Kasich rules out voting for Clinton but 'no closer' to voting for Trump
Kasich rules out voting for Clinton but 'no closer' to voting for Trump
By DANIEL STRAUSS
09/18/16 09:06 AM EDT
Ohio Gov. John Kasich flatly ruled out voting for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election but also said he was "no closer" to voting for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
Kasich, one of Trump's former rivals in the Republican primary, was pressed by Chuck Todd on "Meet The Press" Chuck Todd who he would vote for. He quickly shot down the idea of casting his vote for the Democratic presidential nominee.
"No, of course not," Kasich said in the interview that aired Sunday.
But when asked if that meant he would vote for Trump instead, the Ohio governor didn't offer a similarly straightforward answer.
"No, I'm not closer," Kasich said.
Pressed by Todd about voting for Trump Kasich said:
"It's very very likely I will not" but added that decision is "too early to make."
"I'll do it when I want to do it," Kasich said.
The comment underscores the distance Kasich has kept from Trump. During the primary Kasich was one of the most ardent critics of the real estate mogul and now Republican nominee. After he dropped out of the presidential race, Kasich decided to skip going to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, even though it was in his own state. That decision spurred then-Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort to say Kasich was "making a big mistake."
http://www.politico.com/story/2016/0...#ixzz4Kci6F3Rp
RNC chief threatens John Kasich, other Republicans who won’t support Donald Trump
By Ben Wolfgang - The Washington Times - Sunday, September 18, 2016
Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus on Sunday threatened Ohio Gov. John Kasich and other Republicans who refuse to support presidential nominee Donald Trump, saying the party may take steps to ensure it’s not “that easy for them” to seek the White House again.
Speaking on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Mr. Priebus said every Republican who ran in 2016 needs to get behind Mr. Trump. Those who haven’t — including Mr. Kasich, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz — could see diminished support from the party moving forward.
“People who agreed to support the nominee, that took part in our process, they used tools from the RNC. They agreed to support the nominee. They took part in our process. We’re a private party, we’re not a public entity. Those people need to get on board,” Mr. Priebus said. “And if they’re thinking they’re going to run again someday, I think we’re going to evaluate our process, the nomination process, and I don’t think it’s going to be that easy for them.”
Mr. Kasich said last week it’s unlikely he’ll vote for Mr. Trump. Mr. Bush has expressed similar sentiments, and Mr. Cruz famously withheld an endorsement of Mr. Trump during the Republican National Convention and instead told Republicans to “vote their conscience” in November.
Mr. Priebus denied that he was threatening Mr. Kasich, Mr. Cruz or anyone else, yet he clearly suggested the party would put roadblocks in front of the electoral hopes of anyone who hasn’t offered a full-throated endorsement of Mr. Trump.
“People in our party are talking about what we’re going to do about this … It’s not a threat. It’s just a question,” the RNC chairman said. “What should a private party do about that if those same people come around in four or eight years?”
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...hn-kasich-oth/
Donald Trump: John Kasich is not on board because ‘he got beaten so badly’
By David Sherfinski - The Washington Times - Monday, September 19, 2016
Donald Trump said Monday he doesn’t really care if people like Ohio Gov. John Kasich endorse him — but he also didn’t contradict Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, who on Sunday hinted at possible retribution for such holdout Republicans.
“I really don’t care. That’s not up to me — that’s up to them,” Mr. Trump said on “Fox and Friends.” “They signed a very, very strong pledge, and they signed it because they wanted me to sign it.”
Mr. Trump is referring to a pledge the Republican presidential candidates took to support the party’s eventual nominee. Several of Mr. Trump’s former 2016 GOP rivals like Mr. Kasich, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Sen. Ted Cruz have yet to explicitly endorse him.
“Now … there were three or four of them that didn’t honor it, and the reason they didn’t honor it is [because] they got beaten so badly,” Mr. Trump said.
“I mean, I beat Kasich so badly that it was unbelievable,” he said.
Mr. Trump said he and GOP Sen. Rob Portman, who is running for re-election in Ohio, have a “great relationship.”
“But Kasich isn’t on board, and the only reason he’s not on board is that he got beaten so badly. He got beaten as badly as anybody can get beaten,” he said.
“I don’t mind it. If Kasich doesn’t endorse me that’s fine,” he said. “But I will say this: He and Bush and all of these people signed pledges.”
On Sunday, Mr. Priebus had hinted at potentially throwing up roadblocks for people who aren’t backing Mr. Trump if and when they decide to run for office again.
“If they’re thinking they’re going to run again someday, I think that we’re going to evaluate … the nomination process, and I don’t think it’s going to be that easy for them,” Mr. Priebus said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
John Weaver, who had been the Kasich campaign’s chief strategist, hit back in a statement Sunday evening saying the Ohio governor was not going to be “bullied by a Kenosha political operative that is unable to stand up for core principles or beliefs.”
Mr. Trump said Monday that Mr. Priebus is doing “a very good job.”
“But it shows he’s a tough cookie. He doesn’t like it when you sign a pledge and then you use their data,” he said. “They signed an agreement … and now they’re violating it.”
“These people all want to run in four years, right? If I were the head of the Republican Party, I’d say you can’t do it, but what do I have to do with it?” Mr. Trump said. “In the meantime, we’re either tied or leading, we’re doing very well, and it’d be nice to have their support, but at this point, I don’t really even care about their support. Whatever happens happens.”
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...ecause-he-got/