Dems Bequeath Ohio with Duplicative Legislation

Release:

Majority Attempts to Conceal Mistakes

COLUMBUS – The Ohio House of Representatives has received several pieces of legislation from the majority caucus that are strikingly similar to other bills introduced earlier this General Assembly from the other side of the aisle.

Earlier this week, House Bill 562 was introduced that would eliminate the $20 late fee endorsed and signed into law by House Democrats and Governor Strickland with the passage of the biennial budget. State Representative Deborah Newcomb (D-Conneaut) and 15 of her Democratic colleagues cosponsored this measure that reverses a measure they previously endorsed by supporting House Bill 2. However, State Reps. Ron Maag (R-Lebanon) and Terry Boose (R- Norwalk), introduced House Bill 428 in January 2010, nearly seven months earlier and encouraged all members of the Ohio House of Representatives to join them on this necessary repeal.

“Every dime, every dollar counts in today’s economy. I am elated to see that my colleagues have introduced this legislation and look forward to swift action,” said Rep. Terry Boose. “Nonetheless, the majority Democratic Caucus cannot play both sides of the field. While Ohioans are suffering and partisan politics have been placed aside in the struggling business owners’ mind, the majority party does one thing, and then attempts to cover their malicious, expensive intent with political gimmicks.”

The combined list of cosponsors to eliminate the late fee represents more than enough support to repeal it. Earlier this year the Daily Record reported that more than $16 million has been collected from 818,429 individuals. However, the burden of duplicative legislation has been forced on the hard-working families of Ohio more than once.

State Rep. Ron Maag questioned the duration of time that had elapsed, asking, “Why won’t the Speaker call us into session and pass legislation today? Why did the House Democrats wait nearly eight months to do this? I look forward to swift attention being paid to this necessary repeal, just like the swift action with House Bill 473.”

Rep. Maag introduced House Bill 132, legislation to address “sexting,” in April 2009. More than a year later, House Bill 473, a legislative measure to prohibit sexting, was introduced in March 2010 and the House voted on the bill two short months later.

Primary2008: Hamilton County Update

It looks like Bob Mecklenborg will defeat Dick Hammerbushsmith...although the numbers from Hamilton County BOE are still pretty young.

The interesting race is for the 35th Ohio House seat where it looks like David just might slay Goliath...Ron Maag (R-Lori Viars) up BIG early on John Rabenold (R-Check-n-Go) according to BizzyBlog, but the Hamilton numbers sure look to be the other way around...

35th Ohio House: WMD Endorses 'None of the Above'

For the 35th District of the Ohio House, the editors of Weapons of Mass Discussion were unable to find any candidate that is acceptable and viable.

Eric Minamyer is an acceptable candidate, but he went dark after having lost his trustee seat to a John Rabenold sock-puppet named Phil Beck.

Ron Maag is, in our opinion, neither acceptable nor viable. He is inexperienced in the political arena and has the backing of Lori Viars (whose track record in this cycle is downright awful).

John Rabenold can't figure out where he works. On his website, it appears that he has either President or Vice President of a consulting firm, but he keeps telling the press that he plans to quit working for Check-n-Go IF he gets elected.

Therefore, the editors of Weapons of Mass Discussion encourage voters in the 35th District of the Ohio House of Representatives to vote for 'None of the Above' and hope for a run-off.

Does John Rabenold STILL Work for Check-n-Go?

I've been asking my sources for information on something I caught on John Rabenold's campaign site awhile back. On his "About John" page, we see two listings... Under "Experience" you will see this:

- CNG Financial Corporation, Executive , 1999-2007
- Vice President & Spokesperson Corporate Strategies Consulting LLC, 2007 to Present

...but under "Community Involvement" you will see this:

- Corporate Strategies Consulting LLC, President

Now, three questions have GOT to be answered by SOMEBODY...

One: Is John Rabenold still in the employ of CNG Financial?

Two: Is John Rabenold President or Vice President of Corporate Strategies Consulting LLC?

Three: Is CNG Financial or any parent entity or subsidiary a client of Corporate Strategies Consulting?

