Mahoning, Trumbull counties shortchanged in funding bill

June 28, 2024

When you see the dollar amount, $31 million coming to Mahoning and Trumbull counties from the state’s One-Time Strategic Community Investment Fund and the capital budget seems like a lot of money. But based on population, the counties come up short in terms of the money they will receive from the two pots of money that were combined into one bill and approved Wednesday. The capital budget, approved every two years by the General Assembly, provides funding to public universities, state parks, the school facilities commission, public works projects, jail and prisons, the Ohio ...

Tiff mars Cutrona appointment

June 21, 2024

Overcoming an internal Republican political dispute that included significant pressure placed on those casting the deciding votes, Al Cutrona emerged as the successor to Michael Rulli in the Ohio Senate. It was a quick but not easy process that led to Cutrona, a Republican state representative from Canfield, getting the appointment to represent the 33rd Ohio Senate District on June 13 by a 4-2 vote among the Republican Party chairs and secretaries in the district. Cutrona got votes from those in Mahoning and Carroll counties while state Rep. Monica Robb Blasdel, R-Columbiana, got the ...

What went wrong with Mike Rulli’s winning campaign?

June 14, 2024

The day before the special 6th Congressional District election, a Republican I’ve known for years texted me: “You get the feeling tomorrow’s special is going to be a lot closer than people think? I do.” On the night of the election, the Republican texted me, “Looks like I even underestimated how bad he did.” Michael Rulli, a Republican state senator with two grocery stores in Mahoning County, beat unknown Democrat Michael L. Kripchak 54.7% to 45.3% in a district that has an 18% advantage for Republicans based on voting results in partisan statewide elections over the past ...

Congressional records studied

June 7, 2024

Various groups do studies of congressional members to paint a picture of the officeholders based on voting records and other actions they take. No study is perfect; the organizations looking at congressional records interpret them based on their political philosophies and biases. In just the past couple of weeks, a pair of studies stood out to me. I’ve written articles about the bipartisan studies done by the Lugar Center and Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy for years. The study reviews every bill, excluding resolutions, to determine if those introduced ...

Rulli favored in Congress race

May 31, 2024

Republican Michael Rulli is the heavy favorite to win the June 11 special election for the open 6th Congressional District seat, but Democrat Michael L. Kripchak isn’t throwing in the towel. “I’m going to be a blue congressman in a supposedly red district,” Kripchak said. When you look at the numbers, there’s nothing supposed about the district being solidly Republican. The district has an 18% advantage for Republicans based on voting trends in partisan statewide elections over the past decade. National Democrats aren’t getting involved in this special election even ...

Biden ballot access in doubt

May 24, 2024

If President Joe Biden is going to appear on the Nov. 5 ballot in Ohio, his campaign is likely going to have to file a lawsuit and be successful. As it currently stands, Ohio will be the only state in the nation not to include the sitting president who is seeking reelection on the ballot. Even though Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has ordered a special legislative session to try to get Biden on the ballot, there is no guarantee he will succeed. The issue started with the Democratic National Committee scheduling its convention, at which Biden will be formally nominated, for Aug. 19-22. Biden ...