Kasich: Profile in Courage? #fail

The Kelley Williams-Bolar case has dominated news coverage, commentary and published opinion for nearly a year now, leading up to Governor John Kasich's decision Wednesday to bump her felony convictions down to misdemeanors. "When I first heard of this situation, it seemed to me the penalty was excessive for the offense," the Governor told reporters after his decision was released.

Apparently, the Governor hadn't done much thinking beyond the "first heard" and the message he's sending ought to alarm anyone looking for a message that the state's Chief Executive is as much a protector of the taxpayers as he is a final arbiter of justice.

There was outcry when Williams-Bolar -- convicted by a jury of tampering with government records for her lies to get her daughters enrolled in Copley-Fairlawn Schools and receiving school lunch benefits -- was found guilty, then sentenced. The law is pretty clear on government records tampering being treated as a felony, but the facts of the case didn't seem to stand in the way of a good story fitting an editorial slant here in Akron and around the country.

It was a slam-dunk in the word of editorial and commentary writing: hard-working, African-American, single mother, student working on her degree singled out by an uncaring system that wouldn't give her a break. What's not to love about jumping on the bandwagon of Akron's version of Les Mis? Plenty of people did, especially the national media relying on a slim outline of facts to base it's opinion.

As opposed to the jury of Williams-Bolar's that actually sat through the entire trial. Or the Copley-Fairlawn school board, lawyers, and administrators who took more than a year to try and get the case resolved, as it did with every other family with residency issues.

Or the abused prosecutors who quickly came to realize Williams-Bolar and her father had no intention of taking responsibility for their actions but, instead, opted to play craps with the justice system and see if they could get a better deal. Or the abused judge who gave Williams-Bolar one of the most lenient of sentences on her convictions when the Williams-Bolar's defense crapped out.

Or most of you who've commented on this story the past nine months, especially after the facts ignored or discarded in the first round of editorial outrage started to come out.

Or the Ohio Parole Board, which spent months compiling evidence and conducted a hearing that showcased the following:

• Williams-Bolar's depiction of her education status revealed a career student of more than two decades, with assistance in the tens of thousands of dollars. How many other students are able to tap the system for so long and for so much?
• Williams-Bolar's inability to tell the truth on where she lives, even to the point of using her father's Copley Township address to renew her driver's license less than two weeks prior to going before the Parole Board;
• Williams-Bolar's inability to communicate with credibility to the Parole Board, or a jury of her peers, that she truly accepted responsibility for her own actions;
• Williams-Bolar's unconscionable and despicable claim she'd been "deployed" to avoid confronting her situation with the Copley-Fairlawn School Board. She's not in the military, and from my perspective this was the worst of her strategies used to avoid responsibility;
• That Williams-Bolar was afforded every opportunity -- from the start, middle, and finish -- to do the right thing.

The facts do matter in this case, but they've been glossed over by a narrative that has more to do with a social agenda and vision than they do with the State v Kelley Williams-Bolar. It's apparent from Governor Kasich's comments, reported in the Columbus Dispatch, that his decision was not based on the rule of law. It's apparent from Governor Kasich's comments, reported by the Dispatch, that his decision wasn't based on the facts. It is apparent, from Governor Kasich's comments, that his decision was based more on an editorial viewpoint slanted by ignoring the facts.

What is even more disturbing is the insinuation that the Governor acted in a political manner based on racial politics.

After a speech yesterday in Cleveland, Kasich said he is “very sensitive to the notion that we want our African-American community to have as much opportunity as we can. Now, what she did was wrong, but in my opinion, it did not rise to the level of a felony."  - Columbus Dispatch September 8, 2011


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Does this mean Valerie Ziemba of North Canton, who was also convicted by a Summit County jury of felony charges relating to scamming food stamps and welfare benefits at about the same time as Kelley Williams-Bolar, isn't entitled to the same "opportunity" because there's no sensitivity to her race? Ziemba was sentenced to 10 days in jail, four months house arrested, two years probation and ordered to repay $14,427 to the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services. Williams-Bolar got a trip to Dr. Phil.

