In this week's episode of Snollygoster, Ohio's politics podcast from WOSU, hosts Mike Thompson and Steve Brown discuss celebrity author J.D. Vance's run for the US Senate.
From Appalachia To Hollywood To D.C.
The Ohio native J.D. Vance, who grew up poor, then made it big in Silicon Valley and then wrote the best-selling memoir Hillbilly Elegy, which was made into a Netflix movie, is joining the field of Republicans looking to succeed outgoing Senator Rob Portman.
The field now includes Vance, former state GOP chair Jane Timken, former state treasurer Josh Mandel, and Cleveland businessmen Mike Gibbons and Bernie Moreno.
At least in terms of money, Vance becomes the frontrunner as his Super PAC has raised some $10 million. But he is on the record for being critical of former President Trump
Big Budget
The current two-year state budget passed this week and totals $75 billion.
There’s a tiny tax cut, with Republicans in charge, there is always a tax cut, but it's so small most that of us won't even notice it.
The state budget allows college athletes to make money off their name, image and likeness and there are new restrictions on abortion clinics.
Snollygoster Of The Week
The NCAA spent decades saying it was impossible to come up with a system where student athletes could get paid for their name, image and likeness. They said the only answer is to make them remain complete amateurs. After Ohio and several other states said they would let college athletes get paid for endorsements and not lose their eligibility, the NCAA finally said “We can do this after all!”
Send questions and comments to snollygoster@wosu.org.
