In today’s papers…
The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation is investigating a potential new scandal within the beleaguered agency: whether political influence played a role when premium rates for certain employers were lowered without proper justification.
A draft internal audit released yesterday shows that, in 75 percent of the 153 largest reductions, agency rules weren’t followed or there was no record authorizing or explaining the changes to determine whether they were legitimate.
When bureau workers who processed the changes asked for justification for transactions, “they were instructed that such documentation was not required,” according to the audit.
AG candidate Marc Dann weighs in:
Although the draft audit addresses what controls the bureau did or did not have in place for the overrides, the investigation is not expected to be completed until well after Tuesday’s election, Smeltzer said.
State Sen. Marc Dann, a frequent bureau critic and Democratic candidate for attorney general, said that’s not good enough. He’s asking the U.S. Department of Justice’s Division of Public Integrity to investigate.
“In this case, some employers were apparently granted premium cuts just because they asked for them, and someone at the bureau had the power to give them whether they were warranted or not,” Dann said in a release.
“As a result, other employers were forced to pay a corruption tax in the form of higher rates. That’s wrong, and we need to find out now why and how it happened and who was involved.”
Where is Montgomery?
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Eric has the scoop – and the audio – over at ProgressOhio.
Questioner: What do you think of the Bar Association coming out and basically blasting away on people who talk about lawyers and judges and their decisions.
Petro: I think the Bar Association properly points out that lawyers don’t always get to choose their client. I mean, there are times in my career- 33 years now as of…but there are times when the courts basically said to me ‘look, we want you to defend this guy. He’s a bad guy, but somebody needs to defend him’. What a lawyer does in defense of a client should not become a negative issue in a political campaign.
Even if that client is accused of heinous crimes, they are innocent until proven guilty and deserve a fair trial with a competent defense. It’s one of the cornerstones of American jurisprudence.
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Eric has the scoop at his new blog at ProgressOhio.
“When a party approves as to ‘form’ only, that party is stipulating to the ‘composition and organization of the particular legal document…’ In the instant case, the Settlement Agreement was signed only as to form. Therefore, the Ohio Attorney General did not approve the terms of the Settlement Agreement as required by O.R.C. 117.33.”
Some quotes from the person who brought the case before the court:
The case was brought by Dayton tax attorney Lance Gildner and it seeks to recover the wasted money. Gildner, a Republican, told the Plain Dealer he’s “made a career out of defending taxpayers” and thought they had been ripped off in this case.
“The state spends a lot of time and money trying to collect extremely small sums of money from taxpayers. Here seemed to be one huge pot of money that maybe could have been collected that we shouldn’t be overlooking.”
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via email: (Columbus)- State Senator Marc Dann (D-Liberty Twp.) was handed a victory today when Ohio Supreme Court Justices ruled they would have to examine records and other documents that Senator Dann is seeking from Governor Bob Taft in relation to the current state scandals involving Coingate and the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation.
Supreme Court Justices will now have to reevaluate if these documents fall under the sweeping executive privilege the Court earlier ruled Taft maintains as governor.
“This case, unlike the public’s right to gain access to public documents, is still very much alive!” Senator Dann said.
“Today I call on Governor Taft to forget all this nonsense and release the documents to the public so we can start getting to the truth.”
In July 2005, Senator Dann filed a lawsuit against Governor Bob Taft after he refused to disclose requested public records related to the ongoing state scandals. Senator Dann made several public records requests which were deemed by Governor Taft to be subject to his “executive privilege.” Today’s decision is the court’s most recent ruling in the ongoing court case.
“Getting access to these documents is not only about the scandal plagued Bureau of Workers’ Compensation,” said Senator Dann.
“Taxpayers have a right to know how their hard earned money is being spent throughout all state agencies. They should know if there is any type of corrupt activity going on in any state agency.”
Learn more about Marc Dann – the man who will help us take Ohio back!
Sincerely,
The Dann for Ohio Team
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Marc Dann continues to pound away on the Taft/Coingate thing. I’m glad to see it. I want to see he and every other Dem. candidate in any race give absolutely no quarter to these corrupt and incompetent fools. Go get ‘em Marc!
from CantonRep:
Reasonable request
Thursday, May 18, 2006 — Is state Sen. Marc Dann challenging secrecy in the governor’s office because he wants to be elected attorney general? Maybe, maybe not. But Dann’s latest request is one that the Ohio Supreme Court invited when it ruled last month in Dann’s lawsuit against Gov. Bob Taft.
