It's been increasingly clear that many freshmen Republicans actively want a government shutdown, thinking they'll gain public support in the resulting political circus.

Well John Boehner seems to disagree. Being a survivor of the 1995 government shutdown, he's telling his caucus in no unclear terms that the Democrats would win if another shutdown were to occur.

Seeing how the Democrats have conceded far more in this debate than the Republicans (whom actually seem to have demanded even more concessions as the debate has proceeded), I think Boehner is right. The only real wildcard is how much the public actually knows about what's going on.

The decisions been made, and Ted has been passed over for the DNC Chair position. Instead, the job goes to Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

Here's the statement from Chris Redfern:

"While I am disappointed my friend Ted Strickland was not selected as the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, I am delighted President Obama has chosen such an outstanding leader for our Party."

"Chairwoman Wasserman Schultz knows the complexity of this demanding position. She has been a strong and progressive voice for working men and women and the families we all care about. She will help our team at the Ohio Democratic Party re-elect President Obama and Senator Sherrod Brown and the rest of our slate of candidates."

I'm not inclined to be quite so gracious, and it's not just because Ted Strickland was passed over. In fact, it not even the name. It's the honorific that gets under my skin: Rep. Wasserman Schultz.

I'm really not a fan of having current office holders serve as the party chair. These are two very important jobs, and I think anyone would be hard pressed to handle both of them at the same time. And, of course, Wasserman Schultz is going to be up for election in 2012 as well. Even if it's an easy race, it's going to take away some of her time and attention.

And let's face it, Ted would have kicked @$$ as chairman.

Enjoy the rest of your one term, Mr. Kasich. Assuming you aren’t run out of town by an angry mob before it’s over.

Last evening was a victory for Ohio taxpayers.

The General Assembly passed Senate Bill 5 and local governments will now have more tools to control their budgets and provide better services to you at a lower cost.

I will sign Senate Bill 5 today.

But this is just one step towards fixing our state and making the necessary reforms to bring jobs to Ohio.

Will you support our ongoing efforts to fight for Ohio taxpayers with a $20, $10 or even $5 contribution today and help us continue to return the balance of power?

There is a reason that the union bosses opposed these changes; because it strips power from the union leaders and returns it to the taxpayers and workers. But make no mistake; we are fighting to save Ohio and need your help.
The nation is watching us in Ohio and we will provide the leadership necessary to become a job creating state and serve as a model for the rest of America.

Thank you again for your continued support.

Sincerely,
John Kasich
Governor of Ohio

P.S.  Please forward this email to 10 of your friends so they know we are fighting to empower the taxpayers and create jobs in Ohio.

I don’t think anyone will quickly forget who stood with or against workers on SB 5, but I think it’s best to keep a running list of votes easily accessible. This list is going to be here with a very prominent link at the top of every single page on our site until long after the dust settles on this issue.

03/02/2011 – Senate Vote on Passage

Yeas - 17

• Bacon
• Beagle
• Cates
• Daniels
• Faber
• Gillmor
• Hite
• Jones
• Jordan
• LaRose
• Lehner
• Obhof
• Schaffer
• Stewart
• Wagoner
• Widener
• Niehaus

Nays - 16

• Brown
• Cafaro
• Grendell
• Hughes
• Kearney
• Manning
• Oelslager
• Patton
• Sawyer
• Schiavoni
• Seitz
• Skindell
• Smith
• Tavares
• Turner
• Wilson

03/30/2011 - House Vote on Passage

Yeas - 53

• Adams J.
• Adams R.
• Amstutz
• Anielski
• Baker
• Balderson
• Beck
• Blair
• Blessing
• Boose
• Brenner
• Bubp
• Buchy
• Burke
• Butler
• Coley
• Combs
• Derickson
• Dovilla
• Duffey
• Gonzales
• Goodwin
• Grossman
• Hackett
• Hagan C.
• Hall
• Hayes
• Henne
• Hollington
• Hottinger
• Huffman
• Landis
• Maag
• Martin
• McClain
• McKenney
• Mecklenborg
• Newbold
• Peterson
• Roegner
• Rosenberger
• Ruhl
• Schuring
• Sears
• Slaby
• Sprague
• Stautberg
• Stebelton
• Thompson
• Uecker
• Wachtmann
• Young
• Batchelder

