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‘Rust Belt’ Rubs Gov. Kasich Wrong
By: Julie Carr Smyth | AP Statehouse Correspondent
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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio Gov. John Kasich has a pet peeve: the use of the term “Rust Belt” to describe his state.
The Republican governor wants to send the label to the scrap heap of history.
Kasich acknowledges it’s not an easy sell, but he argues that significant changes to Ohio’s economy make its deserving of a new nickname: the Knowledge Belt.
The state is making advances in such areas as drones, data analytics, biohealth and autonomous vehicle research.
President Donald Trump reinforced the Rust Belt label during last year’s election. During a visit to Columbus, the Republican painted Ohio and Pennsylvania as states where “everything is rusting and rotting.”
Ohio’s Rust Belt moniker dates to the 1980s, when manufacturing saw a sharp decline that left shuttered and abandoned factories behind.