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The State of Ohio

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We're more than a year out from the primary for governor and other statewide offices, but the campaign among Republicans is in full swing. A conversation with GOP candidate for governor Vivek Ramaswamy (R), this week in "The State of Ohio".

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00:00:38	We're more than a year
00:00:38	out from the primary
00:00:40	for governor
00:00:40	and other statewide offices,
00:00:43	but the campaign among
00:00:43	Republicans is in full swing.
00:00:46	A conversation
00:00:46	with GOP candidate
00:00:47	for governor, Vivek Ramaswamy,
00:00:49	this week
00:00:49	in the state of Ohio.
00:01:09	Welcome to the state of Ohio.
00:01:11	I'm Karen Kasler.
00:01:12	The 2026 primary is May 5th,
00:01:12	almost a year away,
00:01:16	and a new governor will be
00:01:16	chosen six months later.
00:01:19	We'll be covering
00:01:19	this campaign for governor
00:01:21	and other statewide offices
00:01:22	by the Republicans
00:01:22	and the Democrats.
00:01:24	I spoke
00:01:24	with Democratic candidate
00:01:26	Amy Acton in February
00:01:27	and Republican candidate
00:01:27	Dave Yost in March.
00:01:30	This week, a chat with tech
00:01:30	billionaire and former
00:01:33	GOP candidate
00:01:33	for president Vivek Ramaswamy,
00:01:35	who had been appointed to lead
00:01:35	President Trump's Department
00:01:38	of Government Efficiency
00:01:38	alongside Elon Musk,
00:01:41	but left as Trump
00:01:42	was inaugurated
00:01:42	to run for office in Ohio.
00:01:45	Let's start
00:01:45	with a quick pitch to voters.
00:01:47	So why should they elect
00:01:47	you governor?
00:01:49	Look, I want to lead Ohio
00:01:49	to the next level of greatness
00:01:52	in America.
00:01:53	I don't want Ohio
00:01:53	just to be
00:01:54	one of the better states
00:01:54	in the Midwest,
00:01:56	because, Karen,
00:01:56	we are one of the
00:01:58	better states in the Midwest,
00:01:58	actually.
00:01:59	And I give great credit
00:02:00	to the people who came
00:02:01	before me for having led
00:02:01	our state to a great place.
00:02:05	But great isn't good enough.
00:02:07	I want to lead Ohio to be
00:02:07	the top state in the country,
00:02:10	to raise a young family, to
00:02:10	generate and keep your wealth,
00:02:14	and to give our kids a world
00:02:14	class education.
00:02:16	And that's very personal to me
00:02:16	because I was born
00:02:19	and raised in Cincinnati,
00:02:19	Ohio.
00:02:20	I'm a product of public
00:02:20	education
00:02:22	in Princeton schools
00:02:22	through eighth grade.
00:02:24	I went to Saint X
00:02:24	for high school.
00:02:26	I've achieved
00:02:26	an American dream
00:02:28	in this state that my parents
00:02:28	never imagined possible
00:02:31	when they came here
00:02:31	from India, 45 years ago.
00:02:34	That's the American dream
00:02:34	I want to pass on to our kids
00:02:38	and their generation
00:02:39	so they can live that right
00:02:39	here in our state of Ohio.
00:02:42	Rather than pursuing
00:02:42	opportunity elsewhere.
00:02:45	It's very personal to me.
00:02:46	I'm guided
00:02:46	by gratitude to the state
00:02:48	and to this country
00:02:48	for allowing me
00:02:50	to have lived this life
00:02:50	that we've been given,
00:02:52	and I want to pass
00:02:52	that forward.
00:02:54	One of your main policy ideals
00:02:56	is to make Ohio
00:02:56	a zero income tax state
00:02:58	and put a cap on property
00:02:58	taxes.
00:03:00	So let's talk about the income
00:03:00	tax part for sure.
00:03:02	How can you replace
00:03:02	the $10 billion that comes in
00:03:05	from the income tax
00:03:05	to the state every year?
00:03:07	Or how can you cut
00:03:07	$10 billion in spending?
00:03:10	So it's going to be step
00:03:10	by step. And I said it's
00:03:12	going to be a gradual process
00:03:12	to get there.
00:03:14	But the first thing
00:03:15	Karen is that
00:03:16	if we plant that marker
00:03:16	in the ground as a goal
00:03:19	and have a credible plan
00:03:19	to get there, which we do,
00:03:22	that will allow us to attract
00:03:22	people back into the state.
00:03:25	Right now.
00:03:25	So many people
00:03:25	moved to the state of Florida
00:03:27	or Tennessee or Texas
00:03:27	to avoid that income tax.
00:03:30	In Ohio.
00:03:31	We're missing out on the sales
00:03:32	tax revenue of the people
00:03:32	who move out,
00:03:34	even the people who spend six
00:03:34	months in a day in Florida.
00:03:37	We all know people
00:03:37	in that category in the state
00:03:39	probably have neighbors
00:03:39	in that category.
00:03:42	The truth of the matter
00:03:42	is we're missing out
00:03:42	on their economic activity
00:03:45	and their sales tax
00:03:45	in the meantime.
00:03:47	So one of the first things
00:03:48	I'd like to do,
00:03:48	and I'll get specific here,
00:03:50	one of the first things
00:03:50	I'd like to do is at least to
00:03:52	eliminate immediately
00:03:53	the tax on capital gains
00:03:53	income in Ohio.
00:03:57	What that's going to do
00:03:57	is attract
00:03:58	capital owners to our state
00:03:58	to stay in our state.
