FOX "Hannity"- Transcript: Kasich Interview

Interview

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

HANNITY: All right, joining us now, 2016 Republican presidential candidate Ohio governor John Kasich. The interesting moment -- look, I know you really well. I felt last night, you weren't you for some reason. Not that moment, but you were trying to interrupt, and I just didn't feel you had your normal cadence. Am I right or maybe was that a strategy?

KASICH: No, Sean. I mean, look, I'm very, very concerned about winning next fall, and there are a lot of ideas out there that just simply don't add up. And you know that when the bright light comes on next fall, that whoever our nominee is is going to have to present their programs. And if their programs don't add up, if they're not solid, then I'm very fearful that we won't win the election. I'm very fearful that Hillary Clinton will win the election.

So, you know, I wanted to make a number of points about, you know, what's the proper level of tax cuts, how do we get the budget balanced, what do we do on immigration. And you know, all I'm trying to do is make sure that we present a program that can stand the light of day come next fall, and a conservative program.

HANNITY: Let me -- let me go to Trump's point because I believe the country has shifted on immigration. I think people see what has happened to Europe because of the immigration issue. I think it's a bigger issue than it was a year ago. And people that don't respect American law and sovereignty -- they don't respect it. They come into our country illegally. It has cost this country and states billions and billions for our educational system, our criminal justice system, our health care system.

And it's a massive problem, and both parties seem not to want to build that wall. And I think the reason that...

KASICH: Well...

HANNITY: Listen, I think some Republicans want cheap labor and I think Democrats think they'll have a voting base for generations to come. Am I wrong?

KASICH: That's not my position, Sean. I want that wall built. You know, I just was with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. And the head of it said, you know, he disagrees with me on the wall. And I said, Well, look, when you lock your doors on your house at night -- he said, I do. And I said, Well, a country has the right to lock its doors.

So I mean, first and foremost is to take care of the border. Secondly, if anybody then comes across the border, they ought to be automatically sent home. I think we ought to have a guest worker program so people can enter, work and then go back.

But for the 11 million that are there that have been law-abiding, I just want a practical solution. They pay a fine, no path to citizenship. I don't believe in a path to citizenship, but a path to legalization. Anything other than that is not practical.

And I will tell you this. If this is the message of the Republican Party come next fall, that we're going to go and round these people up and ship them out, I got to tell you -- I'm the governor of Ohio. I don't think you win Ohio with that kind of a message.

So I want to win. I want to be practical. We're not giving anybody a free pass. We need to absolutely get the border secure. And we need to rein in this visa program where people come in the country and they just never leave.

So because I say they should stay here -- if they violated the law, by the way, they either go to jail or be deported. But of course, the border has to be built, and of course we have to regulate who flows in and out of this country.

HANNITY: All right, now, let me go back to the economic issue because you had a point of debate. You seem to believe -- and I have praised you for your work as the head of the Budget Committee and the architect of the last balanced budget and the last surplus and your work as governor. You've done the same thing.

But you seem to be critical of all the other candidates' plans. You don't believe their numbers add up. You think that they're unrealistic. I heard a lot of good ideas from a lot of different candidates there last night. I even liked the penny plan that Rand Paul talked about.

KASICH: Oh, yes.

HANNITY: I liked the repatriation idea. I like that idea of energy independence.

KASICH: I agree with that, too.

HANNITY: Energy independence...

KASICH: I do, too.

HANNITY: ... has to be a big component of it. I would like to make America the corporate tax haven of the world so every multi-national...

KASICH: Absolutely, Sean.

HANNITY: ... corporation comes here.

KASICH: Look, my plan would actually repatriate at about 5 percent or 6 percent for the first time, and then after that, there'd be no double taxation. We'd have expensing in the first year, where companies could write off the cost of their equipment. And I would lower the corporate tax rate to 25 percent.

But what my concern is, is that we have one guy proposing, like, a 15 percent flat tax, but he doesn't tell you that he has a value-added tax on business. Now, Sean, if I came on this show and told you I believed in a value-added tax, you'd fall off your chair.

We have another plan where we're going to cut the taxes and it's going to ring up the debt by $11 trillion or $12 trillion. Now, I have a plan that really mimics Reagan, 28 percent top rate, capital gains tax at 15 percent, but it's in the confines of a balanced budget.

Now, look, I've done this for many years. You know, I did it in Washington. I've done it in Ohio. And you just can't wish yourself to economic stability.

HANNITY: Is it...

KASICH: I want economic growth and...

HANNITY: Is it that you're...

KASICH: ... you can get it with lower taxes and a balanced budget.

HANNITY: Is it that you're frustrated because you think they're just saying things and pulling them out of thin air and you just don't believe their plans work? Is that -- is that where...

KASICH: Well, Sean, the numbers don't add up. Look, I'm struggling with the Tax Foundation to make sure that my tax cut plan falls within the balanced budget parameters that I think is vital for our country. And if you say you're going to ring up the debt by $11 trillion or $12 trillion, you're not for that.

HANNITY: No way.

KASICH: You're not for putting another 10 or -- but that's what some of these plans propose, Sean.

HANNITY: I don't want to put another penny...

KASICH: I'm just telling you that's what happens to the debt.

HANNITY: But I actually believe...

KASICH: Go analyze them.

HANNITY: But I actually believe if you reduce -- if you eliminate baseline budgeting -- Carly said that -- if you use the penny plan, cut a penny out of every dollar -- you do that on the spending side, I don't think there's any limit to the amount of money that we can -- we can grow the economy with energy and becoming the corporate tax haven of the world. I don't even know if anybody can calculate the economic growth benefits of those things.

KASICH: Sean, we do dynamic scoring in our plan. We know it's going to cause economic growth. Our economic growth estimates would take us just shy of 4 percent.

HANNITY: Yes.

KASICH: But you can't have a tax cut plan that takes you to $10 trillion or $11 trillion more in the hole. So don't misunderstand what I'm saying to you. I will tell you this. Next fall, when these plans get carefully analyzed, they better stand the test of time.

Look, in the last debate, I was pointing out that it didn't make any sense to call for abolishing Medicare or making it sort of an option. Now that's kind of -- I think it's kind of moved off the table, although I'm not sure. I mean, if we're a party that runs around saying we should get rid of Medicare, how do you think we're going to do next fall against Hillary?

So Sean, I want to win, and we can win with conservative ideas. And I do believe that economic growth is necessary for balancing the budget. And look, I did the penny Kasich plan, remember, back when I was in the Congress?

HANNITY: Yes. I do.

KASICH: In my plan now, I freeze all discretionary spending for eight years. I increase defense spending by $100 billion. I slow the growth of Medicare from 7 percent to 5 and Medicaid from 5 to 3. And you know, so I've got spending cuts, but I also know what can get enacted down there. And freezing discretionary spending for eight years -- that's a pretty tall order. We can get that done. And I want to ship a lot of programs home, like welfare and education. You know, so...

HANNITY: We've got to run but...

KASICH: ... we're on the same page. I just want to make sure the numbers add up, Sean, so we can beat Hillary in the fall.

HANNITY: Governor, if we don't win this election, the country -- I don't see our way out of it. I just don't.

KASICH: I agree!

HANNITY: Another four years of Obama policies are a disaster. All right, good to see you. Thanks for being with us.

KASICH: Thank you, sir. All right.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source