Kasich: I’m Not ‘Turning Around’ From GOP Just Because I’m Speaking At DNC

speaks onstage at Conversations About America's Future: Former Governor John Kasich during the 2019 SXSW Conference and Festivals at Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theater on March 8, 2019 in Austin, Texas.
Former Governor John Kasich (R) during the 2019 SXSW Conference and Festivals at Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theater on March 8, 2019 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Amy E. Price/Getty Images for SXSW)
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Former Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R), who has been granted a coveted speaking slot at the 2020 Democratic National Convention (DNC), is making it clear that his conservative politics aren’t going anywhere.

The ex-governor told BuzzFeed News in an interview published on Monday that his speech scheduled for that evening was “not something that I instigated.” Rather, the Democrats were the ones who invited him.

“And when they came and asked, ‘Do you want to do it?’ I had to think about it, right? I had to think about it,” Kasich said. “And it’s not like I’m gonna be turning around. I’m a Republican.”

“But I just think that at this point in time, my Republican affiliation is outweighed by my concern about the direction of the country,” he continued.

Kasich asserted that “both parties have to have new ideas” and that Democrats and Republicans are “not in two warring camps” against each other.

“I don’t care if people agree or disagree with my speaking there,” he said. “Whatever. We’ve got to settle things down.”

The Republican told BuzzFeed News that Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s campaign has not offered him a spot in a potential Biden administration, though he would be “more than glad to advise” the Democrat if he defeats President Donald Trump in November.

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Notable Replies

  1. Make no mistake, Kasich is only trying to save repubs from themselves… and set himself up to run against Sherrod Brown.

    Let’s not give too much to Kssich here.

  2. Why was this horrible Republican invited to speak?

    Don’t fall for his seeming moderation. It will prove to be fake.

  3. the title says it all–no thanks. He is a stone-cold repub who likely supports everything the trump admin has done-especially no daca, trillions to the wealthy, and ending social security and medicare as soon as he can

  4. Avatar for meri meri says:

    Wait til he gets a seat in the Cabinet.

  5. Kasich should be joined by others…

    Schmidt, Frum, Jolly, Wilson, Rubin are more or less in the chattering class.

    We need more people with something personally/politically they have to lose. We need Profiles in Courage and far far less cynicism.

    With the kind of cynicism given credence in the present-day United States, those men tasked with jumping out of LST’s in Normandy 76 years ago would have stayed put.

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