Ben: Kyle and I sat down and talked about tonight's debate, the national horse race, two local Ohio House races, and one other big race that is more just on my radar. The video runs just under six minutes. I even wore a tie.

Brian Williams was able to use his legislative experience to his advantage through out the debate. As a Ranking Member on the Health Committee, Williams was able to give some legislative insight in response to a question about nurse to patient ratios. It should be noted that neither candidate committed to a number. From his work in the Akron Public Schools and as as a member of the Education Committee, Williams talked about his work with Governor Strickland to move toward fixing Ohio's school funding crisis. Williams mentioned Governor Strickland several times and it was a good strategy considering our governor's approval rating. Williams gave a solid performance and showed he understands the issues facing our state. I'll leave it up to Ben to summarize Cole's performance.

Ben: Kyle is right; the debate was a respectful one on both sides. It was the first candidates debate for either one; Williams said neither of his previous challengers wanted to debate him. I can sum of up all of the answers of Brian Williams this way: education funding. He tied virtually everything back to that. The only real tense moment I saw during the debate was when Cole said Williams claimed when he was elected he would be the "go to guy on education" and pointed out nothing had been accomplished on that front. Williams was not amused, though the assertion was true. I am not anti-education, but that can't be part of your answer for every question as Williams turned his into.

One major issue where they disagreed was the state rainy day fund. Williams said he would not want to tap into it. Cole said that times like this are what the rainy day fund is for and that is why the money has been set aside and some of it should be spent wisely in these days of budget constraints. Both said they were opposed to Issue 6 (casinos). Cole also encouraged everyone to support Issue 1, which will prevent the ballot from being bogged down with initiatives like California. Williams said he was for same day registration / voting; Cole said it could lead to problems. Cole touted his endorsements of the Akron Beacon Journal, Cleveland Plain Dealer, and Sun Newspapers. The two also discussed clean coal in Ohio, the Akron "Sewers for Scholarships" program, and health care. Cole also brought up one of his major issues – maximizing one of our biggest natural resources, water. He talked about the Cuyahoga Valley National Park as a place that should be a destination for people outside of our area, tying that in with his work with the Ohio and Erie Canalway Association.

In the end, Randy Cole put forth an excellent performance and showed why he should be elected. It is too bad that all voters in the district did not attend. In my eyes, it was very telling that Williams did not point out any of his accomplishments in the Ohio House. That is because he has none. The debate wasn't like what you see between John McCain and Barack Obama; this debate was really locally focused, which made it both different and interesting.

*Randy Cole thinks the 41st Ohio House District deserves better than their current part-time legislator Brian Williams. He announced this week that he will be stepping down from his current job as a demonstration of his commitment to the district. His release, in part: "The people of Ohio’s 41st House District deserve more than a part-time legislator, and I want to show them my dedication to learning and understanding their issues by becoming a full-time candidate. It has become clear that my attention can only be focused on this campaign and the 17 communities in this district from now through November in order to implement a successful campaign strategy." Randy is a guy that the 41st needs in Columbus. Brian Williams has had his chance and done nothing.

*McCain set on VP. Romney supposedly out. You know my feelings. However, the "seven homes" line of attack on McCain may have ruled him out. Typical Democratic class warfare doesn't usually work, but McCain/Romney together may present an opening to them. I'll support the decision as long as it isn't Huckabee and I trust the right choice will be made. I will just reiterate one last time that electoral map wise, Romney is the best choice, far and away. Democrats must feel the same, they have been bashing him all week in Denver. But if McCain feels that the negatives would be too much, then I accept that judgment. McCain and his high level staffers have more polling information than I do. Looking like it will be Pawlenty, Palin, or Kay Bailey Hutchison (my guess is this is a smokescreen). I get the feeling (and am hearing) Palin is back in the mix – it would be a pick that shakes up the race. Didn't mention Hutchison in my original rundown of potential picks, but someone did in the comments. Truthfully, I have no idea what he will do and no one at all will surprise me. I don't think any of us have any idea. With Obama, you knew it would be one of a handful of people.

***added: additional Palin thoughts: This pick would contrast well with Obama's Biden pick. It would give McCain momentum as the one who made the daring choice as opposed to the defensive pick of Obama. 2008 is about being an outsider and change. Palin is the definition of it. Democrats would argue she has less experience than Biden. Republicans would then say, "okay fine, but compare Obama to McCain using that criteria." The Dems almost couldn't go there. I used to think her short time in office would be a hindrance, but I have Kerry flopped on it. It puts emphasis on the stature between Obama and McCain.

