Ohio Gov. Kasich: Opponents of liquor profit privatization will answer to God

Sinners in the hands of an angry John Kasich? The far right often invokes God to back up its social issues agenda'marriage equality, abortion, women expecting to be treated as full citizens. It's less common for Republicans to invoke God's support for the state getting bonds against wholesale liquor profits or the privatization of state job creation efforts, but that's what Ohio Gov. John Kasich did in a meeting with reporters Thursday morning.

Kasich, an openly religious man who often cites his faith as a reason for pursuing such initiatives as funding for the poor and job creation, said of his JobsOhio detractors: 'These are people who are going to have to answer to a much higher power than me about why they have appealed and appealed and appealed.'

Brian Rothenberg, executive director for ProgressOhio, one of the plaintiffs in the JobsOhio suit, said: 'As far as invoking God, I don't believe that the good Lord is taking sides in John Kasich's attempt to spend $1.5 billion.

'I'm just as religious as he is, and I believe the good Lord is neutral as to who is right in this instance,' Rothenberg said.

JobsOhio is a privatized nonprofit Kasich formed to take over job creation efforts from the Ohio Department of Development, exempting it from open meetings and ethics laws. ProgressOhio and two Democratic legislators have sued, arguing that JobsOhio is unconstitutional. That's obviously really pissing off John Kasich. God, though? Really? Privatizing state agencies in ways that skirt ethics laws is God's will? God has distinct views on how states handle wholesale liquor profits?

Without venturing a guess as to what outcome God, if s/he exists, would prefer in this instance, I'm going to nonetheless hazard that Kasich is more of an expert on his own desires than on God's, and that maybe, just maybe, that's what he's really talking about here.