Merry Christmas

Democrat(ic) Money Burn: Strickland Budget Style

The Democrats passed a budget fix in Columbus yesterday that raises your taxes. Most disappointing is that they did this with the help of a few Republicans. Only a few, though. EVERY single Democrat in both chambers of the legislature voted for this "fix" which is hardly a "fix" of anything other than continuing the tax and spend policies of the Democratic Party. I am proud of the strong majority of Republicans who voted to protect taxpayers.

Want to know the best (or worst) part? The Columbus Dispatch reports, " Income-tax withholdings in 2009 were set assuming the income tax cut would remain, so most taxpayers have withheld too little, meaning they will owe money to the state or get smaller-than-expected refunds when they file returns in the first quarter of 2010." This means Ted Strickland and his Democratic colleagues have made it so that most Ohioans will have to send a check to their state government this year so that Turnaround Ted can continue to kill jobs and make Ohio the least business-friendly state in America.

While I and others are disappointed in the few Republicans who signed-up for this misguided legislation, I am very proud of the strong majority of Republicans who stood for taxpayers. Our candidate for Governor, John Kasich, made the following statement:

"As I have traveled the state over the past three years, it has been clear to me that the people of Ohio understand that raising taxes is counter-productive to job creation and economic growth. The most prosperous states are the ones that are constantly reforming and restructuring, and not raising taxes.

"Today’s agreement is strictly stopgap, and turns a blind eye to the massive shortfalls we will face during the next budget cycle. We better have new leadership and new ideas in place by then. Our state’s future depends on it."

"For far too long Ohio has been stuck in a cycle of tax and spend. Hard choices continue to be pushed off to another day. And today, with this agreement between the Governor and the legislature, we are continuing the cycle and culture of tax and spend. It is a cycle I intend to break."

Governing during a period of economic downturn is difficult. Elected officials everywhere face the challenge of funding the basic operations of government while not asking the beleaguered taxpayers for more money. It is a significant challenge.

John Kasich's message about "breaking the cycle" is almost revolutionary. John Kasich will re-invent state government making Ohio more business-friendly and put faith back in the free market and in the people--not in government. Having gotten to hear John's message and getting to know him some, I have no doubt that he will be a transformational figure for our great state.

Sunday, etc.

We've been ignoring the blog some lately. Sorry to my two loyal readers. I was out of action last week, but ready to get back to things this week.

And...

The above picture is from Corfu, Greece. On a typical, gray, gloomy Cincinnati December day, I thought it made the most sense. And I couldn't find a Democrat to bash this morning. Correction: I could, but chose not to. There's plenty of time for that.

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Do you want to be a candidate for Judge in Hamilton County? Let us know by contacting Maggie Wuellner at 513-381-5454. Our screening committee is seeking candidates for every judicial opening. This will be a great year to run for Judge under the GOP banner.

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Interested in running for State Representative? We are screening candidates for House Districts 31 (Denise Driehaus), 32 (Dale Mallory) and 33 (Tyrone Yates). Let us know if you have an interest in any of these races!

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It is always great to be invited to so many Christmas gatherings this time of year and the GOP groups certainly know how to have great parties. I just wish I could make them all.

And...

I have blogged about this before, but I'm going to repeat myself. The fundamental difference between the two parties (on economics) in the United States is how they view the role of government. Democrats believe that government ought to be part of the marketplace and have greater control over our lives. Republicans believe that government ought to stay out of the way of citizens and let them have greater control over their own affairs without government help or interference. The failure of President Obama's economic plan to create jobs is the best evidence of the failure of their plan. Government should create an environment for business to grow and create jobs. The Democrats just have it all wrong. And America pays the price.

And...

Speaker Gingrich spoke to several hundred people downtown a couple of weeks ago. I had the privilege of speaking with him and introducing him at his Town Hall forum. He is a brilliant man. I took away one great message that night. The Speaker started his remarks by illustrating how America has fallen away from promoting personal responsibility. He did it in an interesting way. He said to the listeners, please finish my sentence , "If you can't AFFORD A HOUSE..." Then, the audience, over 500 strong, finished his sentence, "Don't BUY a house." We've lost sight of this in America. President Clinton and his liberal allies socially engineered it so that "every American could enjoy the dream of home ownership" and pushed lending institutions into making bad loans. Lending institutions are partly to blame for making these loans, but they needed to stay competitive because government was pushing these low-interest loans. The resulting credit bubble burst killing the economy and creating a massive recession. A disaster.

And...

Bengals beat the Vikes today, 17-14.

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That little Xavier progr'm gets beat by the angry Bearcats tonight, too.

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Have a great week.

Hamilton County Welcomes Speaker Gingrich

Hamilton County is pleased to welcome Speaker Newt Gingrich for his "Real Jobs Summit" in Cincinnati tonight at the Hilton Netherland Hotel at 6:30 p.m. The doors open at 5:45 p.m.

