Ohio Governor To Obama: "I Need $5 Billion"

Washington Post:

As the economy sputters and tax revenue plummets, governors and mayors across the United States are lining up to ask President-elect Barack Obama and the new Congress for hundreds of billions of dollars to plug holes in their budgets, arguing that services will suffer and joblessness will rise if Washington does not come to the rescue.

In Ohio, which has shed 100,000 jobs in the past year, Gov. Ted Strickland (D) and his budget team spend a lot of time delivering bad news to constituents and plotting ways to wring money from the federal government. He announced $640 million in cuts for the budget year ending June 30, for a total of $1.9 billion since the economic crisis began.

Read the whole story: Washington Post

Comments

[KarateKid]

They're broke but Ohio State sells out every game. Tax the Buckeye fans $5 each game and put the games on Pay Per View. They're fanatics and will pay up.

[Seattlelite]

To say this bail out thing is getting out of hand is an understatement. Every industry has their hands out now afraid they won't get a piece of the pie.

[daddybum]

Ge golly Gov. Strickland!! why dont you ask Sec. of State Clinton since thats who your paul union nora king adam sam sam backed in the primary....Go to H. E double hockey sticks...and tell Arnold I said hi since hes begging for money too....incredible how shameless these govenors as well as companies are all of a sudden on the brink of armeggedon ....what a crock of sugar honey iced tea!!!

[PhilipTaylor]

Solve your 2004 Election Scandal and then MAYBE!

It is time to get serious about elections being stolen:

How it was done explained be Republican expert (27 minute video):

http://video.google.ca/videosearch?hl=en&q=%22Steven+Spoonamore%22&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=X&oi=video_result_group&resnum=4&ct=title#

It is fortunate that Connell was testifying in Ohio on Nov 3 as it may have saved the election for Obama!

[NWBrunette]

Hey, I wanna be governor. I want my 5 billion too. Whaaaaa!

[LITU]

It's called Pandora's Box, or a can o' worms. We need to cease and desist all bailouts.

[harriscrl3]

It would have been been a better plan to give some of the money to states instead of giving it all to wallstreet and having them do NADA to improve credit. All it did was save them from going under and imo the same thing could have been accomplished if the government had taken over the banks. When government takes over something people start groan and complain about inefficiency and bureaucracy well look at how Capitalism handle it NO BETTER it FAILED and folks need to admit it and stop running down government. The free market failed to regulate GREED of the people involved they became greedier and they take down the whole market with them. Karl Marx must be laughing where he is at being vindicated.

The invisible hand is l ike is to capitalism what religion is to poor people. A drug for them to justify and continue what they are doing.

At least if the money went to states we can be more confident it actually went to REAL people that need it rather than institutions and CEO's that doesnt deserve it.

Carol

[babymonster]

Well said.

[Seattlelite]

Good point Carol.

[MTNG]

In the 1980s several states went through a bad depression. They all survived without being bailed out. Banks failed; houses in the thousands were foreclosed upon; hundreds of bankruptcies were filed; people left these states to find work elsewhere; young people had no job opportunities and had to move; lay-offs happened regularly; government services were cut back.

Those times were tough and awful and frightening. It took over a decade for the states to rebound, but they did. No one wishes a depression on any state.

[babymonster]

This also led to the destruction of the educational system which was the first part of the corporate plan to take an ever increasing percentage of national wealth which has lopsided the system in their favor to such a degree the system cannot work. The eighties was the beginning of the dismantling of our proven economic system and it was harsh. This is twenty-eight years of these moronic programs. Programs that prove themselves economically in the long run like education cannot be allowed to fail. To let things fail that have proven themselves to work that took much time and money to put together is further waste. We are talking about people's live here. Abuse goes up in bad economic times which leads to worse people. What part of penny wise and pound foolish do Republicans not understand. It has led to this mess. Government is the progenitor of business and protecting the market so businesses can operate well. Keynesian economics was the only thing that got us out of the Depression and part of the reason Clinton was able to get us out of the mess that Reagan created.

[AsISaid]

Historically, Ohio has always suffered a deeper recession than experienced nationally, takes longer to recover, and never fully recovers from national recessions. Many states do recover fairly quickly, but Ohio does not. The unfortunate trend in Ohio is that when manufacturing plants close or cutback on workers, they rarely come back to full strength. This is especially true due to foreign competition and unfair trade policies.

Yes, states DO survive - but survival for some is not the same as for others. Surviving is not thriving.

[rabiddog6708]

Hey, I'm a resident of Ohio......I could use a few bucks while you're passing it out.

[reshas1]

Give more to the UAW

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,472304,00.html

[bayside]

Has Bush and friends put in place the new amero yet. The one he wanted to replace the dollar..This was deliberte

[babymonster]

If the economy is allowed to get below a certain level, then the rest of it will go into free fall. The state's cutting of their programs will only hurt the economy like GM closing its doors and will only make the problem so much worse.

[babymonster]

Too big to fail should only be used with manufacturers, not parasites.

[babymonster]

such as banks and conglomerates and monopolies

[neoconcriminals]

Ohio is reaping what it sowed in 2004.

Of course, we're all paying for it but this is what's known as 'political karma'.

Why don't they ask Bush?They put him in office?

[babymonster]

Don't blame the wholes state for what Bush did. He did not win there. He stole it.

[neoconcriminals]

Why weren't Ohioans banging on the doors of the Secretary of State the way
republicans did in 2000?

You're right, not everyone voted for Bush but a whole lot of them who did vote
for Bush will be seriously affected by these cuts.

That's what's called "voter accountability".

[texanna]

Yeah, but you all let him do it!

[babymonster]

Part 2
6. Allow people to sue for funds to restart their small businesses that have been pushed out because of the inflated real estate market. Bring back the mom and pop places, restaurants and bars that were pushed out of Manhattan and other cities. They provide character and bring in tourists. Businesses that were national landmarks have been allowed to shut down. Their rent may need to be subsidized.
7. Provide regulated start up funds for promising small businesses and allow more protection rights to the people who actually come up with the ideas.
8. Reward the banks that stayed out of trouble with some of the bail out money. Reward their execs with a bonus. Give them money tied to the agreement that it can only be used for loans to businesses and not any ventures in real estate.
9. Limit exec pay to a multiple of the salary of the lowest paid employee.
10. Forgive all student loans.
11. Nationalize education.
12. Subsidize investigative journalism
13. Nationalize health care
14. Put controls on the stock market to prevent uncontrolled speculation of a company whose ability to earn capital does not warrant the money invested.

[vjoseph]

Is that your only answer, nationalize everything?

[babymonster]

Read again.

[babymonster]

Only when gov can do it better. I am for a free market, but with controls on corporations and more support, protection, and empowerment of people and their business ideas and inventions. I am speaking of the potential entrepreneurs and small business owners.

Workers rights must also be protected. Workers need to be able to live comfortably and put money aside if they wish.

[LITU]

If the American form of capitalism has taught us anything it is that the free market concept can't be trusted to engage in altruism, and frankly, without at least a measure of that quality, societies fail. Get it?