This is getting ridiculous.
When the governor makes an appointment, that person must be confirmed by the Ohio Senate, just like the U.S. Senate must confirm appointments the president makes. (Obama gets around this by appointing “czars”, but that’s a topic for another day.)
The process goes like this. The governor announces an appointment, and then sends paperwork to the Ohio Senate requesting a confirmation, along with documents about the person’s qualifications. It’s pretty simple.
At least, it should be.
Last month, it was discovered that Board of Education member Martha Harris was never confirmed by the Senate. Why? Did the Ohio Senate not approve her appointment? Was she not qualified?
None of the above.
The Ohio Senate never even considered her appointment, because Ted Strickland’s office never sent the paperwork to the Senate.
Oops.
Since she was never confirmed, Governor Kasich replaced her on the board with his own appointment. She took it to court, and even Jesse Jackson involved himself in the matter, but a judge ruled that her seat was indeed vacant, and Kasich was right to make a new appointment.
On second thought, everybody makes a mistake now and then. This was one appointment out of hundreds. Maybe it was just an isolated incident.
Four more people, including two from the Cleveland area, sitting on various state boards or commissions could soon be kicked out of their positions.
Republican Gov. John Kasich’s office on Thursday sent letters notifying them that there are no records showing they were ever properly confirmed to the board or commission they were appointed to under former Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland.
The four are:— James Carney, of Westlake, appointed to the Ohio Athletic Commission on Sept. 20, 2010;
— Edwin Niehaus, of Strongsville, appointed to the State Board of Orthotics, Prosthetics and Pedorthics on Nov. 26, 2010;
— Rori Herman Zoldan, of Canfield, appointed to the Ohio Arts Council on Aug. 3, 2010;
— George S. Rusiska Jr., of Mansfield, appointed to the Ohio Medical Transportation Board on Aug. 29, 2009.
The appointments fell under the 128th Ohio General Assembly and by law, the Ohio Senate was supposed to be given a chance to confirm each of the appointments during the cycle in which they were made.
Wow. That’s quite an embarrassing testament to the competence of the Strickland administration.
And this guy is going to lead the DNC? Let us hope so!
