Beacon Journal - Strickland advocates education

(Akron Beacon Journal)

Strickland advocates education

Governor candidate addresses 70 at UA

By Sandra M. Klepach

Beacon Journal staff writer

Talk is cheap, U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland said.

But potential presidential candidates Strickland has spoken with recently -- including Sens. John Kerry and Hillary Clinton, former Sen. John Edwards and Democratic Chairman Howard Dean -- provided some valuable ammunition to the Democratic front-runner's campaign for Ohio governor Sunday.

``They are all incredibly interested in Ohio,'' he said, and believe the first step toward putting a Democrat in the White House in 2008 is seeing a Democrat become Ohio governor this year.

Strickland, who will face state Sen. Eric Fingerhut and former state Rep. Bryan Flannery in the Democratic primary May 2, reiterated his passion for working-class families in front of about 70 people at the University of Akron's Student Union Theater on Sunday night.

The first of nine children to attend college, the Lisbon native said he has nieces who are cement finishers, electricians and pipe fitters.

``I come from a working-class family, and yet some people call me `Doctor' and some call me `Congressman,' '' he said. ``I've been able to do things my brothers and sisters can only dream of doing, and that's because of education.''

Legislators must come to terms with the unconstitutional method of funding Ohio's schools and stop relying on local property taxes, he said.

For every dollar properly spent on quality education early in life, which he said would be his primary focus if elected, the state would save $7 by avoiding future costs caused by teenage pregnancy, drug use, and drop-out and crime rates, he said.

As it stands now, he said, Ohio is one of five states that do the poorest job of supporting education.

``We are near the bottom, and I believe it is because we have had incompetent, passive, and too-often corruptive leadership in our state for the past 15 years,'' he said.

Though Strickland didn't say exactly how he would improve education funding, he pledged relief to local tax payers, better allocation of funds and a continuous campaign throughout his governorship.

Republican contender Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell's campaign promise to cut taxes simply won't cut it, he said.

``Much of our political leadership resemble adolescents -- and I don't want to insult our adolescents by comparing them to our current political leaders,'' Strickland said, evoking laughter and applause as he cited the leadership's failure to plan ahead or consider consequences.

``The fact is, we must invest, and if we invest wisely, we won't consider it an expenditure,'' he said.

Some counties in his district have seen unemployment rates fall while poverty rates have risen, he said.

Strickland promised to allocate $250 million annually in research and development of alternative fuel sources in Ohio.

``That's just an area where the right kind of leadership can create jobs for our state,'' he said.