Ross McGregor: Life as a moderate Republican

5:42 PM Saturday, February 6, 2010

Ross McGregor is now in his third term representing the 72nd House District. Here are his responses to questions from Editorial Page Editor Tom Hawkins about his political philosophy and experience in the state legislature.

Q What did you think you were going to do when you first got in?

A When I was first appointed, people didn’t really have much time to spend with a newly appointed state representative, so it was kind of a fight for yourself, figure things out on your own situation. (Former U.S. Rep. David) Hobson said to do a lot more listening than talking. Believe me, there is part of the state government not taught in our government classes. You really need to know that in order to have an ability to succeed as a legislator in state government.

Q Can you give an example?

A House Bill 30 required cities that utilized red-light cameras to post on the inbound highways system signs saying we used red- light cameras. As you drive into Springfield or any other that uses the cameras, you will see the sign that says “Photo monitoring equipment used to monitor traffic laws.” I was sitting with the speaker of the house (Jon Husted). I said, “Speaker what do you think of this idea?” I got the unofficial blessing, which meant by introducing the bill it had a greater chance of success because I was able to sit down and explain in a less formal atmosphere that this is what I wanted to do.

Q How civil is the legislature?

A Sometimes people can let a hyper-partisan environment distract from what is otherwise expected in terms of civility and decorum. Sometimes the breakdowns aren’t between the different caucuses, but within the same caucus. Right now we have some very extreme and very moderate people. There can be some healthy family squabbles.

Q How has the process changed with Democrats taking the governorship and control of the House?

A It was very interesting. In 2005, the governor’s office, House and Senate were completely controlled by Republicans. Looking back, the minority party, the Democrats, had been marginalized at best. It was not a healthy environment. When (Gov. Ted) Strickland was elected and the legislation was still controlled by the Republicans, that I thought was more civil. We had better balance. When Democrats took control of the house, I think things have happened that hurt the situation. They hadn’t been in the majority for 14 years. So they really did not have a good grasp of how things work.

Q How have the parties changed?

A The races we had won were in the districts that were overwhelming Republican. All the real hard-core, red-meat Republicans are the ones who won the races. The ones we lost were the districts more like mine. We’ve got an extreme faction in the minority right now. It is more difficult now than in the last General Assembly to find bipartisan cooperation. I know House Speaker Armond Budish’s challenge is that some Democrats are saying this is our time for revenge. He has to control that. On our side of the aisle, we have people saying we have to go as far right as possible, in order to draw contrast. If you can’t contrast, how do you win elections?

Q Some pundits say Republicans will destroy themselves trying to accommodate the tea party movement. Is that true?

A There is a message that is being given by the tea party movement, and as a party we need to hear and understand that message. We also have to understand that I think we can’t have anarchy. I am not viewed favorably by the tea party movement, though they haven’t called me up to tell me specifically. I went to a local candidates forum. I was interested in seeing everyone I know and listening from the other side of the bench. Some members affiliated with the tea party, were asking questions of the candidates. One pointed out that I was in the room and suggested I answer the question. I politely said I am taking this year off from candidacy. The person asking questions said I don’t have any use for Rep. McGregor because he doesn’t see things my way. I read on a Web site that these folks have where they recounted how “red-faced” I was about being called on the carpet.

Q Will your sponsorship of House Bill 176, which protects gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans-gendered people from discrimination, hurt you?

A I have personally made friends who are gay and lesbians whom I consider to be contributing members of our community and who are compassionate people who care about others. They really only want to add value to their community and where they live. I find it offensive you could fire someone because of his or her sexual orientation. As an employer, I know there are gay people who have worked for me at Pentaflex. They have done a great job. They have contributed to our company, and therefore, to my success. That is all I ask as an employer. I knew politically it wouldn’t be viewed favorably by some. We are all given so much time in office and we wanted to get some changes done. I knew it was going to pass. I was able to bring in an employer perspective, an employer who knows when you are dealing with employment law, a highly technical area. We don’t want to put undo burdens on employers while still protecting the rights of the gay community. I think it was pretty successful.

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