Resistance Forming to Kasich's Medicaid Expansion

A well placed source informed me today that a group was planning to have a discussion with leadership of the Ohio House tonight regarding their intent to oppose the Medicaid expansion requested by Governor Kasich in his proposed budget.

This is great news. As a fiscal conservative, I welcome the state legislators to this fight and hope that there are enough of these brave souls willing to take on their governor to matter.

It is bad enough that this budget increases government spending by 10%; but if it passes, our governor will have allowed government spending to increase by 24% since taking office. This Medicaid expansion relies on a two-year bribe by the federal government with absolutely no answer as to who will be paying for the expansion after that. There was a time when Kasich and his secret society of smart dudes made fun of former Governer Ted Strickland for such maneuvers. I'll remind the governor that it is exactly this sort of risky venture that sent this state's finances plunging in to an $8 billion abyss.

Earlier today, it was reported that Josh Mandel has come out against the expansion. The Ohio Liberty Coalition has issued a warning that legislators who vote for it may be facing primary challengers. AFP-Ohio's Seth Morgan doesn't seem to be a fan either. Americans for Limited Government says Kasich "cut and ran" and that going along with the expansion would waste $17 billion.

If there is a conservative organization out there that supports this move at all, you can't find them with a search warrant. I have had a few conversations on Facebook with center-right legislators and none of them have shown any enthusiasm at all for the proposal.

PREDICTION: The Medicaid expansion gets pulled out of the budget.

DEVELOPING

Perrysburg Police Arrest Four with Stolen Romney Signs

Release:

Columbus, Ohio - The Ohio Liberty Coalition today released a police report from the arrest at 1:00 AM Friday morning by the Perrysburg Police Department of four males, driving in a Ford F-150 Pickup that was filled with stolen Romney campaign signs. The truck’s owner is the Sheet Metal Workers International, Union Local 33 in Parma, OH. Many of the stolen signs were believed to have been put up by members of the Northwest Ohio Conservative Coalition according to John McAvoy the President of the Group.

McAvoy described the situation as it was reported to him "This morning 4 men driving a pickup truck registered to the Sheet Metal Union, Local 33 were arrested and charged with receiving stolen property - in the form of a bed full of Romney/Ryan yard signs, some measuring as large as 4'x8'. Also in the truck were tools such as drills, which were possibly used to take the large signs down. The signs were allegedly removed from several private property and business locations across Lucas and Wood County."

He continued by adding "We find it unfortunate that the Sheet Metal Union is involved in such low behavior and actively suppressing freedom of speech during such an important election. We hope the news media will investigate. Wide reports of Romney signs being stolen have been an issue for many weeks, but this is the first we've heard of anyone being caught."

Tom Zawistowski, President of the Ohio Liberty Coalition, added "This has been a serious issue all election season all over Ohio. What we have seen is not random theft of a few signs here and there, but instead a literal clensing of entire areas of signs. That has to be planned and executed by someone who has no respect for the law or for free speech." Zawistowski concluded by saying "In Portage County, we had gotten advance notice that lots of signs were going to be taken last night and sure enough entire streets of signs were missing this morning. Most of which were on private property and many that were not near the road. It will be interesting to learn from the investigation if those caught in Perrysburg were being paid by the Union while they were taking the signs. Our member groups will not hesitate to prosecute individuals who are caught taking signs and we encourage anyone that has a sign stolen to file a police report."

The Ohio Liberty Coalition is a coalition of Ohio Liberty Groups whose purpose is to unite conservative grassroots organizations for greater effectiveness in the state and nation, and to provide resources for member organizations to strengthen their groups. The OLC currently has over 75 liberty-minded groups across Ohio who are members of its coalition.

OLC: Rejects Supreme Court Ruling

Release:

Columbus, Ohio - The Ohio Liberty Coalition rejected the decision announced today by the US Supreme Court upholding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which was passed by Congress and signed by President Obama in 2010. Ohio Liberty Coalition President Tom Zawistowski said, “The Supreme Court has ruled that the law is legal, that does not mean that the law is right or what the American people want. Our course is now crystal clear. Our only recourse is through the election process, which is why our movement is committed to winning the presidential race and senate races in Ohio. Governor Romney has made it clear that, if elected, he would repeal the bill. That is what we want and therefore it is up to us to convince our fellow Ohioans to vote for conservative candidates in November. Our future as a nation is in our own hands and I am confident that the citizens of Ohio, and of our nation, will make their opinions clear at the ballot box in November."

The Ohio Liberty Coalition is a coalition of Ohio Liberty Groups whose purpose is to unite conservative grassroots organizations for greater effectiveness in the state and nation, and to provide resources for member organizations to strengthen their groups. The OLC currently has over 75 liberty-minded groups across Ohio who are members of its coalition.