An aide to the Republican Taft says Dann, a Democrat, is just grandstanding for political ends by asking the court to look at memos that Taft’s office refused to turn over to Dann in connection with the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation scandal. Dann wants the court to determine whether the documents fall within the executive privilege that Taft has claimed he has, and that the court partially supported in its April 13 ruling.
The spokesman for Taft, Mark Rickel, said Dann already has all the relevant documents. But that is for the Ohio Supreme Court, not the governor, to decide. Who says so? The Ohio Supreme Court.
When the court ruled 5-2 that Taft may keep some records private, Chief Justice Thomas Moyer set up a three-part process for settling public records issues involving a governor. The governor must invoke executive privilege. The person suing then must show the need for disclosure. Then the Supreme Court will decide — which is what Dann now is asking the court to do.
This will not be the only issue in the attorney general’s race, but it’s one that Dann is smart to make an issue.
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from DDN:
TOLEDO — A coin dealer and major GOP fundraiser asked Wednesday to change his not guilty pleas to federal charges that he illegally funneled donations to President Bush’s re-election campaign.
No indication of what the new plea will be, maybe uncle? Is that a plea? UNCLE!
Marc Dann responds quickly (via email):
Statement of State Senator Marc Dann on Tom Noe’s filing to change pleas
Guilty pleas would only serve to accelerate the march toward ultimate accountability for one of the biggest crooks in Ohio history. Tom Noe’s illegal funneling of $45,400 in contributions to President Bush was a shameless perversion of the American political system and the worst crime of its kind in the history of modern election law. Yet shockingly, it is the least of Tom Noe’s problems. No plea deal will be enough to escape the 53-count indictment he faces for his crimes at the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. Given his closeness to Bob Taft, Betty Montgomery, and other prominent Republican leaders, I suspect that Mr. Noe may not be the biggest fish to fry in this corruption scandal.
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This probably should be in the opposite order, but it’s how i got it.
via email:
Thank you again for your hard work and participation in this campaign.
We now have the Election-Night Video posted on our website. Please take a moment to download and watch my remarks thanking all of my supporters and campaign staff.
Click here to visit the campaign website, then click on ELECTION-NIGHT VIDEO: Subodh Chandra’s speech thanking supporters. The video will take a few minutes to download so please be patient.
Sincerely,
Subodh Chandra
video link: http://chandraforohio.com/ElectionNight-ThankYou-Web.mov
Subodh is, as always, great and makes some very good points and I think makes a call to take back the state and country. Very optimistic and inspiring video. Check it out and then read Marc Dann’s letter again and “let’s get to work”!
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A Letter to the Ohio Blogosphere
Dear Ohio Progressives, Bloggers, and Grassroots Democrats,
Recently, I read several posts reaching out and encouraging me to increase my dialogue with the progressive community. I enthusiastically welcome this conversation and I want to take a moment to respond.
We face a critical battle in this election. Betty Montgomery is the poster child for everything that is wrong with the GOP’s pay to play culture. With Jim Petro gone, she is the most corrupt candidate on the ballot.
Betty Montgomery’s corruption comes with a shocking price tag for Ohio taxpayers. According to independent auditors, if the State Insurance Fund of the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation had been properly invested, “it would have realized an annualized return of 8.1% per year and would be nearly $1 billion greater in value than it is today.”
bwc_performance_memo.pdf
That is the stunning price of Betty Montgomery’s incompetence and appalling lack of oversight.
The stakes of this race for Attorney General are enormous. Big oil and drug companies, credit card issuers, predatory lenders, and other opponents of change have no greater friend than Betty Montgomery. She is the ultimate champion of the status quo. As long as Betty Montgomery continues to shuffle from office to office, ordinary Ohioans will be locked out and ignored.
I promise you, I will hold Betty Montgomery’s feet to the fire each and every day from now until November 7th. I will take on the tough fights necessary to pry the Attorney General’s office out of the hands of corrupt campaign contributors and narrow-minded special interests. I am willing to take on these fights alone, as I have in the past. But I’d much rather stand with the Democratic Party and with all of you.
