Both Republicans spoke at an Ohio Chamber of Commerce event this week meant to preview the heady mid-term politics of 2026, when midterm elections are scheduled and every Ohio statewide officeholder term-limited.
Both Republicans were in broad agreement on most topics, lamenting Congress’ failure to pass regular-order budgets since the mid-1990s and seeing the need for stronger, more nimble national defense.
They also saw the need for reform in a number of areas — spending, central banking, and more. The median price for a house is now six times the median income nationally, Davidson said.
“Inflation is really theft. You’re really wrecking a lot of things,” said Davidson, a former U.S. Army ranger and owner of manufacturing businesses. “And people attribute it to politics or partisanship or capitalism. It’s really a failure on Congress’ part to balance the budget.”
“Hands down, the biggest crisis is the national debt,” he added.
Taylor, who has been in office for about eight months, agreed and added: “Just (passing) a budget would be a tremendous legislative goal for us when we get back.”
The conversation at Wright State’s Student Union turned to areas both felt required federal investments or attention, such as defense, workforce training and infrastructure.
“If we want a stronger, more focused military, we were able to get some spending ... with the supplemental (bill), like on submarines and ships,” said Davidson, who is a member of the House Foreign Affairs and the Financial Services committees. “That’s one of the biggest readiness issues.”
As chair of the Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions, Davidson recently brought a House field hearing to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force to highlight the importance of the Defense Production Act, which helps the federal government harness industry to defense priorities.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Title 3 of the Defense Production Act is vital for steering capital to priorities for national security, something the Trump administration is using to shore up rare earth minerals processing, for example.
It is national security that looms behind a lot of Trump’s trade policy, Davidson contends.
“Yeah, he wants people to treat us more fairly ...” he said of Trump. “But if you look at a lot of the things that he cites, he’s talking about national security.”
He added, “The president won’t always state this publicly, but why would he put tariffs on our allies? One, they should treat us fairly anyway. But two, they’re not helping with China.”
As he has on social media, Davidson also separated himself from Trump when it came to the president’s recent equity stake in Intel.
“I love President Trump, I trust his instincts,” he said. “... I just hope we stop taking equity stakes in companies.”
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