TRACKING OUR LEGISLATORS: STEPHEN SLESNICK - OHIO HOUSE (52ND) - DEMOCRAT

The STARK COUNTY POLITICAL REPORT (The Report) has embarked on a"tracking our legislators" series.

The first track was of Congressman John Boccieri (16th - which includes Stark County) who issued the perfunctory press release highlighting the fact that the good congressman had introduced his first bill in Congress since taking the oath of office.

The bill: HB 545. This is a bill to provide for a research and development tax credit for predominantly domestic companies. CLICK HERE to see the initial SCPR story.

On March 23rd The Report asked Congressman Boccieri about what this bill will do for the 16th congressional district (focusing on Stark County.)

So far, no response! Only a promise of a response. How long to you suppose this will take? Perhaps, The Report should have asked to be a part of Boccieri's 2,200 person conference call. How many of these folks got the questions answered?

But it does make for good PR. The Report is beginning to suspect that "looking good" might be Boccieri's major asset.

Today, the SCPR turns attention to Canton legislator Stephen Slesnick.

In perusing the Ohio House webite, The Report zeroed in on bill on which Slesnick is a sponsor: HB 3.

Readers need to know that Democrat Slesnick is not a "primary" sponsor of any legislation. A surprising find to The Report because he has been in office for over a year now (having succeeded William J. Healy, II) when he was elected Mayor of Canton).

In contrast, his Republican colleague from the 50th (which is basically a horseshoe shape on the outer fringes of Stark County) Todd Snitchler (who just took office in January, 2009) has already introduced legislation as a primary sponsor.

Getting back to Slesnick and HB 3.

HB 3 is popularly known as The Home Foreclosure Prevention Act.

Here is a graphic which shows Slesnick as a sponsor:




Undoubtedly, the co-sponsored bill is one that engenders a lot of sympathy for those Ohioans that this legislation will help.

But there is a problem.

This bill is not likely to become law, even if it gets passed, because it has serious constitutional problems. CLICK HERE to get a version of those problems.



We are working on three (3) days now that the SCPR has not heard "boo" from Representative Slesnick.

Maybe he can tell The Report and his constituents why he believes that his co-sponsorship is consistent with his taking the oath of office (pictured above).

But will he?

Slesnick has every appearance of so many elected public officials. They only deal with "softball" questions.

In The Report's book these folks are not entitled to ignore the "hard questions." They are, whether or not they want to own up, accountable to all of us.

The Report will dog Slesnick until he gives a response.

He can give his response in the comfort of his office by sending a return e-mail or he can face The Report in a public venue some time down the road.

Which is it going to be Representative Slesnick?

DISCUSSION: CAN KIRK SCHURING WIN COUNTYWIDE IN STARK COUNTY?

It was truly shocking. No, not that Republican Kirk Schuring lost to Democrat John Boccieri in November, 2008 in the contest for the 16th congressional district. The STARK COUNTY POLITICAL REPORT (The Report) early on in the race predicted a Boccieri victory by about 10%. Which turned out to be pretty much on the money.

The Report thought Schuring would lose Stark County because Stark has turned into a Democratic county - if the Democrat runs to his/her strength, to wit: the cities of Alliance, Canton and Massillon.

But not 57% to 42%. Not for all the ink that Schuring has gotten in area media and all the campaigning he has done in Stark over the last 14 or so years. The Report thinks the size of the loss was mostly due to the strong Democratic tide that is sweeping the nation. Schuring gets more specific. He blames Taft (former Ohio governor) and the now ex-president Bush. Taft left office with a favorability rating of 19% and Bush was in the 20s.

Does the pounding Schuring took from Boccieri signal that he is a vulnerable candidate, no matter what he runs for in Stark in 2010? If he chooses to run for anything.

Schuring and his musical chairs partner - except there is a chair for each of them to sit on; just different looking chairs - have exchanged the 29th Ohio Senate seat and 51st Ohio House seat over the last several election cycles. Why? Because in the early 90s the Ohio Republicans came up with the idea of term limits as one of their tools to wrestle control of the Ohio General Assembly away from the then "in control" Democrats.

So Oelslager and Schuring have defied the "spirit of term limits," but Stark Countians and Jackson Township voters have left them get away with it. Of course, there is the factor of Stark County Democratic Party chair Johnnie A. Maier, Jr.. who gave Oelslager a "free pass" in the 2008 elections.

Oelslager has already announced that he is running for the 29th come November, 2010. The question is: will he have a viable Democratic opponent or will Maier and the Democrats either put up a token candidate or none at all.

Schuring? Well, he is undecided. He has told The Report that he may run for Oelslager's seat in the House, leave politics altogether and re-enter business or - are you ready for a surprise? - run countywide for either county commissioner or county auditor.

It could be that Stark County Republican Party chair Jeff Matthews is urging Schuring to run for a county post. Right now, the Republicans have NO countywide elected officials except for a few judges. Would Schuring running for commissioner or auditor be the beginning of a Republican resurgence in Stark County?