I wish the NYT would stop perpetuating the myth that John Kasich is a moderate. Being the only sane grown-up in the room does not erase his record as a consistently conservative legislator and governor. Voters who are even slightly concerned about public sector workers' rights to collective bargaining, or a woman's access to a medically safe, legal abortion will find no common ground with him. On both counts John Kasich is as extreme as anyone in the race today. If speaks volumes about the carnival-barker contest that is the Republican primary season that someone can be seen as a Moderate simply because he is following the most basic rules of polite political discourse.
I'm a liberal and I'd vote for the roller coaster operator in Coney Island before I'd vote for Kasich. Who cares if he has a personality and smiles a lot. It would be like voting for "likable" Ronald Reagan.
Kasich is relentlessly conservative on every issue from pro life to contraceptives to gun ownership to privatizing social security to eliminating privacy to lowering corporate taxes and cutting social services etc.
Why in the world would I want someone who appears reasonable and might be able to get some of his agenda accomplished? He is the last person I'd vote for.
Kasich is relentlessly conservative on every issue from pro life to contraceptives to gun ownership to privatizing social security to eliminating privacy to lowering corporate taxes and cutting social services etc.
Why in the world would I want someone who appears reasonable and might be able to get some of his agenda accomplished? He is the last person I'd vote for.
1
I, as a liberal, don't like Kasich. He is just less scary than Cruz or Trump.
2
For you Kasich should be more scary because of the three he is the most likely to be elected if nominated.
That was the worst debate performance I have ever seen except John Kasich and Ben Carson. They are both gentlemen and they know better than to behave like that. I watched both debates. I was for Bernie, but now will go with Kasich or Carson. They know how to debate. Calling people liars just went too far for me.
I'm a liberal and it isn't that I "like" John Kasich or agree with most of his conservative views, but I've said for months that he is the only Republican candidate who sounds like a human being. I think he would be the most difficult Republican for us to defeat in the general election, especially if he were to choose someone like Nikki Haley as his running mate.
1
I'm really glad to see the better informed readers of the NY Times offering some good pushback here on the notion of Kasich being "reasonable." When he was in Congress most liberals remember that he was a tireless fighter against abortion rights, anti-union, and a champion of increasing income inequality in the form of deficit reduction on the backs of the elderly, the poor and the middle class. That he appears "reasonable" in 2016 because he joined the rest of the educated world and acknowledged climate change ,(though he's opposed to the EPA doing anything about it) is simply testament to how extreme the rest of his party has become.
3
I'll wait to see if he decides to defund Planned Parenthood in Ohio. Kasich really isn't a moderate, he just seems reasonable to people for obvious reasons. Take a good look at his record first. He was also around during the Gingrich years, the beginning of the end for functioning government.
5
I note that the commenters from Ohio do not like Kasich. Perhaps Gov K's problem is that not enough liberals know him well enough to have an informed opinion of him.
3
I received my ballot for the Florida primary yesterday. If Kasich is still a candidate in March I intend to vote for him.
I knew nothing of John Kasich before the first republican debate. I came away from watching it thinking this is a republican I could live with i the white house. But then I am a liberal democrat. So I don't think he stands a chance. To bad.
1
"Gov. John Kasich of Ohio, though a distinct underdog, is the only plausible choice for Republicans tired of the extremism and inexperience on display in this race. And Mr. Kasich is no moderate. As governor, he’s gone after public-sector unions, fought to limit abortion rights and opposed same-sex marriage.
Still, as a veteran of partisan fights and bipartisan deals during nearly two decades in the House, he has been capable of compromise and believes in the ability of government to improve lives. He favors a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, and he speaks of government’s duty to protect the poor, the mentally ill and others “in the shadows.” While Republicans in Congress tried more than 60 times to kill Obamacare, Mr. Kasich did an end-run around Ohio’s Republican Legislature to secure a $13 billion Medicaid expansion to cover more people in his state."
NYTs
OK, vote for this guy Republicans who want to be Republicans but don't want their hands to stink too bad.
Still, as a veteran of partisan fights and bipartisan deals during nearly two decades in the House, he has been capable of compromise and believes in the ability of government to improve lives. He favors a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, and he speaks of government’s duty to protect the poor, the mentally ill and others “in the shadows.” While Republicans in Congress tried more than 60 times to kill Obamacare, Mr. Kasich did an end-run around Ohio’s Republican Legislature to secure a $13 billion Medicaid expansion to cover more people in his state."
