I haven’t posted much other than School Board stuff in a long time, and I suppose this will touch on that as well. But I’m not exactly “focused” this election day morning. So I thought I’d just write a little bit and see what comes up. The big ticket item today is obviously Biden v. Trump. The available indicators look good for Biden, but the folks who recognize Trump for the absolute shit-show of a President that he has been for the last four years are jumpy. We’ve been hurt before.
A thought that caught my attention was a Biden campaign ad that focused on America as an “idea.” There are probably a lot of variations on exactly what that idea might be, but at the end of the day, it allows inclusion of people who buy into that idea. I’ve spent a lot of time over the years writing about how so much hinges on “us” versus “them,” who falls into those categories, and how one goes about moving between those categories. If Biden is correct that America is an idea, then the only thing that’s really required is (to paraphrase the Captain from Cool Hand Luke) that a person get their mind right. Trump’s vision of America has more to do with what the Nazis called blood and soil. It’s a place and a people. Those people are American by virtue of their ancestory and where they were born, not their belief in an idea. In fact, if they are from the right place or have the right parents, their ideas can be completely antithetical to what the Founders had in mind when they wrote the Declaration and the Constitution, and still be deemed more American than those who have kept faith with our Founding. Every election seems more consequential than the last – like we keep playing a game of double or nothing. I’m not sure if the stakes have always been as high as what I perceive, but this time it seems real enough. I think 1996 was the last time I wasn’t wound up very tightly during a Presidential election.
I haven’t been paying much attention to the House of Representatives races. On the national level, it looks like the Democrats have the House in the bag. On the state level, it’s been awhile since Indiana’s Congressional districts seemed competitive. I suppose that’s part of a red-shift in state politics and partly gerrymandering that followed the 2010 census. Indiana’s 1st (Lake County) and 7th (Marion County) districts will be Democratic. The 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 6th, 8th, and 9th will be Republican. And the 5th looks to be the only one that’s up in the air. It’s a fight for the seat being given up by Susan Brooks. Republican Victoria Spartz and Democrat Christina Hale seem to be pretty close. If I had to guess, Hale will pull it out. The suburban vote has been breaking against Trump lately and I think that will pull Hale across the finish line. But I’m horrible at these predictions. Indiana doesn’t have any Senate races. Nationally, it looks like the Democrats have a decent chance of taking control. The incumbent Democratic Senators most at risk look to be Doug Jones (Alabama) and to a lesser extent, Gary Peters (Michigan.) The Republicans seem to be at risk of losing seats in Arizona, Colorado, Georgia (x2), Iowa, Maine, Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Arkansas, Kansas, and Texas.
On the State level, I assume the General Assembly is still firmly under Republican control. The House Democrats can hope to deprive the Republicans of a supermajority, but I expect that’s about it. (Although, it looks like Todd Huston — the current Speaker — is in an exciting race that could shake up the House leadership.) The Democratic Caucus in the Indiana Senate will, I predict, continue to be a relatively lonely place. I haven’t heard too much about our local races – I assume the various incumbents will keep their seats. The Governor’s race could have been interesting if Woody Myers had gotten off to a smoother start. The roll out was fairly rocky and, at the time, Gov. Holcomb looked more or less untouchable. However, his support on the right wing of his party began to deteriorate due to his relatively sane COVID response — the masks-are-tyranny crowd are defecting to Rainwater. I tend to believe that defection is mostly illusory — if the Myers campaign had looked more threatening, the Rainwater Republicans would return to the Holcomb fold.
For me, the big state-wide race is Weinzapfel v. Rokita for Attorney General. I’ve never much cared for Rokita in any of his positions. He doesn’t seem to be well-liked among other Republicans, let alone Democrats. But he took advantage of Hill’s groping scandal and Holcomb’s somewhat tenuous control of the State party to win the Republican nomination. Meanwhile, Weinzapfel is a serious candidate who would likely do a good job as Attorney General. However, the fact remains that this is a pretty red state, so it’s going to be an uphill climb for any Democrat — even in a generally favorable year for Democrats. I’m crossing my fingers on this one.
And then there is my school board race. Fifteen people running for four spots. I’m hopeful, and I’m a competitive person, so I’d really like to win. Losing will sting for a bit. But, in the bigger picture, my life won’t change much one way or the other. I’d like to think enough of myself that I think the school will be worse off if I don’t pull this out. But the reality is that the schools will probably be fine whatever happens. Either way — and I know this is a cliche — but the good wishes of folks in the community have really meant a lot to me. The enthusiasm of friends has been gratifying and a little surprising (in a good way!) My wife is simply a juggernaut. Give her a solid project, and she’ll organize the hell out of it. My campaign would be a shambles but for her. The kids seem to be getting a kick out of their friends mentioning seeing my ad on YouTube.
