Washington D.C., Mar 20, 2010 / 09:41 pm (CNA).- In a final, urgent plea to prevent the passage of the current form of the Senate health care bill, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) on Saturday evening sent a letter to Congressmen asking them to vote “no.”
“For decades,” the letter says, “the United States Catholic bishops have supported universal health care. The Catholic Church teaches that health care is a basic human right, essential for human life and dignity.”
Mark Critz — the Democratic nominee to replace the late Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) and a former Murtha staffer — on Wednesday asked the Office of Congressional Ethics to release the transcripts of the interviews conducted with him when the office was investigating Murtha’s earmarks.
http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docID=news-000003353977
Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) offered a privileged resolution Tuesday that would require the House ethics committee to tell Congress how many witnesses it interviewed, how many subpoenas it issued and how many documents it reviewed in its investigation of earmarks Members provided to clients of the PMA Group lobbying firm.
High court to consider GOP squabble in April
http://toledoblade.com/article/20100313/NEWS24/3130362/0/OPINION
Stainbrook coverage issues in the Blade
http://toledoblade.com/article/20100307/COLUMNIST17/3070316/-1/OPINION
There seems to be a disconnect between those who know the PMA scandal vs those who casually glance at the scandal. Most people in Northwest Ohio have glanced at the story, but if you go through and see when money is given and by who, then when those people get an earmark, there is a pattern and even with Marcy Kaptur. When this all started, someone who talks about news in the area dismissed it all as everyone is doing it. The facts can't be ignored regardless of the incorrect assumption that everyone is doing it; everyone is not doing it.
As you all know, you will only get the full story on the PMA scandal here. Roll Call has the latest chapter in the book which you can read below.
===
The Feb. 26 ethics committee report concluding that no House Members colluded with the PMA Group lobbying firm to exchange earmarks for campaign contributions indicated that the committee had been investigating the matter since the spring of 2009.
Wow, I’m not sure which is classier Iott.
The 10+ minute push poll you’re conducting where you ask such insightful questions like “Who you’re most likely vote for in the next election. 1 – Marcy Kaptur who voted for destructive health care legislation or 2 – Rich Iott who worked his way up to CEO and President of a local company.”
Iott – you’re a joke. YOUR DAD FOUNDED THE COMPANY which you in turn sold old to another company, sat on its board and ran it into the ground.
In the article in today's Blade, Jon is saying the Fire Department caused the delay and even suggested they were in cahoots with the Jeff Simpson faction to get the meeting closed down. You can see in the story a clearer picture of what went on (view the full story). I wanted to provide some more background now that I see how the article went and Jon's take on the event. At no time did Jon or anyone say what was going on downstairs. If there was an issue, why not send someone upstairs and explain the delay? For the whole 40-45 minutes during the delay, no one said what is going on or why there is a delay, it was only after the meeting started that Jon and Megan came up and said why there was a delay. The fire department inspectors were only upstairs for 3/5 minutes, at that time everyone wondered what was going on and it was a period of time after they went downstairs (10-20 minutes) that where we thought Jon would never start the meeting, especially after what appeared at the time that he called the fire department. So for Jon to say that the meeting started in violation of the fire inspectors is assuming he actually had the skills to communicate what was going on.
The House of Representatives Ethics Committee has cleared 7 lawmakers, of wrongdoing in the PMA Scandal-including Kaptur. So, Congress clears their own saying there was no evidence of asking for votes. One has to wonder what questions they asked. It is too bad we citizens can't hold the same committee hearings that Congress puts others through and question them on this. This does not absolve Kaptur of all of the questionable donations she has received from what appears to be funneled to her campaign coffers from the PMA lobbyist Paul Magliochetti. This story is not done yet and you will get the complete story here, not speckled articles-as you all know and come to expect.
Who would have thought that Jon would go back to the courts. How many times will the court accept this? Jon has filed in almost 3 jurisdictions now and they all said the same thing.
===
Lucas County Republican Chairman Jon Stainbrook has lodged an appeal to recognize him as the legitimate chairman and to force Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to appoint him to a vacancy on the Lucas County Board of Elections.
The Kasich campaign released a new bio video:
The Board of Elections dismissed the case against relatives of Waterville council member Ann Cherry. Read the rest in the Toledo Free Press below:
===
The Lucas County Board of Elections voted Feb. 22 to deny the voter registration challenge made against Lisa Cherry and stated no fraudulent voting took place by her or Ruthann Cherry.
http://www.toledofreepress.com/2010/02/22/voter-fraud-case-dismissed/
Todd Warner Houston on bigjournalism.com is taking on those in the journalistic community who are happy to label the nut who flew the plane into the Tex IRS building an extreme right winger while the underwear bomber is just a lone wolf, same with the base shooter; either the media should call them all lone wolf nut jobs or part of a bigger plan.
===
Hmm, I wonder who they are referring to feeling mistreated.
===
The Lucas County Board of Elections (BOE) had a video camera running all day Feb.18, the deadline for May primary petitions.
Linda Howe, BOE director, said the camera tri-pod was set up in the morning to film the entire day, with switching of tapes periodically.
http://www.toledofreepress.com/2010/02/19/boe-films-petition-filings/
As promised, Jennifer Brunner, the Ohio Secretary of State, moved to intervene in the Lucas County litigation over political power in the Republican Party — except she was too late.
Ms. Brunner on Thursday asked to be part of the Lucas County Common Pleas Court case only to solve one problem — to fill an upcoming vacancy on the Lucas County Board of Elections.
Judge Charles Doneghy on Friday overruled the motion, saying he had already terminated the case. The case ended when he denied a preliminary injunction sought by Lucas County Republican Chairman Jon Stainbrook on Thursday.
"Robert P. Watson, Ph.D. Coordinator of American Studies
Lynn University"
Email: rwatson@lynn.edu
In on the tip line from Kevin Milliken: Ben Krompak and Carol Contrada have taken Democrat Party petitions for Lucas County Commissioner to replace Ben Konop. Ben Krompak was at Biggby's earlier this afternoon seeking signatures.
Joe the Plumber is no longer a fan of either Sarah Palin or John McCain, it seems. Joe, also known as Sam Wurzelbacher, told an audience in Pennsylvania this week that McCain "is no public servant."
"McCain was trying to use me," Wurzelbacher said, according to public radio correspondent Scott Detrow. "I happened to be the face of middle Americans. It was a ploy.”
Hmmm....really? We told you that like a year & a half ago.
It is always interesting that Jon wants to enforce the law in court, but when it comes to his own issues like with the fire marshal, petition deadlines, and campaign finance, he is never in a rush to follow the law. But this is Jon we are talking about. Jon is arguing that the Central Committee meeting was delayed because of another court order in 2008 and that is why he is the only recognized chair. But what the judge said was both factions did not meet in the scheduled time in 2008 so even if he wins it, it will still be in Columbus. Jon for some reason wants to avoid the unavoidable.
