Tea Party Patriots Ordinary citizens reclaiming America's founding principles.

Thursday, October 11, 2018

Where was Jim Brown?

photo credit: fox4news.com


It’s all over the news – Kanye West’s visit to the White House. But almost none of the news coverage showed who was sitting next to West. Spoiler:

Video here
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Google memo 'The Good Censor'

image credit: spartareport.com



Yesterday’s blog was about the film Gosnell, free speech, and free markets. Now comes an American Thinker report by Thomas Lifson titled

“Stunning 85-page Google memo 
'The Good Censor' leaked to Breitbart”

Lifson's blog begins:

If you are not worried about the power of Google to shape debate and elections according to its leftist political bias, you're not paying attention.  I congratulate Breitbart.com for the scoop, and I urge everyone – I am looking at you, President Trump and Congress – to read and ponder the fate of the Republic unless this company is defanged, most likely by antitrust action, but possibly also via civil courts. 

He then quotes Allum Bokhari's introduction and summary of the memo here, including:

An internal company briefing produced by Google and leaked exclusively to Breitbart News argues that due to a variety of factors, including the election of President Trump, the "American tradition" of free speech on the internet is no longer viable. ...

[T]he 85-page briefing, titled "The Good Censor," admits that Google and other tech platforms now "control the majority of online conversations" and have undertaken a "shift towards censorship" in response to unwelcome political events around the world.

The briefing labels the ideal of unfettered free speech on the internet a "utopian narrative" that has been "undermined" by recent global events as well as "bad behavior" on the part of users. ...

It acknowledges that major tech platforms, including Google, Facebook and Twitter initially promised free speech to consumers.  "This free speech ideal was instilled in the DNA of the Silicon Valley startups that now control the majority of our online conversations," says the document.

The briefing argues that Google, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter are caught between two incompatible positions, the "unmediated marketplace of ideas" vs. "well-ordered spaces for safety and civility."

Terrifying. The Breitbart scoop is hereOur household is exploring alternatives to Google, including Brave. Does anyone see an alternative to Facebook? 

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Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Gosnell, free speech, and free markets


image credit: thoughtsonfilm.com

The film about “America's all-time champion serial killer” Kermit Gosnell opens later this week at a few theaters, and its subject matter is outside Cleveland Tea Party’s core mission. But the topic of “free markets” is very much a core Tea Party value.

The film Gosnell has been an uphill battle from the start. It was difficult to produce, and efforts to market it are being thwarted as I type. If this film is emblematic of the closing of free markets and increasing censorship in the mainstream media and on social media, then it is very much on the front burner of the Cleveland Tea Party. How can one have free markets if a legal product is not allowed to be promoted in the marketplace?

Fox News is running paid ads, but NPR and PBS won’t run them, and Facebook has banned any ads promoting this film. It should not matter whether you are Pro Choice, Pro Life, or undecided. The issues of Roe vs Wade and abortion were hot talking points during the entire nomination process of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, so the film has a place in the current and ongoing debate. 

The other day I attended a presentation by the filmmakers Ann McElhinney and Phelim McAleer followed by a private screening of Gosnell. Mark Steyn’s must-read blog on the film is hereThe website for the film is here and it includes a drop-down which specifies theaters showing this film, listed by state. Only two were located in the greater Cleveland area (Valley View and Solon).

The goal of the two film-makers is to get enough venues and audiences to get this film to be eligible for NetFlix general access/release. If I understood them correctly, if they get enough showings and viewings in theaters this year, they can get a much wider distribution for this film via NetFlix, and they intend to categorize it as a crime drama along the line of, say, Law and Order, to reach an audience that might otherwise not choose to watch a film advertised as being about abortion per se. I thought that was a good marketing strategy. And if you are reading this blog, I hope you will consider seeing the film later this week, even if you don't think you'll like it.


If making the film was hard, breaking through the societal omertà is harder: The Hyatt in Austin, for example, just canceled a screening at the behest of Planned Parenthood. So do be alert both to bookings of Gosnell at your local multiplex and to attempts to get it bounced. As producers and (with Andrew Klavan) screenwriters, Ann McElhinney and Phelim McAleer set out to tell a story none of the big studios would touch, and their doggedness deserves to find an audience.

