Congressman Dennis Kucinch is running for president in 2008. But he must not want it too bad.
After all, the Democrat from Cleveland has yet to sign on in support of the Great Lakes Restoration Implementation Act recently introduced in Washington D.C. And that puts the presidential hopeful at risk of not capturing all the region's 127 electoral votes, including key battlegrounds like Michigan, Wisconsin, and his home state of Ohio.
Cleveland, like all of NE Ohio, has big plans to revitalize its lakefront, renew its downtown, cleanup its rivers, generate new economy knowledge jobs, uplift its quality of life, and compete in the 21st century global economy. And the $20 billion public works project to restore the Great Lakes would program significant public spending to advance the effort. Supporting the proposal is a simple way for politicians to show they're in tune with the urgent economic, environmental, and social needs of the deindustrializing midwest.
Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama - two fellow Democrats - support the proposal. But Rep. Kucinch, like a number of Great Lakes leaders, have yet to see the strategic value in the restoration proposal. Here's how the region's current support for the restoration plan lines up:
Illinois
Yes: Sen. Obama and Represenatives Emanuel, Bean, Davis, Jackson Jr., Schakowsky, Kirk
No: Senator Durbin and Representatives Rush, Lipinski, Gutierrez, Roskam, Weller, Costello, Biggert, Hastert, Johnson, Manzullo, Hare, LaHood, and Shimkus.
Indiana
Yes: Rep. Carson
No: Senators Lugar and Bayh and Representatives Visclosky, Donnelly, Souder, Buyer, Burton, Pence, Ellsworth, Hill
Michigan
Yes: Senators Levin and Stabenow and Representatives Ehlers, Stupak, Hoekstra, Ehlers, Camp, Kildee, Upton, Wahlberg, Knollenberg, Rogers, Miller, McCotter, Levin, Kilpatrick, Conyers, Dingell
No: none
Minnesota
Yes: Senator Coleman and Rep. McCollum
No: Senator Klobuchar and Representatives Walz, Kline, Ramstad, Ellison, Bachman, Peterson, Oberstar
New York
Yes: Senators Clinton and Schumer and Representatives Maloney, Reynolds, Higgins, Slaughter, and Kuhl
No: Reps. Bishop, Israel, King, McCarthy, Ackerman, Meeks, Crowley, Nadler, Weiner, Towns, Clarke, Velazquez, Fossella, Rangel, Serrano, Engel, Lowey, Hall, Gillibrand, McNulty, Hinchey, McHugh, Arcuri, and Walsh.
Ohio
Yes: Senators Brown and Voinovich and Reps. Gillmor, Kaptur, Jones, Sutton, LaTourette, and Regula.
No: Reps. Chabot, Schmidt, Turner, Jordan, Wilson, Hobson, Boehner, Kucinich, Tiberi, Pryce, Ryan, and Space.
Pennsylvania
Yes: Senator Casey and Rep. English
No: Sen. Specter and Reps. Brady, Fattah, Altmire, Peterson, Gerlach, Sestak, P. Murphy, Shuster, Carney, Kanjorski, Murtha, Schwartz, Doyle, Dent, Pitts, Holden, T. Murphy, and Platts.
Wisconsin
Yes: Reps. Ryan, Baldwin, Kind, Moore, Sensenbrenner, Petri, and Kagen.
No: Senators Kohl and Feingold and Rep. Obey
