6
Extremism’s High Tide
Early on the morning of March 18, I was reading The Cincinnati Enquirer online and saw a brief notice that Gov. Kasich was going to be at the University of Cincinnati late that afternoon to meet with President Gregory Williams and the media about the success of a research program. Naturally, we saw this as an opportunity to question the governor about the attack that he and his supporters had launched against faculty across Ohio.
One of the characteristics of Gov. Kasich’s style is his insistence on never being in a situation where he might face questions from Ohioans—whether hostile or otherwise. My personal experience in Montana had been quite different. When I was a journalist in the Big Sky State, the then-governor of Montana, Ted Schwinden, a Democrat, had his home phone number listed in the Helena phone book. If you needed to talk to him, you just called him. One night, working on deadline and needing a quote from Schwinden, I called him. The governor answered the phone: “Hello.” Since I knew Schwinden from my years of reporting, I identified myself, apologized for calling him at home, and said I needed to ask him a question. “No problem, John. What can I do for you?”
I did not anticipate that the situation would work exactly the same in Ohio, but I believed then—and I believe now—that politicians should be prepared to answer questions and face the public. They are public servants and should not view the public as their enemy. It is part of the job to endure questioning—to face people opposed to political decisions that have been made. As Harry Truman famously said, “If you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen.” If a politician cannot face his critics when pushing harsh and unreasonable policies, then he should either find another profession or adopt more rational and collaborative policies. Gov. Kasich, from the beginning, was only interested in forcing through his own ideologically driven union-busting policy with Senate Bill 5, and those who refused to get on the bus would get “run over by the bus.” His unwillingness to ever face his critics became crystal clear during his visit to UC. It is no surprise that this visit was scheduled on the first day of spring break so that there would be minimal opportunity for the governor to encounter any students or faculty.
Word spread quickly through the union and beyond that the governor would be visiting a laboratory on campus, in Rhodes Hall. On campus that morning, a group of students and faculty assembled outside Baldwin Hall, which is connected to Rhodes. Many were wearing anti-SB 5 buttons and carrying signs protesting Senate Bill 5 and other extreme legislative proposals. It was already clear that this was going to be an odd situation. Two large black SUVs with darkened windows were parked on the sidewalk in front of Baldwin Hall, a historic quad in the center of campus. Two state patrol cars were also parked nearby. Clearly, rather than walking across the camp