Mayor from Ohio. (Getty image file photo.)
Each morning in the Ohio Capital Journal’s free newsletter, The Eye-Opener, we round up the news and commentary from across Ohio, the country and the world that catches our attention. We call this feature Catching Our Eye and have published it here.
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Catching our eyes
On the watch? Laura A. Bischoff reports in The Columbus Dispatch: “Watchdog agencies are not yet investigating former OSU President Ted Carter“
The Ohio State University is conducting an internal investigation into former President Ted Carter, and so far the university appears to be the only entity looking into it.
According to a statement from the university, Carter resigned from his position on March 7 after revealing that he had an “inappropriate relationship with an individual seeking state resources to support her personal business activities.” On March 9, JobsOhio released a statement saying it was sponsoring a podcast linked to an inappropriate relationship.
There are multiple state agencies that may initiate investigations, depending on developments.
Out with the elderly, in with the modern. WOSU’s Mark Ferenchik reports: “Ohio State’s Board of Trustees will name a modern “university leader” on Thursday following Carter’s resignation“
The Ohio State University Board of Trustees has scheduled a special meeting for Thursday at 9 a.m. at the Longaberger Alumni House.
University spokesman Ben Johnson said the board will name the next “leader of the university” following President Ted Carter’s resignation Saturday.
Asked whether the person would be short-lived or constant, Johnson said he had no further details to share.
Big trouble in Little Miami. David Ferrara of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports: “School board member resigns after posts denying the Holocaust and praising Hitler“
Cincinnati-area school board member Dan Smith resigned after his social media posts denying the Holocaust and praising Hitler were discovered.
Smith stated in his resignation letter that the posts were erroneous and did not reflect his actual beliefs.
The resignation comes after a recent controversial vote in which Smith argued for the removal of an LGBTQ+ poster from his classroom based on his Christian beliefs.
The Little Miami school board accepted the resignation, saying the positions were seriously questionable and did not meet the standards of public office.
Rain or shine. Derek Kreider of the Akron Beacon Journal reports: “Protesters gather outside the Summit Courthouse to condemn Jon Husted“
About 30 people defied tornado monitoring and stood in the rain to speak out against U.S. Sen. Jon Husted on the day the Ohio Republican testified remotely in the bribery trial of two former FirstEnergy executives.
Hidden treasure. People magazine reports: “Ohio treasure hunter released from prison after refusing to reveal whereabouts of 500 Ship of Gold coins“
A treasure hunter who spent years in prison after refusing to reveal the location of 500 gold coins missing in one of the largest U.S. shipwrecks has been released.
Tommy Thompson discovered the 1857 gold ship, also known as the SS Central America, off the coast of South Carolina in 1988, according to the Associated Press and The Columbus Dispatch.
According to The Columbus Dispatch, the Gold Ship sank in 1857 during a hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean, killing 425 people.
Thompson, now 73, was then jailed in 2015 after failing to disclose the whereabouts of 500 gold coins on the ship.
Risk? What risk? The New York Times reports: “How Trump and his advisers miscalculated Iran’s response to the war“
On February 18, as President Trump was considering whether to launch military attacks on Iran, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in an interview that he was not concerned that the impending war could disrupt Middle East oil supplies and wreak havoc on energy markets.
Even during the Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran last June, Wright said, there was no disruption to the markets. “Oil prices rose sharply and then fell again,” he said. Some of Trump’s other advisers privately shared similar views, dismissing warnings that – the second time around – Iran could start an economic war by closing shipping lanes that carry about 20 percent of the world’s oil supplies.
The scale of this miscalculation was exposed in recent days when Iran threatened to fire on commercial tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic chokepoint through which all ships departing the Persian Gulf must pass. In response to Iranian threats, commercial shipping in the Persian Gulf was halted, oil prices skyrocketed, and the Trump administration scrambled to find ways to ease an economic crisis that has resulted in higher gasoline prices for Americans.
This episode perfectly demonstrates how badly Trump and his advisers misjudged how Iran would respond to a conflict that the government in Tehran sees as an existential threat. Iran responded much more aggressively than it did during the 12-day war last June, firing a barrage of missiles and drones at US military bases, cities in Arab countries across the Middle East and Israeli population centers.
School bombing update. NPR reports: “Pentagon probe indicates US missile hit Iranian school“
The United States has launched a formal investigation into a missile attack on an Iranian girls’ school that killed at least 165 civilians, after an initial assessment found the United States was responsible, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly. The investigation is expected to take months and will include interviews with everyone involved, from planners and commanders to the strike organizers.
