This Week in the CLE: Thursday, May 23, 2019

Two Ohio legislators with no ties or accountability in Cleveland are working to block the will or Northeast Ohio voters. What gives?

On the latest edition of This Week in the CLE, northeast Ohio’s top news team – the reporters and editors at cleveland.com – discuss how two legislators seemingly in the bag for the plastic bag industry are intent on stopping elected leaders in Cleveland from regulating the plastic bag industry. It’s a rural versus urban debate that begins at minute 4:23 with the thoughts of politics editor Jane Kahoun.

The team talks about plenty more.

00:28 - Columnist Mark Naymik and reporter Mary Kilpatrick talk about Cleveland winning the NFL draft event for 2021 and the money that could inject into our economy.

9:05 – Reporter Eric Heisig dissects the final report on the late Ohio State University doctor Richard Straus, who sexually 177 students without anyone in authority doing anything to stop him.

12:12 – Kahoun explains why the Strauss case has Gov. Mike Dewine seeking to abolish the statute of limitations on rape cases.

14:14 – Heisig offers insight into why 15 former Cleveland police cadets have lost their bid to be reinstated as future police officers after they were accused of cheating.

16:58 – Kahoun and Kilpatrick look into the future for what Ohio might look like if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the Roe V. Wade decision on abortion. The discussion traces the sobering points in a story by Columbus Bureau reporter Laura Hancock.

22:26 – A cleveland.com poll identified the most gerrymandered districts in Ohio, and Kahoun talks about the latest in the battle to redraw the lines for the 2020 election.

26:24 – Reporter Leila Atassi unveils the new direction of the project we call A Greater Cleveland, in which she participates in Open Table and chronicles the path of a group of women who gather each week in support of Alondra Rivera, an 18-year-old woman battling poverty.

37:33 – Reporter Emily Bamforth talks about the week’s revelations about Sherwin Williams, which might be seeking a new headquarters, possibly not even in Cleveland. The team wonders how this might affect any effort to seek cash from the company to help abate lead paint in Cleveland, which is debilitating children.

43:32 – Special projects editor Laura Johnston talks about how Cleveland turned into the Wild West recently, with armed bounty hunters shooting their quarry in a city neighborhood.

44:59 – Johnston also updates the discussion from last week about dangerous things people do in the Cuyahoga River. Last week she talked about two guys rowing a giant, inflatable pink flamingo down the river. This week she talks about how one of those guys called her to talk about the safety precautions he used.

47:47 – Bamforth discusses the tragic death of a 22-year-old Medina woman in the Cleveland marathon. She also explains what she learned about what you can do to reduce the chances that you die when you vigorously exercise.

51:47 -- Cleveland City Hall reporter Bob Higgs makes his first appearance on the podcast to talk about a frightening security breach at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport.

54:17 – Higgs and Naymik discuss the ramifications for Cleveland of Philadelphia’s tax on sugary drinks.

56:52 – Common Pleas Court reporter Cory Shaffer offers his take on Joseph McAlpin, who appears to be the first person in Cuyahoga County history to represent himself in a capital case. He was sentenced to die.

1:02:07 – The Cleveland’s Best team of Yadi Rodriguez, Brenda Cain and Kristen Davis describe all that went into choosing the best Mexican restaurant in greater Cleveland, with their thoughts on the best food and drinks.

New episodes are published Thursday evenings, so you can listen on your Friday morning commute.