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Do IT this week: Layering
Ted Strickland gets his electronic slot machines. Democratic lobbyists are smiling
Published on Sunday, Jul 12, 2009
The winners? Those seven horse racetracks where the 17,500 electronic slots will be located. Just a coincidence that Mountaineer Gaming, the owner of Scioto Downs in Columbus, includes among its lobbyists Kimberly Redfern, the wife of Chris Redfern, the state Democratic Party chairman? Or that Alan Melamed, a close friend and adviser of Speaker Armond Budish, represents the Ohio Legacy Fund, a consortium of Ohio racetracks?
Make no mistake, lobbyists of the Republican variety have been part of the swarm (Neil Clark with Intralot, the lottery vendor). Still, what has been striking about this saga is the way the governor turned around, a recent foe of slot machines at tracks suddenly embracing the concept as necessary to balance the state budget.
Julie Carr Smyth reported that Mountaineer began lobbying the governor early, joined by Intralot, now positioned to handle the slots. Hard to shake the unseemly impression: The Democratic governor and speaker avoid a dreaded tax increase. Meanwhile, influential allies reap a portion of the benefit.
And the governor called the maneuvers of Senate Republicans ''disgusting''? Is this what he meant when he declared that he owned the slots issue?
To be sure, lobbyists play a vital role in the workings of democracy. The worry comes when things turn cozy, narrow interests prevailing at the expense of the whole. Democrats have made a practice of harpooning Republicans for serving ''corporate'' interests. What to make of this arrangement, especially when the past two Republican governors have resisted expanded gambling and opted for tax increases (along with spending cuts) to balance the budget?
Democrats may reason that Republicans have shamelessly exploited the tax issue over the years. They are right. Yet there has been something troubling about Ohio Democrats as they have climbed back to power, Chris Redfern serving as a leading voice. It has been evident in their budget proposals, asking the needy and vulnerable to bear the brunt, putting off investments in education and now insiders prevailing with their clients. What does the party seek — other than power at the Statehouse?
Get the full article here.
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