We frequently hear the phrase that America is a nation of laws, not men. Apparently the laws making tampering with government records a felony don't apply when your friends include Congressman Jesse Jackson, who urged his friend John Kasich to look on this case "...from his heart and saw a child of God, not an offender." Apparently the taxpayers of Copley-Fairlawn, who follow the rules, aren't a consideration when enforcing the law. Apparently even Ohio's own BMV, which administers drivers licenses, isn't a consideration when a motorist convicted of using a false address to obtain benefits she is not deserving of employs the exact same strategy just days before appearing before the Parole Board to show why she is deserving of consideration for clemency.

There are some who will note the Governor's decision shows moral courage. I offer it provides the opposite, with a view of political expediency. This was a decision where race, friendships and opinion formed before the facts were even known mattered more than the rule of law. Where compassion depended on sending a message that the "we want the African-American community to have as much opportunity as we can" instead of the opportunity to reinforce the seemingly outdated notion that we are responsible for our own actions, and the justice system is more than a roll of the dice to catch a better deal.

Where some see Kelley Williams-Bolar as a symbol of oppression, I see a symbol of a grifter mentality that hurts rather than strengthens the system of a safety net designed to help those in need. Those who seek help lift themselves and their families out of their present circumstances rather than using it as a way of life. Where getting is part of going forward and improving to the point where individuals do more than take.

Governor Kasich, acting as a judge in the case of the State v Kelley Williams-Bolar, had an opportunity to show courage by showing us he would consider all that came following the initial narrative defined by national pundits with ill-informed opinions. His rapid decision reflects his mind was made up long before this nation of laws -- and not men -- even started.

The Humor of Budget Blowback

There's plenty of humor to find in what has become the immediate rough-and-tumble of virtual debate; even some very over-the-top stuff.

Just a couple from the email bag this week before, during and after Governor John Kasich's budget Town Hall meeting and the continued sniping from side to side in Washington as both capitals grapple with the legacy of spending more than they have:

(Columbus) The Ohio School Boards Association both praises and questions the budget's treatment of elementary and secondary education, correctly noting the details are still to be delivered in assessing impact on the state's 600 plus districts. My favorite quote:

"..it is unlikely that those methods mentioned -- health care pooling, changes in procedures for reduction in force and new regional shared services -- will make any substantive difference in the upcoming budget cycle. These are possible changes that may help districts over the long term."

So let me get this straight; it's unlikely consolidating services will make a difference but it's possible it'll help over the long term. That's going out on a limb.

(Washington) Following the House vote to de-fund National Public Radio (NPR), the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) issued their take by claiming it would cripple AMBER Alert programs.

"In his partisan zeal to defund NPR, Representative Bob Gibbs opposed an effort to protect NPR's vital role in disseminating AMBER Alerts. The AMBER Alert program is a partnership between law-enforcement and broadcasters that activates an urgent bulletin in child-abduction cases. Under an agreement with the Department of Justice and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, NPR was designated as a disseminator of AMBER Alerts."

Now I happen to know a thing or two about AMBER Alerts, and this is a stretch. A big one. Not only to public stations issue AMBER Alerts, but local commercial stations do as well. We all do so in Ohio because we participate in the Emergency Alert System (EAS) -- those announcements usually preceded by beeps and tones before getting tornado, flood and severe weather warnings. The equipment is in place and has been for years to allow local law enforcement and emergency services, including the state emergency operations center, to issue such alerts. In the vast majority of cases, these alerts are automated -- meaning radio and TV stations pass them along to the public without the touch of a human's hands. The system is designed expressly for that purpose. Whether NPR gets funding or not won't impact stations automatically broadcasting such alerts. Whether NPR gets funding does impact if any humans are left behind to report on it.

