Stark Countians voted 124,504 to 60,510 against casino gambling in November 8th last year.Strickland has been hugely popular in Stark winning 64.10% of the countywide vote in November, 2006.
Strickland was against the November 8th gambling measure and there seemed to be a congruence between voters and Strickland.
But we all know that these are indeed desperate times.
The proverb is: "Desperate times call for desperate measures."
Is Strickland changing his position on casino gambling because of a project $7.2 billion shortfall in the upcoming Ohio budget that must be enacted by July 1, 2009?
Of course, Stark Countians know that The Repository no longer covers the Ohio Statehouse. GateHouse Media, Inc. dumped Paul Kostyu a number of months ago as an economy move and now Stark Countians who want to know what is going on in Columbus need to read the Akron Beacon Journal (Ohio.com) and the fine reporting of its Columbus reporter - Dennis Willard.
Willard reports in Sunday's Beacon Journal that Strickland is now playing coy on a new "trial balloon" on casino gambling.
Here's the Strickland quote provided by Willard:
''And so I think gambling is not good for Ohio, and it certainly would not be any preferred course of action on my part. But I am unwilling to close my mind to any argument that is brought to me regarding how we may be able to get through these very, very difficult times.''More interesting though, is Willard's assessment of where Strickland, Ohio Speaker of the House Budish (Democrat) and Senate President Harris (Republican) are on the issue:
Make no mistake: Strickland, Budish and Harris would jump at the chance to open casinos around the state to generate millions, possibly billions, for their declining state coffers, but they do not want to appear pro-gambling if the effort somehow would backfire.How would Stark Countians react if Strickland were to change positions on casino gambling? Could it mean trouble in Stark for Strickland in his 2010 re-election bid?
The reason it was voted down was because we were going to change our State Constitution to allow just one casino in southwestern Ohio. Many people I spoke to said that if we were going to allow casino gambling, it had to be for the entire State and not just one casino owner. Also, the smoking ban would have to be revised so Ohio could compete with casinos in surrounding States. The governor knows that millions of Ohio dollars are now going to casinos in surrounding States and he must do something to keep this money in Ohio.
ReplyDeleteI'll give a 2 part grade for some of the political subdivisions -
ReplyDeleteCanton City - During storm = F
Canton City - Post storm = C+
Stark County - During storm = C+
Stark County - Post storm = A-
Plain Twp - During storm = C-
Plain Twp - Post storm = B-
Jackson Twp - During storm = B-
Jackson Twp - Post storm = A-
In Canton City, we did NOT get what we pay for. The areas around Aultman Hospital were horrendous until the storm had virtually stopped. Main streets like West Tusc & Market looked virtually untouched as well. My thoughts were "they waited until it was over to start". For the rest of th areas I graded, it looked normal for the amount of snow and timing.
When I saw this Stirckland article on the Columbus Dispatch web site, I did LAUGH.
ReplyDeleteHow quickly we can change our minds!!!!
In Stark County, I think if there is a FAIR gambling law set forth, it WILL pass. It's when you ignore us (Stark County) by suggesting only ONE casino 5 hours away we will vote against it. From this area our money can get to 4 other states and another country quicker.
This is the heighth of hypocrisy when our legislature can allow an Ohio Lottery but disallow casino gambling. The devil was in the details of the last vote. It was designed and worded to ensure failure. Congratulations are in order for Gov. Strickland to reconsider this issue. Let's hope any new legislation is presented in such a way that will ensure the best economic impact for Ohio.
ReplyDelete