Strickland: Mature leader needed, rival Kasich is too radical

DAYTON — Gov. Ted Strickland painted himself as the grown-up in the race for governor during a speech Tuesday, June 22, to the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce.

“We need really steady, mature leadership going forward,” said Strickland, a Democrat. “Ohio’s future is in the common-sense middle.”

Strickland was speaking at the Crowne Plaza Hotel was part of the Chamber’s Government Affairs series.

Strickland said Ohio’s economy is slowly on the mend and the last thing it needs is radical change — such as former U.S. Rep. John Kasich’s proposal to eliminate the state income tax and the estate tax.

Strickland said Republican Kasich’s plan would cut state revenue by 46 percent, which would require huge cuts in services, and Kasich has not said how he would cover the loss.

As chairman of the House Budget Committee, Kasich proposed eliminating programs for small businesses, trade and technology grants, Strickland said.

“These actions are small business-killing, job-killing ideas,” Strickland said.

Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said their team is “happy letting the voters know who’s right.”

“John Kasich knows that lower taxes are the key to creating jobs and reviving our economy,” said Nichols. “Ted Strickland believes in higher taxes, which is why 16,729 jobs and 940 businesses have been lost in Montgomery County under Strickland’s watch.”

Strickland argued that despite the worst economic recession in decades, his administration is making strides in creating jobs. He ticked off a list of economic accomplishments, including the groundbreaking of the Caterpillar facility in Clayton and 17,000 new jobs created statewide in May.

Despite his shots at Kasich, Strickland struck a bipartisan tone in crediting Republicans for supporting a recent jobs bill and earlier tax reforms that he said make Ohio’s business taxes the lowest in the Midwest.

Strickland said the state budget will remain a challenge. After cutting 5,000 state workers since he took office, Strickland said further cuts and the corresponding loss of services will be even more difficult.

In other remarks, Strickland said Ohio needs a passenger rail system and that the Dayton area stands to gain a great deal from it if opposition by some legislators can be overcome. Otherwise, he said the federal government will give the stimulus money to another state and Ohio will be left out.

Kasich will speak as part of the chamber’s series at 1 p.m. July 1 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel downtown.