Plain Dealer Editors Want to Reward Republican Bad Behavior

The editors of the Cleveland Plain Dealer recently gave an example on how Republicans' intellectual thuggery gets rewarded by the news media. The PD ran an editorial on Sunday, December 21, 2008, supporting Strickland's announcement that he was going to veto the flawed "election reform", (read voter suppression), bill passed by the outgoing Republican General Assembly. This is a quote from the editorial:

Senate Bill 380 was a textbook example of how not to improve election administration. Republicans eager to settle partisan grievances with Ohio's chief elections officer, Democratic Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, rushed it through on a series of party-line votes. And though Ohio GOP leaders will sputter in outrage when Strickland wields his veto pen, there is absolutely no way they ever could have expected him to sign such an ill-considered package.

The editorial then goes on to call for a bi-partisan approach to election legislation and notes that Ohio's Secretary of State recently hosted a conference to discuss the experiences of the 2008 election. The editorial writer refers to her conference as "valuable." Then, incredibly, the editorial calls for Brunner to step back and not be involved in such conferences in the future. Here's the reason:

Thanks to both GOP targeting and her own actions, she has become a partisan lightning rod.

What actions of Brunner is the writer referring to? Running a problem free election in 2008 compared to the soap opera Ohio experienced in 2004? Making sure that voters' rights were protected? Winning virtually every lawsuit that the Ohio GOP filed?

Basically, it seems to be the PD's position that since Republicans filed baseless lawsuits against her, and since they made hysterical comments to the media about her, somehow it is now illegitimate for her to make election law recommendations. Basically the PD is rewarding the Republicans' bad behavior.

The problem here is that the media is afraid to call Republicans bullshit for what it is, bullshit. When the media takes positions such as the one quoted above, it provides cover for baseless Republican attacks.

Here's our suggestion: Brunner should hold a another conference, invite Republicans as well as Democrats to the conference, develop proposed legislation, and then take that legislation to the Democratic controlled House of Representatives and see if the House will pass it. Once passed, then she goes to the Senate and tries to get them to pass it, and if the Senate doesn't pass it, then at least she has tried.

What she cannot do is forsake her constitutional duty to be Ohio's chief election officer just because the Ohio GOP will throw a hissy fit.

Hausted Falls Back on Family to Explain Not Running for Governor

Former Speaker of the House Jon Husted told the Cleveland Plain Dealer editorial board that he wasn't running for governor because of family commitments. This is how the PD put it in its article on the editorial board interview:

Running for the state's top executive spot would require too big of a commitment at a time when Husted is focused on his wife, 13-year-old son and baby daughter. At least that's the situation now. Down the road? "I have plenty of time," he said."

When a politician tells you that he or she isn't running for a certain office because of his or her family. nine times out of ten you can bet that it's really because they don't think they can win the race. Interestingly, while Husted ruled out running for governor, he didn't rule out running for State Treasurer or Secretary of State. Apparently, his family comes first when it comes to running against a popular Democratic Governor, but not when it comes to running for other state-wide offices.

Our guess is that Husted knows he can't raise the money to run against Strickland, but figures that there will be Republican money to run against Brunner for Ohio S.O.S. The reason is that if Republican donors think they are going to lose to Strickland again, they will go all out to beat Brunner so they can draw the district lines for the General Assembly and for Congress.

In the State Treasurer's race, the Democrats will have an incumbent, but one that will have been appointed, not elected. Such a race will be easier than running for Governor or for Secretary of State, although Husted will still be up against an incumbent. Our predication is that "family obligations" will be the reason why Husted passes on a state-wide race next year.