Op-ed: The Government You Elect is the Government You Deserve

BY LIZZIE MARGOLIUS

One cannot deny that Ohio has a long history of corruption. From city council members all the way up to the governor, Ohio is full of abuses. The most notorious abuse, by far, is the scandal involving House Speaker Larry Householder, Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges, and others in a $60 million bribery scheme to give a $1.3 billion bailout to First Energy.  And that’s just the tip of the iceberg because those are only the corruptions we know about.

“Heavy is the head that wears that crown,” as my old boss used to tell me. Ohio republicans have worn the crown of the statehouse for the past 25 years (except for a few years in the house), and have had a supermajority with the house, senate, and governorship since 2011 and before that from 1995 to 2006, so unfortunately the responsibility for corruption lies mostly with them.

But why are Ohio republicans so corrupt? Why is there such a disconnect between the people of Ohio and the leadership of Ohio? I think there’s a few things that have created a morally bankrupt political scene in our state.

First, Ohio republicans face limited competition in both the primary and/or the general. Candidates either run unopposed, or rely heavily on name recognition and incumbency to crush their opponents. With money and name recognition, the nail in the coffin for their opponent is the party endorsement (with strings attached, of course). Some of the least corrupt states in our union have way more competition from all parties. If you run for office in those states, then you must walk the walk, talk the talk, and keep yourself squeaky clean in the process.  Competition is always a good thing. Competition brings forward the best candidates. Ohio needs more political competition.  

Second, Ohio republicans lack virtue. Virtue and fear of God go hand in hand. I once had a legislator tell me that everyone wants the wisdom of God, but no one wants to fear God. You can’t have virtue without wisdom, and you can’t have wisdom without fear. For Ohio’s politicians to be virtuous, then they must submit themselves to the Lord, which means we must elect politicians who are willing and loyal servants who fear God.

Finally, Ohio republicans are corrupt because we allow them to be. When news breaks of greed, distrust, lies, and turncoats how do we react? When DeWine vetoed HB68, who went to the statehouse to protest? When Larry Householder was federally charged, his constituents reacted not with anger, but by reelecting him! When the Blue 22 turned against their Republican counterparts and sided with the Democrats (something the Democrats would never dream of doing), only a handful of them were voted out of office. We cannot sit at home and complain about Ohio politicians and then keep voting them back into office. You do not have to vote for someone just because they show up on your ballot.  We need to stop voting candidates that do not deserve to be reelected.

It may not fix the problem right away, but it will send them a message that we do not like who the party has picked. Next, we need to encourage amazing Ohioans with the fear of God to run for office.

“Heavy is the Head that Wears the Crown” doesn’t just apply to politicians, but to the electorate as well. We have a duty to be informed and engaged. Otherwise, we will all eat Thomas Jefferson’s words, “the government you elect in the government you deserve”.