In this spirit, I look forward to a productive dialogue with the progressive community. You’ll be hearing more from me and from my campaign. For my part, I welcome your ideas, your energy, and your support. The stakes are high for all of us. Let’s get to work.
Sincerely,
Marc Dann
Right on, Marc. I know the primary was tough and contested and us bloggers who supported Subodh were tough on you, but this is the way to respond. Thanks for that. I promise to get my Dann banner up soon!
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(hat tip Renee in comments)
Thank you!
Dear Friends:
My wife, Meena, and our entire family, join me in thanking you. Thank you if you gave this campaign money to fuel our ability to communicate. Thank you for your time. Thank you for your hard work. Thank you for your encouragement. Thank you for caring enough about your community, state, and country to fight to make them better.
When we started this campaign, few Ohioans, if any, thought they cared about the attorney general’s office. Nonlawyers thought it was an office about which only lawyers should care, and lawyers thought it was just an office about which only lawyers who profit from it should care. Now, far more people understand that Ohio’s future requires better than what recent officeholders did—failing to protect Ohioans from harm and loss. And any time we are hiring someone to do an important job, we need to look closely at qualifications and background—and raise our expectations from the attorney general: because Ohioans deserve protection from the special interests who have torn our state asunder. [click to continue…]
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Subodh,
Thank you very much. You were an energizing force and inspired like no other statewide candidate did – or could. I first heard you speak at the Delaware County Democrat Dinner and you absolutely stole the show! You outshined them all – Dann, Brown, and Strickland included. You should be proud of how you ran your campaign. You should be proud of the very powerful loyalty your supporters showed. I only regret we could not be more organized and head off the ODP juggernaut…but those days are coming. I’ve got ideas and maybe some day they can turn into actionable items.
I want you to know that what you did and how you did it was truly inspiring and I will remember it for a long, long time. Hopefully the Democrat Party is smart enough to harness your raw energy, passion, and talents in order to bolster the overall party. You are one we can’t let get away, and surely can’t let sink back into just being a lawyer.
So here’s to you, Subodh Chandra. I’ll hoist a pint and sing your praises at the next such opportunity – probably tonight. 
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just in from Hire Subodh Chandra campaign:
The Final Push to Victory
It’s the little things that matters now
The last 48 hours before an election are always critical to the success of a campaign – and this race is no exception. It’s the little things that matter now more than ever.
Your dedication and support over the last several months has been tremendous and I am indebted to all of you for helping our campaign build the positive momentum we have seen throughout the state. Now, we need to forge ahead and do the little things that will turn momentum into victory.
Making that extra phone call, knocking on one extra door, contributing one extra dollar, or emailing one extra person could make the difference on Tuesday.
The importance of this election cannot be understated. By losing the attorney general’s office for the last 3 elections we as Democrats have lost the ability to protect our fellow Ohioans from harm and loss. We must nominate a candidate with the legal and executive-leadership experience to do the job, not just hold the office.
Your continued support is vital to this campaign. I urge you to do the little things in these last few hours before Tuesday and reach out to as many Democrats as possible.
Click here to see how you can help.
Thank you,
Subodh Chandra
Do what you can!
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Yes, the old one was horrendous! The new one is a marked improvement and will hopefully get more people to visit and volunteer. I like the inclusion of what people are blogging about. Very nice touch. Some get it and some don’t. This is getting it.
Not sure what geekfan.com is all about – they should use the chandraforohio URL for volunteer signups also. If you volunteer, the form URL switches to geekfan.com. And they should clean up the untitled documents all over the place. But the look and feel is certainly an improvement:
www.chandraforohio.com
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Subodh gets a short mention in this Wired article about the Simpsons ad:
And, in a rather perplexing spot, an Indian-American candidate for Ohio attorney general, Subodh Chandra, has created a Simpsons-themed toon (.mov) comparing himself favorably to the show’s Indian shopkeeper, Apu.
The article focuses on Nevada’s gubernatorial race, where Jim Gibson’s campaign put up a site with a Star Wars lampooning of his opponent. The viral ad is pro quality and is a sign of things to come. The idea came from Gibson’s campaign host, Load, which will be the amount of money they make when they start a national consultancy producing and distributing such ads.
This should give Chandra even more mileage out of this . Damn I wish I was better at flash…
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