Ohio Liberty Council on Super Senator Portman

Release:

Columbus, Ohio - The Ohio Liberty Council offered its congratulations to Ohio Senator Rob Portman yesterday on his appointment to the “Super Committee”. Ohio Liberty Council President, Tom Zawistowski, said “We have an excellent relationship with Senator Portman and we are not surprised that someone with his background would be chosen for this important position. He has been very generous in the past in giving Ohio Patriot group leaders the opportunity to communicate our positions on various issues. We expect that relationship to continue and play an important roll in this debate over how to get our nation's spending under control and gets our economy growing again. We offer Senator Portman our congratulation on his appointment.”

Over Half A Million Ohioans Reject Flawed Government Mandated Health Care

Release:

Columbus - Ohio Republican Party Chairman Kevin DeWine issued the following statement in response to today's submission, to the Ohio Secretary of State, of 546,000 signatures in support of the Health Care Freedom Amendment:

"This afternoon Ohio voters sent an unequivocal message - 546,000 voices strong - that they've seen the harmful effects of Obamacare, and government mandated health care, and they reject it," Chairman DeWine said.

"Instead of dramatically increasing the size of government with higher taxes, massive debt and job-killing mandates, Ohioans demand common sense reforms that lower costs for small businesses and families and increase access to affordable, quality health care."

"The Ohio Republican Party was pleased to partner with the Ohio Liberty Council and countless grassroots organizations to ensure that Ohioans have the opportunity to choose their own health care," Chairman DeWine concluded.

Background Information:

The Ohio Liberty Council, today, submitted over 546,000 voter signatures to the Ohio Secretary of State to place the Health Care Freedom Amendment on the November 2011 ballot. "For the past 15 months, volunteers from Ohio Tea Party groups and their allies have been gathering signatures to put a constitutional amendment before ...Organizers plan to submit petitions to Secretary of State Jon Husted today with more than 530,000 signatures from registered voters to place the amendment on the Nov. 8 ballot." (Bill Hershey, "Health Care Backers to Submit More than 500,000 Signatures," Dayton Daily News, 7/6/11)

Obamacare decreases access to affordable health care. The United States faces a daunting shortage of doctors, a problem that President Barack Obama's health-care overhaul would critically exacerbate as it seeks to provide 32 million additional people with health insurance. (Editorial, "Extreme Demand," Columbus Dispatch 6/29/11)

* "The Association of American Medical Colleges projects Obamacare will worsen physician shortages by more than 50 percent, starting in 2015. By 2020, the nation will be short 45,000 primary-care physicians and 46,000 surgeons and specialists." (Editorial, "Extreme Demand," Columbus Dispatch 6/29/11)

Rush to implementation led to a lack of preparedness. "The real problem is that the issue of doctor supply should have been studied before the health-care overhaul mandated a huge increase in demand, not after." (Editorial, "Extreme Demand," Columbus Dispatch 6/29/11)

Obamacare Places Onerous Burden on Cash-Strapped States & Businesses

Health Care Reform Killing States' Already Strapped Budgets. "States already can't win. They've been shifting funding from education, safety and all other programs to pay for their share of Medicaid and Medicare, which is often the largest chunk of a state's budget. Many states have found themselves in the position of cutting benefits for patients and lowering reimbursement rates to providers, which likely will cause more doctors to turn away Medicaid patients, as rates don't come close to covering their costs." (Editorial, "Worse and Worse," Columbus Dispatch, 6/26/11)

Study: 30 Percent of Employers Would Dump Employees into Obamacare Exchanges at Taxpayer Expense. "US health care reform sets in motion the largest change in employer-provided health benefits in the post-World War II era. While the pace and timing are difficult to predict, McKinsey research points to a radical restructuring of employer-sponsored health benefits following the 2010 passage of the Affordable Care Act." (McKinsey Quarterly Report, June 2011)

* Overall, 30 percent of employers will definitely or probably stop offering ESI in the years after 2014.

* Among employers with a high awareness of reform, this proportion increases to more than 50 percent, and upward of 60 percent will pursue some alternative to traditional ESI.

* At least 30 percent of employers would gain economically from dropping coverage even if they completely compensated employees for the change through other benefit offerings or higher salaries.

* Contrary to what many employers assume, more than 85 percent of employees would remain at their jobs even if their employer stopped offering ESI, although about 60 percent would expect increased compensation. (McKinsey Quarterly Report, June 2011)

The $450 Billion Obamacare "Glitch"

$450 Billion "Glitch" Allows Middle Class People to Get Nearly Free Insurance under Medicare. "President Barack Obama's health care law would let several million middle-class people get nearly free insurance meant for the poor, a twist government number crunchers say they discovered only after the complex bill was signed." ("Glitch in Obamacare Could Give Middle Class Insurance Coverage Intended for Poor," Associated Press, 6/21/11)