I am honored to be serving as emcee for this event and I hope to see many of our great GOP friends there tonight. Click on the above image for more information about American Solutions, Speaker Gingrich's group.

The Surge II

President Obama sounded like President Bush last night. The President is advocating a "surge" of troops in Afghanistan much like President Bush did in Iraq. The Nobel Peace Prize winner has decided to seriously escalate the conflict in Afghanistan and grow our troop presence to over 100,000.

It is nice to see the President finally acknowledge the success of President Bush's war policy. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery.

Here is a comparison of President Bush's remarks and President Obama's:

Obama: "We Did Not Ask for This Fight"
Bush: "We Did Not Seek This Conflict"
Obama: "New Attacks are Being Plotted as I Speak"
Bush: "At This Moment ... Terrorists are Planning New Attacks"
Obama: "Our Cause is Just, Our Resolve Unwavering"
Bush: "Our Cause is Just, Our Coalition [is] Determined"
Obama: "This Is No Idle Danger, No Hypothetical Threat"
Bush: "The Enemies of Freedom Are Not Idle"
Obama: "We Have No Interest in Occupying Your Country"
Bush: "I Wouldn't Be Happy if I Were Occupied Either"

I certainly didn't do the work of finding these quotes. Guess who did? Michael Moore! Check out his website to see how livid the left is with the President.

In the end, the President is trying to have it both ways because he's trying to fudge how this plays on the left. That will not work. We'll see.

Conservative Democrat? Hardly.

Commissioner Pepper, a Democrat running for a statewide position, has tried to sell himself to the voters as a conservative Democrat who is fiscally responsible. He needs to try harder.

Let me explain. Here are Commissioner Pepper's own words written on his blog one year ago. (Check out the full blog posting here)

A decade ago, as part of the vote on whether to raise the sales tax 1/2 cent to pay for the new stadiums, the citizens were made a clear promise: that 30% of the receipts from the new sales tax would be returned to them through a property tax rebate (the "PTR").

This was a clear commitment made prior to the citizens' vote.

And with that commitment publicly made, and about 60% voting yes, the citizens indeed authorized taxing themselves an additional 1/2 cent to pay for the stadiums/riverfront, and to pay for the PTR that would be returned to them. Just like the promise was clear, the citizens' mandate was equally clear.

And it goes on...

In that light, I consider any move to divert dollars from the PTR to be a deeply illegitimate act. It lacks fundamental integrity....When that has occurred, as their elected representatives, we have no discretion or authority whatsoever but to implement and adhere to their decision faithfully. This is particularly true when citizens have consented to put more of their dollars into government for a specific purpose....To violate those orders now would fundamentally breach our mandate at a time when citizens already have lost so much faith in government.

Mr. Pepper flip-flopped and, in his own words, "fundamentally breached a mandate from the citizens."

The facts on this issue are very clear. The voters were promised a property tax rebate if they consented to a 1/2 cent sales tax increase. Mr. Peppers is prepared to break that promise. A vote to deny the rollback is worse than an un-voted tax increase. It is a vote for a tax increase when a tax rebate was the specific mandate of the people! Only Democrats have the audacity to raise your taxes when you have specifically told them not to do so!

Flip-flopping in politics seems to always work against the taxpayers. Politicians change their minds only when it seems to benefit government and not the taxpayers.

Mr. Pepper voted to raise taxes and violate a commitment to the voters that he recognized a year ago as an "illegitimate act."

The citizens of Hamilton County and Ohio deserve better.

$100,000.00, etc.

Democratic Commissioners Portune and Pepper have authorized the creation of a new position of an "Energy Czar" in Hamilton County. They authorized a salary of $100,000.00 for this new position. Democrats growing the size of government and wasting your money is not new. Will they raise your taxes to pay for this kind of ridiculous waste of money? Stay tuned.

And...

We are pleased to welcome Gov. Palin to Cincinnati today.

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One local media outlet described Gov. Palin as a "political celebrity." Is that fair? She is former Governor of our biggest state and the vice presidential nominee of a major political party. Is Jesse Jackson a "political celebrity?" Is Geraldine Ferraro a "political celebrity?" How about Newt Gingrich? It demeans her to call her a "political celebrity" instead of giving her credit for her accomplishments as a governor and national leader for the GOP. I'm just sayin'...

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Joe Lieberman is an American hero.

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Amy Murray finished 12th in her run for Cincinnati City Council surpassing Kevin Flynn in the final official tally of votes. This comes as no surprise to those of us who watched this impressive, upstart GOP candidate for council. Her future is bright. Her Friday is even brighter. She gets to have lunch with me today!

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Do you read the local Business Courier? You should. The Courier is a great local media outlet and has become a "must read" for me on the web. They have terrific stories about Cincinnati without some of the fluff required in regular news outlets. I urge you to visit by clicking here.

