John Kasich Campaigns in Georgia and Addresses the House & Senate

Ohio Governor John Kasich was in metro Atlanta today, making appearances in Kennnesaw and Sandy Springs in support of his presidential campaign, where he is in last place with 8%, according to a recent AJC poll. In addition to the two public appearances, he also stopped by the Capitol to address the House and Senate.

Kasich’s address to the House advocated for a bottom-up approach to government, with more decisions being pushed to the state and local levels, and fewer decisions coming from Washington. Kasich told legislators,

We’ve got to be creative in government, and I believe we should run the country from the bottom up, not the top down. My job as president would be to come back and speak to you about the innovations we’re seeing around the country that are driven by creative legislators and by local governments.

Among the changes one could expect early in a Kasich presidency would be a rollback of federal regulations. Kasich pledged to lower taxes on individuals and businesses and restrain the size of government with an eye to getting the budget in balance. Kasich also pledged to:

• Let Georgia design its own welfare program that fits the needs of its citizens.
• Reduce the number of education programs run by the federal government, and send more responsibility to the states. Kasich pledged to turn education into a 21st century operation, rather than the way we educated kids 100 years ago.
• Make transportation the responsibility of the states. Reduce the federal gas tax except for a few pennies per gallon to maintain the interstate system, and let the states manage their highways.
• Block grant Medicaid to the states so they can use flexibility to create a healthcare program that matches the state’s needs.
• Return job training programs to state control.

Stating that “The Lord has made us all unique, and has made us all for a purpose. I believe we’re part of a big mosaic to try to heal our country and our society and our world,” Governor Kasich said that one of America’s strengths was its ability of its people to connect with one another where they live.  And in closing, he had a message for the legislators in attendance:

You have a greater responsibility, which is to remember your job is to lift people, and not engage in the partisan fighting. We can fight, we can argue, but it should never be personal, Because the people of our state, our community and our country depend on us. But at the same time, we’ve got to encourage our constituents to realize that their purpose is to change the world as well. And if you can engage in that, and motivate them, you will have done a greater service than what you can do in this wonderful chamber.