Ohio Valley Politics

Congressman Zack Space’s re-election chances are looking pretty good. I know we’ve heard this story before, but Space is really good at fundraising. His campaign has pulled in $360,088, giving them almost a million dollars on hand.

“I’m extraordinarily thankful for the support I’ve received. Our effort to listen and respond to the needs of the people of 18th’s Congressional District continues to resonate.

“We have a long way to go in what is going to be a very tough race, but having nearly one million in the bank puts our campaign in a good position.”

– Rep. Zack Space

I haven’t heard anything about the Republican’s finances, but that pretty much says it all right there.

A big issue for Rep. Zack Space over the last few months has been an apparent discrepancy in the amount of money local veterans  receive in disability pay compared to other areas. The issue initially came to light last year, when a report ranked showed that Ohio’s average veteran disability pay was the lowest of all 50 states.

Now Space is done fact finding and ready to act. He’s introduced the Veterans Disability Fairness Act to insure proper oversight is in place at the VA.

“This shortchanging is insulting to our heroes’ service.  The veterans living in Ohio sacrificed just as much as veterans living elsewhere. There is no reason that a veteran here should receive less than veterans in other states.

“This legislation is an important step in forcing the VA to address these issues and in providing obviously needed oversight.  We can and must bring those states at the bottom of the list closer to parity with those at the top.  Our veterans deserve no less.”

– Rep. Zack Space

According to a press release, Space’s legislation would:

• Require the VA to collect and monitor regional data on disability ratings.
• Require the VA Secretary to conduct reviews and audits of the rating system.
• Require the VA to submit an exhaustive report yearly to Congress to track the progress of the program.
• Require VA raters to take ownership of their ratings by assigning identification codes to all adjudications.  The performance of specific raters will then be evaluated periodically for consistency and accuracy.

Congressman Zack Space will be attending a ceremony at ABC Manufacturing in Malta, Ohio on Monday. This is a perfect chance for 18th district residents to see both their congressman and the effect he’s having on the area. You may remember that Space worked with local officials to bring these jobs into the district a while back.

The event is open to the public. If you’re interested in going, you can find details below.

WHO: Congressman Zack Space along with various local and state officials

WHAT: Ceremony

WHERE: ABC Manufacturing, 210 13th St., Malta OH 43758

WHEN: Monday, April 7, 2008 1:00 pm Eastern

I’d also say it’s a safe bet (though it’s just my guess) that 20th district Senate candidate Rick Shriver will be there as well, though not to campaign. Shriver is a Morgan County Commissioner and also worked to bring the factory to the area.

Congressman Zack Space’s website has posted results (PDF) from the Renew Ohio broadband work group held a few weeks ago. They seem to indicate which benefits of high speed internet participants believed would have the biggest positive impact on the region.

Among the highest ranked benefits are:

• an increase in educational oppertunities
• it may attract or retain businesses
• improvements to healthcare by enabling things like home health monitoring and access to electronic health records

I’ve attempted to embed the full results after the break.

Space was also talking about rural broadband with the Newark Advocate recently:

Space said one of his greatest achievements in the 15 months he has served as a Congressman has been the introduction of legislation regarding technology, specifically improving high-speed Internet accessibility in the area, he said.

“I think, in the long term, (Internet access) makes us a much more attractive place to do business,” he said. “What business is going to locate to a place that doesn’t have high-speed Internet?”

Additionally, he said, several significant aspects of the educational and medical fields have become reliant on Internet technology.

Tapping into that resource is a way to increase business and improve quality of life, he said.
Continue Reading »

Zack Space is getting his re-election campaign into gear now that the primary is over and his opponent is decided. Earlier this week I received a fundraising letter from the campaign. This isn’t the first time I’ve received such a letter, but this time they also asked for volunteers.

The campaign is looking for help ranging from simply putting a sign up in your yard all the way up to volunteering in an office or coordinating a precinct. Other opportunities include making calls, working on election day, distributing literature, hosting a fundraiser, and walking in parades. If any of these things interest you, I’m sure they’d love the help.

And of course, donations are always needed.

Rep. Zack Space held his second Renew Ohio work group today, and this time the topic was agriculture. The event took place in Coshocton and was lead by Adam Sharp from the Ohio Farm Bureau.

“We have a long and distinguished agricultural heritage in our region, and I am confident that this industry will continue to play a vital role in our economic future. We must continue to find new and innovative ways to expand this staple of our economy.”

