John Kasich wants to be the Jon Huntsman of 2016. This is even crazier than it sounds.

The 2016 candidate is running as a moderate Republican — even though he's not

John Kasich
(Image credit: Ty Wright/Getty Images)

Ohio Gov. John Kasich was asked the first question of last Wednesday's Republican presidential debate and he came out swinging. "My great concern," he exclaimed, "is that we are on the verge, perhaps, of picking someone who cannot do this job." It is true that most of Kasich's opponents have advanced numerous nutty opinions. What's interesting about Kasich's positioning, however, is that his own views aren't all that different from theirs.

Kasich is occupying the same political space as Jon Hunstman in the 2012 Republican primaries and Joe Lieberman in the 2004 Democratic primaries. That is, he's running as the member of his party willing to tell the truth — that everyone else has gone off the rails. As a strategy for winning the nomination, it's an obvious disaster. Trying to look moderate and less partisan can be a good approach in the general election, but it's a guaranteed loser in a presidential primary, as evidenced by the tepid reaction Kasich has received from voters and donors alike.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Scott Lemieux

Scott Lemieux is a professor of political science at the College of Saint Rose in Albany, N.Y., with a focus on the Supreme Court and constitutional law. He is a frequent contributor to the American Prospect and blogs for Lawyers, Guns and Money.