UPDATE AT 9:15 AM
Stark Countians should want to gag the next time they hear the likes of Christina Hagan (R-Marlboro-the 50th), John Hagan (R-Marlboro-trustee), Kirk Schuring (R-Jackson-the 51st) and Scott Oelslager (R-Plain-the 29th [Senate] talk about fiscal responsibility and the need to cut the size of government.
Christina, Kirk and Scott voted last week to spend $15 million of Ohio taxpayer money via House Bill 318 in furtherance of the Republican cause of gerrymandering of Ohio's congressional delegation in setting up two primaries next spring (one in March for state offices, the other in May for federal offices).
Earlier this year Oelslager and Schuring (Hagan was absent) appeared before a Stark County commissioners work session that was lead by Stark County Common Pleas Judge Taryn Heath in which she pled with them (remember the Republicans control both houses of the Ohio General Assembly by wide margins) to do something about a specific list of unfunded state mandates that stress the finances of local government.
It was amusing to see Schuring, for one, taking copious notes.
The last that the SCPR checked with Judge Heath (several weeks ago), precious little had been done by Stark's three Republicans to cure the listed inequities.
To The Report, Schuring's note taking was for the effect of appearing to care and ostensibly preparing to do something?
He has shown yours truly over a number of years of observation that he is a master at that sort of thing.
As seen in the vote above, all three (Hagan, Oelslager and Schuring) could act to absolve counties of additional board of elections expense (which, of course, would have been an "unfunded mandate" had they not done so) in a heartbeat.
But they had to have a partisan political interest.
Only days earlier the Ohio Supreme Court had ruled that the Ohio Democratic Party has the right to collect signatures to put up for a vote HB 319 which is enacted legislation whereby Republicans gerrymandered Ohio's congressional delegation designed to ensure Republican control of the delegation for at least the next ten years.
So rush, rush, rush!
The Republicans pushed through HB 318 (the two primary bill) in an attempt to call the Democrats bluff. Republicans are betting that Ohio's Chris Redfern (the Ohio Dems chairman) Democrats cannot collect over 200,000 signatures to give Ohioans the right to say "enough is enough" with partisan (Republican and Democrats alike) configuration of congressional district to defeat the "one-man, one-vote" principle of our representative form of government.
"Oh, by the way," the legislative Republicans in effect say "we show you in this legislation that we have heard you on 'unfunded mandates' and you the the taxpayer does not have to pick up the $15 million tab in county context - we'll spread the bill for purely partisan politics across all of Ohio and have Republicans (who do not buy into gerrymandering), Democrats, independents, Libertarians conscripted into the service of our cause."
Can't get more disingenuous and abusive of the state treasury than that!
What's more, Hagan, Oelslager and Schuring can't get anything done about Stark's unfunded mandate problem brought up by Judge Heath except when it involves trying to avoid the political flack they would get in burdening local government with purely partisan use of the local finances.
Now, getting specifically down to the Hagans and their unmitigated hypocrisy on fiscal responsibility.
Several weeks ago, county officials showed up on the doorstep of Marlboro Township Trustee John P. Hagan.
Stark County government is in a fight for its financial life. Among the Republicans who have been to township hall include Republican Stark County Auditor Alan Harold and local attorney and prominent Republican Jeff Jakmides.
The quest?
To get the Marlboro trustees to pass a resolution supporting the proposed county sales tax of 0.5% coming up on the 8th of next month.
Response?
Apparently bullied (a source tells The Report that privately Trustees Edelman and Schillig support the levy) by John Hagan, the trustees refused to do so.
The Report is told that Hagan said something to the effect "we need to start somewhere to starve the beast of government."
Of course, he wouldn't want to start "starving the beast" with Ohio General Assembly where he lobbied long and hard to get his "still in college, restaurant server" daughter appointed to the Ohio House at $60,000 plus a year.
Of course, he wouldn't want to start "starving the beast" in counseling daughter Christina to vote "no" on the Ohio Republican Party raid on the Ohio treasury.
Of course, he wouldn't want to start "starving the beast" with the amount of money trustees get paid (he gets $11,318 at Marlboro) and the benefits many of them get.
Of course, he wouldn't want to start "starving the beast" in the face of having run for Stark County commissioner in 2008 looking to replace his state legislator salary with some $76,000 in Stark County taxpayer money.
A man who hates government, except he loves personal and immediate benefits of government!
Talk about a person who aspires to be perpetually on the public tit (entitlement?), but then gets real sanctimonious when when his personal and direct interest is at play?
Hypocrisy is not strong enough word, but that's the best the English language provides.
There is no doubt that it is getting more and more difficult for those with governing responsibilities to govern.
The SCPR, for one, does not want the hear the governors complain. The have and continue to bring the public's distrust of them on themselves.
A few years ago we had the birth of the modern Tea Party. Now we are seeing the start up of the Occupy Wall Street movement.
Citizens seem to be getting really, really mad at their governments these days from main street to Wall Street, from the courthouse to the White House.
The reason?
Way too many politicians (Democrats and Republicans alike) demonstrate that they can take care of themselves and their private and partisan interests, but not the public interest!
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