John Kasich On What It Will Take To Beat Hillary Clinton

ByALI DUKAKIS ABCNews logo
Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who on Tuesday became the newest addition to the Republican presidential field, looked ahead to a potential general election matchup with Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

In an exclusive interview with ABC News' Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos, Kasich said the key to the race will be vision.

"I think the battle is -- against Hillary -- is who's got the biggest and largest vision for the country," Kasich said shortly after announcing his presidential campaign in Ohio. "I think she sometimes is really too narrow."

Kasich said that while Clinton may be harmed by various scandals, in the end, it will come down to "the best vision and record."

"I've told Republicans, you know, Benghazi emails, all that other stuff, it'll be a part of the discussion," he said. "But it's all about, it's about vision. It's about, it's about record. And it's about who can bring this country back."

During the interview Kasich told Stephanopoulos what he's been hearing from operatives in the Democratic Party about his chances in 2016.

"I've been hearing from these Democrat operatives that John Kasich, me -- I don't want to sound like I'm Bob Dole, you know? But John Kasich, you know - me -- that I'm their greatest fear. I mean, we hear it all the time."

Kasich added: "I actually ran into one of their big campaign managers. And he said, 'You know, we do worry about you.' I said, 'Why don't you say it publicly?' He said, 'Are you crazy? We're not going give you any publicity.'"

For more of Stephanopoulos' interview with Kasich, tune into ABC's "World News Tonight with David Muir" and "Good Morning America" on Wednesday.

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