In a free market, the producers would be free to buy ads. Facebook claims the ad does not meet their “standards.” No, Facebook just doesn’t like the film and doesn’t want any more exposure of the Gosnell case. That’s not what's supposed to happen to free speech in free markets. How can you function in a free market when you are muzzled because you have a different view? No, that’s censorship, and that is why I posted with these links.

Exit question: Who will be censored next?
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Tuesday, October 9, 2018

Cordray vs DeWine




Yesterday evening, Ohio gubernatorial candidates Richard Cordray (D) and Mike DeWine (R) debated each other at Cleveland State University. Cleveland.com reported (link not available) but the Cincinnati Enquirer included a few video clips, including one of a “testy” exchange. Link is here.

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Monday, October 8, 2018

WHY we celebrate Columbus Day


image credit: brainskewer.com

Mark Antonio Wright at National Review explains WHY we celebrate Columbus Day (h/t Chicks on the Right):

Let us dispense with any pretense that the indigenous peoples of the Americas lived in a peaceful idyll in harmony with their neighbors and with nature, and that the advent of Columbus destroyed a noble paradise. The great civilizations of the Western Hemisphere were indeed advanced, and yet, like Europeans, Asians, and Africans, the American peoples used their technology to subjugate. Anyone familiar with the expansionist and warlike cultures of the Aztec and Inca Empires should know that the tables would have been turned had it been the New World that “discovered” the Old and possessed the power to conquer it. Human nature, tainted with original sin, is what it is and has been — of that we can be certain.
Europeans, beginning with Columbus, treated the Indians pitilessly — that should not be whitewashed or forgotten — but, in the same way, we should not ignore the genuine good that has come down to us as a result of the course of human events — namely, the space for a unique idea to grow and flourish: the self-government of a free people, with an ever-expanding idea of who can partake of that promise.

How much is Columbus personally responsible for all of this — for the good and the ill? Only as much as any one man can be. As the historian William J. Connell has written, “What Columbus gets criticized for nowadays are attitudes that were typical of the European sailing captains and merchants who plied the Mediterranean and the Atlantic in the 15th century. Within that group he was unquestionably a man of daring and unusual ambition.”

Connell concluded that “what really mattered was his landing on San Salvador, which was a momentous, world-changing occasion such as has rarely happened in human history.”


I’d also like to note that on Columbus Day, we’re not celebrating HIM as person. 

We’re not celebrating genocide or racism. The day marks a significant event. Big difference.

The current Columbus Day narrative only tells half of the story. It’s revisionist history. It’s all rooted in Western guilt.

ANYWAY. Trump tweeted about Columbus and got slammed on Twitter:

Christopher Columbus’s spirit of determination & adventure has provided inspiration to generations of Americans. On #ColumbusDay, we honor his remarkable accomplishments as a navigator, & celebrate his voyage into the unknown expanse of the Atlantic Ocean.

You can read more here. Happy Columbus Day.
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Sunday, October 7, 2018

Register to vote


Home

The US Vote Foundation is a resource for voter registration requirements and deadlines. The page for the state of Ohio is here, and if you are not already registered to vote in the November 2018 election, you have until Tuesday, October 9 to do so.

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Saturday, October 6, 2018

Kavanaugh sworn in




The Fox headline

Kavanaugh sworn in as 
114th Supreme Court justice, 
hours after Senate votes to confirm
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Friday, October 5, 2018

