The first Republican debate was this past Thursday, and I know many of my friends tuned in. I settled in and live-tweeted the debate, mocking Donald Trump and making jabs at Mike Huckabee. One thing that I didn’t expect, though, was for my mind to be completely changed about who I planned on voting for in the primaries.
John Kasich went into the debate with very little name recognition. However, by the end of two hours, I knew he had won my vote for president. I believe he has a serious shot at winning the Republican nomination after his performance on Thursday night.
Firstly, he’s the governor of Ohio, a state with 18 votes in the Electoral College, and a state that has voted for the winner in presidential politics since 1960. Watching the Cleveland debate, the audience made it very clear that he is a popular governor – most everything he said drew rousing applause from the crowd.
However, his home field advantage wasn’t the only thing that made Kasich stand out. He consistently gave excellent answers to the moderators’ questions. While he did over-emphasize his humble roots, he perfectly highlighted his outstanding career. He has immense experience with balancing budgets. He was a ranking member of the House Budget committee, where he rose to national attention in 1997 after he created the first deal which balanced the federal budget in over a generation. As governor, he took Ohio out of debt. As he repeatedly stated during the debate, “We went from $8 billion in the hole to $2 billion in the black, and we’ve cut $5 billion in taxes.”
Kasich is in 4th place in New Hampshire polls, which shows that he has gained more Republican support. However, I think Kasich can seriously appeal to many moderates. While this might hurt him in the Republican primaries, this gives him a serious chance in the general election.
Kasich said repeatedly that he’s a strong Christian, which makes him more desirable to many Republicans. However, one part of his faith that he consistently puts into practice is his treatment of the “people in the shadows,” particularly meaning impoverished citizens and immigrants. He pushed Ohio to accept Obamacare’s expanded Medicaid coverage, which helped over 360,000 Ohio citizens get health insurance. He has also said he supports a pathway for illegal immigrants to gain citizenship.
He has also spoken out against Wall Street greed. After his short tenure as an investment banker, Kasich condemned many of the banks that were responsible for the 2008 crash, saying, “There’s a judgement that comes later, about how many people get hurt.”
Many moderates would probably like Kasich’s “F” rating from the National Rifle Association. Kasich backed an assault rifle ban in the 1990s, and the NRA still has not forgiven him for backing the policy.
The biggest stand out moment for Kasich, though, was when gay marriage was brought up. The moderators asked what Kasich would tell his children about gay marriage if they happened to be gay. Although he did initially fall into the “I have gay friends, so I’m not a homophobe” excuse, he drew a lot of social media attention from his statement, “Of course I would love them, and I would respect them.”
The reaction on Twitter was harsh and sarcastic. Many tweets mocked him, saying, “Oh wow, you would love your child. What do you want, a medal?” However, far more people called it the moment of the night. Many of my liberal friends were shocked to hear words of compassion from a Republican. Studies that shown that gay marriage is the biggest reason why independents don’t vote Republican, so Kasich’s viewpoint here makes him a serious contender.
Right now, most people seem to think that Kasich doesn’t have enough name recognition to become the party nominee, but would make a good vice presidential candidate. I disagree with this entirely. It’s so early in the race right now – the first primary votes won’t be cast until February, which leaves plenty of time for Kasich to gather his supporters. The next debate isn’t until September 16th, and while he barely made it into this past debate, it’s safe to say he’s gathered enough fans to keep him in the top ten. (I suspect that Carly Fiorina will likely take the place of Chris Christie or Mike Huckabee.)
Even if you’re not a Republican, it’s important for Tennessee voters to be aware of candidates in both parties. Tennessee has open primaries, which means that citizens can vote in the primaries for whichever party they choose – you don’t have to be a registered member of the party. This means that, for example, if you are a die-hard Hillary fan and you think that Hillary will win Tennessee in the Democratic primaries, you could vote in the Republican primaries. You could use this opportunity to vote for someone you would be okay with as president. The fact that Tennessee is one of fourteen open primary states makes it very important that, regardless of political party, citizens need to know about members of both parties.
As college students, it’s important for us to make our voices heard. With a moderate like Kasich, our government could make serious strides in many issues plaguing our nation. America needs someone who can reach across the aisle and restore sanity to government, and I think Kasich is our best bet.
