Letters to the editor

Vote to renew road and bridge levy As a previous employee of the Tiffin City Engineer's Office and the current Superintendent of the Tiffin Public Works Department, I firmly support continuation of Tiffin's road and bridge levy. Our team at Public Works focuses on maintenance, and the term "maintenance" has taken on a vastly expanded definition since the passage of the road and bridge levy in 2018. The levy dedicates the right amount of our tax dollars directly to our roads, allowing the City Engineer to effectively manage a long-term paving plan. Now we are investing more than double our pre-levy amounts each year on paving, plus we're getting ahead of maintenance requirements. We get to tackle maintenance in, above, below and around a stretch of road from about 5 years before paving through the lifespan of a new asphalt surface. We now see far fewer potholes each year because the levy lets us proactively address road maintenance. You'll have your ballot soon, so please look for what's shown as a proposed Municipal Income Tax. That's the continuation of Tiffin's existing road and bridge levy. Please help us keep improving what we started! Brandon Burner Public Works Superintendent, city of Tiffin Where is Republican leadership? Aside from not being able to develop a legal, unbiased redistricting plan, the Ohio Republican Party is rightfully being mocked by those who love democracy. Why? The word comes down to "leadership." A leader is one who can guide others through the use of clear thinking, sensible ideas and the desire to work hard to obtain his/her goals. Unfortunately, "leadership" is not a term that applies to any of the Republican candidates for Rob Portman's Senate position. Each of them is a follower of the most ridiculous and damaging lie in the history of American democracy — that the former president won the 2020 election. He did not. There is absolutely no debating that fact unless you are a seriously deluded QAnon follower or a supporter of the Mar-a-Lago Malcontent. Each of our state candidates is a follower of our former would-be king. Each is too cowardly to take a stand by showing that he or she truly cares about our nation, and are too subservient to Trumpian politics to say that our country can be healed. Just one look at the Republican herd of sheep who support of our candidates will show what I mean. Mike Gibbons is endorsed by Rand Paul, Justin Clark and Bill Stepien (both former Trump campaign managers), and Kat Carmack from Florida who voted to overturn the election of 2020. Josh Mandel is endorsed by Michael Flynn (disgraced former national security advisor), Ted Cruz and Mike Lee (two of the nastiest politicians in recent memory), Mark Levin (radio talk host known for his hostile, disparaging remarks and angry outbursts), and Madison Cawthorn (Rep. from North Carolina who has become famous for his far-right diatribes. J.D. Vance is endorsed by Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Gaetz and Josh Hawly (no more need be said about that unholy trinity), Tucker Carlson, whose insistence on making up news rather than reporting it has earned him justified contempt amongst real news reporters, and, of course, Donald Trump. Jane Timken is endorsed by Kristi Noem, governor of South Dakota who was elected as an ally of Trump and explicitly refused to follow medical experts during the COVID-19 pandemic by denying all treated procedures. She sent her National Guard to the US/Mexican border, an action barred by the laws of our nation. No, candidates cannot control who may endorse them; they can, however, repudiate such endorsements. To my knowledge, that has not occurred. And as Aesop famously wrote several millennia ago, "A man (or woman) is known by the company he keeps." Ohio does not need such followers to replace Sen. Rob Portman. While I did not agree with him on a number of issues, he generally voted for what he felt was right, not for what was expedient. Our Republican Senate candidates are not worthy of that position, for they lack any semblance of leadership abilities. Bob Murray Tiffin