Archive for March, 2008

If our TV and radio airwaves weren’t saturated enough with campaign ads from Barack Obama, “Diamond Jim” Schellinger and our Governor Daniels, “The Guv” is going to start running two more ads. The first one is called “Taxpyers First”.

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It has been a busy weekend in the tumultuous realm of behind-the-scenes politicking in the Indiana Republican Party as various candidates jockey for position to fill the vacuum left by Steve Carter’s unexpected decision to not seek a third term as Indiana’s Attorney General.

Late last week and early this weekend, columns by Indy Star columnists Matt Tully and Russ Pulliam confirmed many of the things about which I was blogging much earlier in the week. On the downside, I have read one comment elsewhere that Greg Zoeller and Kyle Hupfer were present at the Bartholomew County Lincoln Day dinner, though two of my sources there reported not seeing them.

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Next to Easter and Christmas, baseball’s opening day is probably the most sacred day on my calendar.  (I know, I know, a baseball fan in Indiana doesn’t make much sense where basketball and the Colt rule.)  But no other sport has been able to capture my love of history, politics and sport.  So on this great day, I give you the clip below which mixes all of that with a bit of humor.  Oliver Stone and Zapruder would be proud.

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Joe Donnelly, the blue dog Democrat representing Indiana’s 2nd Congressional District, spoke at a Notre Dame Law School event Wednesday. Donnelly’s primary topic was pro-life issues.

According the ND Observer (the campus newspaper), in the course of his discourse Donnelly declared that his party is not inherently pro-choice and that a “working majority” in Congress is pro-life. In response to that first statement I’d say that with specific respect to abortion, both of our current political parties were around before 1973 so both of them predate the era of abortion on demand.

This of course doesn’t mean that all Democrats are pro-choice, that Democrats today should be held accountable for the way their party ancestors behaved, or that being pro-life is synonymous with being a Republican. It does mean that inspite of its various flaws, the Republican party has a generally pro-life history and in the aftermath of a judicial ruling making abortion on demand legal, the GOP has on the whole taken the high road and strongly embraced then notion that life is precious and should be protected.

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The caucus to replace State Senator David Ford took place today. Attorney and Wells County Councilman Travis Holdman was chosen to fill the rest of Senator Ford’s term.

Via Mitch Harper and Fort Wayne Observed:

Travis Holdman was selected to serve as Indiana’s newest state senator at a District 19 caucus held at Bluffton High School. Mr. Holdman was selected on the fourth ballot. He is filling the vacancy created by the death of the well-respected David Ford.

Read the rest of Mitch’s post here.

Remember that classic Wendy’s ad from the 1980’s? You know the one with the old lady asking “Where’s the Beef?” That commercial reminds me of the vapid messages that Barack, Hillary and “Diamond Jim” Schellinger are delivering all around Indiana these days.

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(Open Thread Saturday….have at it!)

I had the pleasure of interviewing District 50 State Representative Dan Leonard (R-Huntington) on Tuesday for Talk of the Town, a local news blog in my home county. Leonard gave us a brief overview of HB1001, what it means, and how it affects taxpayers. He also explained the “Little Red Schoolhouse” Amendment he authored and how it ended up at the end of the legislative session. The quality isn’t great but we’ll work on that for future interviews.

 

 Interview with State Rep. Dan Leonard: Play Now | Play in Popup

Here are the latest rumors and innuendo (and out the other) that I have heard about the attorney general’s race over the past day or so.

I am surprised to the extent to which Attorney General Steve Carter is disliked, and his office viewed as full of problems and shortcomings by those that had to deal with it or depended upon it. While such comments are typical on partisan blogs of other stripes, I am now hearing these things from more reliable Republican sources and others on the right.

Normally, politicians become more popular after they leave office or bow out of the political arena. This does not seem to be the case with Steve Carter. He seems less popular now–at least publicly–than he was before he declined to seek reelection for a third term.

None of the things I am hearing about Carter’s time in office and the efficacy of his staff (assuming they are true) bode well for Carter’s chosen replacement, Greg Zoeller.

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IU could use a conservative or two on the Board of Trustees. Here is your chance to make that happen.

Dear Conservative and IU Friends,

After some searching I am happy to report that Kelly Burton Smith has stepped forward to run as a conservative candidate in this year’s IU Alumni Trustee race. Anyone who follows the goings on at IU knows that changes are need in the politically correct leadership. From gay culture centers, race-based admissions policies, and a politically one-sided faculty to the banning of Christmas trees, handguns, and academic freedom, things clearly need to change. All this, while tuition rates continue to soar well beyond the rate of inflation. Conservatives must step forward to do something.

Kelly is a graduate of IU School of Law Indianapolis. She is an attorney at Barnes and Thornburg in Indianapolis and lives in Hamilton County. Her conservative credentials are unquestionable and I think she’ll make a good candidate.

In order to get Kelly on the ballot, we need to secure 100 signatures from IU alumni and turn them in with her application by April 1. A petition form is attached as a pdf. Please sign it and get as many IU alumni to sign it as you can. You will need to return the hard copy with original signatures directly to Kelly at the address listed on the form no later than Friday, April 28 in order for Kelly to get it to IU before the April 1 deadline.

This doesn’t give us much time but I know we can do this. Please feel free to forward this message and copy the form as much as you need to. Won’t it be nice to have a candidate we can feel proud to vote for this year?

Thanks for your help.

Jim

A link to the Trustee’s webpage with more information about the Alumni Trustee election can be found at http://alumni.indiana.edu/about/election/index.shtml. Ballots are mailed to IU degree-holders in May.

Download the petition here: iualumnipetition.pdf

The dead fish, that is. The ones wrapped in newspaper and left on the doorstep.

From Taking Down Words:

I have decided, after overcoming the general resistance to change that they beat into you in law school, to join Jim Schellinger’s gubernatorial campaign as Communications Director. This means that TDW as you know — and either love or hate — it will exist no more.

My guess is that she’ll be back in about forty days and forty nights, when Schellinger has lost the primary to Jill Long Thompson.
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Republican Bob Heaton and former Indiana State Sycamore star is running against Democrat Vern Tincher for HD 46. He will begin running the ad below in Terre Haute tomorrow.

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The Politico earlier this week ran a story on the struggle and strife, both monetarily and ideologically, that plague many state GOP parties around the country. Whether they be in the bluest of blue states or the reddest of red, the aftermath of the 2006 mid-terms still loom large over them. Michigan GOP Chairman Saul Anuzis was quoted as saying “After twelve years of being in power, you tend to get fat and lazy, and in some cases arrogant with respect to your positions”. Makes me wonder why it took 42 years for that to happen to the Democrats before the 1994 revolution.

Aside from mass political defeat on the state and national levels in 2006 for Republicans the problem stems from the perception and fact that Republicans lost their way ideologically. By the time 2006 rolled around, Social and Fiscal conservatives were up in arms over scandals and fiscal ineptitude. The votes (or lack thereof) for Republicans on the national level sank, not just for congressman and senators, but Republicans lost majorities in legislatures and/or governorships all across the country. Indiana was no different.

So is our state party next on the list of soon to be fractured and broke?

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