Nays - 44

• Antonio
• Ashford
• Barnes
• Budish
• Carey
• Carney
• Celeste
• Clyde
• DeGeeter
• Driehaus
• Fedor
• Fende
• Foley
• Gardner
• Garland
• Gentile
• Gerberry
• Goyal
• Hagan R.
• Heard
• Johnson
• Kozlowski
• Letson
• Luckie
• Lundy
• Mallory
• McGregor
• Milkovich
• Murray
• O'Brien
• Okey
• Patmon
• Phillips
• Pillich
• Ramos
• Reece
• Slesnick
• Stinziano
• Sykes
• Szollosi
• Weddington
• Williams
• Winburn
• Yuko

03/30/2011 - Senate Vote on Passage of House Version

Yeas - 17

• Bacon
• Beagle
• Cates
• Daniels
• Faber
• Gillmor
• Hite
• Jones
• Jordan
• LaRose
• Lehner
• Obhof
• Schaffer
• Stewart
• Wagoner
• Widener
• Niehaus

Nays - 16

• Brown
• Cafaro
• Grendell
• Hughes
• Kearney
• Manning
• Oelslager
• Patton
• Sawyer
• Schiavoni
• Seitz
• Skindell
• Smith
• Tavares
• Turner
• Wilson

To no one’s real surprise, SB 5 passed the House and Senate concurrence votes last night, and is expected to be signed into law this Friday today by our fearless dictator.

And come November, it's set to be struck down by the voters of Ohio. That's where you finally come into the picture in a way that can't be ignored. The SB 5 referendum won't just magically appear on the ballot, it's going to take thousands of signatures to get it there. And grass roots activists that you are; you're probably itching for the chance to help get them.

SEIU 1199 is taking volunteers through a sign-up form posted online at this page and I know that OEA has already scheduled referendum training sessions throughout the state. I suspect there several other efforts underway that I haven’t heard about or that are still flying under the radar.

So here's what I'm asking of you: Sign-up and volunteer. And if you’re collecting signatures at an event or a set time and place, drop me a line. I'll make sure it gets a prominent mention on here so that people wishing to sign know where they can.

.. with Corporate profits at all time highs, GE paid no federal income taxes in 2010, and yet hundreds of thousands of teachers are facing layoffs due to government budget shortfalls caused primarily by tax cuts for the rich:

Where are our priorities?

Today, the Ohio House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 5, as amended, by a 53-44 vote. This means that 5 GOPers crossed the aisle to vote no on this anti-middle class legislation. Now the bill heads back to the Ohio Senate for their concurrence on the House's changes, and if passed, to Gov. Kasich's desk for his signature.

This fight will now head to Ohio's streets, where labor and pro-middle class organizations will attempt to gather enough signatures to force a referendum on Senate Bill 5. Democrats in the Ohio House delivered slightly over 65,000 signatures against SB 5 to the committee chair who was considering it. Now we only need 200,000 or so more to get in on this November's ballot. Time to saddle up.

Dennis Kucinich doesn’t plan on leaving Congress any time soon, even though his Congressional District is one of the most likely to be dropped in redistricting.

He’s launched a fundraising drive, and has the following up on his campaign site:

What we raise in this quarter will send a strong signal of the force our grassroots movement has, and our determination to not let Ohio's downstate politicians destroy our voice in Congress. Earlier this month, Ohio's former Republican Party chairman Bob Bennett didn't mince words - he said he expects they'll "abolish" my district.