00:04:01	Right now,
00:04:01	if people want to sell
00:04:01	their company,
00:04:02	they're going to move
00:04:02	to Florida.
00:04:04	They're going to move to
00:04:04	Tennessee, a different state.
00:04:06	Instead, if they stay here,
00:04:06	when they get that liquidity,
00:04:09	they spend that money.
00:04:10	We want them
00:04:11	spending it in Ohio rather
00:04:11	than in a different state.
00:04:14	So that's an example
00:04:14	of being smart step by step,
00:04:17	getting us eventually
00:04:17	to zero income tax.
00:04:19	Start with the first step
00:04:19	of a zero capital gains tax.
00:04:22	Start with the step of also
00:04:24	consolidating
00:04:24	some of the excess
00:04:25	spending that really isn't
00:04:25	helping anybody in our state.
00:04:29	And then look at added
00:04:29	sources of revenue,
00:04:31	which we're not fully
00:04:31	exploiting right now.
00:04:34	Think about out-of-staters
00:04:34	who travel in hotel taxes
00:04:37	or tourism taxes.
00:04:38	That's something that
00:04:38	Florida does a great job of.
00:04:40	We're not yet fully
00:04:40	exploiting in this state.
00:04:43	I want to get more people
00:04:43	visiting our state.
00:04:45	That's the other thing
00:04:45	that I'd like to do
00:04:46	with a beautiful
00:04:46	northern coast that we have.
00:04:49	So that combination of driving
00:04:49	tourism into our state,
00:04:52	that combination
00:04:52	of driving economic activity
00:04:54	in our state,
00:04:55	bringing the capital gains
00:04:55	tax rate down to zero,
00:04:58	that spurs
00:04:58	new economic activity,
00:05:00	puts us on a path
00:05:00	to zero income taxation.
00:05:03	And the fact of the matter is,
00:05:03	there are eight
00:05:05	other states in the country
00:05:05	that have done it.
00:05:07	If they've done it,
00:05:07	so can we were the state
00:05:09	that put a man on the moon?
00:05:10	This won't be
00:05:10	the most difficult
00:05:11	feat we've accomplished, but
00:05:11	it will help address Karen.
00:05:15	What I see is
00:05:15	one of the most vital problems
00:05:17	that we're facing as a state
00:05:17	right now.
00:05:20	That's our population decline.
00:05:22	We have more people moving
00:05:22	out of Ohio than moving in,
00:05:25	and the people moving out
00:05:26	tend to be younger, college
00:05:26	educated people.
00:05:29	The people moving in
00:05:29	tend to be on government aid.
00:05:31	Demographically, that's
00:05:31	a big challenge for our state.
00:05:34	We've got to turn that around
00:05:36	and the brain drain
00:05:36	and the capital drain,
00:05:39	and the way we do
00:05:40	that is by making our state
00:05:40	as competitive
00:05:42	as we can be on tax policy
00:05:42	and regulatory policy
00:05:46	to actually drive
00:05:46	economic growth in Ohio.
00:05:50	That's the number one thing
00:05:50	I'm going to deliver
00:05:50	as the next governor.
00:05:52	Governor Mike
00:05:52	DeWine has said as governor
00:05:54	that he's never had a business
00:05:54	say that income tax
00:05:57	is the reason
00:05:57	that they came here,
00:05:58	or that they might be
00:05:58	considering leaving here.
00:06:01	And indeed, there's
00:06:01	an example of Kansas
00:06:04	as a state
00:06:04	that tried to cut income taxes
00:06:05	and had to back off of that.
00:06:07	How do we
00:06:07	how does Ohio avoid that?
00:06:09	Well, the number one thing
00:06:09	you do hear from businesses
00:06:11	not coming to our state
00:06:11	or moving out of our state
00:06:13	is a workforce shortage
00:06:13	in our state.
00:06:15	And part of the reason we have
00:06:15	that workforce shortage
00:06:17	and that brain
00:06:17	drain of young people
00:06:19	who pursue the American dream
00:06:19	in a different state
00:06:21	is because our state
00:06:21	isn't quite as competitive
00:06:24	on tax policy as certain
00:06:24	other states like Tennessee,
00:06:27	Texas, Florida, Nevada,
00:06:30	New Hampshire, North
00:06:31	Carolina is now headed
00:06:31	in that same direction.
00:06:34	Even Mississippi
00:06:35	earlier this year took steps
00:06:35	in that direction.
00:06:37	So I want to make sure
00:06:37	our state of Ohio
00:06:39	is not playing from behind.
00:06:41	I want Ohio
00:06:41	to be leading from the front.
00:06:43	And one of the top things
00:06:43	I'm going to do
00:06:45	as governor is reverse
00:06:45	that population decline.
00:06:48	We're 11 million
00:06:48	people and shrinking today.
00:06:51	We're going to be
00:06:51	15 million people and growing
00:06:51	by the time I'm done
00:06:55	as governor.
00:06:55	That addresses
00:06:55	our workforce shortage issues.
00:06:58	It addresses
00:06:58	our revenue issues.
00:06:59	Think about what that does
00:06:59	to our sales tax revenue.
00:07:02	That's where I'm focused,
00:07:02	is not chasing our past,
00:07:05	but chasing our future
00:07:05	through economic growth
00:07:08	and the
00:07:08	educational achievement
00:07:10	hurdle we're going to have
00:07:10	to overcome in our state
00:07:12	to actually achieve
00:07:12	that in the long run.
00:07:14	That's where I'm focused.
00:07:15	I want to talk to you
00:07:15	about education, too,
00:07:16	about the property tax.