(Columbus) My personal favorite is in this item from my friends at ProgressOhio, the group of Progressive Democrats. The topic is the Kasich Administration's ham-handed treatment of the press by ordering, then reversing, a ban on cameras and microphones at a budget briefing. It took about a half-day of protests from reporters to overturn the ban, but critics are still playing it for all it's worth. In the process, however, ProgressOhio's Brian Rothenberg might have used spell check for his subject line:

"Ohio is not Lybia: End the Statehouse Blackout!" Errr...not only was the blackout short-lived...there's also no Lybia. It's Libya. You might have heard of them. Wacko dictator (see at left), lives in tents, takes down commercial airlines, fights his own people? They've been in the news lately...

Another "Dear John" By Proxy

Updated 5:05 p.m.: Governor Kasich's office has reversed the policy and will allow electronic reporting of the budget briefing noted below.

This is still a very important issue, especially as Ohio and the rest of the nation observe "Sunshine Week" this week to spotlight open government and transparency by those who do the people's business.

This issue remains just as important now.

Earlier this year I penned an open letter to Karen Kasich, Governor John Kasich's wife, pertaining to the Kelley Williams-Bolar case. Now it's "Dear Rob" to Rob Nichols, Governor Kasich's press secretary, asking why in the world you would pound reports at the capitol back to the Stone Age?


The Stone Age being the era when things with batteries and power cords were in short supply; in fact, they weren't in ANY supply.

Maybe the Kasich Administration is just hopelessly romantic, pining for more wistful days when reporters came out of "The Front Page" mold -- Hildy screaming for the copy desk, pushing back his Fedora at the same time the copy editor was pushing back his green-shade cap.


Ah, the good old days...if this were the 1950's, Don Draper would be so proud. Unfortunately, it's 2011.

Word from Columbus today is the decision to hold a traditional media briefing on the state budget proposal going to the General Assembly tomorrow -- you know, the one where we learn how Ohio will deal with a projected eight billion dollar shortfall -- won't allow recorders or cameras.

My letter to Rob:

Rob, I'm writing with concern over reports I'm hearing that the Governor's traditional sit-down briefing with the Capitol Press Corps this year -- specifically tomorrow after he presents to the General Assembly -- will be "pen and pad" only and will exclude mic and camera coverage.

Can this be true? Have we advanced media relations in the new millennium to exclude the tools of the journalists' trade anything requiring a power cord and battery? What's next -- imposing rules on print reporters that any coverage be limited to a mimeograph machine?

Although my broadcast operation is 112 miles from the state capitol building, we follow the policy discussion and issues from Columbus both online and through the statewide broadcasts of the Ohio News Network, Ohio Government Television and of course Ohio Public Radio and Television. So do our listeners. To deny electronic journalists the ability to use the very tools of electronic journalism in coverage of the most important budget issue in Ohio's recent history is to deny the citizens of Ohio the ability to weigh the observations and positions of Governor Kasich as precisely the time when they need to see and hear him the most. It is unconscionable to insist broadcast and Internet members of the statehouse news gathering process operate as they did fifty years ago.

If this policy is aimed at forcing electronic media to provide live coverage of the Governor's Town Hall meeting this evening, such policy is a cynical manipulation of the open government process and transparency past Administrations have traditionally followed. It paints this decision as political in nature, and not a genuine opportunity to engage in open and honest dialogue with the citizens of Ohio.

Pragmatically, this decision makes an "on the record" conversation anything but on the record. Without the normal tools available, even print reporters would be forced to leave behind the small recorders they may use to make sure the quotes and comments of Governor Kasich and members of the Administration are accurate and within context.

I respectfully request your reconsideration of this policy. With the significant challenges our elected representatives, including Governor Kasich, must deal with at this critical time in Ohio's history this is a direction away from accountable and transparent government.

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In the Information Age we swing back to using papyrus and charcoal. Perhaps the representatives from the Associated Press, Columbus Dispatch, Akron Beacon Journal, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Cincinnati Enquirer and Dayton Daily News would be able to pool their supply of quill and ink as to set an example?

