By Gerard Valentino
The political machinations of Ohio GOP Chairman Bob Bennett have guided the party to power and the state to economic and social disaster over the last 16 years. Under Republican control, Ohio’s tax burden has skyrocketed, brain drain has reached epidemic proportions and school funding has proved to be an unmitigated disaster.
Ohio also passed the worst concealed carry law in the nation.
Now, as Bennett fiddles towards his goal of continued GOP control of the state government, he has badly miscalculated on the key issue of gun owner voter loyalty.
Ohio’s Senate has recessed for the summer without moving on HB347, which would fix many of the poison pills in Ohio’s current concealed carry law and create statewide preemption for gun laws. Both issues greatly effect over 70,000 concealed carry license holders and up to 500,000 hunters and sporting shooters.
So far, the path of HB347 has shown an eerie resemblance to Ohio’s original concealed carry law, which also overwhelmingly passed the Ohio House only to be poisoned by Republican leadership in the Senate. Among other poisons pills, the Senate GOP inserted our absurd car-carry restrictions and the media access loophole.
Once again it’s the Ohio Senate Republican leadership, led by Senate President Bill Harris, who is responsible for failing to act on a pro-gun bill. Their decision has alienated up to 570,000 predominately Republican voters.
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