It's the old saying that if you see one roach there's a thousand more nearby. Well three recent roach (Republican) sightings in NorthEast Ohio tell me that Ohio is not out of the Roach Motel zone yet.
In a typical Republican dirty trick, last minute filings by 6 Republican women to run as Independents in a race for Cuyahoga Falls Municipal Court Clerk were prepared by the local GOP headquarters. The Republican candidate is a man and the Democratic incumbent is a woman, Lisa Zeno Carano. And like Ms. Carno most of the 6 newly minted Independents have a three word name. Summit County Election Board split on party line vote whether the "Independents" will stay on the ballot. Sect. of State Jennifer Brunner (D) will cast the tie-breaker.
In a move reminiscent of phone bank jamming by Republicans, all of the Democratic Statewide office holders received requests for hundreds of thousands of public records from a summer intern working in Republican headquarters in Akron. Those that have to be reviewed because of confidentiality issues are estimated to require at least 2 to 3 person-years in state paid time although the copy charges will be 5 cents a page. Now the executive director of the Republican Party is threatening to file a law suit because they say the response is too slow. Only one Republican was left holding State wide office after the sweep last November. She did not receive a request for records.
Finally, the GOP honcho and newly appointed head of the Cuyahoga Board of Elections (includes Cleveland)is running a petition drive to ask the Republican Majority State Legislature to ask the US House of Representatives kick out Dennis Kucinich. The charges being that Kucinich is running a hopeless campaign for President; that he is a looney left winger and is somehow traitorous because of his criticism of Bush's policies while visiting Syria. Even the conservative Plain Dealer said these charges carry less weight than the Olsen twins.
I am sure there are more roaches where these guys came from.