Center for Christian Virtue Purchases Former Columbus Dispatch Facility

Ohio’s largest Christian public policy organization has purchased the former Columbus Dispatch newspaper facility directly across from the Ohio Statehouse to expand its efforts to advocate for and protect children and families across the state.

The press release details that the Center for Christian Virtue (CCV) purchased the 30,000-square-foot, five-story building on Broad Street through an affiliated organization Gannett News the owners of The Columbus Dispatch for $1.1 million.

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Ohio to Award Nearly $500,000 to Boost Law Enforcement Recruitment

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and his Department of Safety Director Andy Wilson have announced that the state of Ohio is awarding nearly $500,000 in funding to law enforcement agencies throughout the state to help aid in the recruitment of new officers.

31 law enforcement agencies in 21 counties will receive the grant funding totaling $445,449 as part of the second round of funding offered as part of the new Ohio Law Enforcement Recruitment Grant Program. The program was created by Gov. DeWine in 2020 to enable police departments throughout Ohio to focus on recruiting efforts.

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Ohio Senate Bill Seeks to Reduce Police Officer Age Requirement to Address Police Shortage

A recently proposed law that is now making its way through the Ohio Statehouse would lower the age requirement for an Ohioan to join the police department.

In Ohio, applicants must currently be 21 years old to become police officers, but Senate Bill (SB) 53 would lower that age limit to 18. Senators Michele Reynolds (R-Canal Winchester) and Kristina Roegner (R-Hudson) have sponsored the legislation.

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Center for Christian Virtue Announces Second Statewide Ohio March for Life

Center for Christian Virtue (CCV) and the March for Life Education and Defense Fund are teaming up once more to organize another march in Columbus following the tremendous success of the first Ohio March for Life.

Ohio residents on October 6th can participate in the second statewide Ohio March for Life at the State Capitol in Columbus.

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Ohio House Republicans Re-Introduce Proposal to Increase Threshold for Citizen-Led Ballot Initiatives

Following a closed-door meeting at the Ohio Statehouse held by State Representative Derek Merrin (R-Monclova), a group of over thirty lawmakers filed a new version of their proposal to increase the threshold for citizen-led ballot initiatives.

47 Republicans who adhered to the Republican caucus’s decision to abstain from voting for state Representative Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) for speaker of the house, were invited by Merrin to a meeting on Wednesday. The meeting included discussing house rules, redistricting, and progressing the proposed constitutional amendment to require support from at least 60 percent of voters rather than a simple majority to pass future proposed amendments that was introduced last legislative session.

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Ohio GOP Majority Discusses Next Steps Following Election of Jason Stephens for House Speaker

About a week after 22 Republicans sided with the Democrats to elect moderate State Representative Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) as Speaker of the Ohio House, State Representative Derek Merrin (R-Monclova) invited his 45 supporters to a closed-door meeting Wednesday at the Ohio Statehouse to discuss their next steps.

This follows Merrin losing the vote for speaker over Stephens, who won with 22 Republicans and all 32 Democrats voting for him despite the Republican Caucus‘ previous selection in November of Merrin as the new speaker.

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Ohio Bill Aims to Permit Use of Ivermectin and Alternative COVID-19 Drugs

A bill in support of the use of alternative COVID-19 treatments received its first hearing in Lame-duck session at the Ohio Statehouse.

House Bill (HB) 631 sponsored by State Representative Kris Jordan (R-Ostrander), named the COVID-19 Health Care Professional-Patient Relationship Protection Act, aims to protect the use of doctor-patient relationships in Ohio by codifying the authority for healthcare professionals to administer alternative drug therapies for patients diagnosed with COVID-19 or one of its variants.

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Ohio Speaker Cupp Picks Committee Top Spots Rounding Out Leadership for 134th General Assembly

COLUMBUS, Ohio – As The Ohio Star reported, the House GOP chose Robert R. Cupp (R-Shawnee Twp.) to be the speaker of the house with Representative Tim Ginter (R-Salem) serving as speaker pro tempore. The majority leader is Representative Bill Seitz (R-Cincinnati) with Rick Carfagna (R-Westerville) serving as assistant majority leader. Also, Representative Don Jones (R-Freeport) will serve as majority whip and Representative Cindy Abrams (R-Harrison) will act as assistant majority whip.

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Ohio Gov. DeWine Says the Capitol Will be Closed for Four Days Next Week for the Inauguration

Gov. Mike DeWine held a briefing Thursday morning where he announced the Ohio Statehouse and government buildings in Columbus will be closed between January 17 and January 20. Next Wednesday, Joe Biden will be inaugurated as president.

Also, the governor signed a proclamation mobilizing hundreds of Ohio National Guard members to be utilized as needed in Columbus and around Ohio. To assist federal authorities in D.C. DeWine, ordered 580 ONG members active earlier in the week.