Why do I ask these questions? Because Ron Maag AND the Cincinnati Enquirer seems to think that John Rabenold is still working for Check-n-Go...and I can't really tell for sure whether or not they are right or not.

Team Rabenold, feel free to email me at wmdtvmatt - at - yahoo - dot - com OR feel free to drop a note in the comments...

2/27 UPDATE: More confusion from the Cincinnati Enquirer:

Ron Maag, of Lebanon, is attacking opponent John Rabenold's acceptance of more than $100,000 in campaign contributions from the payday loan industry and his job as a lobbyist for the Mason company that operates Check 'n Go.

Maag claims that money would influence Rabenold's performance in the Legislature.

"One candidate wants to work for the people and the other candidate wants to work for special interests," he said of Rabenold, who is vice president of government relations for CNG Financial Corp.

Emphasis added.

"I'm not running to represent any specific industry. I'm running to represent the people of Southwest Ohio," Rabenold said.

He said he'll quit the job with CNG if he wins the election and work in his own consulting firm.

"I could have taken $500 and I would have been criticized for it," he said. "It's a licensed regulated industry in the state since 1995. When people heard of the race, they wanted to support me."

Emphasis added.

Now, allow me to add some emphasis to what is actually ON John Rabenold's campaign website:

- CNG Financial Corporation, Executive , 1999-2007
- Vice President & Spokesperson Corporate Strategies Consulting LLC, 2007 to Present

You absolutely can NOT have it both way's John... What is the truth???

Note to the 527 Media Types: Feel free to try and help us out here...

Ohio Chamber of Commerce Endorsements in Nine GOP Primary Races

This just in...

COLUMBUS, OH – In a busy primary election that features contested primaries in 31 state legislative districts, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee (OCCPaC) has announced its support for nine candidates in the March 4 primary. OCCPaC is the political action committee of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, Ohio's largest and most diverse statewide business advocacy group.

According to Keith A. Lake, Director of Political and Candidate Education for the Chamber, the OCCPaC-endorsed candidates all share a strong understanding of the competitive forces, regulatory demands, and economic challenges faced every day by Ohio employers, and would be responsive to the concerns of the business community.

“Given the current economic environment, it's important to evaluate the candidates and try to determine what they believe about important issues affecting Ohio employers, jobs, and our business climate,” said Lake. “We are confident each of our endorsed candidates will be effective advocates for both the businesses and citizens of Ohio as we all work to sharpen our competitive edge and grow our economy.”

Ohio Chamber staff and members met with dozens of candidates and evaluated them on the basis of voting records (if currently a legislator), candidate questionnaire responses, local business community support, and political viability.

After reviewing the candidates in each of the contested primaries, the Ohio Chamber PAC endorsed the following candidates:

OHIO SENATE DISTRICT 2 – MARK WAGONER (R-Ottawa Hills)
A leader while in the Ohio House, Wagoner also assembled an outstanding 100 percent pro-business voting record during his three-plus years in the Ohio legislature.

OHIO SENATE DISTRICT 10 – CHRIS WIDENER (R-Springfield)
Widener, owner of an architectural practice, has compiled a perfect 100 percent pro-business voting record during his time in the Ohio House. Also was the primary sponsor of an important lawsuit reform bill that passed in 2004.

OHIO HOUSE DISTRICT 2 – KRIS JORDAN (R-Powell)
Strengthening Ohio’s economy is the focus of Jordan’s campaign, and as a Delaware County commissioner he worked to reduce excessive government spending. Jordan also helped spearhead the creation of innovative economic development tools for the county.

OHIO HOUSE DISTRICT 3 – RON AMSTUTZ (R-Wooster)
Amstutz has built an impressive track record of working to create a positive business climate, as demonstrated by his 94 percent pro-business voting record during his time in the Ohio legislature.

OHIO HOUSE DISTRICT 30 – BOB MECKLENBORG (R-Cincinnati)
Of the candidates running for this seat, Mecklenborg has the best mix of qualities that make for an outstanding legislator. The broad support he is receiving from local employers underscores his commitment to the issues important to Ohio employers, and the Chamber believes he will make these issues his chief concern as a legislator.