NYTs
OK, vote for this guy Republicans who want to be Republicans but don't want their hands to stink too bad.
1
Here's part of the problem within the Republican party: At a time when the demographic trend is working against the Grand Old Party, Republicans are actively arguing against a candidate *because* he appeals to people beyond their base. Folly.
3
More news media nonsense, whether it Rubio being portrayed as GOP establishment when he's factually a T-Party zealot or Kasich who is a straight ahead middle of the road Republican conservative all we are reading is what happens when reporters and editors have totally lost sight of the real world. And probably just can't think of anything relevant to write so they come up with all this stuff not even up to dentist lobby fare.
For those of us who once loved the Times in a different time the fact that it has now lost sight of the important roll is could and should be playing is very sad.
Kasich:
-anti-abortion and choice
-joined the chorus on refugees
-undermined collective bargaining rights
-a balanced budget hawk against taxes
-supported Common Core
-temper and ego (but they all have to have that)
Thank you Susan Anderson
For those of us who once loved the Times in a different time the fact that it has now lost sight of the important roll is could and should be playing is very sad.
Kasich:
-anti-abortion and choice
-joined the chorus on refugees
-undermined collective bargaining rights
-a balanced budget hawk against taxes
-supported Common Core
-temper and ego (but they all have to have that)
Thank you Susan Anderson
1
"Kasich:
-anti-abortion and choice"
Good point. How come he does not realize that a dead fetus has no "path to citizenship"?
-anti-abortion and choice"
Good point. How come he does not realize that a dead fetus has no "path to citizenship"?
1
Just read Susan Anderson's post at your link. He's a disaster.
John Kasitch is a soft hearted pragmatist. He's been all over the Washington political scene and knows how the "sausage is made" (not necessarily a bad thing) he has helped balance federal budgets and governed Ohio with a deft political hand while practically balancing the interests of his political constituencies. The problem is that Americans are not into pragmatism and balance this election. People are polarized by ideology now a days. Divisiveness "Trumps" genuine understanding of the times we live in. Everyone seems to think they can have all the moral and political changes they want right now. No one is interested in big steps, they want giant leaps without allowing time for anything to play out to we see if all the changes are really in the best interests of the voters and the nation as a whole. John Kasich would be a breath of fresh of fresh air but instead we have Trump and "the Bern" and not much thoughtful discussion in between. Unfortunately times like these play right into the hands of despots. Americans don't think that can happen here but it can; and has elsewhere as recently as the 20th century.
1
"Liberals" who are looking at Kasich need to look a little closer. Saddam Hussein would look pretty good if he were standing on stage with Genghis Khan, Pol Pot and Adolph Hitler.
8
No, we don't. We just think he's not a nut job.
5
As someone who leans liberal, I do not like him at all.
I love him.
He has the steadiness of tone that reassures, the moderation of policy that unifies, and the earnestness of faith that uplifts.
I love him.
He has the steadiness of tone that reassures, the moderation of policy that unifies, and the earnestness of faith that uplifts.
1
I posted the following in comments 10/29/13 and also received an editors' pick:
Funny, but when one actually has to govern, it forces one to take the long view, the sensible view, the pragmatic view. Kasich has done this with health care and in the teeth of a GOP-Tea Party legislature, including my tea drinking reps in the state legislature. Good for him.
But let's not gush too much. In the dead of night, without debate in the people's chambers, and surrounded by only men, the guv signed off on the budget with radical restrictions on women's reproductive health attached to it. He signed off on the elimination of the inheritance tax which benefited only the top 9% of the Ohio's citizenry thereby putting unincorporated townships in serious financial straits.
Kasich set up something called Jobs Ohio, a private-public org that ostensibly helps beings jobs to Ohio. And, given that his business friends were running the program, he made sure it couldn't be audited. There have been reports of fiscal monkey business and nothing can be done about it.
He correctly killed a Cincy-Cleveland rail plan that was perfect for 1956 but apparently wasn't pragmatic enough to go for a modern system that we'll eventually need.
With the federal health care money, the governor has applied Sutton's Law: That's were the money is. Again, good on him but that doesn't make him a visionary or, in the overall, even that much of a pragmatist.
Funny, but when one actually has to govern, it forces one to take the long view, the sensible view, the pragmatic view. Kasich has done this with health care and in the teeth of a GOP-Tea Party legislature, including my tea drinking reps in the state legislature. Good for him.