00:07:17	How do you fund schools
00:07:17	and law enforcement
00:07:20	and libraries
00:07:20	and fire departments and,
00:07:22	and all the things that
00:07:23	local property taxes do fund
00:07:23	if you cap property taxes,
00:07:27	and how do you award merit
00:07:27	pay for teachers,
00:07:30	which is another thing
00:07:30	you've talked about.
00:07:31	How do you do that with less
00:07:31	property tax revenue?
00:07:34	Well, a couple of
00:07:34	different questions there.
00:07:36	Number one is
00:07:36	I want to applaud
00:07:37	at least the state legislature
00:07:37	right now for the first time
00:07:40	in the modern
00:07:41	history of our state,
00:07:41	at least listening to Ohioans
00:07:44	who when you travel the state,
00:07:44	I don't care
00:07:46	if you're Republican
00:07:46	or Democrat.
00:07:47	People believe,
00:07:48	and I think correctly believe
00:07:48	that their property taxes
00:07:51	have recently gotten
00:07:51	way too high.
00:07:53	This is something that's
00:07:53	always been the case in Ohio,
00:07:55	but it's a relatively recent
00:07:55	issue.
00:07:57	In the last half decade or so,
00:07:59	property
00:07:59	tax rates have gone up.
00:08:01	So we've funded our state
00:08:01	plenty fine in the past.
00:08:04	But part of what's happened
00:08:04	is many people
00:08:06	don't even know
00:08:06	what they're voting for
00:08:06	when they vote
00:08:08	for those increases
00:08:08	in those levies.
00:08:10	So I'm for common
00:08:10	sense reforms.
00:08:12	And one of the common
00:08:12	sense reforms I favor, Karen.
00:08:14	And I
00:08:14	would hope that
00:08:14	everybody agrees with me on
00:08:15	this is that people
00:08:17	should at least know
00:08:17	what they're voting for.
00:08:19	When they're voting
00:08:19	for a property tax increase.
00:08:22	The fact of the matter
00:08:22	is, it's pretty confusing
00:08:23	the way the Battle Belt
00:08:23	language is written today.
00:08:25	20 mill flawed millage.
00:08:28	Nobody knows what the heck
00:08:28	millage even is.
00:08:30	So I just believe in
00:08:30	transparency.
00:08:32	Tell the voter
00:08:33	if your house is $200,000,
00:08:33	here's
00:08:35	how much more your property
00:08:35	taxes are going to go up
00:08:37	if this increase passes.
00:08:39	If your house is $300,000,
00:08:41	how much more
00:08:41	is that going to be?
00:08:42	I think it's a really fair
00:08:42	common sense reform
00:08:45	that I think would stem
00:08:45	the increase
00:08:47	in the property tax rates.
00:08:49	So I do think that's something
00:08:49	that most
00:08:51	Ohioans are in favor of now
00:08:51	when it comes to education.
00:08:54	I am a crusader for improving
00:08:54	educational standards
00:08:57	in the state
00:08:57	and in the country.
00:08:59	For every student to be able
00:08:59	to live their version
00:09:02	of the American dream.
00:09:03	I mean, that is foundational
00:09:03	to America.
00:09:05	I believe a world class
00:09:07	education is your birthright
00:09:07	as an Ohioan.
00:09:10	But the real question
00:09:10	we ought to be asking is,
00:09:13	how well are we spending
00:09:13	in our educational system
00:09:16	in this state?
00:09:16	How well are we spending
00:09:16	the dollars
00:09:18	that are already allocated
00:09:18	to public education?
00:09:21	And the answer, sadly,
00:09:21	right now is poorly.
00:09:24	There's
00:09:24	no way around that fact.
00:09:26	A majority of dollars
00:09:26	in our public schools
00:09:28	don't even go to classroom
00:09:28	instruction.
00:09:31	I think it's a failure.
00:09:32	I want to see a greater
00:09:32	portion of the dollars,
00:09:34	not just go
00:09:34	into infrastructure,
00:09:36	overhead, or bureaucracy,
00:09:37	but actually going to be able
00:09:39	to reward our public school
00:09:39	teachers.
00:09:41	I don't think it's possible
00:09:41	to live the American dream
00:09:44	on a starting
00:09:44	salary of $40,000 a year,
00:09:44	which is what it is for public
00:09:47	school
00:09:47	teachers across our state.
00:09:49	I'm glad you brought that up,
00:09:50	because I want to ask you
00:09:50	about that. Absolutely.
00:09:52	I think the best public school
00:09:52	teachers deserve to be paid
00:09:55	a lot more than they are
00:09:55	right now,
00:09:57	or else
00:09:57	we're not going to be able
00:09:58	to track
00:09:58	the very best in teaching.
00:10:00	And I say, this is somebody,
00:10:00	as I said earlier, I'm
00:10:02	a product of public education
00:10:02	in Ohio.
00:10:05	that's
00:10:05	what I'm bringing to the table
00:10:06	here is not just
00:10:06	the traditional conservative
00:10:08	solution of school choice,
00:10:08	which I do favor, by the way.
00:10:11	I think that
00:10:11	there's great evidence
00:10:13	suggesting that school choice
00:10:13	helps actually
00:10:15	public schools perform
00:10:15	better through competition.
00:10:17	But I also want to go further
00:10:17	and do the harder work
00:10:20	of making sure
00:10:21	that our public schools
00:10:21	are equipped to compete
00:10:24	with the best
00:10:24	of the alternatives.
00:10:26	And the data would suggest
00:10:26	I'm driven by the facts here.
