Turnaround Ted's Broken Promises

Turnaround Ted Is Proposing A Nearly $1 Billion Tax HIke . . . 

• "Strickland proposed raising income taxes, plain and simple, to generate $844 million in the next 21 months.  The vast majority of people working in Ohio this year will pay more income taxes in 2010, and again in 2011, if the state legislature goes along with Strickland.  And that is a tax increase."  (Column, Dennis Willard, Akron Beacon Journal, 10/01/09)
   
• University of Akron political scientist John C. Green  said there is no way "this can be read as anything other than a tax increase." (The Columbus Dispatch, 10/01/09)
   
• "The bottom line for Strickland is the state is going to bring in $418 million in additional taxes from workers on income they earned throughout 2009. And in 2010, workers will pay $426 million more in income taxes if the governor's proposal becomes law, but Ohio will not capture all of that money until, if things go as planned for Democrats, Strickland is securely in his second term." (Column, Dennis Willard, Akron Beacon Journal, 10/04/09)
   

. . . But Turnaround Ted Said He Wouldn't Raise Taxes.

• "If I were to have to ask the people of Ohio, as they are struggling to survive in this economic recession, to give even more of their resources to the state, it, in my judgment, would not be the best course of action."  (Columbus Dispatch, 9/22/09)

• "Maybe in their ivory towers a tax increase seems like something that would not be painful or harmful. I have said that I think a tax increase could - could - have the effect of deepening the recession and causing it to last longer. And I continue to hold to that belief," he told reporters. (Gongwer News Service, 9/22/09)

• "I think those who believe that higher taxes are the answer to Ohio's economic needs and economic recovery are flat out wrong," Gov. Strickland said. (Gongwer News Service, 9/22/09)

• "The governor does not believe a tax increase would be productive at a time that so many Ohioans are struggling," said Strickland spokeswoman Amanda Wurst. (Associated Press, 2/25/09)

• Asked whether it was time to consider a tax increase, Strickland responded, "No. Because I think a tax hike, under these circumstances, could be counterproductive. And, so, I have maintained and continue to maintain that position." (Daily Record [Wooster], 12/2/08)

• "Personally, I feel the economy is fragile, and a tax increase would not be helpful to the economy," Strickland said. (Toledo Blade, 12/23/2007)

• "In my judgment, if the economy falters, the last thing we should consider would be a tax increase," said Strickland. "I think the economy is fragile and a tax increase would be detrimental at a time of economic uncertainty."  (Dayton Daily News, 12/01/2007)
   
• "No tax increases are needed to support the Turnaround Ohio plan," Strickland said in the debate. "Tax increases are not a part of my plan. Tax increases would not be good for Ohio, and I am not planning to raise taxes. I think that's about as clear as I can possibly be." (The Other Paper, 9/11/06)
   

Turnaround Ted Proposed Millions of Dollars in New State Fees. . . 

• Gov. Ted Strickland, a Democrat, said he did not put any tax increases into his budget proposal because they would make the economic recession worse. He did, however, put dozens of new fees and fee increases into the plan. (Associated Press, 2/25/09)

• Strickland's $54.7 billion package would also increase state fees by $236 million; of that, $106 million would be in costlier vehicle registration fees. Fee increases are regressive. They hit lower-income Ohioans harder than the wealthy. That's unfair.  Besides, while the governor claims his budget doesn't raise taxes, his own words betray him. In January 2007, Strickland told the Columbus Dispatch, "I think higher fees are higher taxes." (Editorial, The Plain Dealer, 02/08/09)
   

. . . But Turnaround Ted Said He Wouldn't Raise Fees.

• [T]he new governor also reiterated that he has no plans to raise taxes to generate additional revenue -- and he went a step further to say he doesn't plan to raise state fees, saying, "I think higher fees are higher taxes." (Columbus Dispatch, 1/19/07)
   

Turnaround Ted Proposed An Expansion of Gambling In Ohio. . . 

• After months of opposing expanded gambling as a way to balance the state budget, Gov. Ted Strickland yesterday proposed adding electronic slot machines at the seven Ohio horse-racing tracks to help fill a $3.2 billion budget hole. (Columbus Dispatch, 06/20/09)
   

. . . But Turnaround Ted Said He Wouldn't Expand Gambling.

• "I would tell [Ohioans] what I have told them several times in the past, that my position remains unchanged, and that I do not believe that [gambling] is the right way for Ohio to deal with our budget or to try to fund education," the governor said yesterday. "I think the people of our state have spoken on this issue clearly, multiple times, and until the people change their mind about the issue, then I am supporting what I believe to be the will of the people of Ohio."  (The Columbus Dispatch, 6/19/09)

• "The people of Ohio have spoken with a clear voice on this issue time and time again," Strickland said. "They do not want an expansion of gambling in their state."  (Office of the Governor, 10/25/07)

• Democratic Congressman Ted Strickland, a psychologist, warns of the social costs that accompany gambling addiction, which he called "an insidious condition that can ruin lives."  (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 3/24/06)

• "Quite frankly, if I'd been in the legislature when the Ohio lottery passed, I would have opposed it," [Strickland] said. "It amounts to a regressive tax. The benefits of casino gambling in my judgment are significantly outweighed by the negative consequences." (Toledo Blade, 4/10/06)

• Strickland, the Democratic frontrunner, told The Plain Dealer's editorial board earlier this week that he is not supportive of expanding legalized gambling in the state. While he didn't bring up religion, his denomination's Social Principles, which are its guideposts of faith, are clear. They denounce gambling as "a menace to society, deadly to the best interests of moral, social, economic, and spiritual life, and destructive of good government."  (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 3/25/06)

• "I don't think an answer to Ohio's economic future is expanded gambling," [Strickland] said." (Columbus Dispatch, 4/13/06)

• Strickland said he always has regarded gambling as a false solution to Ohio's economic-development needs.  (Columbus Dispatch, 5/13/06)
   

Turnaround Ted Promised To Set A Higher Standard In Government . . .

• Strickland: "It is important for Democrats to send a very clear message that we will clean our own house."(The Plain Dealer, 5/6/08)
   

. . . But Turnaround Ted Refuses To Clean Up Corruption In His Own Party.

• The state's top Democratic officeholders - Gov. Ted Strickland and Sen. Sherrod Brown - say they're too busy doing their own jobs and focusing on issues like job creation to take a stand on whether Cuyahoga County public officials who are being investigated for corruption shouldresign. (The Plain Dealer, 09/23/09)
   
• Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland is still reserving judgment on the corruption probe involving top Cuyahoga County Democratic officials but said he won't have sympathy if they are guilty. (The Plain Dealer, 06/12/09)
   
• Gov. Ted Strickland said in an interview he has been asked by Democrats to urge [county commissioner Jimmy] Dimora, whose term ends in 2010, to step down. Strickland said he doesn't feel it's appropriate for him to ask Dimora to leave... (The Plain Dealer, 08/13/08)
   
• On Monday, county Commissioners Tim Hagan and Peter Lawson Jones, county Treasurer Jim Rokakis and Lakewood Mayor Ed FitzGerald all publicly asked county Auditor Frank Russo to resign. Advice so good should be repeated as often as necessary by the state's top Democratic officeholders. So far, however, Gov. Ted Strickland and the Cleveland area's Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher and Sen. Sherrod Brown have stayed silent. (Editorial, The Plain Dealer, 09/23/09)
   
• Reps. Dennis Kucinich and Marcia Fudge and numerous county officeholders say Russo must go. Other Democrats -- most notably Gov. Ted Strickland and Sen. Sherrod Brown -- should join the chorus. (Editorial, The Plain Dealer, 09/29/09)