A special election in August unlikely

April 3, 2023

There is a movement among a number of Republicans in the General Assembly to put a state constitutional amendment on a special Aug. 8 ballot to require future amendments to get at least 60 percent of the vote, rather than a simply majority, to win approval. While the bill is moving quickly in the state Senate and likely will pass there, passage appears less certain in the Ohio House as Speaker Jason Stephens, R-Kitts Hill, doesn’t favor putting that measure on a special August ballot. But he hasn’t ruled it out. The Legislature in December voted to eliminate special August ...

Norfolk Southern CEO consistently noncommittal

March 27, 2023

During two U.S. Senate committee hearings, Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw has remained consistent: he’s sorry for the Feb. 3 derailment that caused the release of toxic chemicals in East Palestine, his company will “make it right” and he supports some rail reforms to make sure a similar incident doesn’t occur again. Also consistent is his reluctance to commit to specifics. U.S. Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., aggressively questioned Shaw on Thursday as part of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. He became so frustrated with Shaw’s answers that at one point ...

Opponents seeking to derail Vance bill

March 20, 2023

During his testimony in front of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works about the East Palestine rail disaster, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance touted his bipartisan Railway Safety Act of 2023 and vowed to fight for it even though it faces opposition from fellow Republicans. It didn’t take long for a group of Republican organizations to come out strongly against the proposal. In an open letter to Congress intended to influence Republican members, leaders of 18 conservative groups urged the bill be rejected. The letter reads: “The legislation offers a slew of significant ...

Brown, Vance find common ground

March 14, 2023

When Republican Rob Portman represented Ohio in the U.S. Senate, there weren’t many national issues where he and U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, found common ground. There were some, such as supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia and the infrastructure bill. But the two worked well together on issues important to Ohio. It was uncertain whether Brown would forge a similar relationship with Republican J.D. Vance, who succeeded Portman. After all, Vance said he opposed the infrastructure bill and questioned U.S. help for Ukraine. Brown, a liberal, and Vance, a ...

Derailment and its aftermath bring politics to East Palestine

March 4, 2023

The well-being of East Palestine residents after a horrific train derailment and attempts to get the Columbiana County village back to some sense of normalcy should be top priority. But the Feb. 3 derailment and aftermath that included releasing toxic chemicals — and the response to the issues — has turned this situation into a game of political gotcha for some. It’s also resulted in politicians on both ends of the political spectrum pointing fingers at each other. East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway told the media Feb. 22: “We’re a small community. We don’t want the media ...

Redistricting? DeWine has no choice about it

February 27, 2023

When it comes to redistricting, Gov. Mike DeWine is clear he wants nothing to do with it, but the fact is he has no choice. DeWine sits on the seven-member Ohio Redistricting Commission that will convene at some point this year to approve state legislative maps and possibly a congressional map. The state Legislature gets the first opportunity, if it chooses, to create a congressional map. The redistricting commission consists of five Republicans — DeWine, Secretary of State Frank LaRose, Auditor Keith Faber and one appointee each from the Ohio House and Senate — as well as two ...