Kasich: ‘I don’t read a Bible to figure out what I think’

Faith plays an important role in Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s approach to politics, but he doesn’t turn to the Bible to “figure out what I think.”

Instead, he said his push on issues like improving mental health care are driven more by his “heart for people,” he told CNN’s Dana Bash in an interview that aired Sunday on “State of the Union.”

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“I care about them,” Kasich said. “I’m not saying other people don’t, but it touches me specially.”

Being influenced by your faith means thinking about how policy affects challenged communities, Kasich continued.

“I think it relates to (issues) like early childhood education for kids, people who are in prison, giving them a chance to get their lives back if they want to earn their way there,” he said.

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Kasich added: “Conservatism is giving everybody a chance to be able to be successful. That’s the way (Ronald) Reagan was. I mean, that’s common sense.”

Like several Republican candidates, Kasich is against abortion except for cases of rape, incest and to save a mother’s life. But Kasich said his conservative opponents must draw attention to other issues as well.

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“I think (abortion) is an important issue, but I think there’s many other issues that are really critical. Early childhood. Infant mortality. The environment. Education,” he said. “I think we focus too much on just one issue, and now that the issue of gay marriage is kind of off the table, we’re kind of down to one social issue.”

Turning to foreign affairs, Kasich said if he were in the White House, he’d want to partner with other countries to aggressively combat ISIS.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Ohio Gov. John Kasich speaks at the First in the Nation Republican Leadership Summit on April 18, 2015, in Nashua, New Hampshire. The summit was attended by all the 2016 Republican candidates as well as those eying a run for the nomination. Click through for more on the political career of Kasich:

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Kasich speaks during the Republican National Convention at the Tampa Bay Times Forum on August 28, 2012, in Florida.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Kasich, left, and then-Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney talk with students during a roundtable discussion at Otterbein University on April 27, 2012 in Westerville, Ohio. Romney eventually won the 2012 GOP presidential nomination.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Kasich, left, President Barack Obama, center, and Republican House Speaker John Boehner play the first hole of a golf game on June 18, 2011, at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Kasich listens to Obama speak during a bipartisan meeting of governors hosted by the President and Vice President Joe Biden in the State Dining Room of the White House on February 28, 2010.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Before officially taking office as governor of Ohio, Kasich talks with reporters after meeting with House and Senate Republican leaders at the U.S. Capitol on December 1, 2010. The GOP leaders talked about ways to create jobs, cut spending and repeal the health care law.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Kasich, right, then a member of the U.S. House, sports "Bush" baseball caps with Texas Gov. George W. Bush on July 14, 1999. The two lawmakers held a news conference at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center in Washington during Bush's presidential run. Kasich had previously announced that he was withdrawing from the 2000 presidential race and endorsed Bush.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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U.S. Rep. Kasich delivers a speech in the Watergate complex in Washington on July 9, 1999, during the College Republican National Committee 53rd Biennial Convention. Other speakers included Republican 2000 presidential hopefuls such as Gary Bauer and Elizabeth Dole.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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During a U.S. government shutdown, Kasich, left, and Sen. Pete Domenici, R-New Mexico, speak to reporters outside the White House on January 6, 1996.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Kasich shows a videotape of President Bill Clinton speaking during a news conference on Capitol Hill on December 16, 1995. Kasich was chairman of the House Budget Committee at the time and disputed Clinton's position on the budget.

Photos: John Kasich's political career

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Kasich, center, shows a thank you note in the form of a check to Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, left, and Senate Majority Leader Robert Dole (right) on November 17, 1995, in Washington. They were soon engaged in bruising battles with President Bill Clinton over the federal budget.

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“I would have a coalition of countries, including us, on the ground, beginning to degrade and destroy ISIS. Because as you begin to do it, that whole caliphate begins to fall apart in my judgment,” he said.

Kasich hit Obama for not leaving a base in Iraq when he pulled out combat troops in 2011. He added that the world will likely have to deal with the consequences of ISIS for decades to come.

“I think ISIS has risen, frankly, because there’s been nobody over there to stop them,” he said. “I think that all the religions of the world ought to stand up and say, ‘You blow up innocent men, women and children and you think you’re going to paradise? There’s something wrong with you. You’re nuts. If we catch you, we’re going to throw you into prison, maybe for the rest of your life.’”