By Jim Irvine

In the 2000 Presidential race, a pro-gun George Bush defeated an anti-gun Al Gore. President Bill Clinton commented that the NRA cost Gore the Presidency. Gore’s insistence that law abiding citizens should be denied their God-given right to self-defense or to own good firearms for hunting, collecting or competition did not make sense to millions of Americans that understand that guns are tools used for good far more often that evil.

A few Ohio candidates seemed to have missed that important lesson. It is clear that the gun vote turned several key races, including two prominent statewide races.

For many months, Tim Grendell was the only Republican running for Ohio Attorney General (AG). But Betty Montgomery realized she could not win a three way primary for Governor with Jim Petro and Ken Blackwell, so she took all her money and filed to run for AG.

Tim Grendell was a great pro-gun candidate and has strong support from the grassroots. Montgomery is anti-concealed carry and very unpopular with the grassroots gun owners. I personally talked with Ohio Republican Party Chairman Bob Bennett and Republican National Party Chairman Ken Melman about the weakness of Betty as a viable candidate. Both “knew” I was wrong and did not care what the grassroots thought. Their arrogance was disgusting, but the party machine helped Montgomery defeat the better candidate in the primary

Hamilton County Prosecuting Attorney Joseph Deters announced Friday that charges would not be filed against an Ohio concealed handgun licenseholder who shot and killed a car thief in Kennedy Heights late last month.

From the Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office:

Around 6 a.m., Bennie Hall, Jr., 61, went outside to warm up his car before leaving for work and then went back into his house. Mr. Hall noticed someone driving his car towards the end of the street. He grabbed his gun, went outside and waived his arms in an attempt to stop the car. Hall, with the car headed directly towards him, shot into the car killing the driver.

The Cincinnati Enquirer provides more details on the events of that day.

The Prosecutor's office states that forensic evidence confirms that at the time of the first shot, the car was moving directly towards Mr. Hall. This is consistent with the statements of Mr. Hall and a witness.

“It is a tragedy that this 14-year-old boy lost his life during this incident. Mr. Hall has a right to protect himself with deadly force if his life is in danger or he is in danger of great bodily harm", Prosecutor Deters said. "Based on the totality of the evidence and circumstances, he was doing just that.”

Evidence and circumstances are apparently of no concern to gun ban extremists from Washington D.C., who are blaming Ohio's concealed carry law for the criminal's death, rather than the criminal himself.

Click on 'Read More' for the details.

In what is becoming a continuing trend for the Ohio Democrat party, another pro-concealed carry legislator has been selected to a leadership post.

The Columbus Dispatch is reporting that Ohio Senate Democrats have chosen Teresa Fedor, of Toledo, as their new minority leader.

Fedor and Sen. Kimberly A. Zurz, herself a pro-self-defense Democrat, were vying to lead the 12-member caucus. Fedor told the Dispatch that nine Democrats indicated their support yesterday — every member except Zurz and the not-yet-named appointees who will be named to seats being vacated by Sens. Marc Dann, the pro-gun Democrat who will be Ohio's next Attorney General, and Charles Wilson, the pro-gun Democrat who just won a seat in the United States Congress.

Fedor told the newspaper that "we will be a guiding force in the Senate and stand ready and willing to work with Gov.-elect Ted Strickland’s administration," said Fedor, an Air Force veteran who joined the Senate in 2003.

Click on the 'Read More' link below for more.