Power, absolute power, and the Ohio GOP

Ohio Republicans are really something.

In fact, you’ve got to hand it to them. Well, for that, you’d have to wait in line – as they have done a yeoman’s task of handing things to themselves.

From Congress to the Statehouse, to the offices of governor, attorney general, secretary of state, auditor and treasurer, to a Supreme Court majority, to political dominance on various local levels, the Ohio Republicans have done quite well. Good for them.

For those who go along to get along, there are gerrymandered districts and political appointments, to say nothing of the much-needed campaign cash.

However, it really must gall the Ohio GOP that they failed to deliver the state’s electoral votes in the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections. (How did that happen, anyway? They must be asking themselves at every obligatory function political.)

From a perspective acquired from more than 30 years of reading and watching the political machinations of both major parties – to neither of which I belong – I can only offer that the Ohio Republican Party has successfully outmaneuvered its rivals in the Democratic Party to the dead-center of all potentially contentious issues.

While too much of the far-left fringe element was defining the Democratic Party, the Republicans were racing as fast as they could from a once conservative ideology to the yellow stripes in the middle of the road.

In other words, today’s Ohio GOP is a moderate – if not downright liberal – body politic. Just not “too” liberal! Gotta keep those checks coming in.

Let’s face it. The Republicans were all for a smaller, more efficient state government while Ted Strickland was governor. Once Strickland was defeated by John Kasich four years ago, what happened? You guessed it. State spending increased by billions of dollars.

Medicaid used to be a dirty word with Ohio Republicans. Now, they embrace its expansion.

Anyone remember the GOP’s Senate Bill 5? Can anyone find a Republican up for re-election who still supports it?

Once upon a time, Republicans championed things like fiscal conservatism, open records, the Sunshine Laws and government accountability. But that was when Democrats were in office – and the GOP pledged its sacred honor that “We will do better, just give us a chance.”

You’ve had your chance. You have failed to do better. You are Democrat-Lite.

Worse, when you leave Columbus or Washington and return to rural America, you continue to speak the old-fashioned party line. You talk like conservatives in places like Highland County, Adams County and Clinton County, but once the chicken dinners and county fairs are over and done with, it’s back to partisan politics. You ought to be ashamed. If you had any shame.

Someone once told me that it’s hard to find anyone more in love with a member of Congress than that particular member of Congress. That’s applicable to most. I can name very few exceptions.

Sadly, the behavior of Washington pols has had a trickle-down effect on the politicians in Columbus and the local levels. We’ve all witnessed it, too. From the once-humble farmer turned self-centered senator, to the “chosen ones” who achieve political office with less of a pedigree than the neighborhood mutt.

Granted, neither of the two dominant political parties have a corner on this market. But for today, only one party dominates Ohio government.

Consider that just last week, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida led a group of conservative senators in urging House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio to protect Congress’ power of the purse and prohibit the Obama administration from dispersing unlawful risk corridor payments that expose taxpayers to an Obamacare bailout.

Among the senators who signed the letter were many highly touted by the party for their conservative values: Utah’s Mike Lee, Ted Cruz of Texas, Mike Enzi of Wyoming, Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, Jeff Sessions of Alabama (Roll Tide), Rand Paul of Kentucky and Dr. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.

The real question, though, is this: Why would Ohio’s Boehner even need such encouragement to do the right thing?

“The American people expect us, as members of Congress, to fulfill our oath of office and defend the Constitution,” the senators said. “Therefore, we must act to protect Congress’ power of the purse and prohibit the Obama administration from dispersing unlawful risk corridor payments providing for an Obamacare taxpayer bailout.”

Seems simple enough. Unless, of course, one allows politics to get in the way of the Constitution and the oath of office.

Things aren’t much better on the county level, either. Has anyone else taken the local political party quiz that made its way to my office last Friday?

Kevin Bruce was kind enough to drop off a copy. The questions involve present and past local officeholders and several interesting episodes over the last four years.

• Lawsuits in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

• Improper use of public information technology.

• Wrongful signings on court documents. Etc.

The answers are relatively easy for those who pay attention.

We’ve reported on some. Other media have reported on some. All are matters of public record, mostly within the Highland County Common Pleas Court. There are no untruths, political or otherwise, on the quiz.

The Ohio Republican Party as it exists today brings to mind Lord Acton. John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton, if you please.

He is famous for his remark “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Perhaps regrettably, he followed that with “Great men are almost always bad men.”

It wasn’t always so. Nor should it be.

Rory Ryan is publisher of The Highland County Press.