Coingate: spreading tentacles from California to DC

OhioDem1 pointed out that I hadn't written anything on Coingate-- that's the name given to an Ohio investment plan involving $50 million in coins, a whole lot of corrupt Republicans, and $10 million or so in taxpayer money going AWOL. Plus, as OD1 points out, "California ($10k to Arnold), Florida (sweeheart rent for [Republicans] for a condo), all over Ohio, to Washington, including the President. . . .the Columbus Dispatch has assigned four reporters to the story full-time."

The Toledo Blade broke the story, and the Ohio press is firing on all eight cylinders. Investigative journalism! And it isn't from the blogs or the British press! Hallelujah! Nevertheless the mainstream media stays with pseudo-stories, starring the "missing white girl of the week."

Look at some of these quotes from the FOUR articles that appeared in one day in the Blade. Then tell me it isn't bigger news than Russell Crowe's phone etiquette, Tom Cruise's cult membership, or Jacko's back-o.

Must-read stuff.

"In fact, [Secretary of State Ken] Blackwell told The Blade on April 5 that "most people" wouldn't find it "unreasonable" that the state had invested in rare coins with Tom Noe, who has said through his attorneys that at least $10 million of the state's assets are missing."

"Democrats have charged that [State Auditor] Betty Montgomery, a former Wood County prosecutor and state senator, didn't act sooner because she has known Mr. Noe for several years and has received thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from him and his wife, Bernadette. She relinquished $8,150 in contributions last week."

"Attorney General Jom Petro waited more than a month to begin taking leal action after learning thattwo state-owned coins worth $300,000 were reportedly stolen from the suburban Denver office of Tom Noe's rare-coin venture with the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation."