Time Magazine has called out Gov. Bob Taft for his failure to report golf outings and for not leaving office after being convicted of four misdemeanor ethics charges.

The Ohio Republican is one of three governors deemed America's worst in Time's latest issue.

‘‘The Governor was widely considered an inept, ineffective leader even before he ran afoul of the law,'' Wendy Cole wrote for the magazine, citing Taft's failure to address the state's lagging manufacturing industry.

Taft spokesman Mark Rickel said Sunday that he had no comment because he had not yet seen the article.

Taft, serving his second four-year term, pleaded no contest in August to the ethics charges and was fined $4,000. In October, a poll pegged his approval rating at 15 percent.

Also mentioned in the magazine were Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco, who has been criticized for her handling of the Hurricane Katrina disaster, and South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, whose frugality many say is to blame for rising unemployment and falling income levels.