The transformation of John Kasich is complete

He's been jettisoning his conservative bona fides for some years now. I particularly remember a 2016 presidential candidate debate in which he spoke of the issue of homosexual "marriage" as a done deal from which post-America needed to move on. "If you have a problem with [homosexual customers using the coercive power of government to make you participate in sin], say a little prayer for 'em on their way out the door," he said.

Now comes this:

. . .  the Ohio governor [has announced] that he will veto two bills that are near and dear to the hearts of conservatives who propelled him to victory in 2010 and 2014: The aptly named "heartbeat bill" and "stand your ground" legislation.

Kasich told reporters outside his office Monday that he opposes both bills. If Kasich follows through with the veto threat, this will be the second time in two years he's vetoed the "heartbeat bill," which would ban abortions in Ohio after a baby's heartbeat can be detected. The "stand your ground" legislation would allow armed Ohioans facing a threat or perceived threat to defend themselves with lethal force in public places with no “duty to retreat."

Kasich, the son of a mailman, signed a 20-week abortion ban in 2016 but vetoed a separate measure that would have protected babies with beating hearts from abortions. He said at the time that the law would have been struck down. "The State of Ohio will be the losing party in that lawsuit and will be forced to cover the legal fees for the pro-choice activists' lawyers," Kasich said. "Therefore, this veto is in the public interest."

He shares one trait with a politician (the Very Stable Genius) I don't think he likes at all: inconsistency:

On the issue of gun rights, Kasich has been all over the board. As a member of the House in the 1990s, he voted for the controversial so-called "assault weapons ban," joining with Dianne Feinstein and other liberal Democrats to help pass the measure. Since becoming governor, he has been cheered by gun rights activists in the state for signing into law several measures they supported. But in recent months, Kasich has been rattling his saber about the need for stricter gun control laws in the wake of recent mass shootings.

How inconsistent?

Lori Viars, who has been a tireless advocate for the "heartbeat bill," told PJM, "It's sad that Kasich, who campaigned as a pro-life candidate, has turned his back on the most vulnerable people of all — Ohio's unborn children." Viars, who on the board of the Conservative Republican Leadership Committee and serves as vice president of Warren County Right to Life, said, "The Ohio House voted 60 to 35 to pass the bill and it takes 60 votes to override a governor's veto. It takes 20 votes in the Ohio Senate and I believe we have 20 pro-life Senators."

"But wouldn't it be a shame for a pro-abortion act to be John Kasich's legacy?" said Viars, who decided to volunteer for Kasich in 2010 "because he told us he was pro-life." She lamented his apparent change of heart: "He clearly lied." 

This whole thing points up an area of fascination for me: What motivates a conservative - or maybe that's "conservative" - to toss his or her principles overboard? In Kasich's case, I cannot ascribe it to crass political ambition. I just don't think he has it together to that degree. But what about pundits like Jennifer Rubin and Max Boot, who use their vehement opposition to Trump (a stance I can find admirable, given certain qualifiers) as an excuse to become ridiculous creatures?

It's a subject worth exploring in depth, which LITD may do.