John Kasich's going to write a book. He's taking in concerts by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Memphis May Fire - wearing ear plugs for the latter. He wants to "Uberize" Ohio, whatever that means. But don't expect him to be rocking any campaign rallies for Donald Trump.

John Kasich�s going to write a book. He�s taking in concerts by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Memphis May Fire � wearing ear plugs for the latter. He wants to �Uberize� Ohio, whatever that means.

But don�t expect him to be rocking any campaign rallies for Donald Trump.

In his first interview aside from one TV stint since dropping out of the 2016 presidential campaign three weeks ago, Kasich said Trump must undergo a transformation before the governor can back his fellow Republican�s presidential bid.

�It may not be possible,� Kasich acknowledged.

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He said he can�t support Trump with his current negativity, scapegoating and willingness to �run people into the ditch.�

�Unless I see a fundamental change in that approach, it�s really hard for me to do a merger,� he said during an interview Tuesday in his Statehouse office with The Dispatch and Cleveland.com.

�Think of it as a merger of two companies. If the values are not somewhat similar, if the culture is not somewhat similar, it�s pretty hard to do a merger,� he said, sipping coffee while seated at the head of a conference table.

Kasich said he is unsure of his role at the GOP convention in Cleveland, where Trump will be nominated, but has sent out letters saying he is not releasing his delegates.

Emphasizing that �I�m not whining about it,� Kasich said support promised after he performed well in both the New Hampshire and Ohio primaries never came.

He cited a top campaign official as telling him �part of the problem was Trump never stumbled. And while people were willing to invest somewhat in you, they weren�t really willing to invest a lot.�

Trump�s ability to attract billions of dollars worth of free news coverage also was a huge barrier.

�Money was never an issue for us,� as far as day-to-day operations, Kasich said. �But we were never going to get the kind of money we needed to compete against that kind of free press."

Why didn�t Kasich�s positive emphasis sell?

�Because it�s easier to consider yourself a victim than it is to stand against the wind,� he said.

Voters bought into the scapegoating pushed by some candidates that �the reason you don�t have something is because somebody else does.

�That is a message at this point in time that is more effective than, �hey, we can work our way through this.��

The book is coming, Kasich said, because �how could I let an experience like this not be written about?�

It won�t just be about his campaign, but also Kasich�s version of how the country got into its current mess and �set a tone to bring hope back to America.�

The governor noted the numerous times he dispensed hugs after people at his campaign events described difficult personal situations.

�We provided a safe harbor for people. What it is, is giving people hope,� Kasich said.

�I think the candidacy represented a certain strain of hopefulness that we don�t see today in our society, and I think people have responded to it in an amazingly emotional way.�

That�s one reason he�s glad he suspended his campaign before totally losing credibility.

�I just think this is so critical to our culture and to the future of this country; there was no way I was going to allow that message to be belittled.�

Now, he�s plunging back into his gubernatorial duties, aiming �to dramatically innovate and lay down a path for the future. � My goal is to Uberize the government of Ohio as best I can, and it will scare people, because it�s going to require a lot of change and risk.�

Kasich took daughter Reese and one of her friends to Rock on the Range on Friday.

�Maybe I�m getting older or something, but they were so loud,� Kasich said. But he praised the gathering, saying, �I think we have the No. 1 hard rock festival in the United States."

With 40,000 in attendance each night over the weekend, Kasich said organizers are seeking a larger venue, which could mean a move to Cleveland.

�Music festivals are like really in right now,� he said. �I don�t think people around here understand it. But frankly, people around here don�t understand the Columbus Crew.�

drowland@dispatch.com

@darreldrowland