In recent months, the need for strong environmental regulations has become apparent. In the course of one month, a mine explosion in West Virginia killed 29 workers and an oil rig blowout in the Gulf killed 11. Both disasters were avoidable had the applicable environmental standards been properly enforced. The effects of BP's negligence and the government's failure to hold the company accountable will be felt for decades.

This week, Rep. LaTourette proposed an Amendment to the Clean Air Act. If enacted, the amendment would have delayed the enforcement of EPA restrictions on carbon monoxide and methane emissions for another two years. In an attempt to justify this skirting of environmental responsibility, Rep. LaTourette talked about the cost to Northeast Ohio. Unfortunately, by attempting to postpone these standards, the Congressman was merely trying to appease the corporate donors that continually support his candidacy.

Following this proposed amendment, Environment America, the League of Conservation Voters, the National Wildlife Federation, and the National Resources Defense Fund purchased a full-page ad in the Washington Post. The ad condemned Rep. LaTourette for these blatant anti-environment measures and asked constituents to push for change. Today, this same ad ran in the Akron Beacon Journal.

This election cycle, Northeast Ohio must election a representative willing to enforce the current environmental standards and bring the region into the modern era. The economic progress of the district does not have an inverse relationship to the environment, but we need the proper leader to strike this balance. Bill O'Neill understands this balance and will deliver results in the coming years.

Ohio needs reliable safeguards for our families, not politicians who undermine them.

LaTourette Amendment would delay Clean Air Act

It’s been 100 days since the fatal explosion on the BP Deep Horizon oilrig in the Gulf of Mexico caused the largest oil spill ever. But, the effects of this disaster will last much longer than 100 days. We barely understand the consequences to the delicate oceanic ecosystem. We barely can foresee the jobs lost and industries disturbed by this tragedy.

Soon after BP and FEMA plug the leak, the media will forget this disaster and move on to more immediate and dramatic events. But, we must remember the lack of accountability to which this company held itself. We must remember that they had no contingency plan in place before this happened. We must remember that the only reasonable conclusion is that they didn’t care about the risk that this might happen.

This indifference to consequences is of the same character that Wall Street exhibited when it placed bets in derivative markets. The system was set up to favor quick profits over long-term market stability and Wall Street bigwigs took advantage of this setup for their personal benefit. Their shortsightedness led to long-term threats to our economy. This is what happens when we trust companies, whose only goal is to maximize profits, to hold themselves accountable. It just doesn’t happen.

Someone needs to care about the next 100 days, because in these next 100 days, American and Transnational corporations will make decisions that affect every single American family. We must ensure that these decisions do not sacrifice livelihoods of these American families for the sake of short-term corporate profit.

Election day is just under 100 days away. Take this time to ask yourself if you want to keep the incumbent in place who has toed the absolutist, uncompromising deregulatory party line for his entire 16-year career in Congress. Or, ask yourself: do you want a new Representative in Bill O’Neill who has practical and reasonable solutions to hold companies accountable when their decisions injure our natural resources and family pocketbooks.

(Follow the links below to donate to the gulf coast cleanup effort)

http://www.lagulfresponse.org/

http://www.healthygulf.org/

 On July 14, Bill O'Neill spoke to members of the National Federation of Retired and Active Federal Employees. During his speech, O'Neill spoke about legislation that is currently affecting seniors and retirees. When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was passed into law, new rules were set in place to reign in some of the most egregious abuses by Big Insurance. Included in these new rules is phasing out the Medicare Part D donut hole which required seniors to pay for 100% of their prescription drugs if they fell into a certain monetary range. By voting no on the Affordable Care Act, incumbent Congressman LaTourette denied seniors of closing the donut hole and affordable health care. 

The Ashtabula Star Beacon posted an article highlighting Bill's remarks to the crowd. Bill also touched on how important Wall Street Reform is for seniors. Over $2 trillion were lost in savings and retirement accounts due to risky Wall Street behavior. The incumbent Congressman voted against this as well. Rep. LaTourette said 'no' to giving new rules to credit card and mortgage companies, 'no' to cracking down on predatory lenders, and 'no' to ending "too big to fail."

With this series of votes, Special Interest Steve continues to prove how out of touch he is with the needs of Northeast Ohio. For more information on what Wall Street Reform and the Affordable Care Act mean to you, check out these websites: The Affordable Care Act and Wall Street Reform.

On Jul 6th, Rep. LaTourette addressed a gathering of the Portage County Tea Party (Portage County Tea Party). The group, which grew to prominence alongside Sarah Palin 2008, held its monthly meeting at NEOUCOM. Although his longtime friend and supporter Jim Traficant was unable to attend (BOE disqualification), Rep. LaTourette was able to espouse enough right wing rhetoric for the both of them. Rep. LaTourette said, "I must give big credit to the Tea Party because the other side cannot have town hall meetings anymore." In a half-hour speech, Rep. LaTourette reiterated his commitment to the ideals and principles of the Tea Party.