Senate Votes To Advance Kavanaugh

The Senate voted Friday to end debate on Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination, setting the stage for a final vote in the chamber Saturday evening -- where the White House now believes it has the votes to confirm Kavanaugh. 
The vote to invoke cloture was 51-49. While the vote was not necessarily indicative of the final confirmation vote, it moved him one step closer to sitting on the highest court in the land, with three out of four key undecided senators voting "yes" to advance the nomination. 
Republican Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., and West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, voted to move forward. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, voted "no." With a 51-49 majority, Republicans can't afford more than one defection if all Democrats were to vote together. Collins is expected to announce her decision in a speech on the Senate floor at 3 p.m. Friday. Flake later said he intends to vote "yes," "unless something big changes." 
The math for Republicans became somewhat trickier late Thursday when Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., said he would be attending his daughter's wedding in Montana on Saturday. He said he would return to cast the decisive vote if needed. 
President Trump welcomed the vote in a tweet, saying he was "very proud" of the Senate. A source familiar with the lobbying efforts to confirm Kavanaugh told Fox News that the White House believes it has the votes to confirm Kavanaugh. 
The source said that the White House believes Murkowski will ultimately be a "no," but Manchin, Collins and Flake will all vote "yes."
Kavanaugh’s nomination was embroiled in a controversy that gripped the nation after multiple women made sexual assault allegations originating from his time in high school and college. The most prominent allegation was from California professor Christine Blasey Ford, who said that Kavanaugh assaulted her at a high school party. That allegation resulted in a high-stakes Senate Judiciary hearing last week where both Ford and Kavanaugh testified. 
Democrats said the allegations were credible and deserved a full investigation, while Republicans accused Democrats of using uncorroborated allegations to scuttle or delay the nomination -- leading to a stream of angry flashpoints between lawmakers. The accusations eventually led to President Trump ordering an FBI investigation. Republicans who had seen the FBI’s report said the FBI had produced no credible corroboration of the allegations. 
JUDICIARY COMMITTEE RELEASES EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF SUPPLEMENTAL FBI REPORT ON KAVANAUGHFate of Kavanaugh nomination hinges on 4 senatorsVideo 
Protesters flooded the capital in the days ahead of the vote, and clashed with Republican lawmakers in an effort to sway their votes, and initially appeared to have some success. Flake demanded the limited FBI investigation last week after being cornered in an elevator by screaming protesters moments before a Senate Judiciary Committee vote to recommend Kavanaugh’s nomination. 
Other Republicans later pushed back against protesters. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, told protesters chasing him to “grow up” while Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., responded to one protester’s call for Kavanaugh to take a polygraph test, asking: “Maybe we can dunk him in water and see if he floats?” 
After the vote on Thursday, protesters once again yelled at Republican senators as they walked through the Senate building.
Ahead of the cloture vote, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, urged the Senate to say “no to mob rule.” He also blasted Democrats for their treatment of Kavanaugh, describing it as “nothing short of monstrous.” 
“The conduct of left-wing dark money groups and allies in this body have shamed us all,” he said. “The fix was in from the very beginning.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said that the vote was "a pivotal day for us here in the Senate." 
"The ideals of justice that have served our nation for so long are on display," he said, calling the last two weeks a "disgraceful spectacle." 
But Democrats had pointed to not only the sexual assault allegations, which they described” but also questions about Kavanaugh’s temperament during the hearing last week and whether he had lied about his drinking during high school and college, and what certain references in his high school yearbook meant. They also sought to paint him as a justice that would swing the court deeply to the right. 
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, accused him of being evasive in his answers during his confirmation hearings on key topics. He said his views are “deeply at odds with the progress America has made in the last century of jurisprudence and at odds with what most Americans believe.” 
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., on the Senate floor before the vote, raised concerns that Kavanaugh would vote to overturn Roe v Wade -- the 1973 decision that found a constitutional right to abortion -- and was extreme on gun rights. 
But she said the last few weeks had raised further concerns, particularly his emotional defense in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, where he had blasted Democrats for their treatment of the sexual assault allegations against him. 
“This behavior revealed a hostility and belligerence unbecoming of someone seeking to be elevated to the Supreme Court,” she said. 
Kavanaugh defended his behavior in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal late Thursday, in which he expressed some regret for his fiery attack on Democrats. 
“I was very emotional last Thursday, more so than I have ever been. I might have been too emotional at times,” he said. “I know that my tone was sharp, and I said a few things I should not have said.” 
He added: "I hope everyone can understand that I was there as a son, husband and dad. I testified with five people foremost in my mind: my mom, my dad, my wife, and most of all my daughters."
 

Tuesday, October 2, 2018

Vote NO on Issue 1 / Save Ohio Lives

A very contentious Issue 1 will be on the ballot this November.  Issue 1 is a very dangerous issue that will weaken drug laws in Ohio to almost the weakest in the nation.  Passage of Issue 1 will much put out the welcome mat for drug users to flock to Ohio!