But let's not gush too much. In the dead of night, without debate in the people's chambers, and surrounded by only men, the guv signed off on the budget with radical restrictions on women's reproductive health attached to it. He signed off on the elimination of the inheritance tax which benefited only the top 9% of the Ohio's citizenry thereby putting unincorporated townships in serious financial straits.
Kasich set up something called Jobs Ohio, a private-public org that ostensibly helps beings jobs to Ohio. And, given that his business friends were running the program, he made sure it couldn't be audited. There have been reports of fiscal monkey business and nothing can be done about it.
He correctly killed a Cincy-Cleveland rail plan that was perfect for 1956 but apparently wasn't pragmatic enough to go for a modern system that we'll eventually need.
With the federal health care money, the governor has applied Sutton's Law: That's were the money is. Again, good on him but that doesn't make him a visionary or, in the overall, even that much of a pragmatist.
4
I have never voted Republican in my life, and this will be my 10th presidential election. But I will register Republican tomorrow so I can vote for Gov. Kasich in the MA primary. He is the only appropriate presidential candidate on offer. Without exception, the alternatives are too problematic. He's more conservative that I'd prefer, but he's a mensch. And he gets things done that should be done, by working with both parties. He's the only true moderate in the field, and he's a man of character. If he doesn't survive the primaries, I'll just hope Bloomberg runs as an independent.
4
If the Republican candidates are narrowed down to those not seriously deranged, it leaves the three governors--Kasich, Bush, and Christie--plus Rubio. Rubio now seems to be disqualified for other reasons, leaving only the governors. Any one of them would be a tolerable but not very appealing choice. So where does that leave the Republicans? I am afraid it leaves them choosing among the most acceptable of the seriously deranged.
2
Here in Ohio we know what has happened to school funding and what is near happening to Planned Parenthood under Kasich. Balancing the state budget by taking money from our already unequal districts is not the least palatable to this Buckeye.
9
Kasich may or may not be the most palatable of the Republican candidates. From what I have read, his views are solidly conservative. He seems a bit less draconian on social spending than the rest. But his disposition seems horrible. In one of the earlier debates, I remember he was screaming something about being the only sane one in the room. Arrogant and holier-than-thou, and a loudmouth to boot. They are all gargoyles, sorry to say.
9
Wasn’t Hillary Clinton supposed to be the fiscally conservative/socially liberal/strong on national defense” Midwestern/Eastern seaboard chamber of commerce–type Republican?
1
She would have made a great Republican Candidate in 1988--0r 2000.
2
If this is "moderate" I'm radical.
6
A large part of Reagan's success was his ability to attract those who became known as Reagan Democrats. In today's GOP, the ability to attract Democrats is the kiss of death.
5
Kasich is totally a wolf in sheep's clothing. The fact that this myth is peddled by anyone in the media is evidence of laziness.
16
The Republicans really are running, and have been for years now, on hatreds of every kind, but especially of liberals and those who would work with them, as if that's not their job. It is truly disgusting and depressing, and we will be going nowhere while this hate-fest continues.
5
I am a Sen. Sanders supporter. However, I also like Gov. Kasich. He is experienced and reasonable. Two qualities that I think are important in who governs our country.
4
Kasich is no more a liberal than Sanders is a conservative. What are people thinking ?
16
He has the whiff of Sanity about him
7
Yes, just a whiff
5
I used to believe that Kasich was the adult in the Republican race. 18 years in the House, eight years, I believe, as Chairman of the Budget Committee, Governor of Ohio. He is seemingly not "other-directed" (He has never claimed, like most of the field, to have been instructed to run by God himself) Couldn't disagree more with his politics or his world view, but his subjects agreed with his verbs and he didn't drool.
Last December though, Kasich came out with a proposal to create a federal office to "promote Judeo-Christian values throughout the land". The federal government promoting a single faith at the expense of all others and of those who choose not to believe. This from the "serious" player in the race? This is coming from the country-club-core of the Republicans party. This is what they believe they need to say to attract the attention of their base. This is where forty or fifty years of fear mongering and race baiting and pandering to the knuckle-draggers has brought them. It was barely noticed.
Katich doesn't have a glacier's chance in Greenland.
