Some concerning news came out this morning regarding the Warren County investigation of Franklin City Superintendent Arlon Elam's epic letter to residents he issued a couple weeks ago. For those who don't remember, Mr. Elam wrote that Gov. John Kasich was "untruthful" about his education funding plan and asked his residents to "join me in an active campaign to ensure that Gov. Kasich and any legislator who supports him arenot re-elected."
That last sentence was the cause for Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell to seek a criminal investigation into Elam's statements.
However, an article in the Dayton Daily News today details how closely Mr. Fornshell's office communicated with GOP operatives the day he announced the investigation.
Mr. Fornshell denied the state GOP asked him to d o anything untoward. However, it sure doesn't look good.
In fact, Mr. Fornshell dropped the case after Mr. Elam paid $269 to cover the cost of the one page of the mailing that called for Gov. Kasich's ouster.
To give you an idea of scale, I went on the Ohio Secretary of State's website and downloaded campaign finance data. I have included a chart showing how much Mr. Elam has spent on political activity during the last 10 years ($100 to one candidate, plus the $269 fine) and how much the state's most powerful Charter School Operator, David Brennan, has contributed just to candidates.
Apparently, though, Mr. Elam's letter is the problem.
Remember that thanks in no small measure to Mr. Brennan's political activity, every child in Ohio not in a Charter School receives 6.5% less state revenue than the state says they need because of the state's largess to Mr. Brennan and his fellow operators.