In addition to weakening our drug laws - the dangerous thing about Issue 1 is that instead of making these changes how they should be - through the legislative process of our elected officials - Issue 1 will make these weak drug laws part of our Ohio Constitution.  

It is important to not get caught up in the "helping the marginal user or addict that needs help" argument.  Without a a doubt some of the drug laws in our state need to be reviewed.  But we do not want to put out a welcome mat and become enablers!

Below is part of an Op-Ed from Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor of the Ohio Supreme Court... 



The lack of consequences for fentanyl possession also applies to possession of other lethal substances, (cocaine, K2, meth and heroin, etc.). Current possession felonies become misdemeanors.
What criminal wouldn’t want to set up their drug business in Ohio?
The adoption of Issue 1 will, I predict, have a devastating consequence on our drug courts. We know, through multiple studies, that drug courts are highly effective but only when they combine the "carrot" of treatment and support with the "stick" of judicial accountability, including incarceration when needed. The courts will be unable to incentivize an addict’s participation in drug court because the "carrot" of not having a felony conviction record is gone. There would be no felony!
Who would want to participate in a drug court program knowing that they only face probation for possession of fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine, K2, heroin, and so forth? I predict that we will see a severe drop-off in drug court participation at the very moment when it is needed most. Lives will be lost.
To make matters worse, Issue 1 would freeze our criminal drug offense laws in time. It expressly mandates that its provisions be implemented based on the laws in effect on Jan. 1, 2018. Our General Assembly couldn’t, by passing a statute, fix all that is wrong with Issue 1.
Keep in mind that out-of-state special interest groups spent more than $4 million to put Issue 1 on the ballot and will spend more to mislead and confuse you regarding Issue 1.
The proponents seek to address a very real problem: the impact of substance abuse on our society and our criminal justice system. But by taking a hammer to that problem, the proponents have set Ohio on a dangerous course of lenient drug laws. Issue 1’s passage would gravely endanger Ohioans while doing very little, if anything, to help our addicted population. Lives will be lost. Read More....

For more details on Issue 1 Click Here.

Friday, September 28, 2018

Steyn on Kavanaugh


art credit: lasvegas.cbslocal.com


My God, the Senate is a vile and repellent institution, but even so it outdid itself yesterday. I almost vomited listening to that oleaginous Connecticut creep Blumenthal throwing in Kavanaugh's face the ancient Common Law caution on witness credibility: Falsus in uno, falsus in omnibus - false in one thing, false in everything.

Is there any man who could less credibly deploy that dictum than Blumenthal? A hollow little "stolen honor" fraudster who was false on one huge big thing - that he served in Vietnam when he never went near the joint - but yet expects to be taken seriously on everything else. That was Kavanaugh's only misstep, not flinging that phrase back in his pompous halfwit interrogator's face. Other than that, he gave a raw, impassioned performance so freakishly authentic by US Senate terms that it may have saved the day. We shall know in a few hours.

Full column is here.
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Thursday, September 27, 2018

President Trump on Kavanaugh


Everyone was riveted to the hearings today, especially prepared remarks from Judge Brett Kavanaugh, and surprisingly (at least for me) Sen. Lindsay Graham.

Here's President Trump's tweet (h/t Sundance):

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Gov. John Kasich: who knew?

A.F. Branco cartoon via Powerlineblog



Governor Kasich showed his true colors in a tweet, fully rejecting the President’s agenda. Kasich is a globalist and he’s with Hillary. He is opposed to Trump’s concept of America First because he wants to have his Kumbaya moment in history with the leftists of the world.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) criticized President Trump over his rebuke of “globalism” during remarks at the United Nations, while stealing a slogan from Trump’s 2016 Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.

Kasich warned Trump that his policy of “America First” could result in “America Alone.” He added that the U.S. and other nations are “Stronger Together,” a nod to Clinton’s campaign slogan.

Forget sovereignty, forget borders, and let’s lead from behind. If anyone ever doubted Kasich’s loyalties lie with the left, doubt no more.

