Oregonlive.com has this on the trip:
Speaking of members of Congress taking wing for far-flung destinations, it turns out that Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., is on a pretty momentous congressional trip of his own this August recess.
Walden has joined House Minority Leader John Boehner and four other members for a trip to Germany, Switzerland, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, China, and Vancouver, B.C. Walden's wife, Mylene, is accompanying him, as are the spouses of the other members. (The spouses get to fly free, but they have to pay other expenses on their own.)....
Must be nice.
* It looks like everyone wants to be the Ohio Secretary of State! Why would anyone seek this elected office? Cleveland.com explains:
.....Four people want to succeed incumbent Jennifer Brunner, who is fighting Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher for the Democratic Senate nomination. The secretary's familiar duties are to oversee elections and archive documents. Less familiar to voters is the duty prized by politicians: to help draw General Assembly districts....
....Republicans in the hunt to become the next secretary of state are state Sen. Jon Husted of suburban Dayton and former Ashtabula County Auditor Sandra O'Brien....
.... The Democratic candidates are Franklin County Commissioner Marilyn Brown and state Rep. Jennifer Garrison of Marietta....
Husted has been plagued by the fact that he does not live in his home district in Kettering but rather in Upper Arlington, Ohio. He has received thousands of dollars of political contributions from those associated with White Hat Management and the Brennan family, owners and supporters of charter schools. (http://www.sos.state.oh.us/Campaign%20Finance.aspx)
* Here in Ohio, school districts are dependent on the passage of school levies to fund their districts. As a result, when voters vote down a school levy or operating request, school children lose programs and teachers. However, the other result is that homes lose their values in that district. In a recent request for more school funds, voters have again voted down the most recent South-Western Schools levy request.
Even though the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that the way that Ohio funds public schools was unconstitutional, nothing has been done to fix it. (For information about the school funding lawsuit, see schoolfunding.info for details about the lawsuits.)
With the failure of the school levy in South-Western Districts, students are fleeing. No one will want to buy a home in a district that does not make education a priority.