Last December though, Kasich came out with a proposal to create a federal office to "promote Judeo-Christian values throughout the land". The federal government promoting a single faith at the expense of all others and of those who choose not to believe. This from the "serious" player in the race? This is coming from the country-club-core of the Republicans party. This is what they believe they need to say to attract the attention of their base. This is where forty or fifty years of fear mongering and race baiting and pandering to the knuckle-draggers has brought them. It was barely noticed.
Katich doesn't have a glacier's chance in Greenland.
23
Liberals from Ohio, and even many moderates and conservatives from the state, are not so enthusiastic, especially those involved in local government. Kasich's state budget balancing trick, which he regularly boasts about, was not much more than stealing revenue from local governments and putting it in his own pot. Historically, Ohio's sales tax has been shared between state and local government. Kasich altered the formula to send more money into state coffers, and less to towns and villages. When local municipalities began to face budget crises as a result, he had the nerve to scold them for not being fiscally responsible. His elimination of the state's estate tax was a similar trick. The bulk of this modest tax went to local governments, who used these periodic minor windfalls to make civic improvements they could not squeeze out of tight budgets, like new playground equipment for the local park. Eliminating the estate tax cost the state government very little, but was a blow to small cities and towns across the state. At the end of the day Kasich is a Lehman Brothers guy who got richer after 2008 while the rest of us got poorer. His two election victories in Ohio say more about the moribund condition of the state's Democratic party than they do about his own skills. If he continues to rise in the polls, and begins to get the media scrutiny reserved for serious contenders, he will wilt.
31
After the first debate, I thought he was the only grown-up on the stage, but then I thought Jon Huntsman was a serious threat to President Obama at the beginning of the last campaign. Fortunately, most Republicans seem to prefer outlandish candidates to relatively reasonable ones. Even Katich and Huntsman are too conservative for me, but at least they have a realistic view of the world and of politics.
2
How would the Democrats feel if they let the Republicans pick their candidate?
About a third of all voters consider themselves to be independent. Do we get a say in anything or do you have to be wedded to an extreme dogma to be fairly represented.
5
It's a moot point, because while there always seem to be a few Republicans whom Democrats don't mind, I can't think of a recent Democrat liked or even tolerated by Republicans.
5
Bill Clinton....but not Hillary!
On the social/economic liberal/conservative grid, Kasich is social liberal/economic conservative, with his strongly conservative platform tempered by practical experience and listening to citizens. If this combination puzzles you, watch a town hall meeting in New Hampshire on Youtube.
1
He is a religious zealot who is hiding that fact for the elections. He's strongly anti-choice and will actually try to do something about it. In Ohio, his God talk is frequent. He tried to break the public employees unions in Ohio, but the voters turned that back. Loves to waste money on charter schools; his leader was just caught using fraudulent test scores and run out of the state. This man's wife is a leader in Kasich's campaign. He ended the estate tax causing a wave of local tax increases on workers. He's the worst. He used to be commentator on Fox News, so he is a TV guy, playing the part of a moderate
5
Let's not also forget his unspeakable, elected Secretary of State, Jon Husted. Kasich has done noting to temper Husted's never ending efforts, way-beyond-a-required-ID, in voter suppression.
2
The latest anti-Kasich TV ad goes something like this:
(Voice over provided with graphic)
John Kasich,
xNot a conservative
xNot even a moderate.
./John Kasich, an Obama Republican
Not that I know what an Obama Republican is, but it sounds kinda okay to me. Too bad JK is furiously disputing the claim instead of intelligently leveraging it.
(Voice over provided with graphic)
John Kasich,
xNot a conservative
xNot even a moderate.
./John Kasich, an Obama Republican
Not that I know what an Obama Republican is, but it sounds kinda okay to me. Too bad JK is furiously disputing the claim instead of intelligently leveraging it.
1
I think Obama is an "Obama Republican."
In light of your comments about John Kasich, how do you evaluate Hillary Clinton's notion that she is pragmatic enough to push a liberal agenda through a Republican dominated Congress?
I ask that question because Upshot commentary evaluating candidates seems inconsistent -- praising Hillary as likely to be pragmatic and therefore effective. And then asserting that Conservatives do not even trust fellow Conservatives who express an interest working across the aisle.
I ask that question because Upshot commentary evaluating candidates seems inconsistent -- praising Hillary as likely to be pragmatic and therefore effective. And then asserting that Conservatives do not even trust fellow Conservatives who express an interest working across the aisle.