*ACORN is at it again: A national organization that conducts voter registration drives for low-income people has curtailed its push in Cuyahoga County after the Board of Elections accused its workers of submitting fraudulent registration cards. The board is investigating the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. Results of the inquiry could be turned over to the county prosecutor. Board employees said ACORN workers often handed in the same name on a number of voter registration cards, but showing that person living at different addresses. Other times, cards had the same name listed, but a different date of birth. Still another sign of possible fraud showed a number people living at an address that turned out to be a restaurant.

Okay. Convention……

*Biden's speech. Predictable stuff to a Democratic audience. It appears to me they are moving away from the "Bush's Third Term" line of attack, sensing it isn't working and won't work (correct). Biden tried to highlight Obama's accomplishments. It was difficult; he didn't have a lot to work with. No mention of the surge. No mention of Biden's 2003 vote to authorize the war. No mention of his 1991 vote for the Gulf War. He had a certain "Howard Dean" look to him. That is not a compliment. Biden does not strike me as a guy who is going to "wear well" as the campaign goes on. Our completely unscientific poll in the sidebar has a question on the Biden pick. Feel free to weigh in.

*Bill's speech: Had to take a pass on watching it; 8 years was enough for me. Got good reviews on both the left and right. I am sure it was. He is a hell of a politician. Good insight there.

*The stadium gamble Thursday. I am sure Obama will give a great speech – he usually does. Most people there won't even care what he has to say, but they aren't the people he needs to win the election.

Back in June, I discussed the Ohio House race in the 41st District (PDF of the district location in Summit County). Republican Randy Cole is running to unseat Democrat Brian G. Williams, who was first elected in 2004. In that post, I described how Williams replaced similarly named Republican Bryan C. Williams for the seat, which is one of the big reasons he was selected by Democrats to run in the first place (name confusion). New Brian Williams won by 279 votes out of about 64,700 total votes. He has done next to nothing for the district since he was elected unless you count collecting a paycheck in addition to his retirement check from the state from his time in the Akron schools.

Since my initial writing, Cole has received the endorsement of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee and the Ohio Society of CPAs. He was also recognized as one of Akron’s "30 for the Future" by the Greater Akron Chamber of Commerce. Cole was also the only candidate running against a two term incumbent who received the Ohio Chamber endorsement. Also since my first post on this race there has been no status change in the legislative accomplishments of Brian Williams; he has still just introduced 4 non-important bills, of which exactly 0 have passed.

The number one focus for Randy continues to be the economy – as it has been from the start. He is still stressing the importance of dealing with our lagging economy throughout his campaign and his plan to use our regional strengths to our advantage. At the event on Sunday I heard him repeat that he is frustrated by the fact that when knocking on doors people in this area constantly tell him they have to get on a plane to see their children and/or grandchildren because they have gone elsewhere looking for better employment. He thinks this can change with the right leadership. Currently the 41st is without such a leader in the Ohio House.

This past weekend, the Cole campaign had an ice cream social and family get together at the Bath Community Center that attracted a good number of local residents. The picture above is Randy briefly addressing the crowd as they enjoyed the food. Below the fold are a few of the other pictures I took.

This past weekend the Beacon ran a story regarding Ohio lawmaker access to Buckeyes Football tickets. With the whole John Widowfield story coming to light recently, this story and the ability to purchase the coveted tickets for the chosen few has started to get some attention – unwanted by both the buyers and Ohio State. They are offered an opportunity to buy up to four season tickets each year. They must pay out of their own pocket or use campaign funds. There aren't a lot of harder tickets to purchase for a sporting event anywhere in the country – professional or collegiate. I would venture to guess that most people did not know about this exclusive privilege granted to Ohio lawmakers.

Brian G. Williams, Democratic State Representative in the 41st District, said in the article: "Hey, we're state representatives and this is our state university," said Williams, who purchases tickets with his own money. "The fact we are able to buy tickets – I don't see anything wrong with that."

I then found an interesting comment to the story (6th one down):

"To him, I reply, hey, I'm a taxpayer and this is my state university. The fact I am not able to buy tickets and you are is wrong. You are my representative and your job is serve me, not be privileged over me. If you want to be hold a position superior to state representative, resign and become hold only the title of citizen. In the United States, that is the pinnacle."

"I find your assertion that your position privileges you to seats at football games at one of Ohio's publicly funded universities is ludicrous. The fact is that this ticket business is small potatoes in the array of unearned privileges assumed by government officials. Your arrogant and silly assertion that some right to buy football tickets is a function of your job of providing oversight to our state university makes me wonder what other kinds of privileges you believe you have."

