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!
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine reflected on his time in office, shared plans for his life post-politics, and briefly discussed the current governor’s race during a recent forum.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine delivers the final State of the State address of his second term at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus on March 10, 2026. (Pool photo by Adam Cairns, Columbus Dispatch.)
By Megan Henry
DeWine was the guest at last week’s Columbus Metropolitan Club forum that was moderated by Ohio Public Radio and TV reporter Jo Ingles. DeWine, who is term-limited, has about 230 days left as Ohio’s governor.
By Susan Tebben
One of two bills targeting potential fraud in Ohio's childcare system saw changes in an Ohio House committee, including to notification requirements going all the way up to legislative leadership.
By Kathiann Kowalski, Canary Media
Ohio’s utilities just can’t seem to pass muster when it comes to preventing power outages and getting the lights back on quickly.
COMMENTARY
The USS Thomas Hudner fires a land attack missile in support of Operation Epic Fury in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, March 1, 2026. (Photo by U.S. Navy)
By John Broich
Political scientists who studied 197 conflicts from 1816 to 1987 found that democracies won about 76% of their conflicts and non-democracies 46%, in large part because accountable leaders and public access to information force a government to notice when a plan isn’t working.
STATELINE
The big challenges and policy issues that cross state lines.
By Tim Henderson
Immigrants seeking green cards will have to return first to their home countries and wait despite years of potential backlogs, the Trump administration announced Friday.
THE RUNDOWN
News from other states
By Alex Baumhardt
Supporters of the Goldendale pumped-hydro energy storage project have said it will help meet growing regional energy demand, and the project developers tout its potential to one day power up to half a million homes without sending harmful greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. But mounting evidence shows a large data center campus could be among the main beneficiaries of that power.
NATIONAL NEWS
By David Lightman
The future of data centers and their huge appetite for electricity is quickly escalating as a political flashpoint from coast to coast, moving from cities and states now to the nation’s capital.
By Ashley Murray
Kevin Warsh assumed his new role as chair of the Federal Reserve Friday after a swearing-in ceremony in the White House East Room, where U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas delivered the oath of office.
CATCHING OUR EYE
Memorial Day. The Columbus Dispatch’s Emma Wozniak is reporting, “Columbus dedicates Memorial Day Ceremony to fallen airman Tyler Simmons.”
This year, Memorial Day carried a different weight for Mylo Simmons.It’s his first since losing his son, Tyler – and he and his family are honoring the holiday while, as he put it, “learning to live a new normal.”
"It gives a whole new meaning to Memorial Day," he said.
Columbus native and Master Sgt. Tyler Simmons, 28, was one of six airmen killed during a refueling crash in Iraq on March 12. His family, along with roughly 200 city leaders, service members, loved ones, and residents, gathered at the Linden War Memorial in Linden Park on Memorial Day afternoon May 25 to honor him and his service.WWII Memorial. WYSO’s Zack Sliver and Will Davis are reporting, “'A new generation will go by.' Old North Dayton community restores WWII memorial.”
For more than 80 years, Old North Dayton neighbors have passed a memorial at the corner of Keowee and Valley, built to honor neighbors who served during World War II.But over time, weather and age took a toll.
Names faded. Some were misspelled. Parts of the memorial slowly lost the story they were meant to preserve.
So in 2023, the neighborhood decided it was time to restore it.
Social media for good. The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Quinlan Bentley is reporting, “She spoke up on Facebook. Dozens followed. A serial rapist was exposed.”
Paityn Crist sat nervously at her kitchen table, typing on her phone in 2023.
It had been nearly six years since a man she met on Facebook strangled and raped her when she was 19. It was time to say something.
She believed he was still using social media and dating apps to find his targets. She needed to warn other women.
THE POD
THAT'S ALL FOR NOW, FOLKS.
Mahalo!
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