Read more here. And as of last winter, Gov. Kasich didn't rule out a 2020 run for the Presidency
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Wednesday, September 26, 2018

Bad news from Cuyahoga County Council

art credit: snopes.com


Last night, and despite considerable opposition, the Cuyahoga County Council succeeded in its latest power-grab, creating the “Commission on Human Rights.” Cleveland.com reports:

Cuyahoga County Council on Tuesday passed legislation that protects the LGBTQ community from discrimination and creates a commission with the power to level fines if it finds discrimination did occur.
. . .
The legislation -- proposed by County Executive Armond Budish and sponsored by council members Dan Brady, Yvonne Conwell, Michael Houser, Dale Miller and Sunny Simon -- passed by an 8-3 vote along party lines. Republicans Nan Baker, Michael Gallagher and Jack Schron voted against the legislation.
. . .
It also creates the three-person Cuyahoga County Commission on Human Rights. If someone believes they have been discriminated against, they will be able to take that complaint to the commission, which could level civil penalties, award attorney fees, and order individuals to stop engaging in discriminatory practices if it determines that discrimination occurred.
. . .
An even larger crowd turned out for public comment again on Tuesday, with about 80 people speaking for and against the legislation as council prepared to pass it. County officials estimated that at least roughly 220 people attended the meeting.

Read the rest here. (Previous blogs here.)
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Monday, September 24, 2018

Cuyahoga County Council Votes tomorrow




This follows up earlier blogposts here  from our friends at Ohio Value Voters. On Tuesday, September 25th at 5:00 pm the County Council of Cuyahoga County, Ohio will hear public testimony against Ordinance No. O2018-0009 sponsored by: County Executive Budish and Councilmembers Brady, Miller, Houser and Simon and the VOTE will take place.

TOMORROW: COUNTY COUNCIL MEETING:

Event date:  Tuesday, September 25, 2018 - (5:00 PM)
Arrive about ½ hour early.
Address:  2079 East 9th Street, 4th Floor (corner of East 9th & Prospect).

There is free parking across the street in the 900 Tower Prospect Street garage. Proceed north on 9th Street, turn right on Prospect and the parking garage will be on the right hand side. If you park on level 5 in the garage, the bridge connects you to level 4 of the Cuyahoga County Administrative Building. Remember to get your ticket validated at the security check point.
  • Your attendance at the meeting does not require you to speak. You will send a message with your presence.
  • Speakers should write-out testimony to be presented to the council
  • No signs in the council chambers
  • Speakers direct comments to entire council (not individuals)
  • Sign-in sheet at beginning of meeting is required to speak
  • Speakers are allowed three minutes
  • No posters
Here is a link to the outrageous ordinance==>Ordinance 2018-0009

PUBLIC TESTIMONY REQUESTED AND 
COUNCIL VOTING 
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25TH 
AT 5:00 PM

The Cuyahoga County Council has been working to establish a county-wide "Human Rights Commission" that will affect every city, resident, business, and church in the county.  The three-person commission is intended to hear ALL cases of discrimination in Cuyahoga County relative to sexual orientation/gender identity.  LGBT citizens will be provided legal assistance paid for by our tax dollars.  This piece of legislation hurts business, puts our safety at risk, and punishes people of faith. This ordinance permits biological men, who consider themselves to be a woman, to enter a woman's bathroom or locker room in "all places of public accommodation."




Sunday, September 23, 2018

Lightening up for a moment

Powerline has a weekly feature "The Week In Pictures." My favorite from this week:

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Friday, September 21, 2018

A legal immigrant is now an American citizen



This morning I attended a naturalization ceremony for foreign-born residents. The swearing-in took place in the Ohio District Court in downtown Cleveland, and there must have been at least 100 applicants present, most with family or friends. The presiding Magistrate Judge gave the proceedings a real sense of occasion. He began by leading the Pledge of Allegiance, and then talked a little bit about America’s founding documents and earning the right to citizenship, before administering the Oath of Allegiance. He also posed for photographs with each and every new U.S. citizen holding his or her certificate of citizenship. Most of those who were sworn in registered to vote before exiting the building.

