Call Me Foss

The official home of Anthony Fossaceca, Democratic candidate for the Ohio House in the 6th District.

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Email shows Kasich adviser knew of plan to promote fracking in parks

Gov. John Kasich’s chief policy adviser called a meeting of top administration officials in August 2012 on a controversial plan to market fracking in state parks and forests — contradicting a statement from Kasich’s spokesman on Friday that the governor’s office knew nothing about the plan.

Here we go again.

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Kasich floats ‘deregulation’ for schools

Gov. John Kasich used the word deregulation yesterday to describe how he might bring about some of the changes he seeks for Ohio schools. “I’ve talked to (Ohio schools Superintendent) Dick Ross about the need to bring about some deregulation,” Kasich said in a speech to the Ohio Newspaper Association in Columbus.

I wonder where our current State Rep is at on this issue. Deregulating schools? Seriously?

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It's time. Resign.

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ALEC stands its ground

What is the Koch-funded group hiding?

In Washington today, a shadowy organization named ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) holds its annual top secret meeting of state legislators. The group, funded by large corporations like Philip Morris, Koch Industries, and Exxon Mobile, has a history of drafting extremely conserve legislation and pushing it off on their members to sponsor. Remember those anti-worker bills (SB5), stand your ground bills, or voter suppression bills being pushed in statehouses around the country? Most of them came out of this group. And guess who is a proud member of ALEC? My opponent. Marlene Anielski.

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Cleveland lawmaker Mike Foley says retail employees ought to get triple-time for work on Thanksgiving, Black Friday

Workers should have the option of having the day off without repercussions, rather than losing a family day to holiday shopping mania.

State Rep. Mike Foley is drafting legislation that would require retailers to offer triple-time wages to employees working on Thanksgiving Day. I couldn't agree with this more. We hear a lot of talk from conservatives about the importance of families, but rarely see much in the way of policy designed to actually help those families become stronger. Here's one that should have bi-partisan support. And if those employees actually want to work, and the retailers absolutely must open on Thanksgiving, then pay the employees (and their families) for the sacrifice. Families deserve to be together on Thanksgiving. It's a national day of rest and appreciation for what we have. Or, as Foley put it, "There are some days in the year where you should just be able to chill out and not have to worry about the whole consumeristic, commercial world." Pass the cranberry sauce.

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Icy morning in the Chagrin Valley.

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Our Friend Bruce

Cuyahoga County progressives lost a good friend and member of our family this weekend. Bruce Cichocki was an early supporter of mine when I entered the race for State Representative in 2011. Each month when I attended his city Democratic club meetings in Independence, Bruce always made it a point to pull me aside before the meeting, ask what was new, offer his support, and encourage me to keep going. Then, without fail, he would stand up to reintroduce me to the club membership. It was almost always the same routine... Bruce : "We have a great candidate here running for State Rep...So, you all remember the show 'Happy Days,' right? Well, you remember 'The Fonz,' right? He was cool. And we've got our own guy who is also pretty cool. His name is Foss - or The Foss. So, when you think of The Fonz, think of Foss." Then, I'd stand up, stick out my thumbs, and do a little Arthur Fonzarelli impression and say "Ayyyyy!" I'll admit, the first couple of times I did that, I got a huge kick out of it. And I know Bruce did too. Bruce had a big heart and a very warm way about him. I always enjoyed talking to him and will miss our conversations in the months and years to come. Politics, at times, can be filled with big egos and big attitudes. Bruce possessed neither. All he leaves behind are big shoes to fill. Bruce passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Friday night at the very young age of 63. The only thing that hurts more than his loss is that we missed one last opportunity to say thank you and goodbye. My deepest sympathies to his family and closest friends. I am terribly sorry.

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Pull petitions? Check!

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Game on! Just pulled petitions at the Board of Elections!

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This is how we roll on Election Day in #SevenHills. Baklava and hot coffee.

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Out early helping retired teacher Debbie Bernauer in her run for BBH School Board.

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Local Candidates Are the Backbone

I'm always impressed by local candidates for school board, city council, mayor, etc. It takes a lot of courage to put yourself out there in a large congressional district, but to do it so close to home as a candidate for smaller office, is a whole different thing. Neighbors talk. Whispers are everywhere. Every action is scrutinized. Today, as I volunteer to help a few of these local candidates, I'm reminded how much they put on the line. Regardless of political affiliation, thanks for taking the chance and keeping our democracy moving forward.

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More on the ever-growing concerns about transparency at JobsOhio and the way job numbers are reported at the Development Services Agency

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Why Are Our State Legislators Acting Like Washington D.C. Extremists?

The recent effort by extremist members of the State Legislature to slow or prevent the expansion of Medicaid in Ohio serves as another example of elec

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Help wanted: Local manufacturers have jobs they can't fill because of skills gap

Local companies say they have good-paying jobs in advanced manufacturing that are going unfilled because they can't find qualified workers.

This article at cleveland.com illustrates the need for a serious retooling of the educational opportunities we provide our graduating high school seniors. While I believe we need to continue investing heavily in our public colleges and universities, we also need to improve access to, and resources for, institutions of higher learning that teach advanced manufacturing. The jobs are here, but the workers are not. If we can address the needs of employers in Northeast Ohio, we'll fill more vacancies and attract more manufacturing jobs as new companies set-up shop in Ohio.