Honestly, with all the spin accompanying the need to transform the way Ohio does business, is this really the direction the Administration needs to set course on when dealing with the statehouse media?

A supporter might say this is all designed to make Ohio's television, radio and web news operations belly up to the Governor's Town Hall meeting tomorrow night where he explains his budget to his bosses -- the taxpayers. Somehow I don't imagine local TV stations blanking out of the night's Doppler 15,000 weathercast to make way for the Governor's webcast. It's a silly, manipulative and cynical view of presenting an important public debate to...well, the public.

Politically and from a public relations standpoint, it makes little sense. By hog-tying television, radio, and even print reporters posting online from using the tools of today's media trade during his briefing, Governor Kasich sets the stage for his very vocal opposition to use those same tools in getting their message out over his. It's a strategy that begs for an aggressive response from the loyal opposition; pragmatically it gives Democrats and those who will fight the Governor's budget proposal the advantage in getting their spin out before voters have had a chance to hear Kasich's voice.

This isn't the first time the Governor's Office has stumbled in putting muscle behind it's talk of transparency and open debate. This latest example, as with some of the most recent, just don't make sense other than to consider it more an expression of ego than smart politics. With so many other weightier fish to fry, why pick a fight with those who's job it is to act as the eyes and ears of the very citizens you are trying to get on your side?

The Speed of Cynicism

One thing about today's social media -- is the speed it can be decidedly anti-social.

Take the tone of tweets from Ohio Democrats:

ODPChairman Chris Redfern (he's the Ohio Democrat Party Chair)

by OHDems

In SOTS JK invokes prevention for healthcare cost reductions Check POTUS work over the last 2 years, gov. More to like!

OHDems Ohio Dems

MT @joacobmanser keep the public safe, Kasich? Then why are we attacking our cops and firefighters? How does this make sense to you?

OHDems Ohio Dems

Not just black caucus that cares about issues impacting minorities, guv.

OHDems Ohio Dems

even after the campaign @johnkasich still looooooves florida. so does @MaryTaylorFL

Just s sampling, and to be very fair the Republicans do the same thing when it's the Democrats standing behind a podium delivering a speech. What is concerning is the process of democracy that depends solely on tweets and Facebook posts rather than actually listening to what the politicians -- either party -- say.

I love social media and practice it often, but watching the real-time spin without even a deep breath to consider what either side says just isn't healthy. It may make politicians look like they are earning your donations, but in reality is just adds to the smoke instead of the fire that's needed to get Ohio's economy cooking again.

Of course, I write this before Kasich is done with his first State of the State. But then, that's social media.

Akron School Moms: Does It Swing Both Ways?

Get set for another wave of Kelley Williams-Bolar stories. We're going beyond "The Talk" and "The View" so the big gun can weigh in. It's Dr. Phil time -- just as another Akron mother heads to a stretch in the county lockup for faking her way to benefits undeserved.

The Dr. Phil Show lists Friday as showtime for it's program highlighting "How Far Would You Go For Your Kids?" It will include some of the faces, voices and names you are very familiar with at this point. From the Dr. Phil website - the highlights are strictly mine as noted below:

Friday - March 4, 2011

How Far Would You Go for Your
Kids?

Would you risk breaking the law for your children’s education? What about for their safety? Kelley, a single mom, was prosecuted, convicted and sent to jail for listing her father’s address as her daughters’ residence, so they could attend a better school in a safer neighborhood. Kelley says she was working during the day and going to school at night, and after her house was burglarized, she wanted her children in a safer neighborhood for afterschool care. Kelley was convicted of two felony counts for tampering with government documents and spent nine days in jail. Did her punishment fit the crime? And, what other lies did she get caught in? Joining the discussion are Reverend Al Sharpton, columnist Bob Dyer, Kelley’s attorney David Singleton and a fellow single mom in the same school district. And, meet a mother who made her 15-year-old son stand on a street corner wearing a sign that declared his 1.22 grade point average and read “Honk if you think I need an education.” Is embarrassment a good parenting technique for motivating kids?