3
Boehner
He's the only semi intelligent Republican with modest achievements who is running. Unfortunately that means he has no chance of being nominated.
7
It is true that Progressives seem to like John Katich, but I cannot understand why in view of some of his policies such as his latest towards abortions, etc. Yet, he does seem to be acceptable Rep to the MSNBC evening anchors.
7
It's not too high a bar. If he isn't actively drooling on his wingtips he gets the nod.
5
What a candidate believes, what a candidate says, what a candidate will do, and what a candidate can do as POTUS are vastly different things. A voter has to decide what he/she wants in a candidate.
Surely Kasich is not a liberal - he is quite conservative - but what he says, will, plans and can do are realistic and acknowledge that a POTUS is president of all. The issue with today's voters is that they want somebody that is their mirror of believes and that the believes should be the only guide for what a candidate should do as a POTS. As a liberal I can vote for Kasich exactly because he has a realistic view what can be done. Yes, he for example does not believe in the righteousness of abortion. But as a voter I know that he will not try to overthrow Roe v. Wade.
Surely Kasich is not a liberal - he is quite conservative - but what he says, will, plans and can do are realistic and acknowledge that a POTUS is president of all. The issue with today's voters is that they want somebody that is their mirror of believes and that the believes should be the only guide for what a candidate should do as a POTS. As a liberal I can vote for Kasich exactly because he has a realistic view what can be done. Yes, he for example does not believe in the righteousness of abortion. But as a voter I know that he will not try to overthrow Roe v. Wade.
5
Could I vote for him I don't know. The destruction he and other Republicans have done to state governments is actually greater than what they have done to the US in Washington. I'd have to be throwing up at the Democratic candidate to go there.
Despite that, he is comparatively sane and seems to be seeing the same world I do, despite his different conclusions.
Despite that, he is comparatively sane and seems to be seeing the same world I do, despite his different conclusions.
I think it's less that liberals like him than they find him to be the least unpalatable of the Republican candidates...
30
So Very True
1
People who think he's better than Clinton have drunk the kool ade. I wish they'd stop spouting skilled Republican opposition research against her (do Dems know they're being played?).
Try doing a little checking on his positions and actions, and then on hers. She is, in fact, largely a progressive Democrat with some lapses and the potential to do better, given prodding from the left. He is anti woman, anti union, and has done quite a bit of harm on his watch.
Kasich:
-anti-abortion and choice
-joined the chorus on refugees
-undermined collective bargaining rights
-a balanced budget hawk against taxes
-supported Common Core
-temper and ego (but they all have to have that)
Try doing a little checking on his positions and actions, and then on hers. She is, in fact, largely a progressive Democrat with some lapses and the potential to do better, given prodding from the left. He is anti woman, anti union, and has done quite a bit of harm on his watch.
Kasich:
-anti-abortion and choice
-joined the chorus on refugees
-undermined collective bargaining rights
-a balanced budget hawk against taxes
-supported Common Core
-temper and ego (but they all have to have that)
20
It's common knowledge that Reagan couldn't win today's GOP nomination. Kasich surely won't.
Why?
Right wing media and the ability of candidates to avoid fact checking via their websites and comments on Facebook and Twitter dominates the way conservatives gather information (Misinformation). When more than 40% of Republicans think Obama is a Muslim, it's not just the GOP that is in trouble. (There was this German guy in the 1920's who got people to believe all kinds of false information...)
Why?
Right wing media and the ability of candidates to avoid fact checking via their websites and comments on Facebook and Twitter dominates the way conservatives gather information (Misinformation). When more than 40% of Republicans think Obama is a Muslim, it's not just the GOP that is in trouble. (There was this German guy in the 1920's who got people to believe all kinds of false information...)
8
The way the republicans are nowadays Ted Nugent would run away with the nomination for POTUS if he threw his hat into the ring . He might not wear a hat anymore , probably instead aluminum foil or the pot he uses to cook stew so Obama can't send electronic , electrical messages to his boiling , bubbling brain .
5
I have watched this man and worked intermittently with his minions for some while. The liberal fantasy that he is somehow more reasonable than his GOP competitors is just that, a fantasy. He has been a consistent opponent of labor, a drag on our already deficient educational system, and a threat to the environment. Added to this is his character: he is arrogant dismissive, and impulsive, a loose cannon. The notion of him with the Red Phone is as scary to me as Trump or Cruz.
