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Asked how he may appeal to Republicans who like him but are uneasy about his support for a pathway to legal status for illegal immigrants, support for the Common Core education standards and his expansion of Medicaid in Ohio with money from the Affordable Care Act, he defended himself on each issue. And then he uncorked an impassioned argument about his party’s need to redefine conservatism. ... In an echo of the religious-based defense he has made of his Medicaid expansion, an argument that irritates many small-government conservatives, Mr. Kasich said, “I think conservatism is about giving everybody a chance, demanding personal responsibility, but allowing people to pursue their God-given purpose.” (Martin, 8/12)

Asked about abortion, he said he favors three exceptions -- in the case of the mother's life being at risk, rape or incest -- a position which used to be standard among some of the most conservative Republicans but which has been ditched by many of his opponents, including, notably, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. The two-term governor and former House Budget Committee chairman has already taken heat for expanding Medicaid under the provisions of the Affordable Care Act. He says, however, that he would repeal Obamacare if given the chance. (LoBianco and Bash, 8/12)

As he often does, Kasich devoted a significant portion of his remarks to those living “in the shadows” of society. He promised to help the mentally ill and drug addicts who end up in prisons and the working poor who don’t have health care. “I don’t know how the Republican Party ever got itself put in the trick bag by somehow saying that if we care about people who are down and out, and we want to give them a chance to succeed, then somehow that’s not conservative,” Kasich said. “I think conservatism is about giving everybody a chance — demanding personal responsibility — but allowing people to pursue their God-given purpose is conservative.” (Peoples, 8/12)