Columbus- Steamrolling over opposition without allowing any public comment, the Ohio Senate voted 26 to 7 to ban video games that offer cash payouts.
The Wednesday afternoon vote came after a morning Senate Rules Committee hearing. The measure won the necessary two-thirds majority to pass as an emergency.
Why an emergency?
“This is about people who deliberately set out to create and exploit an incredibly large loophole so they can steal money from Ohioans,” said Sen. Jeff Jacobson, a Dayton-area Republican.
Forget for a moment the incredible irony of a state senator objecting to “stealing money from Ohioans”, something politicians think they are paid to do. Stealing involves an unwilling victim, and I don’t see anyone forcing people to feed the machines.
Surprisingly, the Poor Little Rich Girl from the Mahoning Valley got it right:
But Sen. Capri Cafaro, a Hubbard Democrat who was one of the seven votes against the bill, said she thought removing the video games would have a “detrimental impact” on small businesses like taverns and fraternal organizations.
“I don’t think we’re in a position to add more burdens on the small business owner,” she said.
They weren’t in such a hurry before Preacher Man Strickland got elected.
October 24, 2007 at 10:18 pm |
[...] It was such a real emergency… …that the Ohio House couldn’t even be bothered to read the customary explanation of the Senate’s change to the new gambling bill before they voted on it. Well, if you don’t want to hear from the public about why you should or shouldn’t vote on something, I don’t see why you’d want to hear from your colleagues. Just rubber-stamp the thing and move on. [...]