Kasich and Portman on GOP’s future

CNN's John King speaks to former Rep. Rob Portman, R-Ohio.

John King will be talking with John Kasich and Rob Portman this Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.” The Political Ticker has a preview entitled: Ohio the proving ground for GOP’s back-to-future bid

In bellwether Ohio, hopes for a new Republican beginning rest largely on two familiar faces from the GOP past.

The governor’s race in this state could potentially be the most important race in the country,” says the man who hopes to be the Republican candidate, former U.S. Rep. John Kasich.

The GOP’s candidate for an open Senate seat, former congressman and Bush Cabinet appointee Rob Portman, has been on the ballot in midterm elections before and frames the 2010 stakes this way:

“The 2010 election is going to be about the Obama agenda and the Democratic Congress agenda and whether they are doing the right thing and people will have to judge.”

When a party is struggling as the national Republican Party is now, candidate recruitment is often a difficult task. But in Portman and Kasich, the Ohio GOP has two battle tested veterans with proven fundraising ability and TV-age communications skills.

I like the focus of both candidates.  They are focused on the right issues (jobs, economy) and are not afraid to admit the GOP made mistakes; while still going after Democrats.  Kasich in particular isn’t afraid to contrast his record with recent failures:

Mindful, though, of the party’s national image, Kasich is quick to stress his independence.

“The Republican Party is my vehicle, not my master,” he said. “I mean I am here to try to bring prosperity back to this state, to make sure families are better off. I’m not here to carry anyone’s banner.”

He is harshly critical of his party’s performance after President Bush took office in 2001, the same year Kasich left Congress.

“They stopped solving problems,” said Kasich, who after his House tenure worked on Wall Street and as a cable TV political commentator and host. “Whenever you don’t have any ideas and are afraid to put things forward, you are going to lose energy. That’s what happened to the GOP and frankly I’m as mad as anybody in this country about what they did in the last 10 years, or since 2001.”

And political science professor Paul Beck at Ohio State University gets at what I have been saying:

Beck sees a campaign centered on one defining issue: jobs.

“If we are a year from now, and the economy hasn’t improved in a big way, I think the Democrats are in trouble — and the Republicans are well-positioned to take advantage of that situation,” Beck said.

And that is the great irony here.  Both Portman and Kasich can say that things were better when they were in charge.  At some point President Obama and the Democratic Conress is going to own the problems they have created and prolonged/exacerbated.  Blame Bush, IMO, isn’t going to work.

Competence and confidence will go along way.  And I think Kasich and Portman can carry that message.