John R. Kasich, the former congressman from Westerville, left the storied investment banking firm shortly after it collapsed in September, severing a six-year relationship as a managing director of Lehman's investment banking division.

As Kasich prepares to challenge Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland, his association with a firm that has come to symbolize the avarice of Wall Street almost certainly will be used against him.

"If he becomes a candidate for governor, I'm sure that will be part of the discussion, as will the way I've handled my job," Strickland said. "I don't know how engaged he was, what his responsibilities were. Would that likely be something I would look into if he were my opponent? I think that it's likely that it would."

Since leaving Congress in 2001, Kasich has turned his political and television-news star power into a lucrative private career. But he is hankering for a return to public office, and for more than a year he has been wooing Ohio Republicans for an expected gubernatorial bid in two years.

Kasich has strong voter appeal in these troubled economic times. As chairman of the House Budget Committee during the 1990s, he earned a reputation by overseeing the first balanced federal budget in decades.

But Democrats believe his employment by Lehman, along with his membership on corporate boards, is a chink in Kasich's political armor.

Christopher Lehane, a California-based consultant who was spokesman for Democrat Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign, said Kasich's perceived "wallet-to-wallet, bad derivative-to-bad derivative, credit swap-to-credit swap" association with Lehman undermines his ability to run as an economic populist.

"In the current ecology," Lehane said, "where the public is very scared by what is happening in the economy and are holding Wall Street accountable for the economic distress they and their families are experiencing, it is hard to conceive of a more troubling association an aspiring candidate for office in Ohio could have than being closely connected to the Wall Street firm that symbolizes the economic meltdown."

Kasich's defenders believe he is inoculated against such criticism by his congressional record.

"I'm sure his detractors will bring that up as a reason not to be for him," said Jon Husted, the former Ohio House speaker. "But if I were John, I would say, 'If you want to talk about finances, I was the first person to deliver a balanced budget in decades.' I'm sure he will have just as many good things to talk about in his past as people might want to bring up those detriments."

Kasich would not comment directly for this story because he is not yet an announced candidate for governor. However, his longtime aide, Jai Chabria, said in an e-mail response to questions that Kasich is proud of a private-sector career that has focused on promoting economic growth and creating jobs.

Chabria said Kasich was a fully qualified investment banker in Lehman's Columbus office and advised businesspeople across the country on mergers and acquisitions, raising capital and other financial tools.

"John had absolutely no role in the holding or underwriting of mortgage-backed securities or with the proprietary real-estate investments which led to the downfall of Lehman Brothers," Chabria said, adding that Kasich received no bonus or "golden parachute" when Lehman went under and he left.

"John was one of 30,000 employees of Lehman Brothers and, like many others, he lost much equity after years of hard work for the firm."

Since Lehman's collapse, Kasich has become a consultant for the Columbus-based Schottenstein Stores Corp., advising it on business strategy and acquisitions.

During his time at Lehman, Kasich surely made hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, with some estimates putting his annual salary at $1 million or more. Kasich also is a regular commentator and show host for Fox News; Chabria said terms of Kasich's contract with Fox are confidential.

Kasich also brought in an aggregate six-figure income by serving on the boards of Worthington Industries and Invacare, a northeastern Ohio medical supply company. Both companies' political-action committees and executives lavish contributions on members of Congress, including Kasich when he was in the House.

Kasich made more than $87,000 in 2007 in total compensation on the Worthington Industries board and more than $60,000 on the Invacare board, according to Forbes.com and confirmed by the companies.

The companies are "two of Ohio's most-respected public companies," Chabria said, adding that Kasich "gives his advice and counsel and serves his fiduciary responsibilities."

Kasich also is a well-paid celebrity speaker, often before audiences of private companies and trade groups. He commands between $10,000 and $30,000 a speech, according to one speakers bureau profile promoting his appearances. Chabria would not disclose Kasich's speaker fees and cautioned that fee ranges on Web sites "often do not reflect actual compensation to the speaker."

When and if he becomes a gubernatorial candidate, Kasich likely will be asked by reporters to divulge his tax returns, as have most other recent gubernatorial candidates. Kasich won't do it now and didn't commit to doing it.

Kasich could face questions from political rivals about his relationship with Richard Fuld, Lehman's chief executive officer. In a 2001 interview with the New York Observer, Kasich heaped praise on Fuld, calling him "an awesome guy" and "a great leader," crediting Fuld for bringing him to Lehman after Kasich left Congress and mounted a short-lived bid for president in 2000.

Kasich's role with Lehman did not come up during congressional hearings scrutinizing Lehman Brothers' collapse, but Fuld was excoriated by lawmakers for his multimillion-dollar salary and for failing to steer the company away from risky subprime mortgage loans and other bad debt.

When Kasich was asked to comment on Fuld now, Chabria said:

"John had seen highs and lows at Lehman -- he was proud of Lehman's management during 9/11 -- keeping morale up even when the firm lost its building and rallying in the face of adversity. But, like many other employees, John was deeply disappointed with Lehman Brothers' top management and their decisions during this past crisis."

jhallett@dispatch.com

jriskind@dispatch.com