Long-Time Lugar Aide Mark Helmke Dies

Mark Helmke, a long-time spokesman for former Sen. Richard Lugar (R) and brother of former Fort Wayne Mayor Paul Helmke, died unexpectedly Saturday two days shy of his 63rd birthday according to the Journal-Gazette. He most recently taught at Trine University in Angola. "We are all in shock," Paul wrote on his Facebook site about his brother death. He released the following statement on his death:

"My brother loved politics, history, and the interplay of the human strengths and foibles that lead to change in our communities, country and the world. From his early career in journalism to his long-time work with Senator Richard Lugar, his advocacy on mental health issues to his all-too-brief stint in academia, Mark worked to make the world a better and more honest place. His death leaves a large hole in the hearts of his family and friends."

Lugar released the following statement on his passing:

"Mark played important roles in historic events. As a reporter and campaign operative, he influenced many Indiana elections over a generation. On the world stage, he contributed compelling communications and diplomatic savvy during the election of Corazon Aquino and the toppling of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines, the ending of apartheid in South Africa, the spreading of democracy in Latin America, and the establishment of a new government and economic climate in post-Soviet Ukraine."

In Helmke's last Facebook post this past Monday, he wrote in anticipation of drawing his social security check:

Thank you, FDR.

My grandfather hated him. I just discovered I can make more collecting Social Security than I do teaching college, and I can do both, and still collect my federal pension. What a deal. Drinks are on me, especially since you are paying for them.

Last August, he wrote about the "Indiana Gestapo" in reference to the challenges he faced in obtaining a driver's license to legally operate a motor vehicle in Indiana:

I moved home to Indiana two years ago after representing the state for many years as a congressional staffer in Washington. In my first week home, after buying a cabin my grandfather built on Lake James in Angola, I thought I get my paperwork in order at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV. ) I was used to the long lines and rude behavior of the motor vehicle bureaucrats in DC and Virginia.

The employees are much more friendly, but the rules more byzantine. A copy of my original social security card was requested. Although I memorized the number like my name, the card itself I had not seen for years. And I recall being told time and time again by law enforcement officials to never use or carry my social security card.
I somehow dug the original card out of my box from gradeschool grade. Then Indiana BMV said I needed to procure two first class letters, preferably bills, to my new address. I look at the picture of my old political colleague, former Gov, Mitch Daniels, and plead, how do I prove to my native state that I'm real.

I somehow dug the original card out of my box from gradeschool grade. Then Indiana BMV said I needed to procure two first class letters, preferably bills, to my new address. I look at the picture of my old political colleague, former Gov, Mitch Daniels, and plead, how do I prove to my native state that I'm real.

Everything gets worked out five or trips. And the staff is very friendly.

No problems until today when I receive in the mail a form letter from the Indiana BMV threatening to suspend my driver's license until I prove to the state my "financial responsibility." If I do not provide such verification in a month the BMV will "suspend your driving privileges, vehicle registration, or both." Why? Because I was involved in a minor accident that was not my fault?

Can the same thing happen to me for walking down the street? A State Trooper stops me. He, buddy. Let me see your papers. Are you financially responsible for being here? What kind of gestapo tactics are these?

I do not use the phrase lightly. I'm not a tea party nut. I worked for Dick Lugar my entire life. I was the first ever intern in the Indiana legislature. I've known the governor for years. I'm a college professor.

But this kind of form letter to a law abiding citizen of the state by a governmental agency is not just insensitive, it is outrageous. I understand the nature of governmental bureaucracies. Those responsible for such letters should be fired immediately to remind government employees for whom they work.