic that Mr. Hackett has such personal disregard for President Bush, yet he continues to find political advantage in using the president in his campaign ads.  This kind of deception will be rejected by the voters on Aug. 2.” 

'A track record of filing frivolous lawsuits'

The union representing more than 1,000 Cincinnati police officers announced its endorsement of Republican Jean Schmidt in Ohio's 2nd District Congressional race on Thursday.  According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Fraternal Order of Police did not even consider endorsing Schmidt's opponent Paul Hackett.  Why?

"He has a track record of filing frivolous and malicious lawsuits against law enforcement officers in Clermont County," FOP Vice President Keith Fangman said. 

("FOP decries Hackett suit, endorses rival," Cincinnati Enquirer, 7/28/05)

Hackett Resorts to Deceptive Campaign Tactics

Ohio Republican Party Chairman Bob Bennett called on the Democratic candidate in Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District special election to immediately remove a misleading television ad that falsely implies the endorsement of President Bush.

“Just a few weeks ago, Paul Hackett was calling President Bush the biggest threat to America,” Bennett said.  “Now he’s trying to pull a fast one on the voters by linking himself to the President and exploiting the President’s popularity in the 2nd District.  This ad is a blatant attempt to dupe voters into thinking Paul Hackett is a Republican endorsed by President Bush.” 

A letter from Republican National Committee Chief Legal Counsel Tom Josefiak was hand-delivered to the Hackett for Congress campaign late Wednesday evening, asking the campaign to immediately cease and desist airing the ad which features a video and audio clip of President Bush. 

“The manner in which your advertisement incorporates President Bush is clearly intended to create the false impression that the President has endorsed your candidacy,” the letter states.  “As you well know, the President supports your opponent, Jean Schmidt, in the upcoming special election in Ohio’s Second Congressional District, and to create the impression otherwise is incorrect and misleading to the voters.”

Bennett said Hackett’s deceptive campaign tactics, negative attacks against the President and poor record on the issues will energize Republican voters for Jean Schmidt on Aug. 2.

"Asked at one forum what he sees as the biggest threat to America, [Hackett] replied: 'The man living in the White House.'" (Cincinnati Post, Friday June 10, 2005, front page graphic)

There They Go Again

Ohio Republican Party Chairman Bob Bennett called today for a full investigation and public audit of Warren Mayor Michael O’Brien, a former Democrat Trumbull County commissioner accused of mishandling funds for personal use.  Bennett also called on Democrat State Sen. Marc Dann, of Trumbull County, to join him in demanding that O’Brien release all public and private records related to the accusations.   

“The public has a right to know that Mayor O’Brien is not abusing tax dollars the same way he’s abusing his own campaign funds,” Bennett said.  “No doubt Sen. Dann will want to assure his constituents that the corruption in his own backyard involving his fellow Democrats is being pursued to the fullest extent of the law.”

According to the Warren Tribune Chronicle, former Trumbull County commissioners Joseph J. Angelo Jr. and Michael O’Brien are “accused of using several thousands of dollars in campaign funds for personal use,” and discrepancies involving Angelo’s and O’Brien’s bank statements were uncovered during an investigation of a Trumbull County purchasing scandal in which a former Democrat county maintenance director pleaded guilty last May to money laundering, theft in office and five counts of bribery.  Angelo and O’Brien were commissioners at the time of the scandal.  (Stephen Oravecz, “Report: Funds misused,” Tribune Chronicle, 7/26/05)

“This is another example of the hypocrisy coming from Ohio Democrats lately,” said Bennett.  “They have blatant ethics problems involving elected officials in their own party, and they need to clean up their own house before lecturing anyone else on how to clean up theirs.”

Bennett said Republicans, unlike Democrats, have a record of providing tough, aggressive action against anyone accused of wrongdoing regardless of partisanship.  “This is consistent with what I’ve said about any Republican who crosses the ethical line, and Democrats ought to have the same standard.”

'Sen. Dann was very unprofessional...'

So is Democrat State Sen. Marc Dann waging war on the state bureau of workers' compensation simply because of a personal grudge?  Dann, whose political grandstanding recently won him the fawning admiration of the left-leaning Toledo Blade, has been accused of seeking revenge against the bureau after administrators closed a branch office in his district two years ago. 

Dann's vendetta came to light today after the governor's office released transcripts of weekly reports from bureau director James Conrad to Gov. Bob Taft.  Conrad wrote on May 27, 2003:

"At their request, BWC staff met with a delegation of Warren area legislators to discuss concerns regarding the consolidation of the Warren and Youngstown service offices into one Mahoning Valley service office based in Youngstown. Sen. Dann was very unprofessional, cursing BWC staff."

This, of course, is not the first time Sen. Dann has been accused of unprofessional behavior.  He was previously given a unanimous public reprimand by the Ohio Supreme Court for misconduct as an attorney.

Mayor Manhood's Campaign Switch?