One thing is clear: I intend to stay in Congress. I don't know where it will be yet, but I will not let my voice - our voice - in Congress be eliminated. But I need your support to make it happen. Can you donate to help us hit this important goal?

Of course, he refrains from mentioning this money will probably go towards a primary race against another Democrat.

For as much as it's been happening, it still hasn't gotten old.

While hundreds of thousand of talented Ohioans are out of work, what is State Sen. Tim Grendell focusing on?

ANYTHING BUT JOBS.

Instead, he's sponsoring a bill that would ban roadside signs informing motorists that the infrastructure improvement they are about to utilize was paid for by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a.k.a. the Stimulus Bill.

Wow there, Mr. Prince of Darkness, where's your jobs focus? I thought you guys were going to have a "laser like" focus on creating jobs. Instead, you GOPers have been letting your crazy hang out. I suggest you tuck it back in before it gets you in trouble.

Quinnpiac University released a poll of Ohio voters on Emperor John's job performance thus far as Ohio governor, and, well, let's just say there's some bad news for him in there. 

Kasich's approval rating has not budged from the 30% he got 2 months ago from the last Quinny poll. His disapproval rating? It has gone up to 46%, giving Emperor John a net-negative -16 overall job approval. Ouch.

55% of Ohio voters do not believe that stripping public employees of their collective bargaining rights is necessary to balance the state budget -- the same 55% who believe that Emperor John should not have pleged to balance the state budget with spending cuts only. And very close to the 53% who believe that Emperor John's budget is unfair to people like them. In a regional breakdown, only in Ohio's GOP heartland of Southwestern Ohio (surprise, surprise) does a plurarity of Ohio voters believe the budget is fair to them. 

There's lots more goodness in this poll. Hit the link above to see for yourself.

Irony:

On the same day that GOPer controlled House subcommittee passed a bill that would kill the EPA's attempt to regulate greenhouse pollution, a report commissioned by the U.S. Navy, that's right the freaking PENTAGON, said that global warming is real and poses a threat to U.S. National Security.

U.S. allies and their militaries will face national security challenges similar to those faced by the United States and its naval forces as a result of climate change. [...] Among the many manifestations of climate change projected for the next several decades, sea-level rise is both highly certain to occur and highly certain to come with economic costs. [...] As a result of reduced multiyear ice, the Arctic Ocean is rapidly acquiring the types of maritime activities in the summer months that normally occur elsewhere in the world's ice-free oceans.

Those stinking liberals in the Pentagon....

Wait, What liberals in the Pentagon? None. Maybe it's time for climate change deniers to wake up and smell the CO2?

At this hour, Politico has a story up that with current DNC chairman Tim Kaine seemingly on a path into that state's U.S. Senate race, high ranking Democrats in Washington and the White House are looking strongly at Ohio's own former Gov. Ted Strickland to be next chair of the DNC.

Word is that the White House believes Strickland ran one of the strongest campaigns in a brutal election cycle, and they view his fiery denouncements of Kasich during the campaign as indicative his ability to launch the sort of verbal broadsides that are best left to a party chair instead of a President running for re-election.

Wow. A DNC chair from Ohio. I think that's be pretty freaking sweet. 

Unfortunately for him, that mandate seems to be to resign immediately. Do not pass Go, do not collect $200.

New Public Policy Polling numbers are even worse news for our fearless leader than yesterday’s Ohio Poll. Perhaps all that needs said is Political Wire’s title for the poll: Second Thoughts About Kasich. But since I like rubbing it in, the poll shows Ted Strickland would win easily if the election was held today.

And there’s good news for SB 5 opponents, the poll shows support for repealing it by ballot issue prevails 54% to 31%.

It was bad enough when John Kasich forced a Strickland appointee off of the State Board of Education because of missing paperwork, but he’s taken it a step further.

He’s used the change in the boards membership to force out the previously elected Superintendent, and now his appointees have cleared the way to the top office.

This is very dirty stuff, and they’re trying to get it done while public attention is focused on the budget.