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Once again, the "better school" argument. Time and time again the point is raised -- even by Williams-Bolar -- this wasn't about "better schools." Time and time again, the selling point used by newspapers, columnists and commentators uses "better schools" to hang their arguments on. At least Dr. Phil's producers added some balance with the Beacon Journal's Bob Dyer. Advance plug: followers of this case will want to shell out for Dyer's column Friday and a likely addition Sunday. AkronNewsNow also provided producers with audio from some of our coverage, and in our conversations the Los Angeles-based staff seemed honest in their approach to focusing on facts. It's a shame the New York-based staff at CBS, ABC and CNN (among others) couldn't expend the same energy.

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While the Williams-Bolar story draws the most attention, a somewhat similar case unfolded in a Summit County courtroom today that saw a mother sent to jail for falsifying records to collect benefits connected to her children. This case, I predict, will not garner the same attention from the thoughtful out-of-town media minds or the National Action Network. It doesn't quite fit the narrative they need for their own agenda.

From the Prosecutor's Office:

Valerie Ziemba, 41, of North Canton, was found guilty by a jury of Illegal Use of Food Stamps or WIC Benefits and Tampering with Evidence, both felonies of the third degree, and Theft, a felony of the fifth degree.

Valerie Ziemba falsified government documents to claim that her children resided with her in order to illegally obtain approximately $14,427 in food stamp and cash assistance benefits. The children do not live with her, but with their father.

Judge Thomas Parker sentenced her to pay restitution in the amount of $14,427 to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, four months of house arrest, two years community control, and to serve 10 days in the Summit County Jail.

Sound familiar?

Valerie Ziemba reportedly collapsed in the courtroom when the verdict and sentence were delivered. There likely won't be cries of racism here; Ziemba is Caucasian. It's unlikely we'll hear an outcry of support to free Ziemba, complete with calls to overhaul the food stamp program. Rev. Sharpton and the host of the truly-concerned probably won't be making a bee-line for Akron. Don't expect Governor Kasich to weigh in with a plea to the Parole Board to decide if she should get a pass.

Ziemba will be portrayed as a welfare cheat who lied to steal benefits we all pay for. Williams-Bolar was a residency cheat who lied to take benefits the taxpayers of Copley-Fairlawn paid for.

Ziemba needs an agent.

The Governor & Officer Idiot

Once again, Ohio's public officials don't disappoint when it comes to providing examples of ironic rhetoric.

In this particular case, Governor John Kasich is lecturing a group on adopting a more civil tone with those we deal with.

All the while calling a cop "an idiot" as an example of the government not treating the client with respect.



I swear, I couldn't make this kind of thing up with even the most highest octane rated spring water wonder from Tennessee.

So let me get this straight: you're making the point about treating people with respect by calling them idiots? Over something that happened more than two years ago? And it still bothers you enough, at this day, to bring up as an example of customer service? When you are trying to get the collective bargaining rights for public employees -- including cops such as Officer Idiot -- taken away?

I'm not weighing in on collective bargaining for public employees -- there are plenty of far more learned opinions to be had on that topic, although I will say I'm troubled by the pension load all of us taxpayers will have to share for a system that seemed built on never saying no.

The Governor's choice of how to make a point about customer service, however, seems like the perfect thing to weigh in on. Maybe the Governor would do well to spend a few weekends working with a green apron at Starbucks, or the blue vest at Wal-Mart, to get a better idea of what his constituents really consider lessons in civility.

Without calling cops or the rest of us idiots.

An Open Letter To Karen Kasich

I was struck by this week's announcement Ohio Governor John Kasich wanted a better understanding in the case of The State of Ohio v Kelley Williams-Bolar. He says his wife "alerted" him, along with a call from Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr.

