I’ve written in the past about how attorney Maurice Thompson of the Buckeye Institute’s 1851 Center for Constitutional Law is a true patriot and the most important figure in the fight to shrink Ohio’s government that you’ve probably never heard of.

Thompson has been defending Columbus-based Zeno’s bar, which the state has sued repeatedly for violating the smoking ban by allowing those health nuts you often find in bars lighting up. Thompson filed suit challenging the constitutionality of applying the ban to bars that restricted to people at least 21 years old.

And the court just ruled against state health department:

Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge David E. Cain in Columbus has ruled that the state health department overstepped its legal authority in enforcing the state’s smoking ban against Zeno’s, a Columbus bar.

The 1851 Center for Constitutional Law, which defended Zeno’s in the case, has scheduled a news conference today, Feb. 25, at 1:30 p.m. to discuss the ramifications of the decision.

In his ruling, stamped Monday, Feb. 22, Cain declined to rule on the constitutionality of the smoking ban but vacated citations issued against Zeno’s.

Preventing bar owners from allowing their patrons to smoke is a ridiculous notion. And since the fines don’t penalize individual smokers, I have even heard stories where bars can send people into other bars to smoke and help their competition rack up massive fines. It sounds like this sort of nonsense appears to have  just stopped.

The enforcement of the smoking ban has been wildly inconsistent, and redirects money that could be spent by the state elsewhere. So far, taxpayers have paid $2 million for the ban since 2007, and the state has reportedly spent $3.2 million to identify businesses that are looking for infractions and to process them through the court systems.

And while this ruling doesn’t overturn the entire smoking ban or explicitly decide the constitutional question, its a HUGE step in the right direction!

It is so exciting that it makes me want to take up smoking. I’ve been meaning to become more like Don Draper anyway after watching three seasons of Mad Men on DVD.

But seriously, I really want to see these types of pro-liberty lawsuits continue, so I hope you join me in making a tax-deductible donation to the Buckeye Institute and joining the 1851 Center’s Facebook page for updates. AG Cordray’s office has already announced they will appeal this case, and fighting the state is extremely expensive.

Update: Marc Kovac posted video of Thompson’s press conference here.

The Buckeye Institute is under new leadership, and today President Matt Mayer dropped a bomb on policy debates in Ohio. Here is their fantastic new report, “State of the State: Two Decades of Weak Job Growth and Skyrocketing Government Costs Pose Daunting Challenges for Ohioans.”

This isn’t fluffy talk about farmers and trains. This is hard data. Make sure to look up your county:

A great interview from Bob Connors with Buckeye Institute President Matt Mayer on 610 AM WTVN in Columbus:

If we didn’t have leaders like Gov. Strickland who would rather focus on gimmicks and Federal pork than improving the state’s business and tax climate, perhaps Bob Connors wouldn’t have been scared out of the state. (Most listeners don’t know, but he frequently does his show from his home in Florida, a state with no income tax.)

Considering how cutting-edge a 39 mph train is, perhaps Strickland’s next innovative plan will involve telegraph lines, river boats, or perhaps a horse-drawn carriage taxi service?

According to Lynn Walsh of the Buckeye Institute, not only do stimulus jobs cost more in Congressional districts controlled by Democrats, but jobs have been “saved or created” in districts that don’t exist.. such as District 00 or District 99.

But the question remains: In those pretend districts during the 2008 election, how many voters were “saved or created” by ACORN and company?

Lynn Walsh of the Buckeye Institute on Dirk Thompson’s radio show (610 AM WTVN) provided Columbus residents with some fascinating research they should keep in mind before voting for Mayor Mike Coleman’s proposed income tax increase:

Click here to listen.

The verbose callers on AM radio are always great fun, and I’d trust them to run the city long before handing the keys over to the tax-raising womanizer who currently runs the show. (Yeah, I said womanizer… As in saying: Mike Coleman probably wanted a Federal appointment from President Obama, but his FBI background check would read like a poorly-written, cheesy romance novel.)

On July 19th, I wrote a review of an Ohio Freedom Alliance event with Maurice Thompson of The Buckeye Institute.  Although my review was quite positive, some black helicopter society members on their forum were quite displeased that I have have no patience for conspiracy nuts.

The Buckeye Institute posted video of his speech today, and here it is in its entirety about what is going on at the 1851 Center for Constitutional Law:

FYI- If you work in the downtown-Columbus area, they are hosting a free “Milton Friedman Legacy for Freedom” luncheon on July 31 with Dan Lips, Education Policy Analyst at The Heritage Foundation.

The Columbus Dispatch’s theater critic, Michael Grossberg, reports that orchestras, art museums, and theater productions are feeling the pinch:

Mark Kilmer of the Buckeye Institute has a quick list of excellent, common sense examples of ways to reform and cut the state budget. Are you taking notes, Senate Republicans?

The most important man in the uphill fight to shrink Ohio’s government, and you probably have never heard of him.