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COLUMBUS – Ohioans across the state are sounding the alarm on the stark economic reality that families are facing because of Donald Trump and Ohio Republicans. In a new opinion piece in the Ohio Capital Journal, a retired high school English teacher in Medina is slamming Trump and Ohio Republicans for failing to recognize “the reality countless Americans like me and so many others are experiencing,” and for pushing policies, like tariffs, that further raise costs, instead of proposing plans to actually lower costs and support Ohioans.

In case you missed it, check out this powerful read about the worry that Ohioans across our state are feeling – and the sad acknowledgement that for a President who spends more time “rubbing elbows with wealthy campaign contributors at Mar-a-Lago,” “we don’t seem to be his priority.”

Ohio Capital Journal: Opinion: View from a Medina, Ohio kitchen table: The Trump economy has created an affordability crisis

As a retired Ohio high school English teacher, I spent fourteen years grading essays. I know what a genuine “A” looks like. It isn’t earned with a loud voice or by writing in ALL CAPS; it requires proof, consistency, and a firm grasp of the facts.

In his State of the Union address last month, President Trump graded his own work, painting a portrait of America that felt more like fiction than a report card.

He echoed similar boasts to his “A+++++” grade for the economy, claims that he has “won affordability,” and that costs are “plummeting.”

But from my kitchen table in Medina, those grades look like they were handed out before the work was even turned in.

They don’t reflect the reality countless Americans like me and so many others are experiencing.

I’m a grandmother, a caregiver and an American who’s paying attention. I’m also the primary shopper and cook for my household.

When the president speaks of a booming economy, I find myself asking: “Booming for who?”

The only thing I feel is booming are the prices I’m paying at the grocery store, the increasing utility costs, and a deep concern about whether older Americans have saved enough to live a comfortable retirement after a lifetime of hard work.

Our costs are soaring thanks in large part to the president’s tariffs, which he enacted with the support of my congressman, Ohio Republican U.S. Rep. Max Miller.

The president claims victory over inflation, but the reality for Ohio families is a constant exercise in stretching the dollar.

[…]

When the president and his allies use words like “won” and “fixed,” they’re dismissing the struggle of the parents I see in Medina working two jobs just to keep a roof over their kids’ heads.

They’re ignoring the seniors forced to choose between their prescription co-pays and a full tank of gas.

And they’re ignoring the millions of young people across this country who see homeownership as a luxury they’ll never enjoy as they grapple with the realities of keeping a monthly budget.

[…]

If the economy is truly deserving of a “plus-plus-plus” grade, why do so many Americans feel like we’re falling further and further behind?

[…]

I don’t want a cheerleader-in-chief; I want a president who can look at my grocery receipt and say, “I see this, and I know we have more work to do.”

But that’s not what we heard from him. He presented no plans to cut my grocery bill. He ignored the fact that if his 15% global tariff is made permanent, it will cost families like mine $1,300 a year on average, even as his trade war fails to deliver the manufacturing renaissance we were promised.

[…]

If the president spent more time in Ohio and less time rubbing elbows with wealthy campaign contributors at Mar-a-Lago, he might appreciate just how much harder it’s become for everyday Americans to get by.

Maybe he’d understand why so many of us worry about the future our grandchildren will inherit. 

But we don’t seem to be his priority.

Instead, he’s focused on building ballrooms, buying Greenland, and starting new wars.

If you were the parent of a kid failing in school and watched them spend all their free time going to the movies, sporting events, or playing video games, you’d probably demand a change in their study habits.

If the president and his allies refuse to do their homework, Americans should deliver a firm message about our experiences and expectations. I know I will.

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COLUMBUS – Republicans’ efforts to further restrict abortion access and monitor women’s health is garnering national attention, being called “a page out of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale.’” While Ohio voters passed Issue 1 overwhelmingly, emphasizing their support for access to women’s health care, Ohio Republicans’ push to create a “statewide pregnancy registry” – including for highly personal medical complications like miscarriages – is only part of their comprehensive effort to restrict access to women’s health care. Recently, Ohio Republicans on the House Health Committee approved House Bill 347, which would effectively add a 24-hour waiting period for women to be able to access abortion care. It also would mean that physicians could be punished for providing lifesaving care.

In case you missed it, check out MS Now’s coverage of Ohio Republicans’ work to restrict access to reproductive care and track women’s pregnancies:

MS Now: A page out of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’: Ohio Republicans propose bill to track all pregnancies

Author Margaret Atwood insisted her novel, “The Handmaid’s Tale,” was rooted in real history. Now, a new Ohio bill proposed by Republicans to track all pregnancies in the state is drawing disturbing parallels to her work of fiction. Georgetown law professor Michele Goodwin warns if the legislation passes, there is a “very real potential and probability of criminal punishments and civil fines and various other horrors.”

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COLUMBUS – While more than half a million Ohioans relied on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to afford their health care last year, Donald Trump and Ohio Republicans have repeatedly refused to extend the lifesaving ACA enhanced premium tax credits, and now thousands of families across the country have dropped their health insurance after seeing their premiums skyrocket by an average of 114%. On the 16th anniversary of the ACA, Ohio Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Clyde issued the following statement slamming Donald Trump and Ohio Republicans for creating a health care crisis in the Buckeye State. 

“Despite the more than half a million Ohioans who rely on the Affordable Care Act to access their critical health care, Ohio Republicans have made clear that they just don’t care. While Donald Trump and Ohio Republicans made the choice to rip health care from Ohio families to pay for tax breaks for corporate special interests and billionaires, Ohio Democrats are committed to fighting for Ohioans’ health care and lowering the high costs that keep Ohioans in every corner of our state up at night. Make no mistake, because of Ohio Republicans’ actions that rip health care away from hundreds of thousands of Ohioans, more people will get sick, rural hospitals could close, and more Ohioans could even die – and Ohioans will hold Republicans accountable for it at the ballot box in November.”

While Republicans refuse to extend these credits, Democrats are fighting to extend them and ensure Ohioans are not priced out of their health care — which the majority of Americans support. According to new polling, two-thirds of Americans say Congress did the wrong thing by not extending enhanced ACA subsidies, including one-third of Trump’s coalition. Additionally, nearly 1 in 3 adults say they are “very worried” about affording their health care bills. Trump and Republicans also slashed $1 trillion from Medicaid, putting 11 rural Ohio hospitals at risk of closure and ripping health care away from hundreds of thousands of Ohioans.

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