Crossing my fingers and hoping for good things all across the board.
I’m not a voter in the West Lafayette school district, but pulling for anyway!
Thanks Jay!
Good luck on the school board race. I have a lot of respect for the level-headed thinking you display on your blog and think you’d be good on the school board. I so respect people who put their names out there for public office. I’ve done it and it’s much more difficult than the average person thinks. Then you have the stress of the election results coming in. Nerve wracking.
Thanks Paul! Didn’t go my way, but that’s all right. The Board composition is solid with the folks who did win.
Good luck Doug you will be a great school board member! I agree with you on Trump he wants a more authoritarian country and that scares me. My middle son Jonathan drove from Vanderbilt (getting his masters) to vote in the election. This election (he is 23) so important to him that he felt if Trump wins that our Democracy would be in peril.
I voted against Senator Freeman I know him and his values and mine don’t jive. Andre Carson is a given and I have always been impressed with Mike Speedy our Republican House of Rep incumbent. He is always around when local issue are debated exactly what you want from your government representative.
Now school board: I went and stumped for two school board candidates and I found there were a large number of voters that had made up their mind and did not want to hear what I wanted to say.. The one candidate that was easy sell is a full time National Guard soldier and he was going to push to get a ROTC program into the school. The undecided voters eyes would light up and state (if a student graduates from the program and goes right into the army once they finish basic they come out two grades higher then a regular recruit) that it was a great idea. The Army pays all cost the school corporation gives them a place to meet. Fishers has a great ROTC program and my best friends daughter had about half of College (she attended Purdue) costs paid for by the Army. He is also a proponent of career center education for the students that do not want to go to college. I bet I got him close to 80 votes! As for my other candidate she spent 16 years in the Navy. She understands the issues and very smart. Her only downfall is she is a ( wait for it LAWYER!!! ok cheap shot – GRIN) actually it was a plus since I explained it was always good to have someone that can decipher some of the reports and laws the school board has to deal with. It was my first time stumping for candidates and I had a blast!!! Good luck to the Gang of Four!!! Amy seems like a wonderful lady so if she makes it to the school board I’ll smile!
Her only downfall is she is a ( wait for it LAWYER!!! ok cheap shot – GRIN) actually it was a plus since I explained it was always good to have someone that can decipher some of the reports and laws the school board has to deal with.
Schools already employ local counsel. Having dealt with board members who are lawyers they are many times more of a hinderance than a help unless schools are their practice area. Why would I rely on a family lawyer for the intricacies of school law when I can hire someone who specializes in it? Heck, we retain a local counsel (locally based lawyer to deal with local issues), and a specialist who is an expert in Special Ed, School contract/employment law, and a when needed a specialist in school debt and finance.
Oh come on Paddy Doug and I had a very good conversation on the circuit breakers and the circuit breaker waivers. He knew the jest of the issue and I know it wasn’t his specialty but I learned a lot. Just reading his blog and what he has posted on his Facebook page. I have learned a incredible amount about how the money is allocated in the schools I have read my schools bi-laws and I guarantee none of the sitting school members have read them. I have gone over all of the financials on the Indiana Open Portal Web Page and when I run in two years I will know more about the school corporation then any current or any candidate that will run for school board. I doubt I could I could say that if I ran in West Lafayette. Plus the candidates have numerous people to turn to (Doug and he mentioned a financial guru his name escapes me) so they don’t have to learn everything about the legal and financial ins and outs of the school system
. I agree with you one hundred percent that board members in general don’t always want to expand to their knowledge or do the tough or the easy research so they can question the administration when they are being not always being above board. Case in point: The administration came to the board and told them they had a buyer for 7 and 3/4 acres (it was a good move since the land was worthless to the school for any viable project) of land. The school board members get this information two days before the meeting. The administration comes before the board and states they have a buyer and they want to keep the details under wraps until the sale is final. Only one question is asked. I see the address reading the minutes and type in the address in Google and on the third real estate site I see that the land has been up for sale for three years and the lands asking price. The land was a pending sale twice and the sale fell thru both times. So I went to the board minutes for the first two pending sales and found the board was never informed that the land was being sold. It took me all of 15 minutes. The questions I would have asked was Is $375 thousand still the asking price? Why did you not come to the board on the first two pending sales? Where and what will you be doing with the money? When the sale is final please come back to the board and we will like to hear all the details. The one board member asked sheepishly ” I do not want to jeopardize the sail but when do you think the sale will be final?’. The only thing I was puzzled about was the price but I have a friend in the community that verified commercial property goes for over $50 thousand a acre in our township. I passed my comments on to a school board member and they stated they will ask my questions at the next board meeting.
