Rust Belt Is Already Benefiting From Green Jobs

As this CNNMoney.com article makes clear. My favorite quote?

Scores of firms in the renewable energy business have recently opened in the Rust Belt states. They hope to take advantage of a population known for its industrial skills, engineering ability and work ethic.

It's hard to say how many people these firms currently employ. The government doesn't yet track green jobs and the distinction between what's "green" and what isn't often gets blurred.

One study by the University of California, Berkeley estimated that green energy companies employ at least half a million people. That number could climb to 2 to 4 million over the next 15 years if the nation got 15%-20% of its power from renewable sources.

I Support Marilyn Brown for Ohio Secretary of State

I have not been able to pin down whether or not Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason is going to take the plunge and run for Secretary of State. Some people say yes, some say no. It really doesn't matter to me, because Franklin County Commissioner Marilyn Brown has my support no matter what.

I have known Marilyn Brown and her husband Eric for six years, dating back to Howard Dean meetups at the now-closed Scottie MacBean's Cafe in Columbus' Clintonville neighborhood. In 2004, Eric Brown was elected to a seat on the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. In 2006, Marilyn Brown took on the challenge of unseating the last GOPer on the Franklin County Board of Commissioners, defeating three term incumbent Dewey Stokes by 5 points. During that time, I vividly remember her husband attending campaign events with a nametag that identified himself not as "Judge Eric Brown" but as "Mr. Marilyn Brown"

 Since then, Marilyn has helped the County maintain its best possible AAA bond rating, a testament to the county's sound financial management practices. She helped oversee the construction of the new Huntington Park baseball stadium, which was on time, on budget, and built without a dime of taxpayer money. All the while, Marilyn and the rest of the Board took fire from the Dispatch (R-Columbus) for sticking to labor practice policies that were pro-labor, but that the paper conveniently forgot were enacted by her GOP predecessors. In 2008, she was elected President of the Board of Commissioners. Also in 2008, Marilyn's husband Eric was elected to become the first ever Democrat on the Franklin County Probate Court.

So, the Browns have a collective 3-for-3 track record in elections in Franklin County. Marilyn is now taking on the challenge of holding the Secretary of State seat for the Democratic Party. While it won't be easy to defeat "Slick Jonny" Husted, Marilyn will have my full support in her campaign. Go get 'em Marilyn!

PD: Fisher, Haseley Knew of Barbash's Tax Problems

Mark Naymik of the Plain Dealer is reporting the following this morning :

Strickland's administration also delivered a negative communication last week. That's when it acknowledged that the nobody told the governor that state's top development officer, Mark Barbash, had tax troubles before his promotion in February to the Cabinet-level post.

Barbash resigned Friday after a media report revealed he owed the Internal Revenue Service more than $146,000.

Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher knew of Barbash's problem, as did the governor's chief of staff, John Haseley. Yet, neither said anything to Strickland, who found out only when Barbash told the administration he had received a foreclosure notice on his home.

The situation sends a couple of possible messages, neither of them good.

One, the governor's staff keeps him out of the loop. Or, two, the governor doesn't pay attention to his own vetting process.

So, Lee Fisher and John Haseley knew of Barbash's tax problems and yet failed to tell the Guv?

Shame on them.

Governor Strickland is in the midst of a tough budget cycle and is looking at a no-gimme re-election campaign next year. These two should know better than to make his life more difficult than it already is.

As for Mark Barbash, fear not! You may owe $146,000 to the IRS, but Akron mayoral recall instigator Warner Mendenhall has you topped! He owes $196,000. So, Mark, you may not be fit to be director of Development, but you can feel free to start a petition drive to recall your local mayor. And, you can whine about it if your mayor's supporters try to point out your tax lien as a reason not to support your recall efforts too, just like Mendenhall has.

A New Campaign Link

Hi all, please note my new campaign link over on the right. I'll have a full length post up about this later.

