The view from the Idea Center

Ohioans Against Corporate Bailouts’ effort to get a voter referendum on House Bill 6, the power plant bailout legislation, suffered yet another big blow yesterday when a federal judge in Columbus rejected the group’s request for more time to collect signatures.

The reason? The group sought relief from the wrong court.

U.S. District Court Judge Edmund Sargus, Jr. said in his decision that Ohioans Against Corporate Bailouts was raising questions pertaining to Ohio’s Constitution, not the U.S. Constitution, and therefore should go to a state court. He referred four legal questions arising from the matter to the Ohio Supreme Court.

The wrong court? How’d that happen?

It was another misstep for Ohioans Against Corporate Bailouts, which lost time in its signature-gathering efforts because of an improperly-written referendum question.  The group also could not get its message heard over what one state Democratic leader called the unfounded, xenophobic claims of its opponent, Ohioans For Energy Security, and was overwhelmed by bailout supporters’  aggressive tactics.

We’ll see what happens in the Ohio Supreme Court. According to The Columbus Dispatch, it is “not required to hear the case, but typically rules on such questions from federal courts.”

I’m going on vacation for two weeks. I’ll be spending some of it at NPR West in Culver City, California, for a convention of “Morning Edition” hosts from around the country. I’m going all fan girl over the chance to meet David Greene.
 
While I’m away, my colleagues Rick Jackson, David C. Barnett and Marlene Harris-Taylor will be filling in.

See you Monday, Nov. 11, on the radio!
Amy Eddings

Need to KnOH

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Your ideas

Bailout opponents spent considerable time and effort trying to get a referendum on the ballot only to come up short on time and signatures – and in the wrong court. Did you sign a petition? Call us at  (216) 916-6476 or post on  our Facebook page. We'll feature some of your thoughts and comments here in Noon(ish) and on Morning Edition.