HEALTH CARE: The Ohio State Medical Association reports the number of uninsured Ohioans grew to more than 1.3 million in 2003.

TAXES: According to Citizens for Tax Justice, "between 2001 and 2006, Ohio taxpayers will receive $35.6 billion in tax cuts – but will face $145.7 billion in added federal debt, for a net added burden of $110.1 billion." And by 2006, 5 million Ohio taxpayers – 89 percent of all state residents – will receive less than $100 in tax cuts.

EDUCATION: A report commissioned by the Ohio Department of Education found President Bush's No Child Left Behind Act was underfunded for the Buckeye State. It costs Ohio "$1.4 billion more annually than it gets from the federal government for public education," leaving the cash-strapped state to make up the difference.

PENNSYLVANIA

IRAQ: The Bush administration has spent $6.3 billion of Pennsylvania taxpayers' money on the war in Iraq.

ECONOMY: In 2003, The Bush administration projected 142,800 new jobs in Pennsylvania. As of September 2004, the economy had actually created 37,100 new jobs, a 105,700 job shortfall. The state has been hit especially hard in the manufacturing sector, where Pennsylvania has shed 154,600 jobs, a decline of more than 18 percent. Average wages have also fallen. The state's job creation performance is the fourth worst since World War II.

POVERTY: Poverty in Pennsylvania increased substantially in the last year, especially for children. The share of children in poverty has jumped by a third (from 11.6 to 15.5 percent) from 2000 to 2003. The share of adults in poverty increased from 8.6 to 10.5 percent during the same period.

HEALTH CARE: "The growth among those without health insurance is increasing faster in Pennsylvania than it is nationally. According to recent U. S. Census figures, the percentage of people without health insurance coverage in Pennsylvania has grown from 10.3% in 2001-2002 to 11.4% in 2002-2003."

EDUCATION: Due to changes in the No Child Left Behind funding formula, Pennsylvania authorities "estimate that 507 of our 576 districts and charter schools will lose a portion of their Title I [Education] funding" in 2005. Pennsylvania authorities worry they will "lose an additional $9 million in other NCLB programs such as Reading First, Education Technology, Even Start, and Comprehensive School Reform." In May, "Superintendents from 171 school districts in 19 Western Pennsylvania counties…added a loud chorus to the protests against" the act. The school leaders "signed a position paper that they say addresses 'critical flaws' in the controversial federal education law, signed by President Bush in 2002."

FLORIDA