Union members and local politicians protested Gov. John Kasich’s proposed June 3 visit to Toledo to join President Barack Obama in celebrating newly created automotive jobs.

Holding signs urging “K-Sick” to stay home, protesters said the gesture would be hypocritical.

Protesting Gov. Kasich’s proposed June 3 visit

“I think it’s disingenuous for a man who is on a mission to destroy the organized labor both public and private of this state,” said District 2 Toledo City Councilman D. Michael Collins.

Grant Williams from Service Employees International Union (SEIU) in Columbus agreed, saying Kasich would “try to bask in the glory of the auto jobs coming” while “destroying the middle class.”

SEIU project organizer Josh Thurston said the credit for the jobs belongs to Obama, Sen. Sherrod Brown and U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur. Thurston said Kasich opposed bailout money for the auto industry all through his election campaign, and Collins said he had nothing to do with the recovery of General Motors Co. and Chrysler.

“According to John Kasich, we don’t need an auto industry,” Thurston said.

Furthermore, Williams said, Kasich’s budget cuts would suck 51,000 jobs from the state.

Toledo is union town with a very low approval for Kasich, said Ohio Democratic Party Executive Committee member Mike Friedman, who spoke of the governor’s “evilness.”

“This man does not like the middle class,” he said. “He’s strictly a Wall Street boy.”

Collins predicted Kasich would “go down in history as the worst governor this state has ever had.”

But Collins said Kasich’s reception, should he attend, would not be unseemly.

“He’ll be treated with respect because you respect the office,” he said.

Friedman said the city, meanwhile, is very excited to welcome the president

“It’s great,” he said. “He’s coming into a union town and he’s going to really pump up the people.”

A spokesperson for the governor said June 2 that the White House had invited him, and though he appreciated the opportunity, he had previous commitments.

Tags: D. Michael Collins, Governor Kasich, Grant Williams, Josh Thurston, Mike Friedman, Patrick Timmis, Politics, President Obama, SEIU, Toledo, Unions

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 1st, 2011 at 4:36 pm and is filed under Community, Politics.
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