MONROE, Ga. – Ohio Gov. John Kasich didn’t flinch or dodge Tuesday night when asked about issues where he knew he was out of sync with Georgia Republicans, and in the end, the 300 or so people attending the Walton County barbecue gave him a standing ovation.
That reception was the reason the former congressman came to Georgia for a pair of speeches and why he headed next to South Carolina, two key, early primary states. Kasich hasn’t formally announced as a presidential candidate, but he’s admitted to testing the waters.
“I don’t care about focus groups. I don’t care about polls,” he said.
He’ll get into the race if he can muster the organization and the funds to be competitive, he said, and he’s not interested in being nominated for vice president.
His selling point?
“I have experience and results,” he said.
He was the only chairman of the House Budget Committee to enact a balanced budget in a generation. He spent 18 years in Congress as a budget hawk and member of the House Armed Services Committee, and he’s been an executive where he turned around Ohio’s economy by slashing spending and cutting taxes before winning re-election – in a purple state.
Republicans hungry to regain control of the White House recognize the practicality of a candidate who can win in states like Ohio, where he took sizable portions of the union and minority vote. They’re also frustrated that the last GOP tenant in the Oval Office erased the surplus Kasich’s last budget created.
As good as his positives may sound, the crowd in the muggy barn Tuesday night wasn’t enthusiastic over everything about Kasich. For one thing, he expanded Medicare in Ohio while Georgia turned it down. But he said he opposes Obamacare and is formulating alternatives for his state if a coming Supreme Court decision should cause it to crumble.
The hard-core conservatives also didn’t like his rejection of the FAIR Tax proposal, a variation of a national sales tax in place of the income tax that originated with Georgia former Congressman John Linder. Kasich said he instead favors flattening the income-tax rates.
And his answer to a question from the audience about national defense brought a tepid reaction because he criticized the Pentagon for inefficient spending.
He illustrated his point by recounting how, as Budget chairman, he cut 90 percent from the military’s request for B-2 bombers so that he could use the savings in other defense projects. It showed how tight-fisted he can be, but in a state with a large military presence and where military aircraft are built, it wasn’t a universal crowd pleaser.
Still, at the end of his 40-minute talk, everyone stood and applauded, and many stuck around for photos and autographs.
If Kasich was pleased with the opportunity to win over some converts, Secretary of State Brian Kemp was just as pleased because his concept for a regional primary was the reason any presidential candidates have come to Georgia in the first place. Kemp has convinced several Southern states to hold their primaries on March 1 with Georgia to make a larger target for the campaigns.
“I just thought to myself it’s been nice for the people in Georgia to look the candidates in the eye,” Kemp said. “…The candidates are going to have to be aware of what’s going on in Georgia.”
Follow Walter Jones on Twitter @MorrisNews and Facebook or contact him at walter.jones@morris.com.
