A national conservative group intends to spend $1 million on ads in New Hampshire that refer to GOP 2016 contender Gov. John Kasich as an “Obama Republican.”
Since Kasich has gained in the polls in New Hampshire, American Future Fund has decided to run an ad that slams the Ohio governor for supporting the Common Core standards and expanding Medicaid under Obamacare. The ad refers to Kasich as “one of the few Republican governors to cheerlead Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion.” It closes with the statement: “John Kasich – Not a conservative. Not even a moderate. An Obama Republican.”
President of the American Future Fund Nick Ryan said the ad will air on broadcast and cable television in New Hampshire, as well as into the Boston media market, reports the New York Times. On Monday, Kasich was endorsed by the Boston Globe.
Spokesman for Kasich Rob Nichols called the ad an “unprincipled smear” because Kasich had been opposed to Obamacare and favored limits on federal intervention in education.
Kasich actually referred to grassroots parent activists in his state who were opposed to Common Core as “a runaway internet campaign,” and to their efforts to rid Ohio of Common Core, he said it was “hysteria.”
“It’s a testament to Governor Kasich’s continued strength that these shadowy, desperate, misleading attacks are now emerging,” Nichols said, the Times reports.
Ryan said, nevertheless, that Kasich had been “misleading New Hampshire voters” about his record. “The real John Kasich record looks like something you might expect from a liberal politician like Barack Obama, not a Republican governor.”
Kasich is expected to leave Iowa after the GOP debate and head to New Hampshire where his campaign says he will remain until after the New Hampshire primary on February 9, says the Washington Post.
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