00:10:29	The data would suggest that
00:10:29	just throwing more money
00:10:31	at those public schools
00:10:31	without actual accountability
00:10:34	isn't working.
00:10:35	The public schools
00:10:36	where we're spending
00:10:37	the most money per student,
00:10:38	Tara Care
00:10:39	is not actually the ones where
00:10:41	we're actually
00:10:41	making the most progress.
00:10:43	Those are the ones
00:10:43	where our students
00:10:44	are performing the worst.
00:10:46	And so we have to think
00:10:46	about the model
00:10:48	of how we're using the money
00:10:48	that's already being spent.
00:10:51	And I want to improve that
00:10:51	rate of return, in part by
00:10:54	directing more of those funds
00:10:54	to classroom instruction.
00:10:58	That's
00:10:58	where the money belongs.
00:10:59	That's
00:10:59	going to be good for teachers.
00:11:01	But most importantly,
00:11:02	it's going to be good
00:11:02	for the students in this state
00:11:05	where we need to excel in math
00:11:05	and reading and writing
00:11:08	and civic education
00:11:08	and financial literacy.
00:11:11	So in my core areas of focus
00:11:11	as the next governor
00:11:13	isn't part of the problem here
00:11:14	in terms of attracting
00:11:14	teachers,
00:11:16	is that starting pay,
00:11:16	like you just mentioned,
00:11:18	starting
00:11:18	pay is so low
00:11:18	that a lot of people forgo
00:11:21	potentially
00:11:21	going into education.
00:11:23	How do you fix that?
00:11:24	Before
00:11:24	you get to the merit pay idea
00:11:27	if you have less property tax?
00:11:28	Well, I think those
00:11:28	I think these go together.
00:11:30	I think
00:11:30	in the long run
00:11:30	we got to be open
00:11:32	minded to new ways of funding
00:11:32	our public school system.
00:11:34	In the long run.
00:11:35	I actually think
00:11:35	that's essential over time.
00:11:38	But in the meantime,
00:11:39	we've got to look at how
00:11:39	well the existing schools
00:11:42	are spending
00:11:42	their existing budgets.
00:11:44	And right now they're not
00:11:44	spending that money. Well.
00:11:46	And so I want more
00:11:46	of that money going
00:11:48	not to overhead
00:11:48	or to bureaucracy,
00:11:50	but to classroom instruction.
00:11:52	And then when you look at
00:11:52	rewarding teachers,
00:11:53	should every body be paid
00:11:53	the exact same amount,
00:11:56	regardless of how
00:11:56	well they're doing?
00:11:58	That doesn't make any sense.
00:11:59	That's not how it works in
00:11:59	other sectors of the economy.
00:12:02	You want the very best
00:12:02	to be rewarded, even more.
00:12:05	There's a good debate to be
00:12:05	had, and I
00:12:07	welcome that discussion
00:12:07	about how you measure that.
00:12:09	That's a discussion
00:12:09	we ought to have and ought
00:12:11	to make sure that we're not
00:12:11	creating distorted incentives.
00:12:13	But the status quo isn't
00:12:13	working.
00:12:15	The status
00:12:15	quo of just total mediocrity,
00:12:17	of even teachers
00:12:17	who are performing
00:12:19	every bit
00:12:19	as poorly as the lowest
00:12:21	standard,
00:12:21	and having the best teachers
00:12:23	be held back by that, and
00:12:23	being paid the same amount.
00:12:25	That's wrong.
00:12:26	So we want to track
00:12:26	the very best.
00:12:29	I'll give you another example
00:12:29	of a common sense
00:12:30	reform that we could use
00:12:30	in our cities.
00:12:32	There are actually barriers
00:12:32	to well-meaning elder
00:12:35	individuals
00:12:35	who want to volunteer,
00:12:37	who have the skill sets
00:12:37	to teach kindergartners
00:12:40	or first graders
00:12:40	or second graders.
00:12:42	And I've heard troubling
00:12:42	stories of how difficult
00:12:45	it is
00:12:45	to even engage as a full time
00:12:46	volunteer
00:12:46	in our public schools.
00:12:48	These are common sense reforms
00:12:48	that aren't left versus
00:12:51	right or inner city
00:12:51	versus rural.
00:12:54	I want to lift up
00:12:54	every Ohioan,
00:12:56	both by allowing
00:12:56	our public schools
00:12:58	to compete with the best
00:12:58	of the alternatives,
00:13:00	while also giving every parent
00:13:02	the financial means to be able
00:13:02	to choose
00:13:04	the best possible place
00:13:04	to send their kids to school.
00:13:07	You mentioned
00:13:07	and you talked about a lot of
00:13:09	education,
00:13:09	not only a lot here,
00:13:10	but in your travels
00:13:12	around the state
00:13:12	in the Lincoln Day dinners
00:13:13	that you've done
00:13:13	and everything
00:13:14	you have just talked
00:13:14	about education
00:13:17	being a birthright
00:13:17	and a high quality education.
00:13:20	Yes, a birthright,
00:13:20	I believe that.
00:13:21	Do you believe that education
00:13:21	is a fundamental right?
00:13:24	I do,
00:13:25	I do, I do believe
00:13:27	education is the foundation
00:13:27	of the American dream.
00:13:30	I believe every kid,
00:13:30	regardless of the zip code
00:13:33	they're born
00:13:33	in, ought to have access to
00:13:33	the best possible education,
00:13:37	and they shouldn't
00:13:37	be held back
00:13:39	by where they happen
00:13:39	to be born.
00:13:41	That's why I support
00:13:42	taking our school choice
00:13:42	programs to the next level.
