Money Talk

One of the things that I will never forgive Jon Husted for is hanging on to all that fat cash when he left the Ohio House for the Ohio Senate while we lost a few races that made the difference between Speaker Budish and Speaker Batchelder.  Would it really have made a difference?  Probably not, but we'll never know now will we?  It sure would have made it feel like Husted gave a kitty about the disaster he left behind in the rear view mirror...

Anyway...

I think it is about time we start talking about how if Rob Portman does trounce Lee Fisher like shooting fish in a barrell on E-Day and the bulk of the ticket crashes and burns, then maybe Rob might get some of the blame.  And if you are thinking similar thoughts about Josh Mandel, think again because I think that is still a tight(er) race than we think.

Rasmussen has Portman up like 20 points for goodness sakes.  And $6 million on hand...

I am not a campaign finance expert by any stretch of the imagination; so maybe this is impossible to fix now.  But if guys like Dave "I'm a Prosecutor, not a Politician" Yost go down in flames due to an imbalance in funds ("Little Orphan" David Pepper-Warbucks is gonna drop some serious coin to win) and we wind up losing the Apportionment Board (the most imprtant thing since "air" in this election cycle) won't somebody start looking at the guys who have all the cash (and yeah, Jon Husted, I'm STILL looking at you) and start asking questions?

Mandel Ad: "Tested and Trusted"

Boyce's Pants Are on Fire!!!

PolitiFact calls out Treasurer Kevin Boyce on his latest lie.  This guy has pretty much been an embarassment since Day One.  Between his casual relationship with the truth and the corruption of The FOKkers (Friends of Kevin - Thanks for that one, BizzyBlog!), I think Ohio is more than ready for the restoration of integrity that Josh Mandel would bring to the office.

UPDATE:  From a campaign email from Team Mandel:

With election Day drawing closer, all indicators point toward a Mandel victory in November. As a result of our opponent's lies being exposed by The Plain Dealer, his weak position in the polls, and his inability to raise campaign funds, he has rendered himself weak, both politically and financially.

Just yesterday, the Cleveland Plain Dealer confirmed in its Politifact column that Treasurer Kevin Boyce's word cannot be trusted and he should "strike a match" because his "pants are on fire" for lying throughout the state on the main message of his campaign. The Plain Dealer stated that, in an act of desperation to save his fledgling campaign, our opponent conjured up the dishonest claim that he has created 60,000 Ohio jobs since taking office.
The Politifact column rated Boyce's statement, which also just happens to be his primary argument on the campaign trail, a "Pants on Fire" lie on its Truth-O-Meter.
...
Kevin Boyce made the calculated political decision to attempt to convince voters that he created 60,000 Ohio jobs since taking office last year, even though Ohio has lost over 300,000 jobs over the past 4 years and state employment is at 10.3 percent. Not only is this claim outrageously unbelievable on its face, The Plain Dealer systematically destroyed the credibility of the claim and labeled the statement for what it truly is...a bold-faced lie.

Boyce's claim of creating 60,000 jobs comes from the same person who claims to have saved taxpayers money by hiring high school cronies, buying $80,000 worth of water bottles and other swag with his name on them, and steering state contracts to donors and banks who agree to hire his friends as lobbyists.

Josh Mandel on Right and Wrong

The following is the text from a campaign email sent out by Josh Mandel:

Matt,

We’ve been working for over a year to create the most tech-savvy and motivated grassroots team in Ohio, communicating our message of integrity and fiscal discipline throughout the state.

In an act of desperation, my opponent has just attacked me on an issue that is about Right vs. Wrong, and demonstrated that he will stop at absolutely nothing to try to slow the growing momentum that we have steaming forward in all 88 counties.

Here’s what’s happening…

A few years ago, I led the charge to stop the Ohio pension funds from investing in terrorist-sponsoring nations such as Iran, a country funding roadside bombs killing American troops overseas. I stood strong against enormous pressure, because as a U.S. Marine and Iraq War veteran, I knew it was the right thing to do.

Now, as the radical Islamic regime in Iran actually digs in deeper and recently called September 11th a “Big Fabrication”, my opponent has attacked me regarding my leadership on the Iran divestment legislation!

Needless to say, his attack is backfiring, and our campaign has been flooded by new volunteers and donors throughout the state – Democrats, Republicans, retirees and tons of veterans – who have now set their targets on removing my opponent from office and helping us win this upcoming election.

Today I am asking for your help to send my opponent a message:

That there’s something very wrong about the retirement dollars of American police officers, fire fighters and teachers being used to kill young Americans serving our country in uniform overseas.

Your contribution of $50, $100, $250, $500 or even more will go a long way towards sending this message and combating my opponent’s desperate attacks.

My opponent has now drawn a line in the sand on this Iran divestment issue, and has given us a great opportunity to communicate to voters our difference of opinion on this important issue. However, I can’t communicate to 11 million people statewide without adequate financial resources to pay for it, and I would greatly appreciate your consideration of a donation today.

And if the story above doesn’t motivate you enough to help, please continue reading to learn who’s actually funding my opponent’s attacks…

The Dayton Daily News has just exposed that one of the largest funders of my opponent’s attack team is a Massachusetts lobbyist who:

- Lobbied to help Swiss banks keep Holocaust survivors from recovering their assets hidden by the Nazis…

- Lobbied for Enron even as the company went bankrupt and cost Ohio retirees $114 million…

- Attempted and was shut down from lobbying for a foreign government classified as a “State Sponsor of Terror” by the U.S. Department of State.

