Loading ...
Bad Numbers For Ohioans
- Filed under: Ohio Government
- Date: Mar 26,2008
Food Stamps In Ohio
The story that all my friends from out of state have kept emailing over the past couple days is the report that 1.1 million Ohioans receive food stamps. That is roughly 1 in 10 people in our state. The article goes on to say point out: "Another 500,000 Ohioans are eligible for the program but not enrolled, experts who study poverty say." Scary stuff. That is the kind of statistic that perpetuates our problems by discouraging investment in our state because we look like a lost cause.
Ken Blackwell's Illegal Bonuses
You'd think Ken Blackwell would not still be in the headlines for mismanagement after being out of office for over a year, but he is. Before leaving the Secretary of State's office, Blackwell paid over $80,000 in bonuses to 17 employees in his office before ending his term. The illegal payments were discovered by Republican State Auditor Mary Taylor who was asked to review Blackwell's records by our exceptional Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner. The report is a short and interesting read. I would suggest checking out the chart on page 10, which details the over payments. Those individuals will be responsible for reimbursing the public funds they were overpaid with. Imagine getting a work bonus and having to give it back a 14 months later because your boss, WHO IS SECRETARY OF STATE, can't follow the law. I would be furious. This is just another example of the kind of poor leadership that J. Kenneth Blackwell brought to our state.
23 Responses for "Bad Numbers For Ohioans"
It is interesting that Mary Taylor, a Republican, performed this audit on another Republican Ken Blackwell. If your own party is ruling against you, then you probably made a mistake. In many situations members of one's own political party rally around other party members in trouble. Blackwell messed up again. I am very glad he is not Governor.
I can't believe Blackwell was ever considered a viable candidate for Governor. The recent audit is a great example of his mismanagement of pretty much everything he handles, including the 2004 election.
The only thing "exceptional" about Jenny Brunner is her ability to become the most partisan SOS in the history of Ohio…
Matt, come on, Blackwell earns that distinction by a long shot.
Really Kyle…what has she done that is so "exceptional." You are starting to sound like Ted Wendling, the guy who used to write the most biased articles ever for the PD and then after the 2006 elections applied for a job with the Strickland Admin.
1. Is it true that the reguirements to be eligble have become more inclusive ove the last few years?
2. I have heard numerous ads encourageijng people to sign up for foodstamps. What do you suggest a house to house serach to find every last person that may qualify? Maybe we should just say all but the rich automatically get the stamps.
Thankfully we have a real leader like Ted Strickland in office. He has done so many good things since he took over. Ohio is now one the best states in which to live in the entire United States. Ted should resign and be the unity candidate that Obama and Clinton supporters can both support with everything they have.
If the bonus was in lieu of unemployment benefits and the net result was spending less money then I dont see it as a big deal. Compared to what most high ranking bureacrats do on their way out this is small potatoes.
Why do Blackwell's staffers have to pay back the bonuses but staffers in the Ohio House, the State Treasury and OSU don't? This is another partisan hit on Blackwell. Nice to see that Mary Taylor can be led around by our fine hack AG and partisan Secretary of State.
Ben, Secretary of State Brunner's vigilance protecting the tax dollars of the State of Ohio is illustrated by her partnership with Treasurer Taylor to uncover this abuse by Blackwell. Exposing fraud in government is a great thing. Now, as Taft Republicans you guys might not agree. Plus, don't you agree with her decision to remove Alex from the Summit County BOE? I'd think you'd be thankful for that decision.
I told you all my little bro would clean up state govt
KYLE,
There is no greater insult than calling someone a Taft Rep. That is hitting below the belt.
Good point Fred, it could be a savings for taxpayers if that is all the money the employees would ultimately receive. Is there any way to know. You would think Blackwell would have let the public know about that.
I have worked with Carol at Goodyear in the last few years. The AA supporters take her lightly at their own peril. I believe she was an outstanding choice and will surprise people when the vote comes around
Pretty unbelievable that no one has really commented on the food stamp part of this post. Hard to believe those numbers and very sad to say the least
My family was on government assistance when I was growing up. I enjoyed helping my mother peel the "money" out of the booklet and handing it to the cashier. It wasn't until I was a bit older when I learned why we had it and that none of my friends had that kind of "money". They would see it and ask if it was boardgame money. "Where in the world do you get that?", they would ask. I was ashamed and embarrassed. I told myself no matter how bad things got, I would never go back to that again. I think many Ohioans that have been brought up in the system remain there and they are fine with it. Education is ignored and they pass this behavior onto their children and so on. It is a cycle that needs to be addressed. Sure, many people find themselves in a situation where they are in desperate need for help, but most find ways to milk the system and "live the dream", a dream with zero accountabilty and responsibilty.
Viper, it's mainly republicans who comment on this blog. I guess there is no good spin on the food stamp numbers or a way to blame the Clenis, so they just ignore it.
I dont ignore it. I just will employ the typical Democrat line of attack / rebuttal: Blame the party in charge. Last time I looked, Ted Strickland was a Democrat.
I wrote about this very topic on my blog. I don't think that this statistic will deter many businesses away from the state of Ohio. However, I think it is a problem that needs immediate attention. It is unconscionable that in the world today that a citizen of this country cannot have the following basic needs met: food, shelter, and health care.
BTW everyone…Jason (the above commenter) has a great blog called the Rowsey Blog. There is a link in the sidebar here to it, along with other Ohio blogs worth checking out. After you come here of course.
Terrible to hear about the food stamps thing, but this is just another indication that Ohio is in serious trouble. A key issue in my mind is the highly reported rate of college graduates leaving the state.
Ohio will continue its downward spiral until someone can stop the hemorrhage of the best and brightest (no offense to those still living in OH).
Perhaps the Blackwell bonuses were because of the excellent job the whole team had done. Think that could be it?
As Ohio, sadly, deteriorates, food stamp demands will only continue to increase. Ohio, even sadder yet, is a leading indicator of where the majority of states are headed.
Why? In Ohio, the unobstructed outflow of decent manufacturing jobs, reduced union membership, and higher poverty rates have been brought about by supply side GOP -style capitalism with just the right amount of corruption mixed in.
We're seeing all of this nationally now….thanks to 8 years of being held in captivity by voodoo economics and an imperialistic foreign policy….all brought to us by Republican supply siders properly seasoned with the required amount of corruption.
Kyle: Nice picture. It's amazing isn't it? How they got those three big headed morons to all fit in one picture.
There are so many reasons why the number of folks receiving food stamps is so appalingly high. The Rev only scratches the surface. Until the economy improves and we can bring, train and/or keep new jobs and educated people to Ohio, the outlook remains bleak and the number of poeple in poverty will continue to grow. It will take a lot more than a change in national leadership or state leadership to do that.
And what will we do when the medicaid funds run out in 11 years and social security in a few more?
Leave a comment