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The State of Ohio - Strong Support for Passenger Rail
 
 
Marc Dann was back in Columbus this week, to hear that he's guilty of violating state election law for misusing campaign money. Gov. Ted Strickland's approval numbers are still strong, but are slipping as the economy continues to falter. The Quinnipiac poll also showed the Democratic primary for US Senate next year is wide open. And the poll shows voters disapprove of the way Strickland is handling the economy, and are almost evenly split over the use of one-time federal money in the state budget. But it shows strong support for passenger rail in the 3-C corridor. And state senators okayed the $6.2 billion ODOT budget, but made some big changes in the House version.

This week one of the highest-profile lawmakers in the Statehouse called for the ouster of Gov. Ted Strickland's budget director Pari Sabety. Minority Leader Bill Batchelder of Medina cited a lack of transparency and unreliable economic forecasts. The governor's office has defended Sabety, and has said this is just Washington-style politics. House Speaker Armond Budish also jumped to defend Sabety, saying that this is not the time for partisan attacks on the budget director. Budish and Batchelder sit down together to talk about the budget and the latest developments involving it.


March 20, 2009