00:13:44	But I also think
00:13:44	there are parts of the state
00:13:46	where there are
00:13:46	no additional choices.
00:13:48	There's like 11 counties
00:13:48	that don't have that option.
00:13:50	Exactly.
00:13:50	Which is why I'm going to be
00:13:52	unique
00:13:52	amongst Republican governors,
00:13:53	even across the country,
00:13:53	in taking aim
00:13:55	not just at school choice,
00:13:55	which I favor,
00:13:58	but also
00:13:58	rolling up our sleeves
00:14:00	to improve the quality
00:14:00	of public education itself.
00:14:03	Basic reforms get the cell
00:14:03	phones out of the schools.
00:14:06	Bring back physical education
00:14:07	at a younger age
00:14:07	into kindergarten.
00:14:09	I want to bring back
00:14:09	the presidential fitness test.
00:14:12	We've in civic education
00:14:12	at a young age,
00:14:14	say the pledge every morning
00:14:14	with a moment of silence
00:14:17	to go along with it.
00:14:18	Take aim at this mental health
00:14:18	epidemic in our children
00:14:21	that's spreading
00:14:22	at an unacceptable rate,
00:14:22	leading to the cycle of
00:14:25	depression, anxiety, fentanyl,
00:14:25	suicide, opioid addiction.
00:14:29	We've got to find our way
00:14:29	out of that.
00:14:31	And on my watch, we will.
00:14:33	And it's going to be
00:14:33	by reviving
00:14:35	a culture of achievement
00:14:35	in our public schools.
00:14:38	Different kids are different.
00:14:39	We can't treat
00:14:39	our assembly schools
00:14:41	like our schools,
00:14:42	like assembly lines
00:14:42	at a manufacturing plant.
00:14:44	Kids are not widgets.
00:14:46	Every kid, even those in
00:14:46	special needs, deserve
00:14:48	special,
00:14:48	tailored models of education
00:14:51	so that each one of them
00:14:52	is able to make the most
00:14:52	of their own unique, God
00:14:55	given gifts.
00:14:56	You get to high school.
00:14:57	I think we need new models
00:14:57	when we think about earn.
00:14:59	While you learn programs
00:14:59	integrated into high school,
00:15:02	for a lot of kids,
00:15:02	a four year college education
00:15:04	may be the best path,
00:15:04	and that's great.
00:15:07	But for a lot of young men
00:15:07	and women,
00:15:08	that may not be the best path.
00:15:10	And we know that by the time
00:15:11	that kid is a 10th grader
00:15:11	or an 11th grader,
00:15:13	give them the tools to be
00:15:13	an electrician or a welder
00:15:17	or a machine operator
00:15:18	with employer
00:15:18	sponsored programs
00:15:21	in our high schools,
00:15:21	which I favor,
00:15:22	that allow them
00:15:22	to put money in their pocket
00:15:24	to gain that self-confidence,
00:15:24	and to gain the skill set,
00:15:27	to be able to thrive
00:15:27	with a different path
00:15:30	to the American Dream
00:15:30	than four year college debt.
00:15:33	And I want us to be the state
00:15:33	where every path is
00:15:35	open to every child.
00:15:37	That's
00:15:37	what success in our education
00:15:38	system looks like,
00:15:38	frankly, Ohio.
00:15:41	I wouldn't
00:15:41	say it's behind other states,
00:15:43	but our entire nation
00:15:43	is going through
00:15:45	an educational achievement
00:15:45	crisis
00:15:47	where China is four years
00:15:47	ahead of us here.
00:15:50	I want to fix that,
00:15:51	and I want Ohio to be
00:15:51	the state that leads the way
00:15:54	in the country
00:15:54	and in the world
00:15:56	for giving our kids
00:15:56	that world class education
00:15:59	that I believe is, yes,
00:15:59	the birthright of every child
00:16:03	born in this state. And that's
00:16:03	what I'm going to stand for.
00:16:05	I want to ask you
00:16:05	a couple quick questions
00:16:06	about some things
00:16:06	that maybe will be resolved
00:16:08	by the time you get here.
00:16:09	For example, the $600
00:16:09	million package
00:16:12	in bonds for the Cleveland
00:16:12	Browns Stadium in Brook Park.
00:16:14	Your thoughts?
00:16:15	We'll look at any one of these
00:16:17	individual questions
00:16:17	as you noted,
00:16:18	will be resolved
00:16:18	by the time I'm governor.
00:16:20	But there will be new stadium
00:16:20	questions
00:16:21	that come up to be sure
00:16:21	as well.
00:16:22	We've already seen that. Yeah.
00:16:23	So I'll give you
00:16:23	my perspective on
00:16:25	how I'd like to run things
00:16:25	as governor is stylistically,
00:16:28	I'm a businessman.
00:16:30	Here's how I want to do
00:16:30	it is through communication.
00:16:32	But I believe my job
00:16:33	as the chief
00:16:33	executive of this state
00:16:35	will be to get
00:16:35	the right parties in the room,
00:16:37	not just from the state
00:16:37	government,
00:16:38	from local governments.
00:16:39	I do think that in general,
00:16:41	when you're looking
00:16:41	at economic development,
00:16:43	the localities
00:16:43	that are benefiting
00:16:44	from that economic development
00:16:46	ought to have some skin
00:16:46	in the game,
00:16:47	in the investment
00:16:47	that they're making,
00:16:49	make sure
00:16:49	that the private parties
00:16:50	are putting up their skin
00:16:50	in the game as well.
00:16:53	Should the state
00:16:54	and look to the benefit
00:16:54	that the state does.
