Anyone who has followed some of my diatribes know that I am currently working on the Reform Ohio Now Initiatives. One of these, Issue 4 is an amendment to end gerrymandering.
Anyone who has seen Ohio's congressional map (or state Rep and Senate for that matter) will know that political horse trading and GOP power plays have rendered Democracy dead in Ohio.
There are no competitive races. No one has to worry, No one has to campaign. They can just sit back and watch the dollars roll in while they get down to the real business - Pay for Play.
If folks think the current coin gate scandals are going to turn the tide and sweep Democrats into power they are mistaken
In a
wall street journal poll Blackwell leads Strickland within the margin of error.
12 months is a long time to distance ones self from Taft and the culture of corruption, and Blackwell has the fundie backing locked up.
Now Ted Stricland wasn't everyones first choice to run for Governor. A US Congressman whose name has been splattered all over the blogs these last few days was. Sherrod Brown.
U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland of Lucasville said Tuesday he will not seek the Democratic nomination for Ohio governor in 2006.
Strickland called other potential Democratic candidates "highly qualified," but said his favored candidate would be U.S. Rep. Sherrod Brown.
Among other Democrats still considering whether to run are Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman, Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic, State Sen. Eric Fingerhut, former Attorney General Lee Fisher and television and radio host Jerry Springer.
Stricland stepped out thinking Brown was getting in. Sound familiar ?
How about this ?
UNDATED -- Ohio Congressman Sherrod Brown, a former secretary of state, is expected to announce Tuesday he won't seek the Democratic nomination for governor next year.
Several party leaders say Brown has indicated he'll instead run for re-election to a seventh two-year term in Congress.
High-ranking Democrats in Ohio and Washington have urged the 52-year-old Brown, of Lorain, to run for governor or against Republican Senator Mike DeWine.
This isn't the first time Brown has blustered. When his district was under threat of being eliminated he suddenly grew some political courage to step out from his safe seat and cry.
U.S. Rep. Sherrod Brown of Lorain -- the Democrat most Republicans want to render district-less -- has an unexpected savior. If the GOP eliminates his district, Brown says he will run for governor. Taft wants to make sure that doesn't happen.
So he has beseeched legislative leaders to craft a redistricting plan "that would allow Sherrod Brown to run for re-election to Congress,'' Householder said.
That was 2002. He didnt' run once the Republicans made him safe. Nice for him, bad for Ohio. Taft went on to beat the liberal Haggen badly - with Republicans holding their noses in the process.
So we have the first two instances of Brown shying from the fight. It wasn't to be the last.
As you have read above he was being asked to run for Senate once he turned down the Gov race - this May just gone. He did nothing. We had no Senate candidate to challenge the endangered DeWine.
then something remarkable finally happened in Ohio. Major Paul Hackett emerged after bloodying the RNC and Jean Schmitt in the OH-2 special election. Suddenly people were beginning to think perhaps Paul could be the guy. If he could run them within an inch of their life in the second he could sweep Ohio with the right support.
Hackett waited in deferecne to Brown and Tim Ryan who had expressed an interest in running. Ryan first, then Brown declined the offers.
Hackett was in. Meeting folks in DC, organizing his team and lining up donors.
Now Brown changes his mind and wants back in.
So what does this mean ? It's not the first time Brown has waffled. that was in 2002 when his distrcit was in jeopardy. It's not the second time he flip flopped that was in May when he decided again not to run for Governor.
His final flip flop and crass political move came today.
Brown has shown through his political actions he is a weak candidate, always seeking the safe ground, never risking it for the people of Ohio - instead letting other do the heavy lifting.
Only now that others have helped implode the Ohio GOP Culture of corruption does Brown see his opportunity.
If you want further evidence of his weakness look no further than the questionnaire he filled in for 2004.
Should the US withdraw its troops from Iraq ? NO ANSWER
Should the US Support the creation of a palestinian state - NO ANSWER.
In fact he replies NO ANSWER to each of the most important international questions of the day.
Brown can afford to take his liberal positions sitting in his nice gerrymandered seat - gerrymandered especially for him. But each and every time he has been asked to step up and take a risk, to fight he declined.
Oh, and all that money he can raise - he is #7 on the top list of folks taking cash from the accounting industry according to open secrets via PBS Frontline Step away little fella - the big boys are paying for it.
Can you really trust Brown to be there when the going gets tough ? His actions tell me we cannot. Not unless he sits in his safe district.
Update [2005-10-6 22:43:32 by Pounder]:This is the kind of advice Brown is getting
Dewine has $7M and a script of Hackett calling Bush a "son of a bitch." Heck, even a nimrod could turn that into a serious definitional problem for Hackett right off the bat
Now consider that as you see this poll
Bush approval ratings, Overall:
Approve 37 (41)
Disapprove 58 (53)
Republicans
Approve 79
Disapprove 13
Don't attack the President who is in free fall.