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Ohio State House Representatives Introduce Bills to Revise State Campaign Finance Laws

  Ohio state House Representatives introduced two pieces of legislation Monday that aims to reform state campaign finance laws. These bill proposals come a week after Speaker of the House Larry Householder and four other people were arrested by the FBI. These five men are accused of “worked to corruptly…

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Columbus Statue to Remain on Ohio Statehouse Grounds for Now

A statue of Christopher Columbus will not be removed from the grounds of the Ohio Statehouse until at least 2025, officials said Thursday.

The 9-foot-tall, copper statue of Columbus, in place since 1932, will remain erected in front of the Statehouse in the largest city that bears the explorer’s name until a formal process for removal is undergone by the agency that manages the grounds.

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George Floyd Protests Cause Nearly $158,000 in Ohio Statehouse Damages

  Repairing damage to the Ohio Statehouse and surrounding Capitol Square that occurred during protests against racial injustice will cost about $158,000, according to the board that oversees the property. That tally from protests in Columbus between May 28 and June 18 doesn’t include repairs for damage on other state…

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State Lawmaker Wants to Give Attorney General Power to Prosecute Vandalism on State Property

A state lawmaker has proposed a bill to give the state attorney general the authority to investigate and prosecute vandalism on state property, including the Ohio statehouse.

Republican state lawmakers have expressed their frustration as protesters in downtown Columbus vandalized the Ohio Statehouse in recent weeks. In announcing his proposal, state Rep. Jeff LaRe, R-Violet Township, cited a WBNS-TV report that the Columbus city prosecutor dismissed at least 59 charges stemming from the recent protests.

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Ohio Speaker of the House Threatens to Remove Capitol Square from City of Columbus

Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder (R-Glenford) announced he is looking into whether the Ohio Capitol can be annexed from the City of Columbus’ city limits as a result of the city not protecting the Capitol from recent protests.

“We’re researching it currently. If Columbus isn’t interested in protecting state property we need to consider removing Cap Square from the City,” he said in an emailed statement.

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Gov. DeWine Governor Not in Favor of Removing Columbus Statue

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said Tuesday that while he’s not in favor of the removal of statues of Christopher Columbus, he’s open to discussions that arise about people’s place in history.

DeWine addressed last week’s removal by Columbus State Community College of its statue of the namesake explorer, and the announcement by Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther that he wants the large statue outside City Hall to also go.

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Gov. Mike DeWine Condemns Protest That Vandalized Ohio Statehouse

Gov. Mike DeWine released a statement on Friday showing his displeasure with the recent vandalism at the Ohio Capitol.

“I have spoken with Ohio State Highway Patrol Col. Richard Fambro about security at the Statehouse, and I shared with him my anger and disgust at the vandalism that occurred at the Ohio Statehouse yesterday. I support the right to peacefully protest. However, defacing, damaging, and vandalizing our state capitol and its grounds are wrong, and such actions are criminal,” DeWine said.

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Statehouse Defaced with Red Hand Prints as Protests Continue

Authorities are conducting a criminal investigation after the outside of the Ohio Statehouse was defaced with red hand prints and the phrase “hands up, don’t shoot” in protest of police brutality.

State troopers began to wash off some of the red paint on the western side of the statehouse on Thursday afternoon as a group of people protesting police brutality watched. It’s the latest example of damage to the downtown Columbus icon since protests over the police killing of George Floyd began three weeks ago.

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Ohio Black Caucus Introduces Bill to Declare Racism ‘Public Health Crisis’

The Ohio Legislative Black Caucus announced Friday that it plans to introduce legislation to declare racism a “public health crisis.”

“Our citizens of color have been subjected to the effects of racism since the founding of the State of Ohio in 1803. Since that time, Ohioans of color have endured unequal education, unsafe work conditions, inadequate health care services, subpar housing and an unjust criminal justice system, based on policies that were rooted in a belief that people of color are not worthy of the American Dream,” said a statement from the caucus sent to every member of the Ohio General Assembly.

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Plain Dealer Reporter Calls Out Ohio Legislators for Preventing Local Governments From Regulating Guns While Designating Statehouse as Gun-Free

Three Ohio counties have declared themselves as Second Amendment Sanctuaries, leading one journalist to sarcastically suggest the General Assembly should make the Statehouse a sanctuary too — despite guns being banned from there.

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On Constitution Day CAIR-Ohio Hosts Anti-Semite Linda Sarsour at Ohio Statehouse

  Tuesday was Constitution Day. It was also the 3rd Annual Muslim Advocacy Day hosted by CAIR-Ohio. CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) brought Linda Sarsour, the controversial Muslim activist who has been described as an anti-Semite in National Review, Fox News, and Town Hall, among other media outlets. Jonathan Tobin…

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Ohio Legislators Already Paid in Full for July Even Though Government Is Only Funded Through July 17

  As of now, Ohio’s state government is only funded through July 17 under a temporary budget passed by the State Legislature. The stop-gap measure was passed after legislators failed to meet their June 30 constitutional deadline for passing a biennial budget. But, according to The Cleveland Plain Dealer, legislators…

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