00:16:56	So I want the best possible
00:16:56	deal.
00:16:58	I'll give you an example.
00:16:58	Right.
00:16:59	Think about the Cincinnati
00:16:59	tennis tournament in Mason.
00:17:01	Right. And there you have
00:17:01	local skin in the game.
00:17:04	You got some state
00:17:04	involvement. You got heavy
00:17:06	private investment
00:17:06	going along with it.
00:17:08	By the way I was a ball boy.
00:17:09	That was my first job
00:17:09	at that tournament
00:17:11	for about a year,
00:17:11	for about ten years, right
00:17:13	across the street from Kings
00:17:13	Island over there.
00:17:15	So there are models of where
00:17:15	this can be successful,
00:17:18	but I am skeptical
00:17:18	of any solution
00:17:20	where there's no
00:17:20	local skin in the game,
00:17:22	where
00:17:22	there's economic development.
00:17:23	They would say, well,
00:17:23	it should be that locality
00:17:25	that's benefiting from it.
00:17:27	If the locality
00:17:27	is unwilling to participate,
00:17:29	then I think we ought to be
00:17:29	skeptical of any deal in which
00:17:32	local municipalities are.
00:17:33	Counties
00:17:33	aren't really participating
00:17:35	in a local economic
00:17:35	development project,
00:17:38	but that gives you a sense
00:17:39	of how I would lead us
00:17:39	governors.
00:17:40	I don't want to have
00:17:41	separate packages in one silo
00:17:41	in the legislature,
00:17:44	another from the governor's
00:17:45	office, local
00:17:45	saying a different thing.
00:17:48	That's not the way
00:17:48	I want to run things.
00:17:49	Everybody's
00:17:49	going to get in a room.
00:17:50	We're going to hash out
00:17:51	the best possible deal
00:17:51	for the state of Ohio,
00:17:54	and we'll just go to
00:17:54	our legislature to ratify it.
00:17:57	And I think that gives you
00:17:57	a broader
00:17:58	sense of stylistically,
00:18:00	it's not a Republican versus
00:18:00	Democrat point.
00:18:02	The way I'd like to run
00:18:02	things here in Columbus is
00:18:05	I want to partner
00:18:05	with the leaders
00:18:06	of the Senate,
00:18:06	the leaders of the Ohio House,
00:18:08	where we're sitting in a room
00:18:08	hashing out
00:18:10	what the legislative agenda
00:18:10	looks like.
00:18:12	And I'm driving that agenda
00:18:12	as a governor,
00:18:14	and the legislature's there
00:18:14	to ratify it.
00:18:17	The other statewide elected
00:18:17	officials,
00:18:18	the secretary of state,
00:18:18	the attorney general,
00:18:21	the treasurer, the auditor.
00:18:22	We should be talking
00:18:22	to each other
00:18:24	rather than through our staff.
00:18:25	And so that's the kind of team
00:18:25	effort, one Ohio mentality
00:18:29	I want to bring in the way
00:18:29	we govern the state.
00:18:31	And I do think at this moment
00:18:31	in our history, it's
00:18:33	going to take a leader
00:18:33	from the next generation,
00:18:37	I believe,
00:18:37	coming from the outside,
00:18:38	to bring that culture to
00:18:38	the leadership of our state.
00:18:41	Will there be transparency
00:18:41	for voters, for people
00:18:43	who want to weigh in
00:18:43	on all these things?
00:18:44	Absolutely.
00:18:44	I think transparency is key.
00:18:47	It builds public trust.
00:18:48	It's one of the ways
00:18:48	we're running this campaign.
00:18:50	I mean, you look at I'm
00:18:50	traveling in different parts
00:18:52	of the state,
00:18:53	putting an extra emphasis
00:18:54	on parts of the state
00:18:54	where traditional candidates
00:18:56	may not go
00:18:56	at this phase of the process.
00:18:59	But I was at Silo County,
00:18:59	what, just a few days ago.
00:19:01	That was my second time
00:19:01	there in Portsmouth.
00:19:03	We've gone to the Mahoning
00:19:03	Valley several times.
00:19:05	We're going to Toledo,
00:19:06	we're going to the foothills
00:19:06	of Appalachia.
00:19:08	We're
00:19:08	going all over this state,
00:19:10	and we're live streaming
00:19:10	as much as we can.
00:19:12	I mean, occasionally
00:19:12	where there are
00:19:14	those
00:19:14	who may have diverse opinions,
00:19:16	you could call them protesters
00:19:16	outside the event.
00:19:18	I make it a rule of thumb.
00:19:19	If the weather's nice,
00:19:19	we'll talk to them
00:19:20	for as much as half an hour
00:19:20	and be as open as we can,
00:19:23	because I'm not in this
00:19:23	just to lead
00:19:26	the people who agree with me
00:19:26	today.
00:19:28	I'm in this to lead everybody
00:19:28	in the state of Ohio,
00:19:30	regardless
00:19:30	of their Partizan affiliation.
00:19:33	If you want more money
00:19:33	in your pocket,
00:19:34	you want more money in
00:19:34	your kids investment accounts.
00:19:37	You want your kids
00:19:37	to get that world
00:19:38	class education
00:19:38	right here in Ohio.
00:19:41	If you want your kids
00:19:41	to have the same shot
00:19:42	at the American dream
00:19:42	that the state gave to me.
00:19:45	And my view is
00:19:45	we're on the same team here,
00:19:47	and I don't care what your
00:19:49	what your race is,
00:19:50	what your political
00:19:50	partizan affiliation
00:19:51	is, we're going to
00:19:52	work together to lead this
00:19:52	state to the next level.