Mrs. Kasich, here's more information you should include in your next "alert."

Dear Karen -- can I call you Karen?

It is not surprising as a mother with daughters attending public schools that you would sympathize with the Akron school mother in the swirl of controversy over the lengths she went to bypass residency to get her children in a neighboring school district.

As a mother, your heart must go out to a woman portrayed in the national media as a victim of a system that would punish her for seeking a better education for her daughters -- regardless of the fact Williams-Bolar herself says Copley isn't a "better" education than Akron, the district where she's employed.

But as a mother, I ask you to look beyond the first heartbeat and examine the record. You will not find this a "Rosa Parks" moment in the debate over education; you will not find this a case of a parent making a mistake and seeking to correct a wrong. You will not find this an example of an adult taking responsibility for what is, in large measure, the residency Ponzi scheme this is quickly becoming.

Your family performs public service to our state and nation; you understand we are a country where laws govern all of us, and the means exist to address wrongs through debate, deliberation and action. That action does not include lying and cheating. That's not the message you would want your daughters to take from this case, despite the rhetoric from ill-informed commentators who have taken neither the time nor effort to examine the facts.

When talking to Governor John and alerting him of cases such as these, please take a moment to consider the following; I've included links if you would like to dig a little deeper:

• This column from the Akron Beacon Journal's Bob Dyer, showing the history of Edward Williams, Kelley's father, charging people with racism (among plenty of other charges) to the point where he's banned from filing in Cleveland's U.S. District Court;
• This blog from Jay Williams, a Washington, D.C. freelance writer who actually took the time to look into the case and weighs in on the message we send as opposed to the excuses some would make;
• This story compiling much of the information the actual jury, which convicted on the tampering with records charges, considered when handing down the verdict;
• This decision (it's a .pdf file; give it time to load) by Summit County Juvenile Court Judge Linda Tucci Teodosio turning aside a petition seeking to establish custody in Copley while Williams-Bolar continued to live with her daughters in Akron;
• This .pdf file on one of the many bills sent to Williams-Bolar, frankly begging her to resolve the issue. I'm sure you know Ohio families who have loved ones serving our nation overseas; it's worthwhile noting the "deployed overseas for 18 months" is one of the many lies established in this faulty deck of cards supporters of Williams-Bolar use to excuse her actions.

I'm sure you and Governor John will be taking time to wonder why this case went to trial as a felony, and why prosecutors didn't plea bargain the charges down to a misdemeanor. Karen, remember it takes two to tango when deciding to accept a plea deal.

Talk with prosecutors and ask them how often they "deal cases down" when the offending party -- and Kelley Williams-Bolar is clearly an offender in the eyes of the same laws your husband swore to uphold -- refuses to take responsibility for their actions.

Please alert the Governor's lawyers to talk with the attorneys on both sides, and gain a better understanding of why any talk of a misdemeanor came only with a week to go before trial, and even then without a clear representation it would be acceptable to Williams-Bolar and she was prepared to admit wrongdoing and accept the consequences. Make sure they get an answer from the defendant herself, who still maintains she and her family did nothing wrong when lying to the Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority, Copley-Fairlawn Schools, or Summit County Juvenile Court.

Ask your daughters if they think adults who break the law should be exonerated, to use the description in a recent Akron Beacon Journal interview, even when they refuse to admit they did wrong. Ask yourself and your husband if that's the message you want the people of Ohio to hear, those who play by the rules and don't try to play the system.

Karen, I have no doubt you and your family have the best of intentions when debating and crafting public policy. Remember the dozens of families who stood up, took responsibility, and did the right thing when discovered by Copley-Fairlawn schools. Encourage the public debate on closed v open enrollment; urge your husband to truly address education reform in Ohio instead of the usual application of lipstick on a pig we've had to settle for. Craft public policy that respects the expectation society should be able to set a standard of truthfulness.