New pressure on Ohio governor, once hailed for virus action

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Early during the coronavirus outbreak, Ohio’s Republican governor appeared prophetic with his decisive steps to ban spectators from a sports expo, shut down all schools before any other state and put a stop to the presidential primary.

Since then, Gov. Mike DeWine has backed away from a statewide mask mandate, faced a mutiny within his party over business closures and juggled listening to both health experts and those who doubt them. For DeWine, navigating a path out of the state’s pandemic shutdown has been a bumpy one.

His aggressive moves that won early praise have tilted toward messages of personal responsibility, following the direction of governors in Republican-leaning states who resisted wide crackdowns. But now that the virus is surging again in Ohio, DeWine is taking what he calls a “surgical, precise approach” by requiring masks in just the hardest-hit counties even as some states are issuing wider and stricter measures.

The question is: Can this balancing act work?

It’s a strategy that has encountered criticism from all sides: those who think that his edicts have gone too far and those who believe he’s backed down from protecting the public.

“The same people who are telling me this mask mandate is crazy, are the same people who are saying to me, well, you can’t shut business down,” DeWine, 73, said in an interview with The Associated Press last week. “I agree we have to keep business open, but their failure to wear a mask does not help businesses move forward.”

He's scheduled a statewide address for Wednesday afternoon to talk about the growing spread of the virus.

DeWine, who has been elected to almost every position in Ohio during a 40-year political career, has struck a consistent tone about the dangers of the virus while standing alongside a...