In describing the "train wreck in Washington," the Representative proudly presented his votes against TARP, the Stimulus Package, Obama's Healthcare Plan, and the future Cap and Trade bill. Instead of understanding the necessity of these economic programs and their value to the middle class of Northeast Ohio, Rep. LaTourette and the Republican Party continue to rail against spending. He said, "What creates jobs is lower taxes and lower spending."

Unfortunately, these trickle down economic theories were dis-proven in the 1980s. Rep. LaTourette's adherence to this dated economic plan is detrimental to our region's future. While Rep. LaTourette is toeing the national political line, he distances himself from the realities of the district. The government has a role in facilitating economic growth and providing our working class families with the tools they need to achieve prosperity.

Although the national debt is a significant problem that must be addressed, Ohio families need immediate economic relief that can only be provided with a comprehensive and modern economic plan. Rep. LaTourette would rather appease the extreme end of this party than present a clear-headed plan for an economic revival.

Bill is not beholden to these national political movements and the economic interests of his future constituents are his number one priority. Bill's pledge is to deliver tax credits to small businesses and help create green manufacturing jobs throughout our district.

A lot is currently going on in the O’Neill campaign. The first financial filing deadline post primary is today, June 30. If you would like to help the campaign, please make a $25 donation on our ActBlue page. Your contributions will go a long way in helping us get our message out on Bill’s plan to boost job creation and spur economic growth for Northeast Ohio.

Also on the horizon is our campaign headquarters grand opening. On July 5, after the annual Independence Day parade in Stow, the O’Neill headquarters, 3404 Kent Rd, will be holding a free hamburger and hotdog cookout. Everyone is invited.

Speaking at the cookout will be State Rep. Mike Moran, State Senate Candidate Frank Comunale, State Auditor Candidate David Pepper, and Bill O’Neill. The event will be a fun time and a good chance to hear what these candidates will do to better Northeast Ohio.

On June 21, Bill O’Neill met with a local chapter of The Coffee Party. The group discussed the influence of money in politics and the effects it has on democracy. The group posted a round up of the discussion that O'Neill had here.

From the article:

This was his first exposure to the Coffee Party, and he nodded approval at our group's statement that government had a role in our lives, "because once we can agree that government has a role, we can start to discuss what role governement should play."

It is hard to believe that Special Interest Steve can be a fair legislator when he has taken money from some of the same Big Banks that led us into this economic crisis, such as Lehman Brothers, Bank of America, and Goldman Sachs. It might also explain why, when given the chance to enforce new rules and laws that would prevent another economic crisis, he voted against the Wall Street Reform legislation.

In a series of baffling votes, Congressman LaTourette has turned his back on entrepreneurs and small business owners in Northeast Ohio. The most egregious came Wednesday, when Special Interest Steve cast a vote against the Small Business Jobs Tax Relief Act. According to AccountingWeb.com, the Act encourages investment in small businesses and enhances their cash flows in their critical formative years. This type of economic legislation, which is designed to facilitate ground-level growth, can be a life-line to small businesses struggling to stay above water.

This vote, which cut down party lines, is a prime example of a Congressman unwilling to step out from the ranks of the Republican Party no matter the quality of the bill. The Act will bring needed tax relief to those attempting to create jobs on a scale to moderate scale. The Congressman's vote is indicative of a government official detached from the realities of his local constituents. Policymakers universally embrace tax cuts for small businesses; however, LaTourette rails against these so called budget issues. Northeast Ohio is in need of leadership willing to proactively support local job growth regardless of party interests and corporate profit motivations.

On Cleveland.com today, an editorial ran shaming Congress for ignoring the jobless. The article says:

“Dilly-dallying by the House meant that the Senate went on holiday without acting at all on a measure that at least would have renewed the prior extensions. The result of all of this: About 39,000 Ohioans have lost their unemployment benefits and another 100,000 may be without help by the end of this month.

The main reason that Congress is balking at extending the safety net is one we would normally applaud: a sudden outbreak of concern about the nation's ballooning deficit and debt. But suddenly slamming the door on millions of needy Americans is penny-wise, pound-foolish and cruel at a time when the economy simply cannot reabsorb them. “

At a time when people are going through long periods of unemployment, incumbent Steve LaTourette has put politics over people. The incumbent has voted to raise the debt ceiling on three separate occasions previously and against limiting spending. When it came time for protecting Northeastern Ohio’s struggling families, politics has trumped common sense.

Extending aid to the unemployment provides $1.64 in economic stimulus for every dollar spent according to Moody’s Economy.com. The Congressional Budget Office has cited the extension of benefits as one the most cost efficient and effective forms of economic stimulus.