V16, N20 Thursday, Jan. 13, 2011 Indiana’s mayoral gender gap Kennedy, Hughes, Melina Ken- nedy hopes Brown will try and to make his- tory as she break big city ceiling challenges Indianapolis By BRIAN A. HOWEY Mayor Greg INDIANAPOLIS - As Melina Ballard. Kennedy kicked off her Indianapolis A female mayoral campaign on Monday, her has yet to husband and young children were lead one of just off the stage to her right. At her Indiana’s left was a woman holding a placard biggest five reading, “Moms for Melina.” cities. (OFA Canon IV CEO Jerry Jones Photo) - whose company provided the backdrop to this ambitious occa- sion - talked of the great men, from Lugar to Peterson, “who molded this city. These men made history. Now it is time for us to make history. Don’t you think it’s time to put a woman in the mayor’s office?” mayor (there was a brief attempt to appoint one in the As the crowd erupted into cheers, Kennedy quickly aftermath of the Ku Klux Klan fiasco in the mid-1920s). Nei- responded, “It is time to make history.” ther have Fort Wayne, South Bend, Evansville, Lafayette, If Kennedy can defeat Mayor Greg Ballard, she Gary, East Chicago, Kokomo, New Albany and Jeffersonville. would enter the annals of Hoosier political history, which Cosette Simon served 11 days as mayor of Fort Wayne has been starkly short on female executive leadership. Indianapolis never has had an elected female Continued on page 3 Holding & folding By RUSS STILWELL BOONVILLE - The opening session of the 2011 General Assembly should not have surprised anyone. When the House Demo- crats pulled a never-used rule out “I believe that for all our imper- of their political playbook that delayed opening day feel- good fections we are full of decency speeches, it was a classic case of and goodness and that the the minority informing the majority (or in this case Pat Bauer send- forces that divide us are not as ing not so subtle political smoke signals to Speaker Brian Bosma) strong as those that unite us.” that we matter, we count and be - President Obama careful with your agenda or you Page 2 Thursday, Jan. 13, 2011 just might not have one. national wave just short of a tsunami. He could have just as well Times were good. Sound familiar? sung lyrics from the classic Kenny Fast forward to 2010. With Rogers song, “The Gambler”: a wealth of “capital” support from You got to know when to Daniels, House Republicans ran on a hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, Daniel’s agenda of reform. They were Know when to walk away, and swept into office with a national wave know when to run. of relentless tsunami proportion. Sixty Howey Politics You never count your house seats and nearly a score of Indiana money when you’re sittin‘ at the fresh faces in the freshmen class. is a non-partisan newsletter table. There will be time enough In ‘95, they began the move based in Indianapolis and for countin’ when the dealin’s to dismantle organized labor that cre- published on the campus of done. ated the most contentious and mas- A long time ago, a prominent sive lobbying the Hoosier capitol had Franklin College. It was founded state senator said about House Demo- ever experienced! Twenty five thou- in 1994 in Fort Wayne. crat Leader B. Patrick Bauer, “Never sand trade unionists converged on the underestimate Pat Bauer politically or state capital. Brian A. Howey, Publisher intellectually.” Wise words from a wise The only issue talked about Mark Schoeff Jr., Washington former senator. No doubt that Gov. or written about was the controversial Daniels gets it. The bigger question is labor issues. They had forgotten their Jack E. Howey, editor whether the House Republicans get it. agenda and the political reality that Beverly K. Phillips, associate The governor has been on a near tsunami propelled them into editor the receiving end of the good, the office. And they lost their impressive bad and the indifferent from the feisty majority the very next election. partisan from South Bend throughout 2010? It was a very popu- Subscriptions his tenure. That’s one of the reasons lar and motivated governor with the $350 annually HPI Weekly the gov has repeatedly stated that hurricane-force winds of a tsunami of $550 annually HPI Weekly and now is not the time to for a conten- the century that propelled the House HPI Daily Wire. tious Right-to-Work battle. The state Republicans to victory. According to 'Call 317.627.6746 has other issues far more deserving the National Conference of State Leg- debate. I hope that Speaker Bosma islatures, the repudiation of