Over on Facebook, I've been ruminating on the presidential candidates. The GOP race is fascinating as only a multi-vehicle accident can be. I think it bears repeating that Democrats who celebrate Trump's seeming emergence as the Republican front-runner are misguided. Yes it is likely that Trump would lose to Hillary Clinton and possibly to Bernie Sanders. But -- two points should be considered: The first and obvious one is that shit happens in election cycles and it's a long time from July to November. Trump could win. The second point is that the political climate and alignment of cynicism that produces Donald Trump (and Ted Cruz, for that matter) debases our democracy. If we give a damn about the political beliefs and philosophy underlying the system we profess to value we should be in the streets, on the phones, on email and --most importantly--in the voting booth, demanding this insult to our republican legacy stop.
I've read a number of posts and articles insisting the John Kasich is no moderate and is therefore as bad as Trump or Cruz (yes, they mostly come from the left) and it's BS. There is a huge difference between Kasich and his GOP rivals and it is illustrated in how he governs, which BTW his rivals have not done at all. John Kasich believes in governing; Cruz believes in drowning government in the bathtub and God knows what Trump believes in. When Kasich was elected Ohio Governor he initiated legislation that would end public sector unions. It was somewhat more severe that what Scott Walker tried in Wisconsin. Kasich was defeated in the legislature and has respected the democratic process and will of the voters, learning to work with the unions. Kasich opposed the Affordable Care Act; when it passed Congress, he took full advantage of the opportunities it offered Ohio citizens, unlike many other GOP governors who decided to let their citizens pick up the tab for their (the governors') commitment to "principle." He took a lot of heat for his decision and gave a pithy response that Republicans could (and once would) take pride in.
Kasich is a conservative and makes no pretense otherwise. In today's field being sane and responsible is often equated with being moderate, I suppose. The GOP establishment, which seems convinced that the only alternative to Trump is letting Cruz incinerate their chances has failed to get behind Kasich. That fact should be what really gets Democratic hopes up, because he is the candidate they don't want to run against.
I defend John Kasich, not because I agree with his politics (I mostly don't) but because he is--I think--a good man who believes in democracy, and because he is running for the nomination in a GOP field that has run out of good men.
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