Past Trump Criticism Used Against Ohio US Senate Candidates GOP: Capitol Letter

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No real Trump supporter: Republicans running to replace incumbent US Senator Rob Portman in 2022 have made loyalty to former President Donald Trump the key issue in the race. But as Andrew Tobias writes, most of the contestants to varying degrees, including author JD Vance, have a track record of criticizing or alienating Trump which gives them plenty of material to tackle now.

Life on the fast lane: State lawmakers plan to grant the Ohio Turnpike the power to charge rogue drivers as toll highway moves towards setting up two 50-piece road sections miles with high-speed, barrier-free toll lanes from 2023. As Tobias writes, the proposed system would allow them to take a picture of the license plates of the drivers involved and send them an invoice in the mail . Drivers who do not pay would be prevented from renewing their vehicle registrations. The Senate unanimously passed the bill in June, and it is now before the House for consideration.

No sparks: Governor Mike DeWine on Friday vetoed the bill that would have legalized consumer fireworks in Ohio, reports Laura Hancock. DeWine told members of the Ohio General Assembly that the bill would have made the Ohio fireworks law one of the least restrictive in the United States, and that it would not did not contain the recommendations of two studies commissioned after a fatal fireworks store fire in Lawrence County in 1996.

On the DeWines dossier: DeWine is due to make decisions on two more bills by Wednesday: House Bill 244 and Senate Bill 52. SB 52 would allow counties to ban large wind and solar farms at public meetings to review projects and create exclusion zones, which could derail renewable energy development in Ohio. HB 244 is a bill focused on educational opportunities for military children, although lawmakers added a provision saying schools and colleges cannot require vaccines that have been approved for use. emergency, which is the status of the three coronavirus vaccines. It’s unclear how DeWine will decide on this bill, as it could put colleges in a bind. But the FDA may soon begin to allow COVID-19 injections with full approval. Governors have the option of allowing bills to become laws without their signature, which many governors use for legislation they are not crazy about. However, DeWine never used this.

Forever: The Ohio Board of Pharmacy on Friday awarded the Strawberry Fields Medical Marijuana Dispensary, located at 2950 E. Main St. in Columbus, an operating certificate. The certificate allows the company to open up to registered patients and caregivers and increases the number of dispensaries in the state to 55.

Drive to the next step: Volkswagen is now asking the U.S. Supreme Court for a deadline to stop Ohio’s anti-tampering lawsuit against the automaker, the Associated Press reports. VW is accused of using technology to help its vehicles cheat on admission tests and is paying $ 33 billion in fines and regulations. But in Ohio, Attorney General Dave Yost is asking for more money, arguing it violates Ohio’s anti-pollution law.

Order: The Ohio Restaurant Association said Friday it picked Lt. Gov. Jon Husted for an outstanding public official award. Industry prices are a dime, but we thought this one was worth it due to criticism the DeWine administration received from Republican state lawmakers and others for its restaurant restrictions during the pandemic. of coronavirus. John Palmer, head of the ORA, said he chose Husted because of the way he handled the pandemic. I spoke to the governor probably once a week during that time, but Jon was probably the person who worked most closely with the business world, Palmer said. And he was great. He listened intently and tried to be fair all the time … We disagreed every time, but we learned to listen and respect the science, and we thought they had succeeded. a reasonable decision.

Bonus: In his latest Stimulus Watch report, Robin Goist details how a proposal to use federal stimulus dollars to give Mayfield Heights police and firefighters $ 4,000 in bonuses turned into potentially giving bonuses to all employees city ​​and administrative staff who were deemed essential and worked during the pandemic.

Mask Confusion: Evan MacDonald explores how the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus complicated the conversation about face masks. The World Health Organization has recommended that everyone wear a mask indoors, even those who have been vaccinated. But the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has continued to say that only those who are not vaccinated should wear a mask. And there have been no new DeWine mask wearing commands.

Five lobbyists who represent General Electric Co., according to the Joint Commission on Legislative Ethics, where lobbyists must register to talk to lawmakers about their support or opposition to bills in Ohio.

1. Richard S. Bitonte

2. Dan Dodd

3. Stephen K. Hall

4. James McGaugh

5. Thomas M. Backpack

Reverend Philip A. Hurlbert has been appointed State Chaplain by Ohio Highway Patrol Superintendent Col. Richard Fambro. Hurlbert will oversee the patrol chaplaincy program. He was ordained in 1998 with the Church of the Nazarene and joined the patrol in 2007 as a regional and district chaplain.

Ben Coyle, Ohio House Help Desk Supervisor; Josh Ferdelman, legislative assistant to State Representative Jennifer Gross; Ohio second lady Tina Husted

Our unemployment system is broken. We saw it in full screen when thousands of Ohioans waited weeks and even months in the height of the pandemic to receive the benefits they paid into. As many Ohioans continue to struggle to find work, pay rent, or pay their bills, the last thing the state should do is add more burdens by forcing people to pay back their overpayments. received through no fault of their own or to be penalized because of a poor system that allowed fraud to run rampant.

– Ohio House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes. The Akron Democrat was reacting to news that Ohioians who had mistakenly paid unemployment benefits could seek waivers, which Democrats have long been asking for, she said.

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