Denying College Students Voting Rights

Ohio Republicans are working their hardest in trying to deny college students the right to vote. Republicans don't like the fact that younger voters tend to support Democratic candidates.

 The Dayton Dayton News has details on the latest cockamamie idea the Ohio Republicans have to try to stop college students from voting.

DaytonDailyNews:

A Republican amendment to the state budget bill would force public colleges and universities to charge out-of-state students the resident tuition price if they issue proof of residence to vote in an election.

GOP lawmakers claim the provision intends to alleviate the financial burden on students. Democrats and voters rights advocates argue the provision is a move to make sure fewer young people, who tend to vote Democratic, can cast their ballot in battleground state Ohio.....

...University officials said they did not request the change and were surprised to see it inserted into the 4,600-page budget bill, which passed the House last week and it now being vetted by the Senate....

The Republican Party only seems to be attractive to old, rich, white people. With efforts from the GOP against everything most educated young people support (like women's reproductive rights, equal pay for women, gay rights, college grants, minority rights, immigrants, middle class workers, school teachers, unions, Social Security, increase in minimum wage, etc.) the GOP just isn't that appealing to people under the age of 40. 

The Ohio GOP will continue to do their part to cut Democratic voters from the rolls.  Unwilling to  change their agenda for modern times, the Republicans continue to promote their neanderthal ideas.

Today

* It was nice that Steve Kornacki invited a variety of guests for his first hosted show on MSNBC, but he should not extend another invitation to Ed Cox. Cox is an arrogant, right wing, talking machine that consumes everyone else's talking time.  There should be a "do not invite" list made up for future guests, with Ed Cox's name on the top.

* You know how Republicans go on and on about President Obama's teleprompter? Republicans and their tea party brethren must have amnesia. Look what can be found very easily----

Pictures:  A, B, C, D, E, F, etc.

Todd Akin's Words

* Give me a break!!!!!!  Republican Todd Akin, failed senatorial candidate, is trying to undo the damage his comments and votes did to women's reproductive freedom. As a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Akin voted repeatedly, along with Paul Ryan, to interfere in a woman's gynecological medical care. He cannot undo those actions or his words, no matter how much he begs.

USA Today:

Republican Todd Akin said he regrets his comments about "legitimate rape," nearly six months after the controversial remarks derailed his bid for the U.S. Senate in Missouri. 

When asked by KDSK-TV if he would take back his much-derided comments, the former congressman said, "Oh, of course I would. I've relived them too many times. But that is not reality." 

The story of Akin's downfall is well known: The conservative lawmaker said in a TV interview last summer that he believes pregnancy can be prevented by a woman involved in a "legitimate rape" because "the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down."


Really?  Unfortunately, Todd Akin's ignorance and demeaning comments about women and rape won't go away. Todd Akin revealed his lack of education, insensitivity, and right wing religious fervor that diminishes the rights of women. Despite his wish that he could take back what he said, it just can't be done.

The Good, and the Not So Good

* Some good news----
10tv:

The Columbus Zoo says its most recent additions include a monkey that was born last month and is named after a quirky scientist character on the CBS comedy "The Big Bang Theory."

How cute!

* The not so good....

   •   The job losses are continuing in Ohio. A quick glance at the Warn Notices at Ohio Dept. of Jobs and Family Services, shows a growing list of layoffs. We might never find out why these layoffs are happening because Gov. Kasich refuses to divulge the secret, backroom deals of the OhioJobs program that he created. With his own appointed board members, and undisclosed deals with undisclosed businesses, Ohioans are being kept in the dark about how our tax dollars are being used.

  •     Appalachian Trail walker and Republican candidate, Mark Sanford made a huge mistake, yet again.

WashingtonPost:

In a full-page ad appearing in the Post and Courier newspaper on Sunday, former South Carolina governor compared his campaign to the Alamo, described what a tough week it had been (for the Sanford campaign, in case you thought he was talking about something else) and defended himself against the recent leak of court documents showing his ex-wife had accused him of trespassing....

Of course, the people of South Carolina are left wondering why Sanford mentioned the name of someone that fought at the Alamo in Texas. With any luck, Sanford will lose and will have plenty of time to visit the Appalachian Trail.

Monday...

* Those of us that once watched the Today Show will be interested in a story posted at the NewYorkTimesMagazine about the firing of journalist Ann Curry. After reading the article, I was even more disgusted with Matt Lauer and the NBC executives that gave into Lauer's obviously massive ego. When Lauer retires, I might watch the Today Show again.

>>>> There is another substance to keep away from your children---cinnamon. Apparently, young people are participating in "cinnamon challenges" which are dangerous, and life-threatening.  HuffPost has the details.

