| Politicians are always looking ahead to the next campaign, so Max Chafkin writes today about the governor's race already underway in Ohio, where Vivek Ramaswamy has the endorsement of the president and his right-hand man. You can also listen to Max on the latest episode of Elon, Inc. Plus: Popular kitchen brand OXO fights back against the black plastic panic. If this email was forwarded to you, click here to sign up. On Monday, Vivek Ramaswamy, the author, entrepreneur and activist investor, appeared at a rally in West Chester Township, north of Cincinnati, to announce that he'd decided to run for governor. "We're in the middle of a second industrial revolution, and I believe deep in my bones that Ohio can lead the way," he said, before rattling off a range of industries that would drive job and wealth growth in the state, including defense, semiconductors, nuclear energy, cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence. "I will lead Ohio to that new vision." Ramaswamy enters the Republican primary as the favorite. He's independently wealthy, well known and close to some of the most powerful people in Washington. Last month, Axios published a leaked memo from Ramaswamy supporters—whose ranks include key figures from Donald Trump's past presidential runs—showing their candidate above 50% in a recent poll of the primary, compared with 18% for the next closest contender, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost. Backers of Yost released their own memo arguing that he would lead the race if he had President Trump's support. Unfortunately for them, Trump posted on Truth Social immediately after Ramaswamy's announcement, calling him "something special" and adding that he had "my COMPLETE AND TOTAL ENDORSEMENT!" If the Ohio governor's race lacks drama so far, it's still significant as a barometer of Republican politics during Trump's second term. Ramaswamy's background—as a business celebrity-turned-politician whose fame spread after he published a memoir railing against the excesses of so-called woke capitalism—looked unconventional, even ridiculous, when he launched his presidential campaign in 2023. But as I argued in a Bloomberg Businessweek story at the time, there were ways to see Ramaswamy as part of a new paradigm, which seems only more true after Trump's election, the rise of "first buddy" Elon Musk and even the semi-serious suggestions that professional sports shouter Stephen A. Smith should run for office.  Ramaswamy supporters at this campaign announcement Monday near Cincinnati. Photographer: Jon Cherry/Getty Images Ramaswamy's presidential campaign, leaning heavily on new media, was powered by the same manoverse podcasters who were later credited with drawing young voters to Trump. He appeared with Logan Paul and the Nelk Boys long before Trump did. Ramaswamy is also close to many of the same tech and finance billionaires who found their way to Trump. That includes Musk, who was talking up Ramaswamy's long-shot prospects before he endorsed the man who eventually became president. More important, perhaps, Ramaswamy's Ohio candidacy represents an early political test for the Department of Government Efficiency, the chaotic effort to simultaneously defund large swaths of the government, diminish the power of the federal civil service and narrow the budget deficit. Ramaswamy, of course, was briefly associated with the pseudo-department, having been named co-chair shortly after the election. He didn't last long, stepping away from DOGE amid controversy over a post on X in which he seemed to defend the skilled-worker visas that are popular among tech CEOs but seen as a corporate giveaway by many of Trump's supporters. Strangely, Ramaswamy's comments, complaining about "mediocrity" in American culture, were far more measured than Musk's published thoughts on the subject, which included amplifying posts that called American workers unemployable because "you can't outtrain being retarded." Musk's penchant for extreme provocation may go some distance to explain why Ramaswamy didn't mention DOGE during his announcement speech. Ohio is home to a large number of federal workers, and the decision to cut probationary employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs has already led to some uncomfortable headlines in the state. On Feb. 20, four days before Ramaswamy spoke, a Republican congressman warned about cuts to the social safety net and complained that Trump was defunding agencies improperly. "Congress has to decide whether or not the Department of Education goes away," Representative Troy Balderson told the Columbus Dispatch, referring to one of the threats Musk has made. "Not the president, not Elon Musk." There are other signs that DOGE's ruthless government cuts may prove to be unpopular. Musk's approval ratings have fallen sharply since the election, and in January his Tesla Inc. reported its first annual sales decline in a decade. On Tuesday, data released by a trade group suggested the company's sales in Europe, where Musk has been especially active, had dropped by 45% last year—at a time when EV sales overall were up by 37%. Protesters have begun appearing at Tesla stores, and Musk's Inauguration Day salute (and subsequent Nazi jokes) have been memed endlessly, even featuring in an anti-Tesla ad campaign. Of course, there are important upsides to Ramaswamy's association with DOGE. Making government more efficient and responsive to voters—if you can somehow manage not to cut the services that people like—is popular with voters of both parties. DOGE also brought Ramaswamy close to the two most important figures in Republican politics today. Besides Trump's endorsement, Ramaswamy secured one from Musk, who shared a clip from Ramaswamy's announcement with his more than 200 million followers. Given Musk's massive media profile, his mind-bending wealth and his pledge to donate large sums of money in the midterm elections, it seems likely that Ramaswamy would see an alliance with Musk as more beneficial than any controversy it generates. Related: White House Orders Agencies to Prepare 'Large-Scale' Staff Cut |
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