This fall Williams (still yet to pass a bill since he was elected in 2004) is facing off against Republican Randy Cole for a seat in the Ohio House. Cole said if elected he will not purchase Ohio State tickets. Here is what Cole had to say about the situation: "I find the assertion by Brian Williams that his position privileges him to seats at football games at one of Ohio's publicly funded universities is ludicrous," said Cole. "The fact is, this ticket business is small potatoes when compared to some unearned privileges assumed by government officials. Brian's arrogant assertion that the right to buy football tickets is a function of his job makes me wonder what other kinds of privileges Brian believes he has."

Is this a case of what lawmakers are getting out of their jobs instead of what they are putting in to them? Should Ohio elected officials be able to purchase these tickets? What exactly does Ohio State want in return? Probably something. I would like to purchase tickets as a fan, but I can not. I am lucky to go to a game every other season if someone is nice enough to give me a seat to watch my favorite college football team (Note: anyone is welcome to give me Ohio State tickets). I am picking on Williams here because he is my state representative and I want to see him defeated in November, but most in the same position who have the chance also do the same thing, even when many alumni can not even get the opportunity to buy two tickets to a non-conference game. Doesn't seem fair to me. The story does then note that in 2007, all but one of the 17 Akron-Canton area lawmakers purchased OSU football season tickets. Republican Representative Bill Batchelder of Medina did not. So who is right here, Williams or Cole? I commend Cole for pledging to not get Ohio State tickets – as we all know, it is a tough thing to turn down. Most of us would salivate at the chance to buy season tickets to watch Ohio State roll through the regular season before they lose in the national championship.

That will be all for today, as Kyle and I are on a super secret mission in Columbus.

Late last week I had the chance to sit down with Randy Cole. Randy is running as a Republican for State Representative in the 41st District. (Here is the 41st). He will face off against Democrat Brian G. Williams, who was first elected in 2004, replacing Bryan C. Williams who held the seat from 1996 to 2004. Confused? So were many voters. Some still don't know there is a different Williams holding the seat, one of the opposite party.

This is a district that is winnable for Republicans this cycle. In 2004, Marilyn Slaby lost to Williams by 279 votes out of around 64,700 cast. Slaby did virtually no campaigning of any kind, did not attend candidate forums, and put in little other effort and still almost won. In sharp contrast, Randy Cole has been out knocking on doors across the county and making the rounds in the district and has good, knowledgeable people working with him at his side when he goes out. He said the feedback he has been getting from all virtually all voters has been positive. During our sit down, I got the impression that Cole is fully committed to winning this race and being a full-time legislator. Based on his lack of action, Williams seems to be just content to collect a second state paycheck in addition to his state retirement plan.

Brian Williams ran for office on an education platform, saying he would bring his years of professional educational experience to the Ohio House. Brian Williams has introduced 4 non-important bills in his time in the Ohio House; he has passed exactly 0 bills to this point. That is not exactly getting things done. His constituent service is legendary – for being very poor, at almost an insulting level. However, if you need a ribbon cut, Williams may find his way to your event. Here are the four bills he has introduced – including a "no spanking" and a second animal cruelty bill from this year: 127 HB 22, 127 HB 115, 127 HB 406, and 127 HB 418. Here is an actual quote from the Beacon that Williams gave regarding his animal cruelty bill: "Ohio trails 46 other states in penalties. I feel strongly that this problem should be addressed at an early age, as studies show that cruelty to animals is often a precursor of more deep-seated problems, which, if left untreated, lead to more heinous crimes. We need to get at it while they are young before they become a Jeffrey Dahmer or something." Besides being insulted that a fellow Revere High School graduate was brought into this (Dahmer), I find it odd that it is given characterization of such high importance by Williams.

In our discussion, Randy's big focus was the economy. One interesting thing we talked about was the potential our area has if we maximize the use of our water. It is no secret that in some parts of the country water is starting to get scarce. This is natural resource that our region of Ohio is not taking full advantage of. Cole feels that our water is a potential gold mine for jobs and tourism. He also talked about how so many kids now want to go to school out of state and never come back. This is a major problem around here and he wants to try and reverse that trend. Part of that is bringing quality jobs to our area which was another point of interest in our meeting. As President of a small business, Randy knows all about what it takes to create jobs.

The bottom line is that this race is in a 52% Republican district that is currently occupied by a do-nothing Democrat who appears to care very little about the people he represents. The 41st District deserves some real leadership. This is a race I am going to focus on as we head towards November.

Unrelated: Kyle's favorite candidate for Congress, Bill O'Neill, gets hung up on by Lanigan and Malone on Friday. Thanks to an anonymous tipster for this clip. It is at about the 35 minute mark.