OHIO HOUSE DISTRICT 35 – JOHN RABENOLD (R-Indian Hill)
Rabenold is the only candidate in the race for whom business issues appear to be the top priority and he enjoys strong support from the statewide and local business communities. In addition, he possesses valuable legislative experience as an aide to a former president of the Ohio Senate.

OHIO HOUSE DISTRICT 79 – RICHARD ADAMS (R-Troy)
A former Miami County Commissioner, Adams demonstrates a strong understanding of and commitment to the issues important to Ohio employers.

OHIO HOUSE DISTRICT 81 – JEFF WAGNER (R-Sycamore)
Wagner, who has owned and operated a family farm in Seneca County for more than 25 years, has a cumulative pro-business voting record of 97 percent during his time in the Ohio House.

OHIO HOUSE DISTRICT 90 – TOM WHISTON (R-Mt. Gilead)
Whiston, a pharmacist and owner of Whiston Pharmacy in Mt. Gilead, has 25 years of business experience. The Ohio House will benefit greatly from the kind of knowledge and private sector experience that he possesses.

The Ohio Chamber has been the voice in Columbus for business for more than a century, aggressively championing free enterprise, economic competitiveness and growth for the benefit of all Ohioans. Chamber members include thousands of individual job providers that are the economic engine for Ohio's communities, schools and families.

Rabenold Makes It Official

Politics Extra has the news that John Rabenold (R-Cash'n'Go) has filed his petitions to run for the 35th District of the Ohio House.

It appears that Rabenold has spent some of that fat cash he's been collecting on his website. It looks really good and has some content worth looking at...clearly Team Rabenold listened to us when they met with us back in the day.

One interesting thing to note is that Rabenold appears to no longer work for Cash'n'Go. His website bio page lists him as a Vice President & Spokesperson for Corporate Strategies Consulting LLC. Of course, at the bottom of the page that same company is listed with his position as "President" so who really knows what John is actually doing. I did a Google search on the company and came up with zip, nada, zero...which seems rather...odd...

I'd love to hear from Team Rabenold if they would like to add anything to the record here...

NOTE: Yes, I know it's Check'n'Go.....

Ohio House - 35th District Update

There is a new player entering the field and his name is Ron Maag. Maag touts an impressive list of endorsements including:

Citizens for Legal Communities
Sheriff Si Leis, Hamilton Co. Sheriff
Sheriff Tom Ariss, Warren Co. Sheriff
Sheriff Richard Jones, Butler Co. Sheriff
David Miller, Republican State Central Committeeman, Hamilton Co.
Prosecutor Rachel Hutzel, Warren Co. Prosecutor
Commissioner Pat South, Warren Co.
Commissioner Mike Kilburn, Warren Co.
Jim Aumann, Warren Co. Treasurer
Beth Deckard, Warren Co. Recorder
Neil Tunison, Warren Co. Engineer
Nick Nelson, Warren Co. Auditor
Former State Rep. George Terwilleger
Mayor Amy Brewer, Lebanon
Dr. Jeff Monroe, Lebanon City Council
Mayor Cheryl Davidson, Corwin
David Fornshell, Vice Chair Warren Co. Republican Party
Lori Viars, pro-life leader
Mike Geygan, business leader
Roseann Siderits, conservative leader
Maynard & Stella Hagemeyer, Republican leaders

There are some powerhouse names there! There is also one name that the insiders will recognize as one that will cause me to look at this candidate very hard. No, I won't reveal which name it is...

It appears that the race wasn't complicated enough and a third candidate was needed. Eric Minamyer was wounded by having lost his trustee seat to a John Rabenhold sock puppet. And Rabenhold is still a lobbyist for Check'n'Go who is racking in the fat cat dough.

Initial analysis: This is good news for Rabenhold unless Minamyer drops out and supports Maag. Why? Because at this point, it appears as if Rabenhold holds all the cash cards... This will be DeWine vs. Pierce vs. That Other Guy all over again. The anti-Rabenhold vote is going to have to solidify around a single candidate if they wish to take him out here and now. The only strategy that I can think of that would overcome the war chest that Rabenhold has gathered is destroyed by having the vote split in a multi-candidate race. If that holds, then the guy with the cash wins...

