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About the timing of Johnson’s resignation

The initial plan for U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson was to resign from Congress in February or early March and start March 15 as Youngstown State University president. But ever since Johnson’s controversial hiring Nov. 21 by the YSU board of trustees, Michael Peterson, the board’s president, has made it clear that he and the board wanted the Republican congressman to lead the university sooner than that. Johnson submitted his resignation letters Tuesday to Gov. Mike DeWine and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, stating he would leave Congress Jan. 21. He starts the next day at ...

Second Amendment bill stalls in the Ohio house

Despite opposition from police chiefs and county prosecutors organizations, a bill sponsored by state Rep. Mike Loychik to prohibit local and state law enforcement from enforcing federal firearms laws or regulations looked like it was going to pass the Ohio House this month. That was the consensus a few weeks ago. But things have significantly changed since then, and the bill finds itself in limbo largely because some of Loychik’s fellow Republicans have concerns about it. Called the Second Amendment Preservation Act, the bill was approved Nov. 15 along party lines by the Ohio House ...

Hope found in the season

There are good memories and bad ones near the holidays. Everyone doesn’t welcome the holiday time of year. But maybe it is a good time to evaluate self, to recognize who we are and why we are, and find hope. My mother was an optimist: “Let a smile be your umbrella.” “Every dark cloud has a silver lining.” “Count your blessings instead of your troubles.” “Someday, you will …” Yes, she was an encourager. She inspired hope. One long-ago Christmas the economy was bad. How would we provide Christmas for family? I bought four strings of multi-colored mini-lights and ...

Race is on to replace Johnson in Congress

U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson’s plan to resign his House seat in February or early March to become Youngstown State University president would open a safe Republican seat for which state Sen. Michael Rulli is seen as an early favorite. Rulli, R-Salem, filed a declaration of candidacy and created a campaign committee with the Federal Election Commission, which allows him to start raising money for the race. Rulli said Thursday he is scheduling a date and time for an official announcement. Dec. 20 is the deadline for candidates to file for the full two-year position on the March 19, 2024, ...

YSU President-elect Johnson criticized higher education

While U.S. Rep. Bill Johnson isn’t the first Republican selected as Youngstown State University president, he is a partisan conservative who has served in Congress for 13 years. Johnson, R-Marietta, faced criticism by alumni, students and faculty for his politics including opposing gay marriage, being anti-choice, supporting immigration restrictions, challenging the results of the 2020 presidential election and for his professional background that doesn’t include any higher education experience. Johnson voted 96.8% with former President Donald Trump, a Republican, and only 20.2% ...

Could a winter storm topple our electric grid?

Here’s some unwelcome deja vu. According to the organization that oversees the reliability of America’s power grid, much of the country could face blackouts again this winter. Warnings of winter blackouts are becoming a seasonal fixture. Texas experienced a devastating power outage in February 2021. And a bitter cold snap last Christmas forced utilities to implement rolling blackouts across multiple states. Now, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) fears that a prolonged cold snap could threaten the nation’s natural gas infrastructure and the power ...