Democrats and his caucus understand as well. in 2010 put the GOP in control of the Contact HPI Some of the most success- most state legislative seats since 1928. Howey Politics Indiana ful politicians in the Hoosier state are Sounds to me like a national storm of 6255 N. Evanston Ave. familiar with the crosshairs of political epic proportion, not a recipe to take weapons – sometime aiming the sights on all of organized labor in a mid-sized Indianapolis, IN 46220 and sometimes being the target. industrial state with a strong union www.howeypolitics.com Bauer and Daniels are experts at this presence. [email protected] political sport. Both have a lot of The 2010 win in Indiana 'Howey’s cell: 317.506.0883 practice with each other. But the shot ended with a political tsunami with 'Washington: 703.248.0909 initiated last week by Bauer was not waves that pounded the shores in directed at the governor; rather it was a relentless torrent. They just kept 'Business Office: 317.627.6746 a shot over the bow to Bosma and the coming, beginning at the doors of House Republicans. If they hope to then Speaker Pelosi and continuing the © 2011, Howey Politics Indiana. move their weighty agenda, hopefully cascade through the state legislatures All rights reserved. Photocopy- they took notice. all the way to the courthouses. It was ing, Internet forwarding, fax- One only has to look at the not a call to arms to dismantle labor past to predict the future. The year and pick a fight that will overshadow ing or reproducing in any form, was 1995 and the Republicans had what the election was really all about. whole or part, is a violation of captured the Indiana House with fifty- The House Democrats know federal law without permission six seats. They had run on an aggres- when to pick a fight and when to take from the publisher. v sive agenda of a Contract for Indiana. their medicine. They demonstrated They were swept into office with a this on opening day last week. Just Page 3 Thursday, Jan. 13, 2011 like Kenny Rogers, they know when to “hold ‘em and when Now Ev’ry gambler know the secret to survivin’ to fold ‘em.” After all, they are in the minority. Is knowin’ what to throw away and what to keep The House Republicans also know when to pick a “Knowin’ what to throw away and what to keep” fight and when to take their medicine. However, time will just might make the 2011 session a whole lot more produc- tell if they know when to “hold ‘em and when to fold’em.” tive, albeit a whole lot less interesting. v I hope they learn lessons from years past. Maybe they should review this classic song’s other lyrics as well. Stilwell is a former Democratic state representative. won in 1999, did not seek a second term Mayors, from page 1 in 2003, then defeated Republican Mayor Leigh Morris in 2007 by a 2,499 to 1,750 after Mayor Win Moses resigned in a margin. Huntingburg Mayor Connie Nass campaign finance scandal. Moses was served two terms before making the the then reelected by Democratic precinct rare jump to serve two terms as state audi- officials to finish out the term he won in tor. 1983. And then there are the grand Indiana never has had a female dames of mayoral politics. Democrat Sonya governor. The two women lieutenant Margerum served 24 years at the helm governors - Democrat Kathy Davis and in West Lafayette while Republican Mag- now Becky Skillman - took a pass on gie Prickett did four terms in Mishawaka, the next open gubernatorial nomina- winning her first term in 1963 and serving tions despite the state’s long history of until Bob Kovach upset her in 1979. It’s LGs positioned to make the next step interesting that Margerum and Prickett up. Jill Long Thompson won the 2008 served in smaller “twin” cities where males gubernatorial nomination, but lost to ran the predominantly larger cities next Gov. Mitch Daniels by 18 percent, failing door. to unite Hoosier Democrats even while Prickett, Allison, Margerum, Hut- Barack Obama carried the state in the ton and Michael also served or serve in presidential race. the college towns of Purdue, Indiana, Indiana has yet to elect a fe- DePauw, Earlham and Notre Dame univer- male U.S. Senator, and only Virginia Ellis sities - places where a more enlightened Jenckes, Cecil Murray Harden, Katie Hall electorate would be better disposed to look and Julia Carson have won congressio- beyond gender. nal seats. “Maggie was a widow best known In most cities where the gender as the operator of a grocery store when barrier has been broken, the results she first ran and won, taking advantage were hardly lasting.