“In the United States today, we enjoy the safest, cheapest, most abundant food supply of anywhere in the world, and we owe that to the hard work of our agricultural producers. The ideas generated today will help ensure we are able to expand this necessary industry as we find ways to create jobs for our region.”

– Rep. Zack Space

Space also sent out a column to area newspapers about his view on illegal immigration. You can find it after the jump. Continue Reading »

This has been a pretty lousy winter down here in Southeastern Ohio. There hasn’t been a lot of snow, but we’ve more than made up for it in rain. An, of course. with lots of rain comes flooding. While we’ve managed to dodge the bullet several times on the big one (an Ohio River flood) the smaller creeks and streams have flooded several times.

Now, in the face of even more flooding, Rep. Zack Space is calling on Governor Strickland to declare a state of emergency so that relief efforts can officially begin.
I’ve included the press release after the break, as it contains information of use to Space’s constituents who’ve been effected.

Continue Reading »

This should go over well with his constituents:

“The Supreme Court has the opportunity to send a clear and unequivocal message that Americans have an undeniable right to own firearms. There is no legally justifiable reason that the residents of DC – or anywhere else – should be denied their constitutionally protected rights.”

“I once again renew my call to the justices of the Supreme Court to stand up for the principles our Founding Fathers saw fit to include in the Bill of Rights. The Supreme Court has the ability to settle all questions regarding gun ownership.”

– Rep. Zack Space

Space also recently joined several other members of the House in signing an NRA “friend of the court” brief for District of Columbia v. Heller.

Rep. Zack Space joined several other members of the House today in sending a letter to Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer urging them to take action on illegal immigration. Specifically, the letter urged them to present the “Secure America Through Verification and Enforcement (SAVE) Act of 2007″ (H.R. 4088) that has been stalled since last year.

“My constituents are crying out for action on the illegal immigration issue. There is no doubt that the illegal immigration problem is placing an undue strain on our public resources and our job market.

“When I traveled to the Mexican border last year, I saw firsthand how easy it is for people to sneak across, and that is completely unacceptable. We need swift and dramatic action to protect both our national security and our job security. I find it difficult to understand the delay.”

– Rep. Zack Space

Both Charlie Wilson and Zack Space supported a recently passed change to the House rules that sets up an independent panel (called the “Office of Congressional Ethics”) to investigate ethics investigations of House members.

The panel will consist of six members appointed by the Speaker of the House and the minority leader and will not contain sitting members of congress or lobbyists.

“Since Day One in Congress, I have been calling for an independent panel to investigate Congressional ethics,” Space said.  “We simply cannot rely on friends and colleagues to instigate and conduct investigations into alleged ethical breaches.  This bill will stop the practice of relying on the fox to guard the henhouse.”

“This legislation will go a long way in bringing transparency to the process, increasing the efficacy of the ethics oversight process, and restoring the faith of the American public in their elected officials.  We still have a long way to go, but this is yet another great step in the right direction.”

– Rep. Zack Space

Space’s release notes that the bill is similar to legislation he introduced last year with Rep. Chris Murphy (D-CT).

Several members of the House of Representatives, including Zack Space, have received bizarre packages that seemed to be tied to the recent bombing of a Times Square military recruiting station. The mailing that was sent to Space included a postcard depicting a man standing in front of the recruiting station with the caption “Happy New Year, We Did It”.

Law enforcement officials have stated that they don’t believe these letters are actually tied to the bombing, but were sent by an anti-war activist from the Los Angeles area.

On a related note, I’ve already seen some conservative sites rush to blame the anti-war movement as a whole for this. To them I’d like to deliver my traditional response: Have you bombed any abortion clinics lately?

I’m sorry if that offends some of you, but my point is that just because the extremists of a position do something doesn’t mean that the entire group supports it. To allege otherwise is ignorant.

So far the main tactic I’ve seen used to attack Zack Space is to attempt portray him as Nancy Pelosi’s lapdog, and so far I haven’t really tried to stop it. The deeper these people dig this hole, the harder it’ll be for them to get out of it when they realize that they’re digging in the wrong spot. The National Journal, however, may have just thrown up a brick wall in front of this attack.

In a recent rating of 2007 House votes, the National Journal found Space to be nearly dead center between the House conservatives and liberals. In fact, he was only two spots away from being in the exact center.

Space made the following remarks on his rating.

