The morning newsletter of the Ohio Capital Journal
Reporting for the People
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By David DeWitt | Editor in Chief
Good morning Ohio!
The campaign of Ohio Democratic governor candidate Dr. Amy Acton released a statement from her brother Tuesday morning condemning an attack ad against her spread by right-wing online influencers featuring her estranged mother.
Vivek Ramaswamy, left, and Dr. Amy Acton, right. (Photo by Morgan Trau & WEWS)
By Nick Evans
In the attack ad spread by supporters of Acton’s opponent, Ohio Republican candidate for governor Vivek Ramaswamy, Donna Arthur speaks directly to the camera and repeatedly calls her daughter a liar. There is no disclaimer on the video explaining who paid for it.
Arthur is estranged from Acton and her brother Philip Stearns. As a child, Acton claimed Arthur’s husband sexually abused her, and when the case went to court Arthur sided with her husband.
By Morgan Trau, WEWS
Ohio Democrat Dr. Amy Acton's estranged mother appeared in a new attack ad, calling her gubernatorial candidate daughter a liar. Court documents show Acton's stepfather was arrested for raping her as a child, and her biological mom lost custody.
By Marty Schladen
Ohioans are voting in the midterm election, and as they are, an array of groups is working to ensure that it's free and fair.
By Morgan Trau, WEWS
The death penalty could restart in Ohio in 2027, or not, depending on which candidate wins the Ohio governor's race.
By Morgan Trau, WEWS
If Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is elected governor, he said he would allow 18- to 20-year-olds to buy handguns. In contrast, Democratic candidate Dr. Amy Acton is focusing on bipartisan safety initiatives.
COMMENTARY
Photo by Hill Street Studios/Getty Images.
By Robert Alexander and David B. Cohen
With tight races this year, is Ohio suddenly a swing state again or is this a typical rebuke of a president’s party in a midterm election? The answer likely lies somewhere in between and has major consequences for the competitiveness of Ohio beyond 2026.
By Tim Ryan and Elizabeth Frost
A new movement for human health is giving people from different backgrounds a reason to stand together.
EDITOR COMMENTARY
By David DeWitt
I knew 11 years ago that our public discourse would be degraded down into unfathomable levels. The 2026 campaign in Ohio has now confirmed it beyond anything I could’ve imagined.
STATELINE
The big challenges and policy issues that cross state lines.
By Robbie Sequeira
For decades, manufactured home builders have been working to shed the old image of boxy trailer homes reserved for the outskirts of cities. Now, a small change in federal regulations could open the door for architecture welcomed in more neighborhoods.
THE RUNDOWN
News from other states
By Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector
President Donald Trump renewed during a Kansas political rally a promise to send $5,000 to every adult citizen of the United States if Republicans retained control of the U.S. House and U.S. Senate.
NATIONAL NEWS
By Jacob Fischler
Democrats have used Trump’s unpopularity to expand the midterm map, and analysts project the party carries momentum heading into the final two weeks of the election cycle.
By Shauneen Miranda
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday establishing a Women’s Health Division within the National Institutes of Health.
WEDNESDAY WISDOM
“It is not possible to found a lasting power upon injustice, perjury, and treachery.”
-Demosthenes
CATCHING OUR EYE
Pollution. Ideastream’s Jeff St. Clair reports, “Judge preserves Ohio provision allowing citizens to sue polluters.”
A Franklin County court ruled Ohio lawmakers acted illegally when they added a provision to last year’s state budget that would have taken away citizens’ right to sue polluters.
The Oct. 14 ruling by Common Pleas Judge Julie Lynch preserves the state's Air Nuisance Rule, a 50-year-old provision that allows communities and citizens to sue polluters for violating the federal Clean Air Act.
Last summer, Republican lawmakers added language to the state budget directing the Ohio EPA to repeal the rule and a provision that allows citizens to use air quality monitoring data as evidence.Republicans for socialism? Politico reports, “GOP-linked PAC spends over $1M to boost third-party socialist in Ohio Senate race.”
A GOP-aligned super PAC has more than tripled its investment in the Ohio Senate race over the last week as it seeks to boost a socialist candidate — an apparent attempt to sink former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown’s chances.Whiskey. Cleveland.com’s Anna Staver reports, “Ohio man’s fight to make whiskey at home reaches U.S. Supreme Court.”
An Ohio man who wanted to distill whiskey at home may help decide whether millions of Americans can legally do the same.
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a separate challenge to the 160-year-old federal ban on home distilling.Elon Musk. The Wall Street Journal reports, “Musk Ordered Starlink Slowdown That Blindsided Ukraine.”
Elon Musk ordered the slowdown of a military-grade version of Starlink relied on by Ukraine, a decision that sparked panic in Kyiv and confusion inside the Trump administration, U.S. officials and people familiar with the matter said.
Both Musk and President Trump have expressed anger at Ukraine for attacking Russian diesel refineries in recent weeks, which the president blames for high energy prices. Last week, Musk capped the speeds at which Ukrainian hardware could stay connected to the satellite-based network, the people said, rendering some offensive drones and interceptor drones virtually useless.
THE POD
THAT'S ALL FOR NOW, FOLKS.
Mahalo!
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