Kasich Campaign Press Release - ICYMI: Chicago Tribune: John Kasich, The Anti-Trump

JOHN KASICH, THE ANTI-TRUMP

Chicago Tribune Editorial

On Tuesday, Ohio Gov. John Kasich took a turn in the same chair. Kasich hadn't even announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination when we, like much of America, first engaged Trump. To the essay question that begins Compare-and-contrast:

If you want a rocking-good time on Saturday night, hop aboard Trump's helicopter or yacht or limo or jet. Bring your own quick wit or you'll soon fall behind. But if you're shopping for, say, a new president for your divided nation, a grown-up who has spent decades proving how capable he is at working the levers of government to deliver solutions, then skip Trump's entertaining show and pay serious attention to Kasich. If enough Americans do, you might see his name atop your election ballot on Nov. 8, 2016.

Even if he had a weak record in office, Kasich would wake up every day as a serious potential nominee. No Republican has won the White House without winning Ohio — something Kasich has done twice, most recently with 64 percent of the vote. GOP strategists get giddy at the prospect of pairing Kasich on a ticket with Marco Rubio (ascendant) or Jeb Bush (not really) of Florida, another gotta-have swing state.

But Kasich, even with his Ohio State diploma, is more than a dutiful Buckeye. His nine terms in the U.S. House gave him 18 years on the Armed Services Committee and six years as chair of the Budget Committee. An Associated Press synopsis of his career notes that in the latter capacity he was "the chief architect of a deal that balanced the federal budget for the first time since 1969."

As governor Kasich eliminated an Illinois-scale budget deficit and grew Ohio's rainy-day fund from 89 cents (true) to more than $2 billion. Ohio's economy is in growth mode and his state government is less bureaucratic than when he took office in 2011.

You can read the full editorial here.