IOWA CAUCUSES

John Kasich: 'I'm coming to Iowa ... to show respect'

Jennifer Jacobs
jejacobs@dmreg.com

It has been 16 years since Republican John Kasich has stepped foot in Iowa — but he might be back more often, he told The Des Moines Register on Tuesday.

Kasich is no longer the "young congressman" with no money that he was during his short-lived presidential campaign in 1999. The Ohio governor returns now as "the CEO of one of the most important states in America," as he puts it, toting a record he thinks might interest Iowans in electing him to the White House this time around.

"Barron's ran a front-page story here a couple weeks ago saying they thought it would get down to (Jeb) Bush and me," Kasich said in a telephone interview shortly before his flight to Iowa on Tuesday night. "I'm optimistic about where we are, but we still have work to do."

Live coverage at 11:30 a.m.:Watch Kasich at 2016 Iowa Caucus Consortium forum

Iowa already has 15 Republicans in fierce competition in the first-in-the-nation presidential contest here, including 12 announced candidates and three who have made several appearances here. But Kasich might make a late entry and become the 16th, banking on a history that includes 18 years in Congress in the 1980s and 1990s, 10 years in the private sector and 4½ years in the governor's mansion in a key swing state.

Kasich so far has ignored Iowa, instead saying his likely White House bid will hinge on whether he can secure a victory in New Hampshire, the Cincinnati Enquirer has reported. The presidential primary in more center-right New Hampshire comes a week after the Iowa caucuses, which typically attract a sizable bloc of Christian conservatives.

But Kasich told the Register on Tuesday that he hasn't ruled out competing in Iowa for a second time.

"It has yet to be decided as to how much we'll put into Iowa," he said. "But I'm coming to Iowa because I want to show respect to the people of Iowa."

A recent Iowa Poll shows a majority of likely GOP caucusgoers — 59 percent — don't know enough about Kasich to form an opinion of him. He acknowledged Tuesday that some Iowans probably don't even know how to say his last name. "My name is pronounced KAY-sick — it rhymes with basic," he said.

Asked what made him drop out early from the 2000 presidential race, he answered with a laugh: "Because I couldn't win. I didn't have any money, and I was just a young congressman at that point. George Bush was a steamroller, and he steamrolled all the way through. And I didn't want to be pursuing something that I didn't think I could win."

Some positions could pose hurdles in Iowa

Kasich could face problems in the 2016 race, too. He embraced Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act and Common Core education standards — two positions that likely won't sit well with some conservative caucusgoers in Iowa.

"What to expect when I get there? I don't know," he told the Register on Tuesday. "I'm looking forward to being there."

(That's somewhat different from what Kasich told an Ohio newspaper's editorial board in September 2014, when he seemed to take a shot at Iowa when he was asked about a 2016 bid. "Honestly, I just don't see it. I tried it once. You come with me. You can go with me out to Iowa. You wouldn't believe it. You'd never go to Iowa again ... I don't expect anything. I don't even think about it," he told the Youngstown Vindicator's editorial board.)

Although there have been recent news reports about how Kasich loves being governor, and about how he has taken to campaign-style events with happy relish, there have also been reports of concerns about a hot temper.

Politico wrote that at a conference organized by billionaire Republicans Charles and David Koch last year, another wealthy contributor questioned his decision to enlarge Medicaid and his view that it was what God wanted. Kasich reportedly fired back: "I don't know about you, lady, but when I get to the pearly gates, I'm going to have an answer for what I've done for the poor."

On Tuesday, Kasich told the Register: "To me, it's not just a moral issue. It's a matter of simple arithmetic, too. You either put the drug-addicted and the mentally ill in prison, at the cost of $22,500 a year per person, or you can treat them and get them rehabbed and get them on their feet to be able to pursue their God-given purpose. Or you could have the working poor visit emergency rooms when they're sicker and more expensive, or you can give them some rational health care."

Asked what Iowans need to know about his personality, including any possible hotheadedness, Kasich at first sidestepped the question by laying out his accomplishments, including his 10 years in the private sector (the banking industry) and his budget work in Ohio and in Congress. When the Register reworded the question, he said: "If you can't control yourself, you can't get those results."

He said: "You have to be able to put the teams together. You have to have a vision. You have to be able to push."

Has foreign policy, budget experience

Asked what his campaign would be about if he were to run for president and how he would define himself, he said: "Well, I don't define myself. So you're going to have to define me yourself. I think people have always not known how to define me."

Kasich, who has been described as a moderate Republican, said his resume is unique.

"I have foreign policy experience. I served on the Defense Committee for 18 years," he said. "I was also chairman of the Budget Committee with the significant accomplishment of balancing the budget."

Kasich said he doesn't have "anything solid yet" for a timeline for a possible presidential announcement.

"We've got people thinking about it and working on it. We have not made a decision yet, and we have some internal metrics that we measure ourselves against," including fundraising.

"We feel pretty good that we are able to come closer and closer to meeting those metrics, but it's not all done yet," he said.

Asked if he thinks he can match Bush, who has reportedly raised $100 million for his super political action committee, or competitors like Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, the current frontrunner in polling in Iowa, or Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, Kasich said he's not sure.

"I have no idea how much their money is," he said. "You just have to have enough to be able to compete."

KASICH'S IOWA DEBUT

Here's what Ohio Gov. John Kasich is doing Wednesday on his first Iowa trip of the 2016 presidential election cycle:

9:15 a.m.: Attends the National Junior High Rodeo at the Jacobson building, Iowa State Fairgrounds, Des Moines.

11:30 a.m.: Speaks at the first forum held by the 2016 Iowa Caucus Consortium, an initiative of the Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureau, Greater Des Moines Partnership, Iowa Economic Development Authority, Drake University and The Des Moines Register in partnership with the Iowa Democratic Party and the Republican Party of Iowa. The event will be at the State Historical Building, 600 E. Locust St., Des Moines. See it live at DesMoinesRegister.com/LiveVideo.

1 p.m.: Speaks at the Bull Moose Club meeting, Des Moines Embassy Club, 666 Grand Ave., Des Moines. (Event is private.)

5 p.m.: Tours Iowa Western Community College, Iowa Western Community College, 2700 College Road, Council Bluffs.

5:30 p.m.: Does a meet and greet at Iowa Western Community College's Student Center.

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