Larry Householderhttps://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-oh-state-wire-us-news-ap-top-news-ohio-b9a116d7ace908fff83907232b94986bCINCINNATI (AP) — Former Ohio House Speakersaid Monday that he is optimistic ahead of his trial on a federal racketeering charge and looks forward to telling his side of the story.
“It should be a very good six weeks for me," Householder told reporters in the courtroom. What will reporters hear? "Truth,” he said, adding that he is not nervous or anxious for the proceeding to begin.
Matt Borgeshttps://apnews.com/article/oh-state-wire-campaigns-campaign-finance-elections-government-and-politics-6386987598718347e091fd47def9ed66The Perry County Republican, once among the most powerful politicians in Ohio, is on trial in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati alongside lobbyist, a former chair of the Ohio Republican Party, in what prosecutors have described as the largest corruption case in state history.
A jury must decide whether Householder, 63, and Borges, 50, are guilty of conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise involving bribery and money laundering. Both have pleaded not guilty and maintain their innocence. Each faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
Householder said he anticipates “redemption.” He said he has been frustrated at being unable to tell his story in the 2 1/2 years since he was arrested, saying he has spent the time working on his farm, walking in the woods and playing with his 4-year-old granddaughter.
“For a guy like me, who likes to talk? It's been frustrating,” he said.
secretly funded by FirstEnergy,https://apnews.com/article/business-0674e926207d3521d09b243858f85c64two aging nuclear power plantshttps://apnews.com/c770f8101a92462083ca9a62cd7e11b5An indictment alleges Householder, Borges, three other people and a dark money group called Generation Now orchestrated an elaborate scheme,to secure Householder’s power, elect his allies, pass legislation containing a $1 billion bailout for, and then vex a ballot effort to overturn the bill with a dirty tricks campaign. The arrests happened in July 2020.
admitted to using dark money groupshttps://apnews.com/article/business-government-and-politics-ohio-a4dd75020561d8b533fdabcb98a0a350bribing the state's top utility regulatorhttps://apnews.com/article/business-4ed34e3c8d9f18e439f7ac7aff11c38eUnder a deal to avoid prosecution, Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp.to fund the scheme and to. Then-Public Utilities Commission of Ohio Chair Sam Randazzo resigned after an FBI search of his home. He has not been charged and denies wrongdoing.
Two Householder associateshttps://apnews.com/article/ohio-700464ca92f2e26cb322312cdf9cf06brelated nonprofithttps://apnews.com/article/ohio-columbus-mike-dewine-196cd6a1f17fe53032ecb36789c7a3fedied by suicidehttps://apnews.com/article/ohio-4a98679f0b1e10b47a22c21d4e6c1c49and ahave pleaded guilty to their roles in the scheme described by prosecutors and await sentencing. A third defendant who pleaded not guilty.
Householder said he is confident his team will prove the allegations against him false.
view the case as an opportunityhttps://apnews.com/article/ohio-government-and-politics-business-584bfeefeda8f8ad8496f3f776246f26Campaign finance expertsfor the federal government to clarify the line between legal and illegal handling of the untraceable “dark” money that has flooded politics in recent years — some $1 billion since the landmark Citizens United v. FEC decision of 2010, according to OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan campaign finance research organization.
Householder's attorneys have sought to argue that the scheme described by prosecutors was nothing more than business as usual, a strategy for advancing his leadership aspirations that has been employed routinely by politicians of both parties.
“unholy alliance”https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-politics-oh-state-wire-business-conspiracy-f708a4e4d7d44b583133a25967b3d324Prosecutors plan to use recorded phone calls, text messages, emails, witness testimony and documentary evidence to prove that Householder entered into what one co-conspirator described as anwith FirstEnergy that amounted to an illegal racketeering scheme, and that Borges played a key role in carrying it out.
the Ohio Clean Air Programhttps://apnews.com/9cb676185c134d30b6f0ccc3b80bc892a partial repealhttps://apnews.com/article/mike-dewine-legislation-cleveland-ohio-bills-1a2259a5050e2a3b17a4c3f1d57d1c61The legislation at the heart of the scandal —bill — included a $1 billion bailout for two nuclear power plants, Davis-Besse and Perry, operated at the time by a wholly owned FirstEnergy subsidiary. Surcharges slated to be tacked onto electricity bills statewide to pay for the bailout were eliminated inof the legislation in 2021 and never charged.