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I could write an entire blog post on my next subject: the Obama Administration's decision to try Khalid Sheik Mohammed in a civilian court in New York City. Maybe I will. Let's just say that the decision is outrageous and bordering on dangerous. Liberals are bad at lots of things. They are particularly bad at waging war against Islamic fanatics who have a mission to destroy our society and culture by slaughtering innocent people.

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I took some shots at the Mayor on this blog during the election. I'll say something nice today. I thought he did the right thing by showing up at the police shooting earlier in the week. It sends the right message to see him out there with the police. Let's hope he succeeds over the next four years so that our city can continue to grow into the world class place it can be.

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Our judicial screening committee is meeting for informal talks about the judicial elections of 2010. Are you interested in running for judge with the GOP endorsement? Let us know ASAP!

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The Enquirer blog reports that Commissioner Portune may have spoken to failed Gov. Strickland about running as his Lieutenant Governor. Commissioner Portune would be joining the failed governor on his failing campaign. Is that a good idea?

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The John Kasich team had a meeting of regional leaders earlier this week. Everyone left the meeting impressed with the organization and energy behind the campaign. John Kasich is an unconventional candidate for unconventional times. He is a visionary government leader who understands the real challenges faced by Ohioans. He will be the next governor.

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I'm looking forward to visiting with friends at the Western Economic Council this morning. I will be appearing with Chairman Tim Burke to discuss Election 2009 and to look forward to ED2010. The WEC is a strong group of west side business leaders and I always enjoy the banter with Chairman Burke.

And...

A Fox News Opinion Dynamics Poll shows Gov. Palin's approval rating at 47%. Speaker Pelosi's is 28%. Would you know this from the mainstream media? Speaker Pelosi has similar approval ratings to President Bush. Has the coverage of Speaker Pelosi's abysmal approval rating been as widespread as the hatred spewed at President Bush? Would one know that Palin is nearly twice as popular as Pelosi?

And...

Judge Bernie Bouchard had UC QB Zach Collaros in his courtroom this week. As expected, Judge Bouchard handled the case with professionalism and dignity. Good job, Judge.

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I'll be car shopping this weekend. And watching football.

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Have a great weekend!

Democratic Money Burn: Hamilton County Cap & Tax

The two Democrats who run the County Commission are at it again. They are wasting your money.

In a move firmly opposed by Greg Hartmann, these two Commissioners have decided to grow the county bureaucracy and proactively support “Cap and Trade” with federal stimulus dollars locally. Hamilton County received $4.7 million in "energy efficiency" stimulus dollars.

The two Democrats voted to spend this money to create more bureaucracy and to grow the size of government by creating a new countywide position in the form of an “Energy Czar.” This newly created position is expected to make around $100,000.00 per year. At a time where county government is being slashed and countless county employees have been laid off, the Democrats have found it within their means to make this new hire into county government. It is irresponsible. But not surprising. 



It seems the Commissioners both got a little riled up at Commissioner Hartmann for calling it a “mini-Cap and Trade” proposal. Why are these two politicians so afraid of the assertion that these funds are associated with Cap and Trade? Because Cap and Trade could not be more unpopular in Ohio and across the nation and they both know it. These two Democrats are avoiding the truth.



The money the two Democrats authorized to be spent creates a vehicle for Hamilton County government to legitimize, participate in and allow profit to be realized from federal Cap and Trade policies. Commissioners Pepper and Portune are utilizing public funds to tell Hamilton County businesses to both manage emissions AND agree to participate in carbon trading. Sounds like a "mini" version of Cap and Trade to me!

Carbon credit trading is the foundation that Cap and Trade is built upon and the carbon credit trading that Commissioner Pepper and Commissioner Portune supported on Monday would be utilized by businesses being burdened by Cap and Trade. These carbon credit dollars would become part of a proliferating regulatory burden on business in America. Commissioner Hartmann rejected that. Democrat Commissioners Pepper and Portune supported it. 



In the context of the debate on Cap and Trade, it is important to note that economists don’t believe that carbon trading helps to reduce pollution in the long run, since businesses that don't pollute simply sell their energy conservation to the HIGHEST BIDDER. Cap and Trade, or what Republican leaders in Congress call “Cap & Tax”:

1. is expansive government regulation
2. doesn’t effectively reduce carbon emissions
3. costs businesses more money to comply with more regulation
4. kills jobs.

It's as simple as that.



We should be pleased that Commissioner Hartmann stood up against expanded government and bureaucratic regulation that will hurt businesses in Hamilton County. The two Democrats are playing political games by denying the fact that these funds legitimize the federal Cap and Trade proposal. They know how politically charged (and unpopular) that program is. Of course, its no surprise that Mr. Pepper was particularly sensitive about Greg Hartmann’s assertion on Cap and Trade. He’s running for statewide office and is scared of being painted as a big government liberal. It is tough to hide from the truth.