••• VoteVets has an excellent ad against the candidacy of Appalachian Trail walker, SC Republican Mark Sanford:

Shame on Senate

* I totally agree with Patricia Maisch on her opinion of the Senate.

HuffPost:

Patricia Maisch, a hero of the Tucson shooting that left six dead and another 13 wounded, including former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), was escorted by police out of the Capitol Wednesday for telling senators that they should be ashamed of themselves for blocking a provision requiring background checks for gun sales. 

Maisch was at Giffords' "Congress On Your Corner" event in January 2011 when Jared Loughner opened fire. He was tackled by bystanders as he tried to reload, and Maisch was able to grab the third clip away from him. 

She reacted just as quickly inside the Senate chamber. "Shame on you!" she told senators who'd voted against the amendment, which would require background checks for firearm sales at gun shows and elsewhere....

Shame on those Senators that voted against the background checks, including U.S. Sen. Rob Portman. The teachers, administrators, and staff at the Sandy Hook elementary displayed more courage in trying to protect the children than some Senators showed today.

I support President Obama and his agenda on gun control.  I stand with President Obama and the families of Sandy Hook (CT), Oak Creek (WI), Aurora (CO), Virginia Tech, and all the people hurt by gun violence.

Tuesday's News

* To Boston:
We offer our sympathy and prayers for those victims and their families. We will continue to think of you in our thoughts and prayers.

Mike DeWine and the Ohio GOP

Is this legal?

Plunderbund notes that letters to witnesses to the Steubenville rape came from Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine prior to going to court?  Read Plunderbund and you too will question DeWine's actions.

* * * * *

>>> Don't you wish that Ohio Republicans would stop sticking their noses where they don't belong?

ThinkProgress:

Ohio’s anti-choice lawmakers are hoping the third time will be the charm in their crusade to strip funding from Planned Parenthood affiliates. The legislature is currently reviving an effort to “re-prioritize” family planning funding in the state, which would serve to slash about $2 million dollars from the 32 Planned Parenthood clinics currently operating in the state. This type of legislation has already been debated in the legislature twice over the past year.......

Ohio's Republicans must stop being so obsessive about Planned Parenthood, ovaries, eggs, a woman's uterus, etc., or we will start asking questions about how many elected Republicans use medication for erectile dysfunction.  If Ohio Republicans persist, women in the state will start asking Republican legislators to prove that they really need their male enhancement drugs which are covered by health insurance.

The Vote On Gun Control

* The parents from Sandy Hook visited elected officials today in Washington, DC. 

LA Times:

Family members of Sandy Hook shooting victims are bewildered that Congress is still struggling to pass stricter gun laws, Vice President Joe Biden said Tuesday afternoon.

Speaking to a room full of police in uniform at a White House event, Biden bluntly described the opposition that gun measures face. He blamed “the black helicopter crowd” for stirring up fears that the government wants to “swoop down” and seize everyone’s guns.

That opposition has stalled action, Biden said, frustrating the families of victims. “They really don’t get” how Congress can have failed to vote already, Biden told his audience, recounting a conversation with 13 family members over breakfast at the vice presidential residence earlier in the day. “One mom said to me, ‘What is it they don’t understand?’ ”

The arrogance of some elected officials is astounding. Hopefully, the family members from Sandy Hook can reach some of the cold-hearted officials. Frankly, I cannot understand how anyone could deny these families a little peace in providing the legislation they want.

* Sen. Rob Portman (OH-R) wants to play around with the debt ceiling again!!!
DailyKos has the details about Portman's plan. Instead of moving forward, Portman wants to waste time to revisit negotiations and make more cuts. Ridiculous!

What Republican Leadership?

* The Republican Leader of the House, Eric Cantor, is definitely hardly working. Have you seen the "work" calendar he created? It is pathetic because it lacks any real substantial foundation to accomplish anything!.

* ABC News has a post about the service rankings of airlines. We were on an airline recently and I am still recovering from (a) feeling like a sardine because of the lack of leg room, and (b) the fees for bags. Soon the airlines might be using shoe horns to get people in their seats.

*** When I was little, I wanted to be like Annette Funicello on the Mickey Mouse Club. Today, Annette Funicello passed away, according to CNN.

> Plunderbund wants us to know that ECOT is taking money away from our schools.

From the “not news” file comes the continuing sad saga of ECOT, the largest charter e-school in Ohio.  We’ve reported about ECOT many times in the past and this post is a continuing update of the damage that ECOT continues to cause statewide.

ECOT’s 40% graduation rate doesn’t stop them from siphoning students and funding away from over 300 of the top-rated school districts in the state.  A whopping 327 of the 353 districts rated Excellent or Excellent w/Distinction (“A” or “A+”) are losing students and the associated funding to ECOT this year, totaling over $33 million dollars pulled from districts such as A+ rated Strongsville (embroiled in a contentious negotiations and a prolonged teacher’s strike)....

