Swing State Ohio

Dictionary.com defines a pathological liar as "a person who lies to the point of it being considered a disease or condition, an abnormally habitual liar."

Most politicians tend to stretch the truth a bit while they are in office. Whether is is George Bush's assertion that "Iraq has WMD's" or Bill Clinton's "I did not have sexual relations with that woman." examples can be found throughout American history. The distinction lies in the last part of the definition quoted above: an abnormally habitual liar.

In the paragraphs below, I'll explain why I feel that Jean Schmidt is an abnormally habitual liar. To make my point, I've numbered several instances in which Schmidt has not only stretched the truth, but has intentionally lied to voters in an attempt to make herself look better, or her opponent look worse.


Lie #1: Denied that she knew Tom Noe

July 31st 2005, from Swing State Project:

This morning's CBS 12 "Newsmakers" program, Jean Schmidt lied to the voters – only two days before the election. In an effort to cover up Jean Schmidt's involvement in the scandalous culture of corruption, Schmidt said she didn't know Tom Noe. Schmidt said she'd never met Tom Noe. Schmidt said she had never even heard of Tom Noe. The woman with the "file-card memory" lied.

You see, Jean Schmidt was Vice Chair of the Higher Education
Subcommittee of the House Finance and Appropriations Committee. During
the same period, Tom Noe was a member of the Board of Regents.

In fact, on March 21, 2002, official state documents prove Jean Schmidt testified before Tom Noe's committee.

Lie #2: Swift-Boated a veteran on the day of the primary

August 2nd 2005, from Cincinnati News:

The Schmidt Campaign released a press release Monday alleging that Paul Hackett has been misleading voters by "touting that he will be the first Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran to serve in Congress." According to the press release, "that is untrue."

The release goes on to explain that "Republican Congressman Mark Steven Kirk of Illinois served in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Kirk is a Naval Reserve intelligence officer who is the only member of Congress to serve in Operation Iraqi Freedom."

According to a USA Today Candidate Profile, Kirk "continues to serve one weekend a month in the Pentagon, including the Joint Chiefs of Staff war room during Operation Iraqi Freedom."

I went on to explain at Cincinnati News that:

I would hardly consider a politician spending "one weekend a month" in the Pentagon to be a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Most definitions of veteran include the phrase "active duty status." Active duty status refers to "full-time duty in the active military service of the United States." Given these criteria, the situation becomes much more clear. Mark Steven Kirk was a politican in D.C. when the conflict began, and he was a politician in D.C. when he spent one weekend a month at the Pentagon during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The DCCC Stakeholder blog put it this way:

And yes, this is a real press release, and yes putting that out on the last day of the campaign so that nobody has a chance to blast you for it is one of the most pathetically cowardly things I've seen.

Incredibly, the original press release is still hosted on Jean Schmidt's website.

Lie #3: Tried to blame shameful comments on Ohio State Rep. Danny Bubp.

November 22nd 2005, from Think Progress(emphasis added):

During Rep. Jean Schmidt’s (R-OH) shameful attack on Rep. Jack Murtha (D-PA) on the House Floor she said she was communicating a message from Marine Colonel Danny Bubp:

A few minutes ago I received a call from Colonel Danny Bubp, Ohio Representative from the 88th district in the House of Representatives. He asked me to send Congress a message: Stay the course. He also asked me to send Congressman Murtha a message, that cowards cut and run, Marines never do. Danny and the rest of America and the world want the assurance from this body – that we will see this through.

Bubp denies he said that:

Danny Bubp, a freshman state representative who is a colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve, told The Enquirer that he never mentioned Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., by name when talking with Schmidt…”There was no discussion of him personally being a coward or about any person being a coward,” Bubp said.

Why can't Jean Schmidt take responsibility for her own ridiculous comments? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that she has made quite a habit of lying and getting away with it.

Lie #4: Stretched her bio to include two college degrees even though she only earned one.

April 4th 2006, From ChannelCincinnati.com(emphasis added):

The freshman congresswoman is facing a complaint about the truthfulness of her education and her endorsements.

The Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes, or COAST, has endorsed Schmidt's opponent in the GOP primary, Bob McEwen. The group claims that some of Schmidt's claimed endorsements are bogus, and instead of two bachelor degrees as stated on various biographical material, she has one.

"If it was one incident, I might think there was some merit in letting it go," COAST's Jim Urling said. "But we've got a very troubling, disconcerting pattern of misrepresentations here."

Schmidt's chief of staff, Barry Bennett, denied any such pattern. He told News 5 that a staffer mistakenly credited Schmidt with a second degree while creating a Web site six years ago, when Schmidt was in the Ohio House. Bennett said Schmidt's official Web sites were corrected a year ago.

However, News 5 found a mid-June survey from the League of Women Voters that reflects two college degrees.

I've laid out four examples with documentation that show that Jean Schmidt is an abnormally habitual liar. If I spent the time, I could probably find several more. I think Paul Hackett said it best in a recent interview with the Cincinnati Drinking Liberally group: "She's a pathological liar and we all know it..."

Perhaps someone from Schmidt's staff or even Jean herself will rebuke my claims in the comment section, but I'm not holding my breath.