Catching Our Eye News Roundup, Aug. 28, 2026

Every morning in the Ohio Capital Journal’s free newsletter, The Eye-Opener, we round up the news and commentary from across Ohio and around the country and world that is catching our attention. We call this feature Catching Our Eye, republished here.

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Catching Our Eye

• Pike County data center. WLWT’s Kurt Knue reports, “Data center that could require more power than all of the homes in Ohio being built in Pike County.”

Tech giant Nvidia announced this week that it has agreed to back hundreds of billions of dollars for a colossal new data center being constructed in southern Ohio…

As a result of the gargantuan level of infrastructure and power needed for the facility to operate, the PORTS-Pike Technology Campus appears set to be the world’s biggest data center project ever built by the time it is completed in 2032, with some estimates putting total expenses required to get the facility up and running near $500 billion.

• Buying elections. Reuters reports, “Corporate political donations shatter record at $646 million so far for US midterms.”

Companies donated a record $646 million to U.S. political campaigns in the 18 months through June, 40% more than the total spent during the entire 2024 presidential election cycle, according to new data from watchdog group Public Citizen.

The spenders driving the surge include manufacturing conglomerate Koch Inc. and ​new entrants like online sports betting companies, which poured roughly $76 million into the November 3 midterm elections for candidates in both parties. Big Tobacco and cannabis companies also donated heavily, largely to Republican candidates.

• The ‘rudderless’ US military. The New York Times reports, “Hegseth’s Purge of Top Generals Leaves the Army Rudderless.”

A series of firings and feuds initiated by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has left the Army essentially rudderless as it struggles to deal with the threat posed by cheap, deadly drones and missiles that have pounded U.S. bases in the Middle East.

The Army has not had a chief of staff, the service’s top officer, since Mr. Hegseth fired Gen. Randy George without explanation in April, and there are no signs that he is close to filling the position, said current and former officials speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive personnel matters.

Mr. Hegseth has forced out at least three senior officers who had been viewed as potential successors to General George…

“Hollowing out the most battle-tested and most lethal, proven leaders in a time of war means troops are less safe and we’re less likely to win,” said Representative Pat Ryan, Democrat of New York and a former Army intelligence officer.

A long-term worry is that the firings send a message that officers who provide frank military advice or fail ideological litmus tests have no place in a force that is supposed to be nonpartisan, military and congressional officials said. “We’re doing generational damage to the sense that the military is an apolitical trusted organization that swears an oath to the Constitution, not to a president,” Mr. Ryan added.

• Civilian deaths. ProPublica reports, “Top Commanders Told Hegseth Not to Cut Civilian Protection Program, Poll Showed. He Did It Anyway.”

The U.S. military has killed hundreds of noncombatants since gutting its Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response mission last year. After significant blowback, the Defense Department is considering partially restoring the program.

• Moreno/Miller. WEWS’ John Kosich reports, “Settlement reached in restraining order sought against Max Miller by his ex-wife’s attorney.”

The high-profile legal battle between Congressman Max Miller and his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, continued Wednesday in a Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations courtroom.

The two have been going through a messy divorce involving allegations of abuse with the couple’s 2-year-old daughter at the middle of the fight. Among the motions considered by the judge was one filed earlier this month by Moreno’s attorney, Andrew Zashin, seeking a restraining order against Miller alleging the Congressman grabbed her following a proceeding last month.

The two sides reached an agreement that future depositions would be held at neutral sites and that neither Miller nor Moreno would be allowed to have any contact with opposing counsel outside of depositions or court proceedings. Both sides claimed victory, saying the other side gave in.

• Sandusky County. SignalOhio’s Jake Zuckerman reports, “An Ohio judge was kicked off the bench and suspended. He’s still on the November ballot.”

There are many reasons – 17, to be specific – the Ohio Supreme Court, which oversees discipline of lawyers and judges, suspended Sandusky County Judge Jon Ickes from practicing law or serving as judge for two years. But as of now, he’s still on the November ballot.

Ickes, whose alleged offenses range from harboring blatant conflicts of interest in cases to his use of vulgar or sexist or racist language to defendants or employees, won his uncontested GOP primary for re-election. The allegations date back to 2024.