Thursday, June 29, 2006

Indiana Democrats Give Lugar A Pass On Re-Election

Indiana Democrats have decided that the state's voters should have no choice in who their U.S. senator is for the next 6 years. The party today announced it was not going to field a candidate to challenge Sen. Richard Lugar to an unprecedented 6th term as the state's senior senator. The Star's Mary Beth Schneider writes:

Dan Parker, chairman of the Indiana Democratic Party, said this morning that Lugar is just too popular to challenge.

"Let's be honest," Parker said. "Richard Lugar is beloved not only by Republicans but by independents and Democrats."

Regardless of what you think of Sen. Lugar, it is simply unacceptable for him to be given a complete pass by the Democrats. The two-party system is critical to maintaining accountability. By not fielding a candidate, Lugar can now do as he pleases for the next 6 and a half years without any need to consult his constituents. The Indiana Democratic party really let the state's voters down on this one.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

You hit the nail on the head. The sad thing about this is that there were qualified candidates willing to run, but the men over at headquarters said thanks but no thanks. This really infuriates me as a life-long Democrat.

Anonymous said...

Gary-

You see Lisa Borges (Carl Brizzi's chief of staff) is jumping ship to run for judge?

Apparently she's none to confident that she will have a job after election day...

We will have to see how many more Brizzi staffers abandon their boss before election day...

Anonymous said...

Im a Dem. and I think Lugar is a good candidate. I cant blame the D's for not opposing him.

Anonymous said...

maybe Evan Bayh didn't want Hoosiers to see what a real Indiana Democratic Senator could be like?

Gary R. Welsh said...

Borges would be a fool not to jump at the opportunity to run for judge. She's guaranteed to win because of the bogus election system we have here in Marion Co. for judges. Besides, the job pays more money. I don't think it has anything to do with Brizzi's re-election chances.

stAllio! said...

so what happens if a voter doesn't want to vote for lugar or steve osborn and leaves that part of the ballot blank? is the rest of the ballot still valid?

also, with touch-screen voting machines, is it even possible to "leave a field blank"?

Gary R. Welsh said...

Steve,

No offense--I hope you understand my point. I think it is unacceptable when either of the two major parties leave an important office blank. I recognize that you will be on the ballot as the libertarian candidate and people will have that choice. In fact, I might even cast a vote for you myself if Lugar doesn't come to terms with issues I care about real soon.

Anonymous said...

The dems don't want a popular Republican at the top of the ballot to have a doomed opponent. Period. They were never going to beat Lugar anyway, so why give people a reason to vote for him? Votes for Lugar just draw people to cast a vote for more Republicans.

And for those "infuriated" Democrat voters... you know, someone could have filed on their own to run against Lugar. There are no laws that require a candidate to be party-approved before running (e.g., Eric Dickerson).

Anonymous said...

Hey 2:05
Please stop showing your lack of knwoledge by post such uninformed post.

being offered a Judge position is like you being promoted from dish washer to fry cook. Most likely the most you will ever amount to.

stAllio! said...

did i miss something, or is gary confusing me with steve osborn because i posted a link to his campaign site?

Gary R. Welsh said...

stAllio--the post was intended for Steve--I should have acknowledged you for raising the issue. Sorry about that.