OHIO: DISPATCH ENDORSEMENT
The Columbus Dispatch endorsed George W. Bush in this morning's editorial. Ordinarily this wouldn't be earth shaking news. Yet it is because
although the paper has not endorsed a Democrat since it endorsed Woodrow
Wilson in 1916, a week ago the editor of the Dispatch said the paper's endorsement is a "jump ball." The CEO of the paper, John W. Wolfe has been very critical of Bush, as have the paper's editorials. The Dispatch has criticized the administration for its "borrow-and-spend fiscal policies" as well as the invasion of Iraq. Although the endorsement is tepid, it is an endorsement, and maybe the most important one Bush got in the whole country, given the importance of Ohio's electoral votes. The long editorial endorsement is worth reading.
OHIO: THE NEXT KATHERINE HARRIS?
The Cleveland Plain Dealer runs a front page story in today's Sunday edition (above the fold, with large photo) on Ohio's Secretary of State Ken Blackwell. Blackwell, say Democrats, is the "next Katherine Harris" because he is in charge of what (say they) is a massively flawed electoral system in the state. The story mentions all that (although it was written before Blackwell's position on provisional ballots was vindicated by a federal court), but really turns out to be a background piece on Blackwell, the most prominent conservative politician in the state. While the Plain Dealer story is not exactly in Blackwell's corner, either on the voting issues for the upcoming elections or on his political thinking, you can still get a pretty good idea — if you read with care — of what Blackwell is like. He is a tough, smart, well read, conservative, and deeply religious man (the PD doesn't mention that he is a Catholic) who is often at odds with his own party, a party still essentially moderate and Taft-like. And he is a guy who doesn't mind taking chances, which shows me that he is principled. And, by the way, Blackwell will run for governor is 2006; and he has a very good shot at it. I should add that I know Blackwell very well, met him in 1988 when I came to Ohio (We were on a panel discussion about foreign policy; I didn't know anything about him, but quickly discovered that not only was he smart, but we agreed on all the essentials; and he liked to laugh a lot!), and he has been sitting on the Ashbrook Center's Board for many years. He is worth paying attention to for many good and serious reasons, not only on how he handles the election in Ohio.
Battlegrounders on National Review Online
No comments:
Post a Comment