Fisher says he and Strickland need partners in the White House and the statehouse to turn Ohio around

COLUMBUS -- Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher told PolitickerOH.com that he and Gov. Ted Strickland need a partner in the White House, as well as the statehouse, in order to turn the economic situation in Ohio around.

Fisher spoke while greeting AFL-CIO Ohio president Joe Rugola as he arrived at the statehouse following 21 days and 313 miles of a walking tour of Ohio factories and facilities that have seen job losses in recent years.

"Unfortunately for the last eight years the White House has been rowing in the wrong direction," Fisher said. "We're confident that with Barack Obama and Joe Biden and Gov. Strickland and I moving in the same direction, I have no doubt whatsoever that we can turn Ohio's economy around and better than that, we can move Ohio to the head of the class."

Fisher said Ohio has wonderful assets that can aide in job creation.

"We've got an unbelievable strategic location in the heart of America," Fisher said. "We've got an infrastructure with rail and highways and ports and water that other states would die for. We've got a workforce of 6 million people, larger than the total population of 33 states."

Fisher said that all that has to be done next is invest in advanced and renewable energy and manufacturing to turn things around.

"We can go from glass to solar panels," Fisher said. "We can go from steel to wind turbine. We can go from corn and cellulose to ethanol. We can go from petroleum-based products to products that are made out of things we grow like corn and soy bean. We can move from petroleum-based power to electric vehicles and hydro-vehicles. And we can make these things in Ohio because we're the third largest manufacturing state.  We've got a great workforce and a fantastic location."

Fisher said that all Ohio needs now are federal policies that support the state policies that they are already putting in place.

Fisher also spoke of needing partners in the state legislature as much as he and Strickland need partners in the federal government.

"Our partners in the statehouse are every bit as important as our partners in the White House," Fisher said. "This is why Gov. Strickland and I have spent a lot of our time not only campaigning for Barack Obama and Joe Biden, but for Democrats running for the state House of Representatives who will support our economic development agenda, not play politics and invest in our future."

Fisher declined to predict whether Ohio Democrats will secure a majority in the Ohio House of Representatives on Election Day, but said he was feeling optimistic.