The Becker Report
Volume III, Issue IX
November 9, 2008

Published by:
John Becker
Republican State Central Committeeman
Ohio's 14th Senate District
Clermont, Brown, Adams, Scioto, and Lawrence Counties
513-753-6440
www.BeckerGOP.com
mailto:John@BeckerGOP.com
www.BeckerGOP.com/TheBeckerReport.htm

Distribution:
Tim Rudd, Clermont County GOP Chairman
Paul Hall, Brown County GOP Chairman
Harty Wallingford, Adams County GOP Chairman
Dr. Terry Johnson, Scioto County GOP Chairman
Ray “Moose” Dutey, Lawrence County GOP Chairman

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Disclaimer
Nobody asked me to include this, but it seems like a good idea:
This newsletter is not sanctioned by the GOP, ORP, or any organization, or affiliation. I am fully and solely responsible for its' content. Although I strive for accuracy, this is not "The Gospel according to John." Additionally, I don't necessarily try to be "fair and balanced." After all, I didn't get into politics to be a news reporter. My agenda is to influence public policy consistent with Southern Ohio conservative values. For more information on my motivations or how to get involved, see: What is a Central Committee?

Prayers Needed
Tina Meranda appreciates all prayers.
Please keep Danny Bubp in your prayers while he serves our country in Iraq.
Pray that our nation does not have to suffer an "Obamination."

State Ballot Issues
All passed except #5 and #6.

Election Info (Contested Races)
2nd Congressional District US Congressional Race
Congratulations to Jean Schmidt.

Ohio Supreme Court Race
Congratulations to Maureen O'Connor and Evelyn Stratton.

Ohio State Senate Race
Congratulations to Tom Niehaus.

12th District Court of Appeals Race
Congratulations to Judge Robert Hendrickson and Judge Robert Ringland.

10th District State Board of Education
Congratulations to Jeff Hardin.

Clermont County
Congratulations to Ed Humphrey for Commissioner, Bob Proud for Commissioner, Barb Wiedenbein for Clerk of Courts, and Debbie Clepper for Recorder.

Brown County
Congratulations to Jessica Little for Prosecutor, Tina Meranda for Clerk of Courts, Amy Jo DeClaire for Recorder, Dwayne Wenninger for Sheriff, and Scott Gusweiler for Court of Common Pleas.

Adams County
Congratulations to Justin Cooper for Commissioner, and Roger Rhonemus for Commissioner

Lawrence County
Congratulations to Jason Stephens for Commissioner, Les Boggs for Commissioner, Sharon Hager for Recorder, Jeff Lawless for Sheriff, and Kurt Hofmann for Coronor.

Beckerisms
I've been trying to figure out what country best reflects Obama's vision for America. Most of the European countries aren't socialistic enough and the communist and Islamo-fascist countries don't reflect his social agenda. A combination of two countries seems to fit best. The leftist social policies of the Netherlands and the socialist economic policies of Cuba are my best assessment of Obama's vision for America. I've never been to Havana, but I have been to Amsterdam. It's a sewer!

I spoke with a large number of people regarding state ballot issues #5 (Payday Lending). It shouldn't be surprising that many people thought they were being smart by voting for its' passage because they were taking advantage of the opportunity to lower a fee that an industry can charge. (Never mind the fact that the opposite is true. Less competition leads to fewer choices and higher costs in the marketplace.) Regardless, I began to muse about the idea of a state ballot issue to limit how much gasoline can be sold for in Ohio. Let's say that the electorate votes to cap prices at $1 per gallon. Would consumers be lowering their costs? Yes! Walking, bicycling and busing are all cheaper alternatives to driving private automobiles. If prices were capped at $1 per gallon, no gasoline would be available for sale in Ohio. (However, Kroger may offer a deal like allowing customers to purchase 10 gallons of gasoline for every $100 in qualifying monthly purchases.) How much do you think neighboring states would be selling gasoline for? The economics of supply and demand might dictate a price of $10 or $20 per gallon. Maybe Ohio voters aren't so smart after all.

In the October edition, I mentioned that my twelve-year-old daughter (Sarah), asked me what Marxism was. I asked her if she knew the story about the ants and the grasshoppers. She did and proceeded to tell me all about it. I asked her how she thought the ants would react if their food, which they worked so hard for, was taken away by the government and given to the lazy grasshoppers. She looked at me perplexed like she could never imagine such a thing. I tried to convince her that it wasn't fair that the ants should have a plentiful amount of food and the grasshoppers should have little. Therefore, in the name of fairness, the government will redistribute the wealth. The ensuing discussion convinced me that my twelve-year-old daughter understands economics better than most adults.

As I talked to people about that conversation, I was surprised at how many people had not heard of the story. It is one of Aesop's Fable's.

After my twelve-year-old daughter returned home with her bounty on Halloween night, I informed her that I would be confiscating her candy and redistributing the wealth in the name of fairness. She had not forgotten about our previous discussion about Marxism. It was another teachable moment about "Obamanomics." I'm confident that my daughter understands economics enough that she'll be voting Republican in eight years. (Also, she voluntarily shared some of her candy with me.) :)

Is Michelle Obama proud of her country?

Past Events
November 7, 2008
Chip Gerhardt hosted another successful "First Friday Luncheon" at Via Vite on Fountain Square in Cincinnati. It was the largest crowd that Chip has had. About 60 people, or so, attended. He discussed the election results and compared and contrasted them to our predictions from October's luncheon. His special guests were Hamilton County Democrat Party Chairman, Tim Burke and Hamilton County Republican Party Chairman, Alex Triantafilou. They both spoke about the election and fielded a number of questions from the audience. I pointed out that a great deal of money and resources were devoted to the defeat of state ballot issues #5 (Payday Lending) and yet it passed overwhelmingly. My question was: What happened? What do you attribute to its' passage? Mr. Burke spoke first and credited the passage of issue #5 to the Ohio Democrat Party's endorsement of a "Yes" vote and having it on their slate cards that were distributed at the polls. Mr. Triantafilou largely concurred. Therefore, I can only conclude that, once again, the Democrats are primarily responsible for eliminating jobs, businesses, and competition in Ohio.

Future Events
November 11, 2008
Scioto County Central Committee at 7:00 pm in New Boston

November 19, 2008
Clermont County Central Committee meeting in Batavia at 7:00 pm

December 4, 2008
Chairman Bennett's annual Christmas Party in Columbus from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

December 5, 2008
GOP State Central Committee meeting in Columbus at 9:00 am

December 9, 2008
Scioto County Central Committee at 7:00 pm in New Boston

January 5, 2009
Union Twp (Clermont County) Central Committee meeting at the UT Civic Center at 7:00 pm

January 13, 2009
Scioto County Central Committee at 7:00 pm in New Boston

January 16, 2009 (Election of Officers)
GOP State Central Committee meeting in Columbus at 9:00 am

January 31, 2009 
Southern Ohio GOP County Chairs meeting

February 10, 2009
Scioto County Central Committee at 7:00 pm in New Boston

February 20, 2009
Clermont County Lincoln Day Dinner at the Eastgate Holiday Inn

March 10, 2009
Scioto County Central Committee at 7:00 pm in New Boston

March 31, 2009
Scioto County Lincoln Day Dinner, social -- 5:30 p.m. with dinner at 6:00 pm