Voinovich vents on Senate, stimulus

WASHINGTON - In more than 11 years in the U.S. Senate, George Voinovich has heard his share of talk, but it's what he's not hearing now that has him frustrated.

Speaking Tuesday to county presidents of the Ohio Farm Bureau in town to lobby legislators, the Ohio Republican said recent discussions on the country's economic woes seem to be missing one element.

"When I was governor of Ohio, we talked about working harder and smarter. I'd like to hear more comments now about working harder and smarter. I got to tell you, I don't hear that at all here in Washington, D.C., and we need to hear more of it," Voinovich said.

Voinovich was one of five Republican senators originally expected to vote in favor of the recently passed stimulus package. He and the others eventually walked away over disagreements on the bill's details and the overall role of government in the economy. President Barack Obama's trip to Columbus last week to speak in front of 15 police officers whose jobs were saved with stimulus money is the perfect illustration of that core difference of opinion, Voinovich said.

"What in the devil is the federal government doing funding policemen in cities, especially when the money is going to run out at the end of the year?" Voinovich asked. "And who's going to pay for this? The folks in Columbus may not think they're paying for it, but believe me, they are."

Having announced plans to retire at the end of his term, Voinovich has less than two years to get something done. At the top of his list is what he calls a "second Declaration of Independence," a full-focus domestic energy program that includes searching for more U.S. oil as well as alternative sources such as nuclear and biofuels.

Recently Voinovich joined the push to increase the mandated amount of ethanol used in gasoline from the current 10 percent to 15 percent or 20 percent. Overall, he said the country needs to find more, use less, and become as energy independent as possible.

"If we don't do that we are in deep, deep, deep, deep trouble," Voinovich said.

Anything Voinovich does get done in the next two years will require support from both sides of the aisle, he said. The partisan politics of recent years have left the veteran politician obviously frustrated.

"I've been elected to more public offices than any person in the history of Ohio. I've been here for 11 years. I shouldn't tell you this, but this is the most inefficient use of my time," Voinovich said. "I think we just need some self-discipline as a legislative body."