00:19:56	That's the kind of leadership
00:19:56	I think
00:19:57	our state needs right now
00:19:57	more than ever.
00:19:59	You fired back at Amy Acton,
00:20:00	who's the only Democrat
00:20:00	in this race.
00:20:02	And, she has fired
00:20:02	back at you a couple of times.
00:20:05	One of the things
00:20:05	that she said
00:20:06	in terms of transparency is
00:20:06	she wants to know
00:20:09	if Ohioans deserve to know why
00:20:09	candidate for governor
00:20:11	moved his business
00:20:11	from Ohio to Texas.
00:20:13	Can you explain that?
00:20:13	Well, the reason
00:20:13	the CEO of a company
00:20:15	that I founded,
00:20:15	I founded it here in Ohio.
00:20:17	But by the time I had left
00:20:17	as a no longer CEO,
00:20:20	the CEO of the business said
00:20:20	that he needed to do a deal
00:20:23	with a merger of a company
00:20:23	in Texas.
00:20:25	The thing that made me upset
00:20:25	is that we don't have
00:20:27	a competitive business
00:20:27	environment
00:20:28	where people are voluntarily
00:20:28	leaving their businesses
00:20:30	to zero tax,
00:20:30	lower regulation states.
00:20:33	And so for me, that was an eye
00:20:34	opening moment,
00:20:34	getting into understanding
00:20:37	why a CEO would independently
00:20:37	make that decision.
00:20:40	I wasn't part of the business,
00:20:40	but I knew
00:20:42	enough to be able to say,
00:20:42	this is wrong.
00:20:44	We don't want to have
00:20:44	this happen
00:20:45	in our state repeatedly.
00:20:47	You open the newspaper,
00:20:47	you see it almost once
00:20:48	a month,
00:20:49	and I don't think that
00:20:49	those Democrat policies
00:20:51	are going to retain
00:20:51	more of those businesses.
00:20:53	I think it's going to drive
00:20:53	more of them out.
00:20:55	So I want to
00:20:55	turn this state into a magnet
00:20:55	for all kinds of businesses.
00:20:59	I want to lead in the sectors
00:21:01	of the future,
00:21:01	from semiconductor production
00:21:03	to nuclear energy
00:21:03	to biotech to Bitcoin,
00:21:06	to even the state where we use
00:21:06	AI not to take jobs, but
00:21:09	to make jobs through workforce
00:21:09	training and education.
00:21:12	And I think it's going to take
00:21:12	somebody who understands
00:21:15	how those businesses
00:21:15	actually make decisions
00:21:17	to be able to do that,
00:21:18	to alleviate
00:21:18	the tax burden in the state.
00:21:20	The culture of red tape.
00:21:22	I mean, frankly,
00:21:22	if you look at Indiana,
00:21:23	I was talking to an operator
00:21:23	and an owner
00:21:26	of a water treatment plant
00:21:26	in northwest Ohio, he said.
00:21:30	In Indiana,
00:21:31	where he also operates
00:21:31	those water treatment
00:21:32	plants, it's three months
00:21:32	for a permitting timeline.
00:21:34	It's three years in Ohio
00:21:36	building a new natural
00:21:36	gas pipeline.
00:21:38	The permitting process is 36
00:21:38	months.
00:21:40	In Texas, it's
00:21:40	12 months
00:21:41	in the state of Ohio, it
00:21:41	should be six months or less.
00:21:44	So I'm going to bring an end
00:21:44	to the culture of red tape.
00:21:47	I want an economic
00:21:48	boom of a kind
00:21:49	we haven't seen since the
00:21:49	first Industrial revolution,
00:21:52	but it isn't going to happen
00:21:52	automatically.
00:21:53	I think it's going to take
00:21:53	a governor who really
00:21:56	takes a strong leadership role
00:21:58	in making our tax environment
00:22:00	and our regulatory environment
00:22:00	as competitive as possible,
00:22:03	not just with other states
00:22:03	in our region,
00:22:05	but with the best
00:22:05	of the states in the country.
00:22:08	That's what I believe Ohio
00:22:08	deserves, and that's
00:22:11	what they're going to get
00:22:11	when I'm the governor.
00:22:12	And finally,
00:22:13	I know
00:22:13	this is hard to do real quick,
00:22:14	but you've said that
00:22:14	you want other challengers.
00:22:17	You want all ideas
00:22:17	in this race.
00:22:18	It looks like Lieutenant
00:22:18	Governor
00:22:20	Jim Tressel may not run,
00:22:20	but of course,
00:22:22	Attorney General Dave
00:22:22	Yost is running.
00:22:24	Do you see him as a challenge?
00:22:25	Do you see him
00:22:25	as a as a threat?
00:22:27	You've got polling out there
00:22:28	that says you're going to win
00:22:28	in a landslide.
00:22:30	I see him as a friend,
00:22:31	and I wish Dave the best
00:22:31	possible wishes in the next
00:22:35	step of his career.
00:22:36	I want him to have
00:22:36	a positive impact
00:22:38	on the country, in the state,
00:22:38	and there's a reason
00:22:40	I haven't been at all
00:22:40	hitting him.
00:22:42	I think that he is somebody
00:22:42	who has served the state,
00:22:44	and I want to support him
00:22:44	in his next
00:22:47	step of his journey,
00:22:47	whatever that may be.
00:22:49	But the fact of the matter
00:22:49	is, Karen,
00:22:50	we have never seen unity
00:22:52	like this
00:22:52	in the Republican primary,
00:22:54	probably in modern memory,
00:22:54	in the history of politics
00:22:57	in our state, 60 plus points
00:22:57	and recent polling.
