Kasich pledges to reduce size of state government
Written by Kristen Rapin | | krapin@toledofreepress.comNearly 10 years removed from politics, John Kasich is running for governor against incumbent Ted Strickland.
“The state is in deep trouble. We’re losing jobs and losing our best people. With my political and business experience, I felt a responsibility to try and help fix Ohio,” the Republican said. “Ohio has been good to me and I want to give back to it.”
Kasich’s time away from politics has helped him gain perspective on issues that face the state, he said.
“It’s healthy, not just for the country, but for a person, to not hang on [to politics] for too long,” Kasich said. “A ten-year break gives me a different perspective. I understand where Ohioans are coming from.”
Results from a January Rasmussen Reports telephone survey shows Kasich with a lead over Strickland, 47 percent to 40 percent.
Rasmussen Reports is a public opinion polling firm.
“I think during these tough economic times. The governor (Strickland) is working against the economy,” said Ron Rothenbuhler, Lucas County Democratic chairman. “It’s tough to create a positive image in an economy with debt and no jobs.”
Rothenbuhler said people will come out to support Strickland because they understand he is working hard to help them and get the state back on track.
John Kasich
John Kasich (AP)
Kasich grew up in a blue collar Pennsylvania town and attended The Ohio State University.
In 1978, he was elected to the state Senate and served for four years before being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Kasich served 18 years in the House as representative for a district outside Columbus.
During his time in Washington, Kasich was chairman of the House Budget Committee, where he spent 10 years working to balance the budget. Kasich introduced the bipartisan “Balanced Budget Act of 1997,” which gave the United States the first surplus since “man walked on the moon,” he said.
Kasich left politics in 2001 and worked for Lehman Brothers.
He has been criticized for his work with the bankrupt company, but he said that criticism is misplaced.
Kasich, who ran a two-man group in Columbus, said blaming him for the financial problems of the company “is like blaming a car dealer in Toledo for the collapse of General Motors.”
Mary Taylor
Kasich chose Ohio State Auditor Mary Taylor as his candidate for lieutenant governor.
“We have many problems that need to be solved in our state. I need someone as lieutenant governor who will stand up and fight. Someone that can help me analyze activities of the state, and that’s Mary,” Kasich said. “She’s qualified to be governor, has the same philosophy, has done great work as auditor and is a total class individual.”
The lieutenant governor sometimes gets a diminished role, but Kasich plans to utilize Taylor’s talents, he said. The pair haven’t discussed in full what Taylor’s duties will be, but she won’t be placed in the background.
“Mary has the qualifications to have a major impact,” he said.
Taylor, who could have run for reelection as state auditor, said joining Kasich was the best way for her to help Ohio: “After talking with John and with my family about John’s vision for Ohio, I knew the best opportunity to help the state was to run with John Kasich,” she said.
“John has a strong record of accomplishment. In Congress, he identified massive wasteful spending and was key in the {implementation} of the balanced budget. He knows how to get tough things done. When we start talking about things that need to happen here in Ohio, he has a strong message that restores a hopeful vision in Ohio.”
Prior to becoming state auditor, Taylor served two terms in the state legislature and was as CPA in Northeast Ohio. Taylor’s experience in both the public and private sector will help her in her role as lieutentant governor, she said.
“As auditor, I’ve traveled across the state and have seen how state and local governments operate. I’ve seen who’s doing it right and who needs help. This knowledge will help us create a better, more efficient government,” she said.
Issues
Major problems face the state, Kasich said. His first focus will be to balance the budget and reduce the cost of government in Ohio.
Kasich said his experience in Congress as chairman of the House Budget Committee will help him balance the budget in the state.
“The philosophy I used there and the efforts I made there gave me the experience to be able to deal with these problems,” he said. “I’ve seen this scenario before, what I learned will allow me to be successful in Ohio.”
Kasich is also worried about jobs. The state needs to focus on keeping skilled workers and jobs in Ohio. When people and businesses leave things begin to “crumble,” he said.
Kasich would like to train workers for jobs that do exist by creating a voucher program with colleges and tech schools, he said.
Additionally, Kasich would like to create a more business-friendly atmosphere that promotes job growth.
One way would be by creating better regulations, he said.
“We need to create better regulations and get better regulators,” Kasich said. “Bureaucrats need to stop hurting small business and use more common sense. When they’re not doing their job with common sense, they’re killing jobs.”
Another way to help businesses grow is to fix the worker compensation system in Ohio, which has become an impediment for small business to be successful, he said.
“It’s easy for people in politics to look the other way when there is a problem. When you start to make decisions, you start upsetting people, and when you upset people, then you worry about not getting votes,” he said. “If you look at politics as an opportunity to serve the public for a limited period of time, you’re more likely to step up with the right attitude and get things done.”
Toledo concerns
Kasich would like to see Toledo and the region develop its assets.
“Toledo has location and geography. It has manufacturing jobs and exploration into alternative energy. You have to take advantage of assets to make the area a better place, and that is what I intend to do,” Kasich said. “We want to make Toledo a great place, want to improve it and make it one of the great cities.”
Income tax
Press conferences were held throughout the state by Democrats on Jan. 25 to point out the problems with Kasich’s goal to phase out state income tax. Wade Kapszukiewicz, Lucas County Treasurer, hosted a local press conference at the request of Chris Redfern, Ohio Democratic Party Chairman.
“The plan would cause local communities to make a devastating choice — massive cuts in services on one hand, or a massive increase in local income taxes,” Kapszukiewicz said.
Kapszukiewicz based his prediction on the Ohio Legislative Services Commission’s analysis of House Bill 400. The bill, proposed by state representative John Adams, phases out income tax throughout 10 years.
“The Adams’ bill looks and smells a lot like the Kasich plan,” he said.
Eliminating the state income tax would cost the state $12 billion by 2020, Kapszukiewicz said. According to the analysis, the plan would decrease state funding in Lucas County from $23.7 million to $12.9 million and library funding in the county from $15.3 million to $8.2 million.
Kasich’s plan is a way to score cheap political points and capitalize on everyone’s hatred of taxes, Kapszukiewicz said.
Kasich said Adams’ bill is not his program and he has nothing to do with it: “It’s important to note Democrats believe in bigger taxes. I want to get the government stabilized. Make it more efficient, effective and smaller, then explore decreasing taxes,” Kasich said.
Social media
Social media has played an important role in Kasich’s campaign. On Jan. 14, he announced Taylor as his lieutenant governor on Twitter before hosting a formal press conference, which was later streamed live on the Internet.
“I see [social media] as such an important part of where we are today. It isn’t a substitute for traditional media, it’s an addition,” Kasich said. “It’s exciting, fun and interesting. It allows me to build grassroots efforts that at one time I would have thought was impossible.”
On Jan. 28, Kasich hosted an 88-county house party via Webcast. Kasich and Taylor were in attendance, Kasich from a house party in Lancaster, Taylor at the McKinley Day Dinner in Niles.
“It was so exciting to be live in 88 counties and be able to communicate with people in their homes,” said Taylor, who introduced Kasich.
About 153 individual house parties took place with 1,852 participants. Questions for Kasich were submitted through Facebook, Twitter and e-mail.
Kasich spoke with attendees about his philosophy and how they would play an important role in his campaign.
For more information about Kasich visit, www.kasichforohio.com.