My opponent has collected more than $20,000 from this Massachusetts lobbyist and his associates, and now community leaders throughout Ohio are calling on my opponent to unload this dirty money and give it away to charity. However, in an act of arrogance and complete disregard for the meaning of this filthy cash, my opponent has refused to unload any of it.

So today, we are embarking on a mission to send this Massachusetts lobbyist and my opponent a message:

That their dirty money and attacks will be met with a force of patriotic Americans who know Right from Wrong and are proud to stand on the side of integrity and American values.

In the next 48 hours, we are attempting to raise on the internet, more than the $20,000+ that this Massachusetts lobbyist and his associates have given my opponent.

Please click here to support the cause today! Your contribution of $50, $100, $250, $500 or even more will help me combat my opponent’s dirty money dollar-for-dollar!

I’m not surprised that my opponent is reaching lower and lower, because he knows that the thousands of Republicans, Democrats and Independents we have helping each day are dedicated, motivated and laser-beam focused on putting new leadership in the State Treasurer’s office.

As we defend these desperate attacks and continue charging forward, I greatly appreciate your consideration of support today and look forward to working with you towards victory this fall!

Thanks again,
Josh

Mandel Outraises Incumbent Boyce for Third Consecutive Filing Period

Release:

LYNDHURST – Continuing his energetic campaign style and powered by his grassroots donor base, Marine Veteran and State Representative Josh Mandel (R-Lyndhurst) yesterday announced that his campaign for State Treasurer reported more than $2.16 million cash on hand — raising $317,655 since the last reporting period. Mandel, the challenger, maintains a nearly 3:1 cash advantage over incumbent Kevin Boyce.

“Yesterday's report once again shows the strength, energy and momentum behind our campaign to bring integrity and accountability back to the Treasurer’s office,” said Mandel. “Our message is resonating with Republicans, Democrats and Independents from all across the state and the response has been overwhelming. I am very grateful for the outpouring of support in these tough economic times,” Mandel continued.

Mandel earned his reputation as a grassroots campaigner in his first election for State Representative, knocking on 19,679 doors and wearing out three pairs of shoes. Continuing his energetic and grassroots style in the campaign for State Treasurer, Mandel has visited 78 of Ohio’s 88 counties and has traveled over 80,000 miles across the state listening to the concerns of Ohioans.

Mandel has amassed more than 3,200 individual campaign contributions with approximately 87 percent of those coming from Ohio. Boyce, however, reported that more than half of his total contributions this period came from the Ohio Democratic Party and Political Action Committees.

“With the cloud of scandal over his office and his candidacy, Kevin Boyce has once again relied on massive bailouts by the Ohio Democratic Party and Political Action Committees to bolster his financial numbers. Ohioans demand more from their public officials,” said Mandel’s political director Joe Aquilino. “Josh is proud to garner the vast majority of his support from individual donors who live right here in Ohio. A substantial amount of these donations were made on the internet from folks who have never before contributed to a political campaign,” Aquilino continued.

Mandel Calls on boyce to Suspend Accepting Contributions to Avoid "Pay-for-Play"

Release:

LYNDHURST – Marine veteran and State Representative Josh Mandel (R-Lyndhurst) today called on Ohio Treasurer Kevin Boyce to nip a budding "pay-to-play" scandal in his office by refusing campaign contributions from the banking and finance industry, beginning today and until the Boyce-led State Board of Deposit decisions are made on April 29th, 2010.

Today, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that Boyce has delayed awarding the lucrative, biennial designation of depositories for public funds, until April 29th – suspiciously a week after Boyce will file his April 22nd campaign finance report.
This decision flies in the face of Ohio law (O.R.C. 135.12) which requires by the third Monday in March (yesterday, March 15th), that the Boyce-led State Board of Deposit designate which banks will serve as depositories for the billions of dollars of state funds.
Postponing the decision until late April not only disregards state law, but also affords Boyce another six weeks to raise money from banks that are competing for the multi-million dollar contracts.
"Due to Treasurer Boyce’s pattern of unethical behavior, this delay just doesn't pass the smell test," said Mandel. "Either he wasn’t competent enough to get the job done by the same statutory deadline as past state treasurers, or he’s purposefully delayed action for political gain. Either way, it is yet another example of the pattern of irresponsibility that we've seen since Kevin Boyce's first day in office."
In June 2009, a Dayton Daily News investigation uncovered that Boyce used almost $80,000 of treasury funds for campaign-type material while the state was facing a $3.2 billion budget deficit. That same story also revealed Boyce’s hiring of multiple relatives of Democratic operatives, including one whose previous experience to the Treasurer’s office was working at a zoo and water park. Then, in July 2009, the Dayton Daily News caught Boyce awarding a $160,000 per year banking services contract to a bank that hosted a $30,000+ fundraiser for him a week later. And most recently, Boyce has come under local and national fire for abusing Census dollars to promote himself.
"One way Treasurer Boyce can show taxpayers that he’s serious about ending his pattern of unethical behavior is by refusing campaign contributions from the banking and finance industry until after the April 29th State Board of Deposit decisions are made," Mandel said. "We look forward to seeing Treasurer Boyce’s action on this matter and hope that he makes the right decision."