00:23:00	100% of Ohio's
00:23:01	congressional delegation
00:23:01	who has endorsed is behind me.
00:23:04	A majority of both chambers
00:23:04	of the Republican caucus,
00:23:07	in both the House
00:23:07	and the Senate behind me,
00:23:10	including Senate President
00:23:10	Ron McCauley.
00:23:11	It's unprecedented.
00:23:12	Of course, President Trump
00:23:13	and every other major
00:23:13	national leader
00:23:15	who's a Republican
00:23:15	who is endorsed in this race,
00:23:18	100% of them are with me.
00:23:20	We're on track to shattering,
00:23:21	I hope, fundraising records
00:23:21	in the state
00:23:23	that'll come out
00:23:23	in a matter of months.
00:23:25	The level of unity we have in
00:23:25	this state is unprecedented,
00:23:28	and I view that
00:23:28	as an opportunity to unite
00:23:31	not just the Republican Party
00:23:31	of this state,
00:23:33	but to unite the entirety
00:23:33	of this state.
00:23:36	It's a fork in the road.
00:23:37	And there is a choice.
00:23:38	I mean, you mentioned the race
00:23:38	with Amy Acton.
00:23:40	Have you heard?
00:23:40	Is my opponent absolutely.
00:23:42	And there is a fork
00:23:42	in the road.
00:23:43	If you want somebody
00:23:43	who's going to shut down
00:23:45	the economy,
00:23:45	they've done it once.
00:23:46	If you want her to do it
00:23:46	again,
00:23:47	that's one way
00:23:47	you could go in Ohio.
00:23:49	I don't think that's the
00:23:49	right choice for our future.
00:23:52	The future for Ohio
00:23:52	is economic activity,
00:23:55	economic growth,
00:23:55	educational achievement,
00:23:58	giving every one of our kids
00:23:58	the ability
00:24:00	to achieve the maximum
00:24:00	of their own potential,
00:24:03	to speak their mind freely,
00:24:03	to live the American Dream
00:24:06	right here in Ohio,
00:24:06	not in the Rust Belt.
00:24:09	I'm done
00:24:09	talking about the Rust Belt.
00:24:11	We want the platinum belt.
00:24:12	If silicon Valley led the way
00:24:12	in the American economy
00:24:15	for the last ten years,
00:24:17	I want it to be,
00:24:17	and we will make sure it is
00:24:19	going to be the Ohio River
00:24:19	Valley for the next ten years.
00:24:23	That's
00:24:23	what I want for our state.
00:24:25	We're ambitious.
00:24:26	We're positive.
00:24:27	We're building
00:24:27	on a great foundation
00:24:28	left to us by the prior
00:24:28	administration.
00:24:31	I want to credit governor
00:24:32	DeWine
00:24:32	and his lieutenant governor.
00:24:33	Both Husted and Hope love
00:24:33	the Lieutenant Governor.
00:24:35	Tressel now, as well,
00:24:35	leading a lot of the economic
00:24:38	development efforts
00:24:38	in our state.
00:24:40	SB1, I think, was a great
00:24:40	accomplishment as well.
00:24:43	I want to build, though,
00:24:43	on that foundation, Toledo,
00:24:45	Ohio, to our future, where
00:24:45	we're not just one of the best
00:24:49	in the Midwest.
00:24:50	We are the best in
00:24:50	the United States of America
00:24:53	when it comes to economic
00:24:53	growth
00:24:54	and educational excellence.
00:24:56	And if you care about
00:24:56	those things,
00:24:58	I don't care
00:24:58	what party you're in.
00:24:59	We're on the same team,
00:24:59	and we're going to work
00:25:01	together to lead Ohio
00:25:01	to our best days ahead of us.
00:25:05	Yost says he's most
00:25:05	certainly still in the race
00:25:07	and has been making the rounds
00:25:07	of Republican Party
00:25:09	County Lincoln Day
00:25:09	dinners, as has Ramaswamy.
00:25:12	The other candidate in the GOP
00:25:12	primary is a long shot.
00:25:15	She's Heather
00:25:15	Hill, a business owner
00:25:17	in McConnell's ville
00:25:17	and the former president
00:25:19	of the Morgan Local School
00:25:19	District.
00:25:21	You can see my interviews
00:25:21	with Yost
00:25:22	and Democratic candidate
00:25:22	for governor,
00:25:24	Amy Acton, in our archives
00:25:24	at State news.org.
00:25:28	And that is it for this week
00:25:28	for my colleagues
00:25:29	at the Statehouse News
00:25:29	Bureau of Ohio Public Media.
00:25:31	Thanks for watching.
00:25:32	Please check out our website
00:25:32	at State news.org
00:25:35	or find us online
00:25:35	by searching.
00:25:36	State of Ohio show.
00:25:38	We'll keep you up to date
00:25:38	via Ohio State House alerts.
00:25:40	If you register through this
00:25:40	QR code, text state
00:25:44	News to this number
00:25:44	or go to this website.
00:25:47	You can also hear more
00:25:47	from my colleagues
00:25:48	Joe Ingles and Sarah Donaldson
00:25:48	and me on our podcast,
00:25:51	The Ohio State House scoop,
00:25:51	every Monday morning.
00:25:54	Thanks for watching,
00:25:54	and please join us again
00:25:56	next time
00:25:56	for the state of Ohio.
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00:26:24	Porter Wright is dedicated
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00:26:30	More at porterwright.com.
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Note : Transcripts are compiled from uncorrected captions