Robert Eric McFadden, Scum Strickland Staffer

A former member of Governor Strickland’s staff, Robert McFadden, 46, Dublin, Ohio, who headed his Faith Based Initiatives program until October 2007 has been arrested as one of the main organizers of a Columbus area prostitution ring. A local TV station, NBC4 reports: “Police said McFadden was involved in Columbus prostitution for about six years and was also widely known in Democratic politics and Catholic politics as the leader of Central Ohio’s Catholics for Clinton during the last primary election.”

The Columbus Dispatch reports: “The charges include compelling prostitution involving a minor, promoting prostitution and pandering. He is being held in the Franklin County jail pending an appearance in Municipal Court this morning. Police said they have seized a computer and two vehicles. One was his wife's car, which detectives said was the setting for photos of the 17-year-old girl that McFadden then posted online.”

And the Dayton Daily News: "McFadden has been involved in Democratic politics, working for Catholics for Kerry in 2004, Catholic Alliance for the Common Good in 2006, and Sen. Hillary Clinton's primary bid last year. Strickland appointed him to head the Office on Faith-based Initiatives, a post McFadden held from February 2007 to October 2007. Dailey said, "He was not a good fit for the role... It was a mutually agreed to decision that the position wasn't working out for him."

Lots of churches and non-profits in Columbus do this faith based initiative grant stuff at the local and federal level to rehab houses, feed and serve the poor. Personally, I think it’s a bad idea. The government gets cheap labor, and the church folk get screwed. When there’s a change in administrations, the programs suffer plus the church has been taking handouts instead of tithes. It's a pact with the devil--don't preach the gospel and we'll give you money. Wonder how much he’s tainted these programs? Let's hope some observant Christians reported to Strickland--You don't become a crook over night. They leave crumbs to follow. What better place for the fox to hide than inside the hen house? After he left the governor’s staff he worked for the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. What a combination! Didn’t anyone catch on to this guy? Don't they need references?

Strickland is having problems vetting the morals of his staff and fellow Democrats. Marc Dann, Ohio’s attorney general, finally resigned after sexual harrassment and misuse of government funds were revealed. As one wag put it, they couldn’t get him on adultery, or they’d lose half the legislature. After the 2004 loss, Democrats looked around at what worked for Republicans and decided it was religion and family values. Governor Strickland, a former Methodist pastor, seemed a good bet, and he ran on a squeaky clean ethics platform because our former governor didn’t report a free golf game.

The Marc Dann stories in Dispatch, right up through this week.

Update: While checking this story later in google for updates, I see a rabid anti-Republican, anti-Bush web site (got BDS bad) in the original title referred to McFadden as a GOPer. After realizing he was a Democrat, the blogger (I think it was a Huff Puff post) changed GOPer to Pol, not Dem. However, the URL remained the same even though the title changed, so when you see it on Google, it looks like McFadden was a Republican. Porno-pimpers come in all colors and parties and I doubt that his party had a significant role in his scumminess. However, I think it's delightful that the blogger looked at his "faith-based" and assumed the worst, then found out he worked for Kerry, Clinton and Strickland, all loyal Democrats.

How hard can it be to get federal money?

Amateurs can do it. Ohio's former Attorney General Marc Dann was a crook and a philanderer. He was fired. Finally. But while in office he created a Washington job for Craig Mehall, a job unique among states' attorney generals, for $98,000. According to the Columbus Dispatch

1. No other AG had a Washington liaison
   
2. Mehall had no Washington experience
   
3. Mehall had never been a lobbyist
   
4. He was a lawyer, not licensed in Ohio
   
5. He had been a volunteer for Dann
   
6. He was from Chicago
   
7. He missed deadlines due to his lack of experience
   
8. He leaked information
   
9. He borrow a private plane from one of Dann's other political buddies
   
10. He continued to work for Ohio after Dann was fired

Mehall was just let go--due to budget shortfalls in the state, although his boss is long gone. Still, the governor's office says "he did a lot of good" by getting millions in law enforcement grants and representing Ohio in consumer rights and debt-relief. He would have been successful in getting a regional crime lab on behalf of a consortium of institutions, but someone backed away from it. Not too bad for someone with no experience, hired by a crook, who wasn't even from Ohio. Why do lobbyists need to do this? What are our elected representatives doing if not bringing home the pork?

Go Dann Go!

Ohio's Attorney General is refusing to resign. He says he's rolling up his sleeves, zipping up his pants, and now he's ready to do the work of the people (Democrats ought to ban that phrase from their guide book for political hacks). Ohioans haven't had an impeachment since 1808--200 years. Our guys don't even know how to do it! Wonder what this will cost the taxpayers in lawyer fees? So the Democrats, the guys who wet themselves over former Governor Taft's unreported golf outings, are pulling out all the stops, pressuring him to resign. Things are so murky in the OAG's office that they definitely don't want a public trial bringing up all the dirt. Short of calling in the Clintons to knee-cap him, I don't know what else they can do.

Go Dann Go
by Norma Bruce

You're so defiant
You're not compliant
with standards and oaths
You're such an oaf
Go Dann Go!

You're ready to joust
Strickland wants to oust
from his party with pleas
and he's won't say please
Go Dann Go!

From 1808
to 2008
and now we've got Dann
who's everygirl's man.
Go Dann Go!

My Bob Taft poem

Ohio's Attorney General is

Disgusting! His behavior, his apology, and his refusal to resign! This guy is unbelievable--or worse--maybe he's too believable. He's a man of the day--the rules are for everyone else, but not him, especially politicians. Marc Dann, it's time to get out of Dodge and let our former-pastor-Governor who ran on Christian values 2006, appoint someone who knows what an oath and vow mean, to say nothing of the laws about sex with your staff.

Is it only the Republican gay public servants who are held accountable? This is a heck of a lot more serious than text messaging house pages or a wide stance in the men's rest room! His office is described as a regular "animal house" by state employees.

Dispatch editorial: Scram Dann