...Charters like ECOT (Ohio’s largest by a mile) are not the saving grace of education in Ohio — they are siphoning students and money away from the best school districts in the state, causing unnecessary strife and lowering statewide student achievement.

Ohio's charter schools are not doing well, but they will get more money from their "sugar daddy"----John Kasich.

Sequester Interfering With Chemotherapy

Do you need chemotherapy? Do you have a family member, friend, or co-worker currently undergoing chemo? The Sequester, the brainchild of John Boehner, Eric Cantor, and the Republicans, now can alter your cancer treatment.

ThinkProgress:

In the aftermath of Congress’ failure to reach a deal averting the sequester, President Obama described the automatic spending cuts as foolhardy, warning, “The pain will be real. The longer these cuts are in place, the greater the damage.” Those words are now coming to fruition, as local cancer clinics all across America are being forced to turn away thousands of senior citizens on Medicare and deny them their chemotherapy treatments as a consequence of federal budget cuts.

The Washington Post’s Sarah Kliff reports that even the sequester’s relatively mild two percent cut to Medicare is forcing clinics to choose between providing care to patients, absorbing debilitating financial losses, or downsizing medical staff. Faced with those unsavory choices, clinics like North Shore Hematology Oncology Associates in New York are refusing to see as many as 5,000 of their Medicare patients....

...Patients seeking to continue their treatments will have to go to larger hospitals, where their out-of-pocket costs for the pricey chemotherapy drugs will be substantially higher....

Unless and until a Republican runs into this problem, this access to chemo will be ignored. The Republicans in the House of Representatives have created chaos, and will be continue to grow.

Lawrence O'Donnell Wins!

On The Last Word, Lawrence O'Donnell interviewed Asa Hutchinson, NRA "consultant" about the NRA's recommendations for reducing gun violence in schools. O'Donnell asked Hutchinson how much he was getting paid by the NRA for his consultation. Of course, Hutchinson refused to answer. O'Donnell also noted that the NRA "committee" that came up with recommendations did not have one educator representing teachers.  By the end of the interview, Hutchinson was sweating profusely on his forehead and upper lip.

>>> The Republicans in South Carolina chose Mark Sanford as their Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in their primary today. Mark Sanford was the governor of South Carolina when he abandoned his office, his family, and his state to go on the "Appalachian Trail" in 2009.  Of course, he was not on the "Appalachian Trail" but with his female friend in South America. Live5News in Charleston, SC, has all the details, including Sanford thanking his girlfriend.

What is that expression about cheaters....?

Kasich Never Supported Marriage Equality

* Gov. John Kasich recently said that he doesn't support marriage equality even though he said he did at one point.


Washington Post:

“The governor’s position is unchanged,” Kasich’s spokesman Rob Nichols said Thursday in a statement to reporters. “He opposes gay marriage and opposes changing Ohio’s constitution to allow for civil unions.”

Kasich was asked Wednesday about Sen. Rob Portman’s (R-Ohio) decision to come out in support of gay marriage.

“I talked to Rob and encouraged him,” Kasich told WEWS-TV. “If people want to have civil unions and have some way to transfer their resources, I’m for that. I don’t support gay marriage.”

ThinkProgress reminds us of Kasich opposition to equality for everyone:

....Kasich holds a long anti-gay record, beginning into his time in Congress, where he voted to ban adoptions by gay parents, as well as for the Defense of Marriage Act and the military’s defunct “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. As governor, Kasich broke his pledge to extend anti-discrimination protections for LGBT individuals, allowing state and contracted employers to fire anyone based on sexual orientation.

Kasich may have felt pressure on the spot to be flexible in his views, as his hardline stance on gay marriage and civil unions is now far outside the norm. Support for gay marriage is at an all-time high. Civil unions are currently banned in Ohio, but a ballot initiative this fall could change that.
 
Let me also remind you that in 2010 I wrote about Kasich's record in Congress at  Ohio15th.blogspot.com:

...Kasich voted YES on banning adoption by gays in Washington, DC, according to Ontheissues:

Voted YES on banning gay adoptions in DC.

Vote on an amendment banning adoptions in District of Columbia by gays or other individuals who are not related by blood or marriage. Reference: Amendment introduced by Largent, R-OK; Bill HR 2587 ; vote number 1999-346 on Jul 29, 1999      Just like the typical Republican, Kasich says he is for freedom except for certain people, women, and those that don't typically support Republican candidates (teachers, union workers, fire fighters, police, state workers, minimum wage workers, the poor, young people, etc.).   Kasich's re-election motto should be---  

Freedom For Some

(just not YOU!)