“My constituents do not need statistics to prove what they already know – I am their independent voice in Congress. I pride myself in working for the best interests of my district – not a political party – and I am proud of what I have been able to accomplish this Congress.”

“In the 18th Congressional District, people are not looking for a Democrat or a Republican, and they are not looking for an ideologue. They want a moderate, independent, Ohioan who will fight for them every day. I am proud to do that, and I am proud of this ranking.”

– Rep. Zack Space

In more good news for Space, the Cook Political Report has changed their rating of the 18th district from “Lean Democratic” to “Likely Democratic“.

Sorry about the lack of primary coverage, I’ve been fighting off a cold for the last few days.

Candidate Zack Space has released a statement (included below) on his overwhelming primary victory today.

The big story today though, is that we finally know who he’ll be running against. It looks like it’s going to be Fred Dailey. It’s definitely not who I would have thought, but I’ll have more on it in the coming days.

SPACE WELCOMES OVERWHELMING VICTORY IN DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY

-Calls This Year’s Election an “Historic Election,” An Opportunity to Advocate for Better Benefits and Health Care for Veterans, Better Health Care, Tougher Immigration Laws —  

New Philadelphia, OH – Affirming Congressman Zack Space’s efforts to change Washington and change the daily lives of his constituents, the Democratic voters of the 18^th Congressional District provided Space an overwhelming victory in Tuesday’s Democratic primary election.

 

“I am truly overwhelmed by the response of the people of the 18^th Congressional District to my efforts to bring change to Washington and change in the lives on the people of my district,” said Space.  “Since Day One in office, I’ve fought with every ounce of my being to restore the trust of the people in their elected officials.  I’ve led the charge to clean up the House of Representatives and make sure that special interests’ lock on legislation is a thing of the past.  There is still much more to do, but I believe that we have made real progress in providing the transparency necessary to make sure that regular people are heard and that their government responds to them.”

 

“Changing Washington isn’t just symbolic – it’s absolutely critical. Unless we greatly diminish the influence of special interests, we cannot reorder the horrible priorities of past years that have cheated our veterans of the health care they deserve, undercut the efforts of senior citizens to get the health care they deserve, and robbed our students of their ability to get an affordable education without mortgaging their future.  And we must make sure that we have tough immigration policies that do not undercut American workers’ efforts to get jobs.

 

The horrible trade policies of the past have also devastated our working families. These policies have not only taken our workers’ jobs away – they have compromised families’ health care, they have led to a traumatic home mortgage crisis, and, as I’ve seen time and time again sadly, they have deprived these families of the absolute basic necessities such as food.”

 

“The policies of the past must give way to the foresight and vision that will change these people’s lives on a daily basis. A nation’s budget is a blueprint of our priorities, and that’s why we must invest more heavily in our towns and communities, our infrastructure, and our people.  We must prepare our children for the future that lies before them, and we must work with every fiber of our being to bring in new industries and new jobs because nothing changes the fabric of a community like the promise that comes with new opportunities.”

 

“That’s why I’ve worked so hard to improve our economy. When my office receives word of any company even contemplating a move to Ohio, we spring into action, working tirelessly to bring that plant to our communities. I’ve also begun my RENEW OHIO-18 to look, longer-term, at how our region must be prepared to benefit from the new technologies of tomorrow, such as broadband or alternative energy.”

 

“This year is going to be an historic election.  We’re at a crossroads where we’re going to have to determine whether we are going to meet these tough challenges head-on or whether we’re going to fall back on the old tired debates of the past.  I stand ready to have a vigorous debate about how, working together regardless of party, we can produce that future.”

The Times-Reporter has a write up on yesterdays Renew Ohio Broadband summit.

More than 100 people attended the Broadband and Technology Working Group session hosted by U.S. Rep. Zack Space, D-Dover.

Friday’s session lasted from 9:30 to noon at Tuscarawas Campus of Kent State University at New Philadelphia.

“It was a great day,” Space said of the first group session of his RENEW Ohio-18 program.

“As with the kickoff breakfast, we continue to be impressed with the turnout, quality and participation involved,” he said.

I regret that I wasn’t able to attend, but at least they had a good turn out.

This is just a quick reminder that Zack Space’s technology summit for the Renew Ohio series will be held at KSU Tuscarawas this Friday. Please RSVP with Space’s office if you wish to attend.

The other reason for this post is that I just discovered that Space’s meeting isn’t the only thing coming to New Philadelphia that day. Bill Clinton will also be at the KSU branch (several hours later) to hold a rally.