On his recent swing through NW Ohio, John sat down with the Defiance Crescent-News. From the story:
Republican John Kasich is confident he can win Ohio’s gubernatorial race in November, but you’d expect that from a candidate facing an incumbent with lukewarm poll numbers.
You’d also not be surprised to hear that from a former mover and shaker in Washington who once chaired the U.S. House of Representatives’ budget committee and helped shepherd a federal surplus.
That accomplishment might be unfathomable now, but the former nine-term U.S. congressman believes that if he can work such magic in Washington he can convince enough elected officials in Columbus to make the difficult decisions that will make Ohio’s government run more efficiently.
And:
A Brookings Institution study, Kasich noted, found that Ohio is ninth in the country “in putting money into administration, overhead and bureaucrats” and “47th in terms of putting money in the classroom.”
“That’s a sin and a scandal that we should have known about years ago,” he said. “How could that have ever happened? Everything’s on the table for me, but initially we need to have to look at how we change that.”
And:
“Medicaid is a very inefficiently run program right now,” he said. “When we get into the fall I’ll be able to spell out a lot more about what exactly I mean by that. That program can deliver much better services at lower costs.”
Few will argue that point, but some might question whether Kasich can summon enough political support for drastic action in Columbus.
“There will be a lot of them (state legislators) who will think about being elected, and they won’t want to do this,” said Kasich. “So what? … I think most people will support a significant change package, but there will be some that don’t. So every speech I go … I’ll tell them tonight, get ready to drive to Columbus, bring a placard, get ready to stand on the lawn.”
Kasich believes the way state government functions will go a long way in determining how Ohio’s economy performs. And, he uses Indiana as an example.
According to Kasich, Indiana has improved its business environment under Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels to the point where it’s drawing off some Ohio companies.
“Indiana moved quickly with a guy that understands business, and they have dramatically improved the environment over there,” he said. “There’s no reason we should be lagging.”
Finally:
The confidence Kasich exudes about fixing Ohio’s economy isn’t surprising. In the late 1990s he served as the U.S. House’s budget committee chairman, helping craft a federal spending plan in 1998 that produced the first surplus since 1969.
“When I took over in 1995, the projected deficit was $3 trillion and when I left in 2000 the projected surplus was $5 trillion,” he recalled. “I’ve never turned water into wine, but when you can get 218 votes through the United States House of Representatives to balance a budget and through the United States Senate and get it signed into law and actually have it happen, it isn’t a hope and a prayer,” he said. “I’ve done it. There’s nothing confusing about it. You build a team, you point to the goal. What we have here is we have a burning platform. When you have a burning platform you have an opportunity to do things that you wouldn’t do if things were just hunky-dory, but they’re not in this state.”
However, he says any positive changes must be accompanied by a change in the fiscal culture.
“In Ohio, we just can’t change the numbers, we’ve got to figure out how to change the culture,” he said.
John Kasich recently visited Van Wert, Ohio recently. The Van Wert Times Bulletin has the story:
During his time in Van Wert, Kasich stressed the experience he gained in his time in Congress. As the chair of the House Budget Committee, he helped to construct the plan that led to a balanced budget for the U.S. government. A lot of his talk centered on how he wanted to bring a common sense approach not only to state government spending but to tax policy for the state.
During his talk and afterward, Kasich spoke about all the wasteful spending he found when he went to Congress. He carried that idea forward and talked about balancing the Ohio budget and bringing spending under control.
“We have 57 governmental agencies that touch our job training money,” he said. “Now if I started $100 on that side of the room and everybody in here was a government bureaucrat, by the time it got back to that guy, how much do you think would be left?”
On the business side of the economy, Kasich said that Ohio has become uncompetitive, both on a national and international level, because of a tax structure that is strangling investment in the business community. He said that many issues will need to be reformed including the gamut from workman’s compensation to regulation to corporate taxes.
Kasich has gained notoriety for his campaign by saying in the past that he would like to see the Ohio income tax be phased out. Although he did not offer any specifics on Tuesday, he did allude to how he saw that benefiting the state economy.
“As we shrink (this government) and make it more efficient and more effective, we can then reduce the cost of supporting it. Now if you’re a small businessperson and you pay the income tax because you’re a Sub-chapter S, it clobbers you. If those taxes were to come down on the death tax and the income tax, that goes straight to the bottom line.”
John Kasich recently appeared in Putnam County as he travels to all88 Ohio counties. The Findlay Courier had the story:
Politicians should first work in the business world to better understand budgets, a Republican candidate for governor told the party faithful in Putnam County on Tuesday.
John Kasich, a former congressman, said most professional politicians have little understanding of the business world.
And:
Lower taxes, tort reform and reforming workmen’s compensation can revive Ohio’s economy, Kasich told the gathering.
And regulations must be reduced, he said.
“Folks, we can fix Ohio, but it won’t be easy,” he told the audience. “I have a record of doing things, I’m telling you tonight.”
He maintained that young people are leaving Ohio. “We’re one of the highest-taxed states in America,” Kasich said, and he thinks Ohioans are “more nervous about the future.”
One of his recommendations was to give vouchers to businesses to help pay for workers to receive more training.
He outlined his work in Washington, D.C., on the House Budget Committee. When he left Congress in 2000, there was a federal budget surplus and the national debt was being paid down, according to Kasich.
Over the weekend, John Kasich appeared on The State of Ohio. The conversation revolved around creating jobs in Ohio by reducing the size and scope of government and reducing taxes over time.
John Kasich had the opportunity to visit the Arnold Classic in Columbus, Ohio today and witness first hand the huge impact it has on the community. Over 180,000 folks visited the event this weekend. The Arnold Classic has been held in Columbus since 1989 and has been a source of tremendous community pride. Thanks to Arnold Schwarzenegger and Worthington’s Jim Lormier for their dedication to Central Ohio.
On Tuesday, March 9th at 4:00pm, John Kasich will join a panel of area farmers in Paulding County to discuss the future of agriculture and job creation in the state of Ohio. The panel discussion will take place at:
McClure Farms
21460 Rd. 48
Grover Hill, Ohio 45849
We hope you can join us for what we are sure will be a vigorous discussion