OH-01: Driehaus Makes List of Most Vulnerable House Incumbents

This from the Fix's first ranking of the 10 U.S. House seats most likely to switch parties in 2010:

8. Ohio's 1st district (D) (55 percent): Rep. Steve Chabot's (R) hold on this Cincinnati-area district was always tenuous due to the heavy (27 percent) black population. With President Obama's historic candidacy leading the ticket, Chabot's number came up in 2008 as state Rep.Steve Driehaus (D) knocked him off by just over 8,000 votes. Chabot is running again, believing that the high levels of black turnout will not be repeatable in 2010. He's probably right but Driehaus will also benefit from the power of incumbency; witness the $152,000 (out of $215,000 raised) that came from political action committees in the first three months of the year.

Akron Recall Is On

Yesterday Akron City Council Clerk Bob Keith certified that Warner Mendenhall's group Change Akron Now has more than enough signatures to recall Mayor Don Plusquellic. Plusquellic will now have 5 business days to resign or City Council will be required to schedule a recall election between 40 and 60 days later, meaning it would be sometime between late June and mid July.

I have an e-mail into the Ohio Democratic Party wondering how they will respond to this recall. When I hear back from them I'll post on it.

Brunner: Under No Circumstances Will I Run for SOS

In a letter to the chairs of county Democratic parties today, Jennifer Brunner unequivocally states that she will not seek re-election to the SOS position:

I want to make it clear that under no circumstances will I consider seeking re-election to the Secretary of State's position, or any other statewide or federal office, other than the open U.S. Senate seat of retiring Senator George Voinovich. I am pleased with the work that you and I have accomplished in improving elections in Ohio and the operations of the Secretary of State's office in less than three years, including protecting each Ohioan's social security number from public access and ensuring trust in Ohio's elections.

Modern & Russo's Leger De Main Re: Brunner

Leger De Main is a French phrase that means sleight of hand, an attempt at diversion. Jennifer Brunner supporters Modern Esquire and Tim Russo are hard at work practicing Leger De Main right now in an attempt to distract attention from Brunner's poor 1st Quarter fund raising totals, and the pressure she is feeling from national Democrats to improve her fundraising or leave the race.

Two national bloggers, Chris Cilliza of the Washington Post blog The Fix , and Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight.com have written recently that Brunner's lackluster fundraising total in Q1 means that unless her Q2 results show marked improvement, she'll feel the heat from national Democrats to leave the race. Especially since GOP front runner Rob Portman has over $3 million in the bank and a cleared primary field.

I don't know about you, but I really can't see Jennifer Brunner saying no to Rahm Emanuel if he calls her and asks her to step aside. Thus all the heat is on Brunner to at least match Fisher's Q2 fundraising totals or leave the race. The DSCC knows that Ohio is a key pickup opportunity that can serve either as a firewall against GOP gains elsewhere, or as a key piece in the puzzle of 60 senate votes. A bloody Democratic primary where the GOP candidate has a cleared field and can raise funds and define himself at will is their worst nightmare. 

From outside the vitrol that Modern and Russo have for Fisher for whatever reason, it would appear that the candidate who raised $1 million and has 20 years experience is more viable than one who raised $200,000 and has no legislative experience whatsover. So the heat is on Brunner to improve her fundraising totals or clear the field for Fisher. 

So, pay no attention to Modern & Russo's Leger De Main.

Jesse Ventura: "President Obama Inherited a Situation I Wouldn't Wish on My Worst Enemy"

ODP Confirms: David Pepper Announcing Tomorrow

The Ohio Democratic Party has confirmed what Ohio Daily Blog speculated on earlier today: tomorrow morning Hamilton County Commissioner David Pepper will announce his candidacy for Auditor of State, flanked by Chris Redfern and Gov. Ted Strickland. Look out, Mary Taylor. From the presser:

Tuesday: David Pepper Campaign Announcement

Will be joined by Governor Ted Strickland, Chairman Chris Redfern

David Pepper, Hamilton County Commission President, will make a major announcement regarding the 2010 campaign tomorrow at Ohio Democratic Party Headquarters.

Governor Ted Strickland will speak. ODP Chairman Chris Redfern and other elected officials will attend the announcement.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009
10:30 a.m.
Ohio Democratic Party HQ
340 Fulton St., Columbus