45
Realist, I see you live in Ohio - like me.
7
He may not actually be more liberal, but that perception certainly makes him more electable in a general.
1
Kasich is the anti-Trump, the anti- Cruz and at the end of the day, the anti-21st Century Republican. Perhaps because he has experience and has governed and understands what it takes to be a leader 'of all of the people' he refrains from the tirade and calumny. Being reasonable, judicious, appropriate and I dare say sane is interpreted by your average bellicose talk radio listener or underpaid and overtaxed male voter as weakness. It is the Achilles heel of the GOP that only all or nothing rules the day.
What Kasich learned as a Congressman and preaches as Governor is that compromise and walking across the aisle is how things get done. Reagan knew that. Even Barry Goldwater said that 'politics and governing demand compromise.' However the restraint and clarity that a Kasich brings to the table pales in comparison to the trash mouth of The Donald or a man like Cruz who believes he is acting in the name of God, for so many of the Conservative faithful.
When-and if- the day comes that Republicans get that after the Inauguration the President's constituents are of every stripe and hail from every state a candidate such as Kasich may stand a chance. Until then the Trump brand of hate, personal attack and division will carry the day and a Democrat will once again reside in the White House.
What Kasich learned as a Congressman and preaches as Governor is that compromise and walking across the aisle is how things get done. Reagan knew that. Even Barry Goldwater said that 'politics and governing demand compromise.' However the restraint and clarity that a Kasich brings to the table pales in comparison to the trash mouth of The Donald or a man like Cruz who believes he is acting in the name of God, for so many of the Conservative faithful.
When-and if- the day comes that Republicans get that after the Inauguration the President's constituents are of every stripe and hail from every state a candidate such as Kasich may stand a chance. Until then the Trump brand of hate, personal attack and division will carry the day and a Democrat will once again reside in the White House.
1
I assume that any 'liberal' who actually believes the anti-labour Kasich is a moderate has visited Colorado and is enjoying our bumper crop...liberally.
See 'Senate Bill 5'.
See 'Senate Bill 5'.
12
Here in Ohio, we liberals/progressives know all too well hat John Kasich ain't no liberal -- just look at his record on reproductive rights, education, environment, the list is very long.
37
The reflexive and deep hatred, animosity, and violent rhetoric coming out of the GOP against anything moderate is the product of years and years of hammering against liberals and progressives to the point where many in the GOP base view this as their core rallying cry. But this is a real problem for our politics, because the animosity on the right is not based on any factual basis or reason, but is simply a red herring used for political purposes.
9
He's not moderate in any way, shape, or form. For privatization of prisons, allowing capital punishment, lowest clemency rate of any Ohio governor, for Keystone, supported fracking in Ohio state parks and forests, against medical marijuana (in his medical opinion is does no good and he's NOT a doctor), against LGBT rights etc. He's EXTREMELY socially conservative and thinks it's ok to teach intelligent design as science and he has a non-choice stance for women's reproductive rights (signed 16 anti-abortion measures into law).
His economic policy are also to the right. Restrictive voting laws, no collective bargaining, no estate taxes, Big tax cuts for business, big reduction in income tax, INCREASED sales tax (very regressive form of taxation) funding charter schools, etc. He's hawkish and treasonous (IMO) for undermining our president when dealing with Iran.
His only bit bi-partisan outreach was accepting the medicaid expansion for the ACA and a slightly evolved position on immigration (in 2010 he wad dead set against and wanted to change Constitution to ban birthright).
His economic policy are also to the right. Restrictive voting laws, no collective bargaining, no estate taxes, Big tax cuts for business, big reduction in income tax, INCREASED sales tax (very regressive form of taxation) funding charter schools, etc. He's hawkish and treasonous (IMO) for undermining our president when dealing with Iran.
His only bit bi-partisan outreach was accepting the medicaid expansion for the ACA and a slightly evolved position on immigration (in 2010 he wad dead set against and wanted to change Constitution to ban birthright).
14
"against medical marijuana"....Generally Republicans are attacked for being anti science. You had better be careful, because when you start talking about supporting "medical marijuana" you are getting into the realm of being anti science. if it really has medicinal properties than it should be managed in exactly the same way as all other medications; if you think into should be available to the public as a recreation substance, than you should argue on those merits; but claiming it as "medical marijuana", and not subjecting it to the same regulation and standards as other drugs is a fraud.