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ABC News' Teddy Davis and John Santucci Report: Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland (D) was Shermanesque on Tuesday in saying that he would "absolutely not" be Sen. Barack Obama's, D-Ill., running mate even if asked to join the Democratic ticket. Asked on NPR's "All Things Considered" if he is auditioning to be Obama's running mate, Strickland said, "Absolutely not. If drafted I will not run, nominated I will not accept and if elected I will not serve. So, I don’t know how more crystal clear I can be." Strickland was seen by some political handicappers as an attractive vice presidential pick...

Ted Strickland’s first gun was a Roy Rogers cap pistol, “like the ones the cowboys use,” he said this week. After that, the governor remembers shooting squirrels and rabbits with a .22-caliber rifle. From that foundation, Strickland has supported gun rights in a way a lot of other Democrats haven’t—before it was trendy. It’s been a tough couple of years for Toby Hoover. More than three decades ago, her first husband was murdered during a hardware store robbery, and since then, she’s fought to spread the message that putting more guns into more hands would make Ohio a violent and...

Yes, yes, yes, it's much too early to start thinking about running mates. Too bad. People are doing it anyway. And even though they won't admit it, odds are that Sens. John McCain, Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton are giving it at least some thought. So, too, are people who turn up their noses at the suggestion they might be a good fit, yet secretly harbor ambitions of getting the nod. Veepstakes speculation - always an undercurrent with a presidential election afoot - intensified this past week after Mitt Romney dropped out of the race, helping to clear McCain's...

After reading this question that was posed to Fred Thompson and his answer, I can't help but think it's a shame that he's not doing better in the campaign (h/t Instapundit): AKD: What will you do for the farmers of Bremer County? FT: (laughs) AKD: You knew this was coming, right? FT: I would continue to enjoy the fruits of their labor. I’ve been looking all over Iowa for a bad steak and I can’t find it. Been trying my best. It’s not a matter of what I would do for the farmers. Farmers are not looking for a president...

COLUMBUS - It was the first gubernatorial debate in Ohio history, possibly the United States, in which one candidate accused the other of being applauded by the North American Man/Boy Love Association (NAMBLA). J. Kenneth Blackwell, the Republican candidate for governor who is trailing by double digits in most polls with three weeks until the election, went on the offensive in the fourth and final debate Monday night against Democrat Ted Strickland. And like the rain that fell on the Channel 10 television studios and the spin tents pitched outside, Blackwell never let up during the one-hour debate nor in...

"This November, as dozens of state governors ask for your vote, ask yourself this: Do they deserve it? In states like Wisconsin, Maine and Michigan, NEA members see their governors finding money for programs and salaries, protecting jobs from privatization, and making sure students get what they need. (Can your colleagues in California say the same? We think not.) Yes, governors do make a big difference. And so do you, when you say yea or nay to them on the ballot................... Ohio U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland TWO WORDS: OEA alum THREE ISSUES: 1) WHO HE IS: Strickland is a psychologist...

The Democratic congressman running against Republican Secretary of State Ken Blackwell in the Ohio governor’s race said the state’s job-loss problem is not caused by high taxes or regulation, but by not having abortion on demand. He made the statement on Wednesday. The Democratic congressman who made this statment? Liberal candidate Ted Strickland, who is trying to paint Blackwell as an extremist for being pro-life. But his comments raise the question: Who is the extremist here? When Strickland was asked what he would do in his first 100 days to help create jobs, his reply was essentially to replace Ohio...

Ohio GOP Continues Downward Slide by John Gizzi Posted Aug 26, 2005 As scandals continue to swirl around Ohio Republicans, chances are increasing that next year Democrats will capture the governorship, a Senate seat, and at least one seat in the U.S. House. Republican Gov. Bob Taft pleaded no contest this week to four misdemeanor charges that he failed to disclose, as legally mandated, 52 gifts of golf outings, meals and hockey tickets. Taft could have been sentenced to two years in jail, but a judge let him off with a $4,000 fine. Taft’s crimes, however, are sure to haunt...

The Real Meaning of Buckeye Special Election Is Ohio Turning Blue? by John Gizzi Posted Aug 12, 2005 In the wake of a Democratic candidate’s narrow loss in the August 2 special election in Ohio’s most Republican U.S. House district, pundits have begun pondering whether the Buckeye State is turning blue. The problem for Republicans seems to be the stench that has begun to envelop the administration of Ohio GOP Gov. Robert A. Taft. Republicans have held the Ohio governorship for 16 years and in the last two presidential elections the state has been indispensable in providing an Electoral College...

National Democratic Party Leader Howard Dean and former President Bill Clinton were among those who wanted U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland, D-Ohio, to re-enter Ohio's gubernatorial race. Strickland officially announced his candidacy for the office this morning, but said it was actually the comments from educators and other residents in his district that convinced him he must reconsider his earlier decision in January that he wouldn't seek state office. "Ohio is in trouble," he said today. "It is on the wrong track, and going in the wrong direction. An increasing number of Ohioans realize this. They desperately need the hope and...

As word of Strickland's decision spread through political circles, possible contenders for his spot in Congress began to emerge. Among them are State Reps. Chuck Blasdel, an East Liverpool Republican, and John Boccieri, a Mahoning County Democrat.