HT: Bizzy via email...but look for NixGuy to have something to say on this too at some point.

Rabenold Sock Puppet Beck Defeats Minamyer in Symmes Twp.

This result is interesting because there are implications for the 35th District Ohio House race...

Phil Beck: 1540 - 52%

Eric Minamyer: 934 - 31%

Mike Howell: 473 -16%

If this result is any indication of how Minamyer will be received across the district, then we might as well get used to the idea of State Rep. John Rabenold (R-Check'n'Go).

The strategy against Minamyer was to paint him as arrogant and not receptive to constituent input. And it appears to have worked. Team Minamyer can look forward to similar tactics employed by Team Rabenold from here on in...and if they hope to win, they need a counter-argument that goes beyond Check'n'Go.

Minamyer still looks like a great candidate on paper. The question now is whether or not he can rebound from this setback.

Minamyer Wins OEC Complaint

Wilkinson also has this tidbit today:

The Ohio Elections Commission on Thursday found Symmes Township trustee candidate Phil Beck violated election laws.

After hearing a complaint filed against Beck by opponent Eric Minamyer Thursday (Nov. 1), the commission decided Beck had knowingly made a false statement against Minamyer.

The commission decided declaring Beck in violation was penalty enough in this complaint.

Beck claimed that if Minamyer becomes a state representative - a position Minamyer has said he plans to pursue next year - it would cost the residents of Symmes Township $30,000 for a special election to fill his vacancy on the Board of Trustees. Trustee races, however, do not require special elections.

The false claim was broadcast on a local public access channel.

Beck admitted to the error, and said he tried to make up for his mistake in a guest editorial in the Community Press and at a public candidates forum.

This is Beck's first time running for public office. He said he thinks this violation will not affect his campaign.

The interesting thing about this race is that there is a theory floating around that Beck is being supported, directly or indirectly, by Minamyer's opponent for the 35th Ohio House seat, John Rabenold. Now that is totally rumor at this point, but if you start looking at the circumstancial evidence, things start not looking real good for the anti-Minamyer crowd.

Minamyer to Have Competition for His Symmes Trustee Seat

From the Community Press:

Local architect Phil Beck moved to Symmes in 2000 and is a Navy reservist and an Iraq war veteran. He said his run for trustee is fueled by his enjoyment of community service and his abilities as a problem-solver.

Beck said he hopes to use those abilities to work on regional issues, such as traffic congestion in the area, and the continued development of township parks.

He says he also represents a change in the leadership style that the trustees are currently under.

"I want people to know that and they will when I meet them," Beck said.

Camp Dennison resident Mike Howell said he decided to run to broaden the choices of voters going to the ballot box Nov. 6. He said his priorities if elected would be to create a recreational center in Symmes, possibly with the help of a neighboring community; the development of the Rozzi's property into a multi-functional park, and the creation of more smaller, neighborhood parks.

Howell, a lifelong resident, said he's been involved with township government for about 20 years. He was on the Symmes safety committee until it disbanded in 2002, and says some of his attempts to get on other committees have been met with political backlash.

"Being a trustee is one way I can serve people and not have to worry about being on a committee," Howell said.

This subject came up when Mr. Minamyer met with a few members of the State of Ohio Blogger Alliance a few weeks ago. He's staying on his message:

Minamyer, a 12-year incumbent, said despite his plans to run for the 35th District seat in the Ohio House of Representatives in 2008, he's hoping to retain his seat because he's got unfinished business in Symmes.

"There's still a lot I'm working on that won't be done," he said.

It is going to be up to the voters as to whether or not they can go along with this:

Minamyer said he believes voters will support his plans to possibly leave township government in favor of the house of representatives because of his 12-year commitment to Symmes and his honesty in announcing his candidacy for the state house so early in the process.

I can't speak for anybody other than myself, but when I heard this at the Alliance meeting I wasn't overly convinced that this wasn't about having a fallback position in case he loses the Ohio House race.

