Thursday, March 28, 2024

Conservatives Should Be Skeptical of Kasich

Ohio Gov. John Kasich (photo credit: Michael Vadon via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0)
Ohio Gov. John Kasich (photo credit: Michael Vadon via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0)

While John Kasich appears to be surging in New Hampshire, conservatives may not want to cheer on his candidacy. APP president, and The Pulse 2016 contributor, Frank Cannon is among those calling on Republican voters to reconsider Kasich in light of his abysmal record on important issues.

From Townhall.com:

The organization highlights some areas of concern: Kasich supports Common Core more than any other GOP candidate. On the issue of marriage, he has told conservatives to “move on” and has indicated he will not bend over backwards to defend traditional values. Abortion, an increasingly important issue to voters, especially in light of the Center for Medical Progress’ video investigation into Planned Parenthood, is a topic Kasich said Republicans “focus too much” on.

Overall, he received an “F” from APP.

In a new statement, APP President Frank Cannon responded to Kasich’s momentum out of fear for the future of social conservatism:

“If Marco Rubio finishes third or worse in Iowa, and if John Kasich emerges as a strong second place or even the winner of the New Hampshire primary, things will get very interesting very quickly,” Cannon said. “In that scenario, Kasich could easily become the de facto establishment candidate, a mantle that Bush and Rubio have both struggled to seize. This should concern social conservatives greatly, as John Kasich is no friend to our movement.”

Over at Breitbart, another contributor to The Pulse, Maggie Gallagher, points out that Kasich has been less than stellar when it comes to religious liberty as well:

Influential columnist Maggie Gallagher, who edits the campaign blog thepulse2016.com, said, “Kasich’s response [on marriage] suggests he will do nothing to fight for the rights of traditional believers. And he talks down to us to boot.”

Kasich, so far, has refused to endorse the First Amendment Defense Act that would protect religious dissenters on homosexual marriage from governmental persecution. Kasich said, “Let’s not get carried away here.”

Whether or his surge is for real remains to be seen, but the recent decline of the Christie campaign in New Hampshire suggests Kasich should not get too comfortable.

Paul Dupont is the managing editor for ThePulse2016.com.

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