The Republican candidate for governor addressed numerous policy topics during a wide-ranging onstage interview on Wednesday with the Columbus Metropolitan Club, a civic organization, just weeks ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
Vivek Ramaswamy said he would approach his job as Ohio governor pragmatically.
“It’s not Democrat versus Republican bickering,” Ramaswamy said. “It’s getting done what needs to get done from the lens of a problem solver, somebody who believes in running the executive branch with the rigor you might use to run a successful business or company.”
The entrepreneur cast himself as a common-sense businessman as he addressed a wide array of topics during an hour-long appearance Wednesday near downtown Columbus.
Event organizers said they extended a similar invitation to Ramaswamy’s Democratic opponent, Amy Acton, but said she hasn’t committed to appearing. (If Acton agrees to the forum, Signal Ohio will cover her talk.)
Both are running to replace outgoing Republican Gov. Mike DeWine, who can’t run for reelection due to term limits.
Ramaswamy fielded questions for 30 minutes from moderator Karen Kasler, a journalist with Ohio Public Radio. Members of the audience also got to ask a few questions.
The questions ranged from school funding and taxes to guns and the death penalty.
Here’s a full video of Ramaswamy’s appearance.
Here are some highlights of what he said.
Data center policy favors industrial sites
Ramaswamy recapped aspects of his data center plan, including his proposed requirement that the facilities only be built on abandoned industrial sites rather than on farmland.
Ramaswamy brought up pushback from developers that industrial redevelopment is potentially more expensive.
“That’s where the legislature can help to say that if you’re a developer coming to an abandoned industrial site, to make sure you don’t get saddled with historical liabilities,” Ramaswamy said. “Those are solvable problems.”
Ramaswamy opposes ballot proposals
Ramaswamy also responded to a question about two separate proposals from citizens’ groups. One would ban most data centers by limiting their size. The other would abolish property taxes. Backers are trying to collect the hundreds of thousands of signatures needed to place the measures on the ballot next year.
Ramaswamy previously has said he opposes both. He said the data center ban would hurt the state’s economy, and he said abolishing property taxes would hurt the local governments that rely on them.
Ramaswamy said Wednesday he’d enforce both measures if they were to pass.
But he also said he hopes his plans on both subjects would address the “root causes” that prompted the citizens’ groups to propose the amendments in the first place.
“We have solutions ready, and I’m confident the first six months of next year, if not sooner, will be the period in which I solve these problems for our state,” Ramaswamy said. “And we’ll move forward.”
Ramaswamy tax plan could cut school funding
Ramaswamy also was asked about the fiscal implications of his property tax plan, which researchers have estimated would cost K-12 schools and other local governments $4 billion annually.
First, Ramaswamy said taxpayers “desperately” need a $4 billion tax cut.
“That’s the most important part,” said Ramaswamy, who previously said he would make up for some of the funding cuts by pushing schools to eliminate administrator positions.
On Wednesday, he also said he’s open to increasing how much the state government kicks in to make up at least some of the difference.
“Nobody would have designed the system this way from scratch, and that doesn’t mean we can shift to the new model overnight,” Ramaswamy said. “But we can take steps to get there.”
Pressed further, Ramaswamy said the extra state funding wouldn’t make up for the full $4 billion cut. But he suggested his policies to promote economic growth might increase how much government money is available.
Ramaswamy supports death penalty
In light of Tennessee’s recent botched execution of a death-row inmate there, Ramaswamy was asked for his position on the death penalty.
Ramaswamy reiterated his support for it. This would be a change from DeWine, who imposed a semi-official ban on the death penalty during his eight years in office.
But Ramaswamy also said he’d be open to changing Ohio’s execution method. The state currently uses three drugs as part of a lethal injection protocol.
“We’re studying this, and it is open-mindedness to methods other than lethal injection, which has been successfully used in the past,” Ramaswamy said.
Ramaswamy pledges to expand gun rights
Ramaswamy promised to expand gun rights, though Ohio’s Republican-controlled legislature already has continuously rolled back its gun restrictions throughout this century. The effort culminated in a 2022 law that allows people to legally carry a concealed gun without first going through state safety training.
Ramaswamy brought up an Ohio law as well as federal law that requires someone to be 21 years old to buy a handgun. He pointed out that 18-year-olds are eligible to serve in the military, and he referenced a recent federal court ruling that found the federal law unconstitutional.
“That’s one example of change that would be a big thing in Ohio to ensure that we’re fully protecting what the Second Amendment is intended to protect,” Ramaswamy said.
Ramaswamy on SNAP and Medicaid cuts
Ramaswamy was asked how the state can compensate for cuts to Medicaid and to the deep cuts to SNAP, the program also known as food stamps, contained in President Donald Trump’s signature spending legislation.
He plugged his plan to ask the federal government to let Ohio keep any money it saves in its fraud-fighting efforts within the state’s Medicaid program.
Ramaswamy also said he supports efforts that encourage people to get off government benefits. That includes a new federal law imposing work requirements on Medicaid recipients. He also said he supports reforming safety net programs so people don’t lose benefits the moment a raise or other income boost makes them ineligible, a problem advocates call the “benefits cliff.”
Ramaswamy pushes college consolidation
In response to a question, Ramaswamy said his plan to consolidate the state’s system of 14 public colleges and universities is necessary to address some state schools’ dropping enrollment, which has prompted concern from university administrators.
Ramaswamy portrayed his plan as evidence of his willingness to speak hard truths. He also described his role as governor as a convener between universities to make sure they aren’t duplicating services.
“I’ve met with university leaders and presidents across the state privately, and I understand why they have to stay private on this, privately, they agree with me,” Ramaswamy said. “It’s not an opinion; it’s a fact that that’s a dire fiscal reality, and that’s why six universities have shut down since 2020.”
Ramaswamy dislikes negative ads but backs using them
Ramaswamy was asked about the deluge of negative campaign ads, many of which come from outside groups called super PACs, that are airing on Ohio TV and radio stations this year. Many of the ads have come from a pro-Ramaswamy super PAC that has been largely funded by a handful of billionaires, although Ramaswamy also pointed to Democratic super PAC ads attacking him.
He said he dislikes negative ads as much as anybody. He then pivoted to saying one way to dilute the ads would be for Acton and Ramaswamy to debate – which Acton has refused to do.
But he also said he needs to make his case against Acton, whom he’s argued is unqualified. Ramaswamy’s ads have referenced a 2019 police incident at Acton’s home in which Acton wasn’t charged and her tenure as DeWine’s state health director during the COVID-19 pandemic until her resignation in June 2020.
Ramaswamy relayed a story in which he claimed Acton’s team prevented him from shaking Acton’s hand when he encountered her at a private police union event. He said he still hasn’t met Acton despite running against her for more than a year.
“I don’t think that is somebody who is fit to manage tough fiscal challenges in this state. I don’t think that is someone who is fit to unite people with diverse and different views in this state,” Ramaswamy said.
