Rob McKenna joins Washington state leaders in support of John Kasich

Forget Trump and Cruz, Washington’s Republican establishment is hopping aboard the John Kasich train to the White House.

With the Washignton state Republican primary scheduled for May 24, former State Attorney General Rob McKenna told Seattle’s Morning News that he is pushing Kasich’s candidacy as a co-chair of Kasich for America in the State of Washington. He’s joined by former governor and US Senator Dan Evans, former senator Slade Gorton and former secretary of state’s Sam Reed and Ralph Munro.

“Not too long from now, a group of legislative leaders who are Republicans will be endorsing their support of Gov. Kasich’s candidacy,” he said. “So it is, you could say, the Republican establishment, which unfortunately has become a pejorative term but, in fact, it’s many Republican leaders in Washington state coming together to support Gov. Kasich.”

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McKenna said the conservative leaders are worried about the current Republican frontrunners, Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.

“We want a capable, effective individual as our next president, and of the remaining candidates we believe Gov. Kasich is the most capable and the most effective,” he said. “He is the only one with government executive experience. He’s been a very popular governor in Ohio, winning his last election by a wide margin. He’s shown that he can be independent when he needs to be and wants to be. He would do a good job. Secondly, he can win. And of the three remaining Republican candidates for president he is the only candidate which the polls show will beat Hillary Clinton.”