I want to go back to something that Mr. Beck is quoted as saying:

He says he also represents a change in the leadership style that the trustees are currently under.

"I want people to know that and they will when I meet them," Beck said.

Now, I find this very interesting. How widespread is this impression of Mr. Minamyer and his fellow colleagues on the Symmes Township Board of Trustees??? It does sort of tie in with one of the weaknesses that I identified earlier:

There are times when you can really tell that Mr. Minamyer has served in the United States Navy for 30+ years achieving high rank. A few times while answering questions from the committee, the atmosphere became a little adversarial (some "blame" for this can be placed on the nature of the inquisition). I would not characterize the session as being remotely hostile; maybe he had an "off day" because previous exposure to Minamyer has been very positive.

Minamyer has a clear passion for politics and has command of the issues effecting the region, but there are hurdles that must be cleared...this is one of them.

35th District - Ohio House Update

A small group from the State of Ohio Blogger Alliance had an opportunity to meet with Eric Minamyer yesterday. Later that afternoon, Mark and I had a chat with John Rabenold. Both are pretty good candidates but for different reasons.

Eric Minamyer's Strengths

He's a policy wonk, pure and simple. He has great command of the details of most issues and is pretty quick to fire off a statistic or three. He received high marks for vision and platform demonstrating a pretty clear agenda that he wants to accomplish if elected.

Minamyer has a solid resume with real political experience in elected office. As head of the Symmes Township Board of Trustees, Eric has directly made a significant contribution to his community. He also previously served on the local school board.

Eric Minamyer's Weaknesses

There are times when you can really tell that Mr. Minamyer has served in the United States Navy for 30+ years achieving high rank. A few times while answering questions from the committee, the atmosphere became a little adversarial (some "blame" for this can be placed on the nature of the inquisition). I would not characterize the session as being remotely hostile; maybe he had an "off day" because previous exposure to Minamyer has been very positive.

John Rabenold's Strengths

He's a smooth political operative. What Rabenold lacks in experience he has in polish. I found John to be very personable and likable. If electability becomes a factor in this race, John should do very well. [8/20 UPDATE:] The fundraising race appears in Rabenold's favor as well, at least at this point anyway.

John Rabenold's Weaknesses

Mr. Rabenold appears not to have given just a whole lot of thought in to what he'd like to accomplish if he won the election. While we appreciate that Team Rabenold is focused on the primary, the ultimate goal is to get a representative to the state legislature that has an agenda that rflects the will of the district.

This is Rabenold's first run for elected office. While he has sufficent experience with the Ohio Senate (he was an aide to a couple of key players), he has never had to face the electorate. Furthermore, Rabenold appeared to be more "in love" with the process rather than the actual results.

Recommendation

I'm sure we'll have plenty of opportunity to engage both of these gentlemen again as this race heats up; but at the moment, I feel as if Eric Minamyer's ideas are more in line with what we need in the Ohio House of Representatives. However, should John Rabenold win the primary, the district will still be served very well. These are two very different candidates and either one of them would be acceptable at this point.

8/20 Update

NixGuy's post reminds me of an important issue that I failed to include in the discussion of Rabenold: Check'nGo. Rabenold has indicated that he would recuse himself from any legislation that would directly benefit the company for which he works. That position is fairly reassuring; but as we learn more and more about how the company is diversifying in to other issues, the list of legislative issues for which he would have to skip grows. I would have to include alternative energy, among others, on the list of subjects that I would expect Rabenold to consult with the ethics committee and the counsel's office on before voting.

Minamyer for State Rep.

Well, Tom Blumer is off the hook...

On the show last night, Tom reported that there was a dude running for the 35th District that was a lobbyist for the pay day lending industry and Mark and I immediately asked if Tom was announcing his candidacy on TIB Radio...

Tom emailed me this morning to say that Eric Minamyer has indeed already announced his candidacy for this seat so Tom will not have to run.

We got to know Eric a bit when he ran against Jean Schmidt in the special election to replace Rob Portman. He is extremely capable and just the sort of man we could use in Columbus.

The seat he is running for is currently occupied by the term limited Michelle Schneider.