The R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company is supporting a bid by the Ohio Licensed Beverage Association to amend the Ohio constitution to exempt businesses such as bars, restaurants and bowling alleys from smoking restrictions. The amendment would also override a number of local ordinances banning indoor smoking. To gather 300,000 signatures to put the amendment on the ballot in November, the business lobby is running web advertisements offering $1.50 for each signature collected.

The Raw Story reports that Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert just couldn't wait to get back into his SUV after a photo op and short ride in a hydrogen car.

Weber Shandwick Worldwide, one of the world's largest PR firms, has announced a significant expansion into Eastern and Central Europe. It has opened new offices in Poland, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina and added affiliate offices in Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.