Gov. Kasich calls for re-emphasis on families

By Marc Kovac | January 13, 2015 at 12:07a.m.

COLUMBUS

Gov. John Kasich called for a re-emphasis on families and a return to the nation’s foundational values during an inauguration speech Monday that recapped his first four years in office and offered a glimpse of things to come.

He also urged greater cooperation among those on different sides of the political aisle and frequently mentioned the impact partisanship has had on the larger country.

“Let me be clear: Just because someone has a different opinion, it doesn’t make them the enemy,” he said. “We need to welcome different points of view, and you know why? Because it makes America strong. Diversity of opinion makes us stronger.”

He added, “We are Ohioans. We are Americans. We can’t be partisans, and we cannot be extreme ideologues if we are going to deal with the problems in America.”

The midday speech at a theater a few blocks from the Statehouse was ceremonial — the governor took the actual oath of office about 12 hours earlier, during a midnight session in the Ohio Senate chambers, where he urged Ohioans to help renew the state and the country.

“We have a great opportunity to renew the spirit of our nation as we renew the spirit of our state,” he said. “I mean this from the bottom of my heart: If we can unite Ohioans to begin to care about the people who live next door and maybe about the people that we don’t even know. ... If we can do that, we can begin to renew not just our state but, again, renew the spirit of our country.”

During his later speech, Kasich offered a familiar narrative of his first term — the budget shortfall and economic doldrums before he took office and the policy moves his administration made to cut costs, make government operations more efficient and effective and ensure all Ohioans have opportunities to succeed.

Kasich called job creation the “greatest moral purpose,” offering hope and instilling confidence in families. He touted JobsOhio, the nonprofit that spearheads the state’s economic-development efforts, the “most innovative economic development approach in America.”

Kasich said his administration would continue to push policy changes to reform the state’s welfare system, improve its schools, combat drug addiction and refocus on the “basic values that made our nation great.”

The erosion of the latter, he said, “is the most serious problem facing our state and our nation today. ... I’m talking about foundational values ... like personal responsibility, resilience, empathy, teamwork, family, faith. We all know that those values have weakened, and it is essential that we come together and restore them.”

The governor vowed to “tear down the barriers that divide us” and “to show us that we can be stronger together.”