I had not known what to expect, having read a report of a recent and pretty dismal naturalization ceremony in Brooklyn, where no friends or relatives were allowed in the room, and the presiding judge encouraged new citizens to take a knee. Fortunately, the ceremony I attended this morning was a joyful one, the courtroom lent the proceedings a formal elegance, and a well-known painting of George Washington at the signing of the Constitution (see above) was projected on the screen behind the bench. I had brought with me an American flag lapel pin for the new United States citizen, and my hanky. It was needed.
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Thursday, September 20, 2018

Tech Researcher Epstein Warns Conservatives: Get Off Gmail!


image credit: 4thmedia.org

I’ve been reading about the thumb-on-the-scale algorithms built into searches and regular activities on Google, Facebook, YouTube, and so on. A tech researcher, Dr Robert Epstein, was a guest on Fox News a couple of weeks ago, so I recognized his name in an article today at Newsbusters. Here’s a sampling:

Google has more power and control than most people realize and a top tech researcher is warning about it.

In an interview at the D.C. premiere of the Creepy Line, a documentary on the dangers of Google and Facebook, Dr. Robert Epstein told the Media Research Center that Google was building personal profiles of users mainly through Gmail. He warned that Google was compiling information upwards of 3 million pages per user, and said, “The more they know about you, the easier it is for them to manipulate you without your awareness.”

Epstein explained what parts of Gmail Google used to create these profiles: every single part.

“I can’t even begin to emphasize how important it is that you not use Gmail. The problem is that it’s so extensive it’s hard to condense into a sentence or two. But the point is that they’re taking that information, not just from the emails you send, but even from the drafts, those crazy drafts that you decide not to send, that all becomes part of your personal profile. If you’re mentioning other people, that goes into their personal profiles.”

He mentioned that it didn’t matter if some users had emails outside of Gmail, those were on the profiles too.
. . .
[C]onservatives have “special reasons to be concerned” based on the leaked emails and videos from Google concerning the 2016 election. Detailing an article that he was about to release, he said, “I describe 10 different methods by which Google and big tech companies can shift millions of votes in the midterm elections coming up in the U.S. I estimate upwards of 12 million votes.”

In the Fox interview I watched, Dr Epstein made the point that the compiling of data and the manipulation of YOUR online activities to influence YOUR decisions, including your vote, are taking place and leaving no paper trail. Scary. Read the rest here.
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Wednesday, September 19, 2018

Ken Blackwell: another look at Ohio Issue #1


image credit: sunrisehouse.com

A week or so ago, Cleveland Tea Party posted a blog examining some pros and cons of Issue #1, which will be on the ballot in November.

Today, Ken Blackwell, former Ohio Secretary of State, leads off his article “Ohio’s ‘Issue 1’: A Dangerous and Deadly Proposition” with:

They are at it again!  Liberal billionaires George Soros, Mark Zuckerberg and Nicholas Pritzker are attempting to force their left leaning ideology on Ohioans.

This time it’s by spending millions of dollars to weaken Ohio’s drug laws. Soros, Zuckerberg and Pritzker are the lead funders of state Issue 1, a dangerous state constitutional amendment that gives drug dealers a get out of jail free card.

They want you to believe their proposal is in line with marijuana reforms in other states. It’s not. They will say it’s in the interest of public safety, and will lead to better treatment options for addicted Ohioans. It won’t.
. . .
Drug abuse has had a disproportionate effect on Ohio families, and tragically, our state is ground zero in the fight against overdoses. Law enforcement officials are overwhelmed by the overdose crisis and we cannot afford, in terms of treasure and human suffering, more of these drugs on the streets. But that will be the legacy of Issue 1.

Read the rest here.
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Tuesday, September 18, 2018

Debate scheduled: Sherrod Brown vs Jim Renacci

art credit: digitaltrends.com


From Andrew J. Tobias at cleveland.com (posted yesterday):

The two major candidates for this year's Ohio Senate race will debate in Cleveland next month, organizers for the event announced Monday.

Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and his Republican challenger, Rep. Jim Renacci, have agreed to debate at 6 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 14 in Cleveland, about three weeks before the November election.

The debate will be held at the Westfield Insurance studio theater at the Idea Center in Playhouse Square, according to the nonpartisan Ohio Debate Commission, which is organizing the event.

Two veteran journalists -- Ann Fisher, of WOSU public radio in Columbus and Russ Mitchell, anchor at WKYC-TV in Cleveland -- will serve as moderators. Tickets for the event are free, and organizers say more information about how to attend will be posted on their website, www.ohiodebatecommission.org, on Tuesday.

Stay tuned.
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