People don’t think or use their brains. They get stuck in their bubble and say I don’t know anything about real estate so why should I worry about it. I have always been incredibly (thanks Dad) curious about everything. Ok any math over Algebra fries my brain! Grin, I saw the circuit breaker waiver on our budget presentation and asked Doug (Amy Austin ran for cover) and Doug and I had a great conversation on how it works and I learned a incredible amount of information on the finances of the school system. I bookmark and then copy and paste many of his blog and facebook posts on school boards to a school board word document. I do this with anything that interests me. I hear what you are saying but if a school board member has researched the subject and then see’s something they don’t understand I think it is a good thing to ask a question and have it answered in a respectful manner. I assume the lawyers you refer to think they know all the answers. Then spout off when you you correct them. Hey they are lawyers what do you expect, just below doctors on the God scale! grin! Too many board members are cheerleaders or clueless (I was on an soccer board buts that’s a long story) about happens in a school system and it is truly sad!
Lastly one of my favorite Heinlein (actually Lazarus Long the Universe’s Oldest Man) quote. “What was the world’s fist profession? Salesmanship the price had to be negotiated first!!!!!!
I know you’re mostly just ribbing me, but I’ve been counsel to a number of boards that had lawyer members. By and large, they have sat back and let me do my job. So, I tried to do the same when I was on the school board — let the school board attorney do his job. There were times where his approach wasn’t quite how I might have tackled the issue, but I think it’s important to understand what your role is as a board member. (Also, my area of practice intersects with school law a lot more than your average attorney.)
And I think you were thinking of Larry DeBoer as the financial guru I mentioned. He’s a professor at Purdue in the ag department who studies local government finance. I first met him when I worked at Legislative Services in the late 90s. He’d come down a day or two a week during the legislative session and help out the fiscal analysts. Now, as it turns out, he lives about two blocks away from me and is very much a friend of the West Lafayette school system.
You didn’t say you wanted someone to ask intelligent questions you said they would be helpful because they could decipher reports and laws that the school board has to deal with.
Intelligent questions are important, weighing in as an expert on a subject outside your expertise is a hindrance.
Hey I was trying to get voters (she won yeah!) to vote for her. Did I tip the boat a little on her qualifications? Sure it’s a election. She is intelligent and one of her strengths is contract law. Still as a lawyer she can speak legal talk and be able to work with the boards attorney and the school attorney where a lay person might take longer to grasp a issue.. I have read the minutes to more then two hundred school board meeting and rarely do the board members need to ask questions. I assume these questions come up more in the work sessions or the financial sessions. She understands she is not going to overstep her bounds and is there to learn the ropes. The last two new board members have adopted that same stance. I am sure the taxpayers of my township will be well represented by the three newest board members (the last two came on board in 2019) that will represent us in 2021. They have three votes so they can push a different agenda then the previous board.
No Doug I was just kidding and thinking of all the silly lawyer jokes I have heard over the years. My brother had a friend in his firm and he had a big board in the corner of his office with nothing but Attorney Jokes. He passed away two years ago and I always wondered (my brother didn’t know) if he willed it to another attorney. Jeff had the sweetest turn around jump shot from the baseline I ever saw when I played in the lawyer league on the north side of Indy.
“Weighing in as an expert on a subject outside your expertise is a hindrance.” Been there Paddy it’s called youth sports league boards. My father looked at me and laughed when I told him I was getting on the soccer board. He laughed and said the kids will seem like angels to the people that “RUN” those boards. He was one hundred percent right, not everyone it just seems to be the board members that know everything and fight with the ones that think they do to. I hear stories about the baseball and football boards that are pretty much the same. My father was smart he coached us then when we grew up he umpired every division of baseball, reffed kids basketball and when the Y wanted to start a soccer league in Elwood they found out he played semi pro soccer in St Louis after WW .2 They approached him and he helped them form a soccer league in Elwood. He officiated soccer, baseball and basketball till he was 75. Retired from it all but they would still talk him into doing minor baseball games till he was 85. Never took a dime for it! So in recognition the YMCA threw him a huge dinner and named the league after him.The school administration called him down at halftime of a varsity basketball game and gave him a Elwood Golf Bag and clubs and a lifetime pass to get into any Elwood sporting event free. He never used it.
I returned to coaching soccer last season at U10 (63 years old) and had so much fun. COVID dashed my coaching dreams this year. Miss it because the kids and parents in New Palestine were so smart and fun. The league is aligned with the schools and the high school kids occasionally come out to help out the coaches.Then they had the bounce houses and free cook out at the end of the season. St Francis and Franklin Twsp soccer clubs are both cash strapped and have stopped the celebrations. I think I have found some grants they can apply for so I have to get all the info and find out if they are even having live board meetings. New Palestine still has that small town feel and the community supports it financially.. Although housing editions are popping up everywhere. Sorry about rambling on but I have had all the election news I can stomach for today! Big Groan!
Good for you for running for school board.
We are all better off for it.