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!
An ongoing children endangerment case in Vinton County where 16 children where found in “terrible” conditions has sparked more interest in an Ohio bill that would ban child marriage.
The Ohio Statehouse. (Photo by Megan Henry, Ohio Capital Journal).
By Megan Henry
Law enforcement authorities allegedly found 16 children in a Hamden house when conducting a search warrant for a parallel investigation on June 30. The Vinton County Sheriff said livestock were kept in better conditions than the children.
By Susan Tebben
The lone Ohio Supreme Court justice with a “D” next to her name on the November general election ballot has sued to get rid of that party label, as part of her efforts to preserve what she says is a delicate balance between democracy and the rule of law.
By Julian Spector, Canary Media
A huge battery that just began construction in the heart of the New Albany, Ohio computing cluster could model a way for AI companies to provide new power supply. The 1-GWh battery project will help suppress power prices and reduce grid strain.
COMMENTARY
Ohio University, Athens, Ohio. (Photo by Ben Wirtz Siegel, courtesy of Ohio University.)
By Ken Klein
As America celebrates its 250th birthday, let us remember and celebrate small towns like Athens, Ohio that launch leaders into the world and welcome scholars from around the world.
STATELINE
The big challenges and policy issues that cross state lines.
By Kevin Hardy
The escalating feud between states and online prediction markets was on full display at a summit of state lawmakers this week as legislators publicly scolded Kalshi and Polymarket, the two most prominent platforms.
By Kelcie Moseley-Morris
While pollution levels from cars and industry have significantly declined, recent increases in wildfire smoke air pollution have offset those gains and could be contributing to negative outcomes for pregnant women and babies.
By Alex Brown
With dozens of large fires burning across the Pacific Northwest, and nearly 2 million acres burned already, state leaders are calling for firefighting reinforcements and bracing for a grueling August.
THE RUNDOWN
News from other states
By Markus Schmidt, Virginia Mercury
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger has restored voting and other civil rights to more than 60,000 Virginians since taking office in January, reversing the more restrictive restoration process adopted by her predecessor.
NATIONAL NEWS
By Jennifer Shutt
Public health experts say that the upswing in outbreaks of disease in America is the result of several factors, but RFJ Jr.’s decision to cut the country’s safety net while spreading misinformation about vaccines has aggravated the problem.
By Ashley Murray
For the second time in as many weeks, a War Powers Resolution aimed at curbing President Donald Trump’s war with Iran failed to pass the U.S. Senate Thursday.
By Ashley Murray
President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to pull acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination to lead the Justice Department until two Republican holdouts, Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and John Cornyn of Texas, leave office.
By Amelia Twyman
ICE is not planning an aggressive campaign at voting sites during the election, Homeland Security said in response to a States Newsroom inquiry about a letter from U.S. Senate Democrats voicing concerns about armed federal agents at polling places.
By Ariana Figueroa
President Donald Trump announced an initiative Thursday for veterans to quickly obtain commercial driver’s licenses, as the administration attempts to fill vacancies in the industry after pausing license renewals for foreign-born truck drivers.
CATCHING OUR EYE
Ohio teacher unions and the GOP. Cleveland.com’s Laura Hancock reports, “Ohio teacher unions back Republican candidates at twice the national rate.”
Ohio’s teacher unions endorse Republican candidates for public office twice as often as counterparts in other states, a recent study found.
The study commissioned by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, which examined teacher union strength in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., found that 7.8% of endorsements nationally go to Republicans. In Ohio, 16% of the endorsements the unions made were to Republicans.Ohio toxic wastewater. The New York Times reports, “In Ohio, Toxic Wastewater Is Bubbling Up Out of the Ground.”
The state is a major importer of fracking wastewater, which gets pumped underground but doesn’t always stay there. The city of Marietta is fighting back…
Residents and local officials were for years “completely unaware” of their place at the heart of an interstate marketplace for toxic waste, Ms. Vessels said. They’ve come to realize, she said, that their corner of Ohio has become a major destination for fracking brine.
Ohio has permitted more than 240 injection wells for the disposal of oil and gas waste. By comparison, there are 19 such injection wells in Pennsylvania, and a few dozen in West Virginia, both of which border Ohio.Pike County. WCMH’s Katie Millard and Isabel Cleary report, “‘We’re dying:’ Pike County residents balance new nuclear jobs with past radiation.”
Pike County has one of Ohio’s highest rates of unemployment and of cancer. Some residents can’t justify the 2,000 incoming nuclear jobs.
“They want to bring in the data center, they want to bring in the reactors, and they want to bring in the largest power gas facility,” lifelong Pike County resident Vina Colley said. “We don’t want any of it.”Data centers. Cleveland.com’s Anna Staver reports, “Ohio Supreme Court case to decide if residents get any say on data center in their back yards.”
(T)he Ohio Supreme Court must decide whether a data center development and the public investment it might bring constitute an emergency “for the preservation of the public peace, health, and safety” under Ohio law.
It’s a decision that could determine who gets the final say when data centers come to Ohio communities: elected officials or residents.
THE POD
THAT'S ALL FOR NOW, FOLKS.
Mahalo!
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