Episode Notes

The Ohio Legislature passed a budget bill that would have made the wealthy residents of Hunting Valley even wealthier if Gov. Mike DeWine did not block it, which is where we start the discussion on the latest episode of This Week in the CLE, the podcast discussion of the news by cleveland.com reporters and editors.

With Northeast Ohio’s Matt Dolan leading the way in the senate, the Legislature – secretly and with no discussion – answered the call of lobbyists with a budget bill that would have capped taxes for Hunting Valley. Politics editor Jane Kahoun leads the discussion on this move, detailed by Statehouse reporter Andrew Tobias.

Jane also takes us through the Trump Administration’s plan to take food stamps away from 3 million Americans, including people in Northeast Ohio who rely on the assistance to feed their families. Jane’s perspective highlights the contrast between the effort by Ohio legislators to help the rich while Washington seeks to make life more difficult for the poor.

Courtney Astolfi rings in with how an invigorated Cuyahoga County Council has issued its first-ever subpoena, to Sheriff Cliff Pinkney. They want him to talk about deplorable conditions in the jail he oversees after he refused to answer questions at a recent hearing. She also explains how the council wants to strengthen the position of sheriff as a remedy to the jail situation.

Federal courts reporter Eric Heisig talks about why advocates for immigrants in Northeast Ohio are on high alert of late and how they are protesting the recent detaining of people who are in the country legally.

The presidential election is more than a year away, so polls don’t have much meaning yet, but Jane explains why we should take note of a poll showing former Vice President Joe Biden with a commanding lead in Ohio over Trump.

Courtney gives us a primer on how not to blow it on a $300,000 contract, which Cuyahoga County government did involving computer servers.

Eric has the details on why Bedford has stopped enforcing a nuisance law that critics say is unfair and is used to target African Americans.

Jane give us the lowdown FirstEnergy Solution’s long-sought victory in its battle to force Ohio ratepayers to bail out its expensive and failing nuclear power plants.

Eric discusses what he has learned from a massive database involving opioids and how certain pharmacies were distributing amounts of addictive e drugs that are beyond comprehension.

Reporter Mary Kilpatrick and rockthelake.com coordinator Laura Johnston try to make sense of the Trump Administration’s plan to spend $2 million cleaning up trash in the Great Lakes. The idea is a great one, but the money is no where near what is needed.

Jane talks about when Ohio voters might get to compel the state to conduct background checks on anyone seeking to buy a gun.

Akron reporter Robin Goist makes her first podcast appearance to talk about plans for an Amazon warehouse on the site of the former Rolling Acres mall, and the panel ponders whether elected leaders might have been better off seeking an employer with highly educated workers.

Criminal justice editor Kris Wernowsky explains why the new head of the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Detention Center quit after just five hours on the job and the mind-stretching letter that the chief judge wrote to her colleagues to announce the departure.

Reporter Evan MacDonald discusses the acquittal of a Cleveland police supervisor charged in the infamous case of the 137 shots fired at a couple who were chased throughout the city after their car backfired and officers misinterpreted the sound as gunshots.

Robin explains why Akron employees can go to college for free because the city gave some land to Stark State College.

Editor Kristen Davis and reporter Yadi Rodriguez explain what goes into the ratings of 147 pasta sauces, which ones are best and whether a bottled sauce can ever compete with the homemade versions.

Pop culture expert Troy Smith explains by a couple of Greater Cleveland natives are now, officially, the most successful filmmakers on earth and what their plans are for making another movie in Cleveland with Tom Holland, aka Spiderman from the Avengers movies.

And Marc Bona talks about what worked and what did not when Major League Baseball partnered with YouTube to broadcast an Indians game.