The media are abuzz lately with rumors about the 2006 statewide elections.  John Kasich was the flavor of the week.  Then it was Rob Portman again.  Now it's Mike Coleman.  The latest word is that Mayor Manhood is bowing out of the governor's race and running for attorney general. 

Don't look at his website for any clues, though.  It just says Mike Coleman for Ohio, and nowhere on the site does it say anything about him running for governor.  How profound.  We're wondering how you run for the state's top law enforcement office when you're mayor of a city known for being more violent than New York City.

Update: Looks like we got them to sprinkle a few "for Governor" lines on the Coleman site just to curb the rumor mill.  Don't you question his manhood!

We Agree with Marc Dann

(Columbus) – Ohio Republican Party Chairman Bob Bennett agreed today with Democrat State Sen. Marc Dann’s admission that he is in no position to question the Ohio Supreme Court about legal ethics. 

“Who am I to tell the Supreme Court about legal ethics?” Dann asked after demands from his fellow Democrats that several Supreme Court justices recuse themselves from Dann’s politically-motivated public records lawsuit. (Steve Eder and James Drew, "5 justices are urged to skip Taft records case," Toledo Blade, 7/19/05)

“I’m glad Sen. Dann admits his own hypocrisy on this issue,” Bennett said.  “Here’s a guy who’s been running around for weeks lecturing Republicans about ethics in state government, and his own ethical misconduct is finally catching up with him.”

Dann, a trial lawyer known for filing frivolous lawsuits, has been publicly reprimanded by the state’s highest court for misconduct as an attorney.

“The Ohio Supreme Court unanimously issued a public reprimand Wednesday to state Sen. Marc Dann, a Youngstown Democrat, for failing as a lawyer to prepare properly for a legal matter.” (T.C. Brown, “Court reprimands senator,” [Cleveland] Plain Dealer, 3/4/04)

According to the Ashtabula Star Beacon, “The Mahoning County Bar Association filed the complaint against Dann, D-Liberty Township… The Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline and the involved parties jointly recommended a public reprimand.” (Chris Foreman, “Supreme Court censures Dann,” Ashtabula Star Beacon, 3/5/04)

“Sen. Dann’s own ethical lapses are a prime example of the hypocrisy coming from Ohio Democrats lately,” said Bennett.  “Republicans continue to lead, while Democrats stand on the sidelines and politicize the issues.  Any Democrat donkey can kick down a barn, but it takes a Republican carpenter to build one.”

Dems Cost Columbus $20M

Columbus' all-Democrat city council just cost the city an estimated $20 million in revenue after the National Rifle Association cancelled its plans for an annual convention here in 2007.  The NRA backed out after the council thumbed its nose at the Second Amendment last week and voted to ban certain types of guns. 

According to Business First, "Experience Columbus, the city's convention and visitors bureau, estimated in May the convention would attract between $12 million and $15 million from delegates patronizing local business." 

Comment from Mayor Manhood?  "Mike Brown, a spokesman for Mayor Michael B. Coleman, declined to comment..."  Shocking.

Coleman's Capital Crime II

Just days after The Columbus Dispatch reported that New York City is now being called "safer than Columbus," Mike Coleman (aka Mayor McCheese) is apparently feeling the heat for his city's spike in violent crime.  The Dispatch noted again on Saturday that Columbus has become "something of a shooting gallery this summer," with eight murders in the past two weeks.  So Coleman, the Democrat mayor who wants to be governor, has come up with a brilliant plan to curb the crime wave.

According to The Dispatch, "they’re creating a 56-member police strike force to descend on neighborhoods as violence erupts."  Well, now that's thinking outside the box!  Send in the police when the violence erupts.  So what, exactly, were the police doing before this ingenius idea?

No doubt the mayor's high-priced chief of staff came up with this brilliance while calling the "Bat phone" every night to report the latest murder.

“Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman... says he keeps a ‘Bat phone’ next to his bed and top aides know they had better awaken him, no matter what, with big news.”  (Joe Hallett and Mark Niquette, The Columbus Dispatch, 6/12/05)

Strickland's Friends

This photo reminded us of the Democrats' hypocrisy on "pay to play" politics.  Ohio Congressman and gubernatorial wannabe Ted Strickland was caught recently (by the Lisbon Morning Journal) rubbing shoulders at a fundraiser with Youngstown's legendary poster child for political corruption, JJ Cafaro. 

The multi-millionaire Cafaro was convicted in 2003 on federal charges of bribing former Ohio Congressman James Traficant with cash and gifts in exchange for political favors.  Cafaro got a reduced sentence for testifying against Traficant, who is still spending his eight years in the slammer for bribery and racketeering.  Traficant is scheduled to be released exactly four years from tomorrow.

Cafaro, meanwhile, stayed out of the political spotlight for a few years (though his daughter tried unsuccessfully to run for Congress in 2004), but he's apparently back on the scene these days glad-handing with his pal Ted Strickland and making some new "pay to play" friends.