In Memoriam: Richard G. Lugar (1932-2019)

For the second time this year, Indiana mourns the loss of a transformational political figure.

Richard Lugar has died, and I doubt we will never see another man like him in Indiana politics.

For me, it seems like he's always been here. I remember watching his career since I was a child. He was the Mayor of Indianapolis when I was born, and he served on the Senate for most of my adult life.

His accomplishments as Mayor paved the way for the city we know today. He had the vision of Indianapolis as a major player in the Midwest, and he put the chess pieces in place for that to happen. When he became a U.S. Senator, he brought his Hoosier sensibilities to the Upper Chamber of the U.S. Congress, and he served with a record of national and global distinction.

While a reliable vote for the GOP, Lugar was not afraid to put his state and country ahead of his party, and he did that without apology on occasion.

Unlike many before him and after him, Senator Lugar did not gain his power by corruption or through scandal. When you look back at his record, the only whiff of a scandal was that he chose to maintain an address in Indianapolis while living near Washington, D.C. rather than reside in Indianapolis or somewhere in Indiana full time. The Constitution says that one only needs to be an inhabitant of the state they serve, and it was ruled that, while he would spend time in hotels when he was back in the state, maintaining the address was enough to satisfy the Constitution. I always thought it was a silly scandal because Lugar served his constituents so well.

In fact, it was because Senator Lugar did the work that he earned his power. His constituent services were second-to-none. The many times I wrote him on issues, I always received back a personalized letter that sounded as if the Senator executed it on his own computer. He would provide concrete reasons for his positions and would promise to take my views into advisement. They weren't partisan missives written in generality.

He conducted himself in the same way in the international sphere. Few Senators were as respected at home or abroad as Lugar. He was above party and always pro-country. From IPS School Board Member to even his work post-Senate, Senator Lugar was trying to help the city, the state, and the world be a better place.

When I got into politics and then began to write this blog, he became someone I wanted to meet. It always seemed that I was a step or two behind when trying to accomplish this goal. Finally, I attended an event put on by the Decatur Township Education Foundation in honor of the school system naming the site of the Blue and Gold Academy after Lugar.

He spoke off the top of his head about his diplomatic work. He talked about helping to secure loose nukes in the former Soviet states in Europe and Asia. He also even talked about the trip with then-Senator Barack Obama where they were briefly detained in Russia on a diplomatic trip. After the speech, Senator Lugar greeted everyone who waited for him. He took every picture and signed every autograph. I shook his hand and told him how much I admired him even though I was on the opposite side of the aisle. He smiled and thanked me. I then watched as his staffers tried to pull him away from the others, but he ended up being nearly the last person in the room. He only left when no one else wanted to meet him. That's an enduring image I'll have of the Senator.

In retrospect, it might have been that statesmanship that cost him his seat in the Senate. Richard Mourdock used that diplomatic fact-finding trip Senator Lugar took with then Senator Barack Obama that I referenced earlier as a rallying cry to knock off Lugar. He mocked him as "Obama's favorite Senator" and decried bipartisanship. When Senator Lugar had to say goodbye to the Senate, his farewell speech was memorable.

Lugar's Farewell Speech

So, as we again mourn the death of one of the greatest Indiana politicians, we must also mourn the death of one of the greatest Hoosiers. Like Birch Bayh who passed just weeks ago, individuals like Richard Lugar come along very rarely, and we were all better for having lived in his time. He enriched our world and our society.

Reflections of Concessionaire: The Bus Drivers and Interesting Personalities of IMS

I'm feeling nostalgic tonight, so this post has nothing to do with politics. Please forgive me.

Nearly 25 years ago, I worked at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the concessions department. My mom managed the concessions stand by the museum adjacent to the Louis Chevrolet Memorial, and I worked as her assistant.

For those of you who don't know, the property is open year round for tours of the track and a walk through the museum. Where I worked was the only permanent stand that was open daily to the public on the property. Typically, we opened in early March, and the stand closed in late October.

The concessions stand had a storage area that had a little break room within it, and the tour bus drivers used the area as a staging point. Unless there was a special event, the bus drivers worked in teams of three or four, and, for a fee, they'd take you or your family or your group on a lap around the World's Greatest Race Course.

I didn't think about it at the time, but I was so fortunate to work with each of them. I grew close to them, and they weren't just my co-workers. They were all my friends.

There was Earl Freeland. Earl was a wisecracking World War II veteran who was quick with a story and quicker with a joke. Earl loved to eat canned vienna sausages and sardines. He referred to himself as "The Earl of the Free-land". Earl drew the ire of his bosses for often shutting off the tour bus tape and giving his own personal narrative of the track tour. "The Earl" always brought a smile to my face with his never quite straight hat and his slacks that just weren't long enough. His stories kept 20 year old me captivated for hours.

There was Kenny Rhea. Kenny liked to wear bright colored pants and loved to talk. One of his favorite stories was that he was the first man to take Juan Pablo Montoya around the track as he had given him his inaugural tour around IMS in the tour bus. Kenny was incredibly kind, generous, and, like Earl could tell stories that just kept you interested. The other drivers would get annoyed sometimes at Kenny because he liked to give a long intro before he started on the tour. Like Earl, Kenny was a veteran.

There was Travis Jones. Travis looked like he could take you down even at his age, and he probably could. He was a little moody, and he could sometimes be very difficult to get along with, but, when he liked you, he had that proverbial heart of gold. Like the others I've profiled, Travis was a veteran and an autoworker. He was proud to have worked for Chrysler. He was proud of his service. He was proud of his country and was very proud to have grown up south of Washington Street in "the Valley".

There was Bob Groover. Bob had a distinctive and loud voice. Once you heard it, you could never forget it. One day, I had a headache, and Bob said, "Sit down here in this chair, and I'll take care of it." I sat down, and Bob began to massage my temples. Within moments, my headache was gone. I've tried the method since, but it never works for me. Bob was also a veteran. He was wounded and carried off the battlefield to a field hospital where he nearly died. A few years after returning home from World War II, Bob and his wife attended the Holiday on Ice performance at the Indiana State Fair Coliseum. It was October 31, 1963. Bob's wife was killed in the coliseum explosion that night, and Bob was left again fighting for his life. I'd meet him some 30 years later, and he would still talk about those nights. He'd often comment about how he shouldn't be here, but he was for some reason. Two brushes with death. He'd live to be 94.

There was Harry Kirk or "Dirty Harry" as everyone called him. Harry was a lovable curmudgeon who would often tell jokes that were on the blue side...thus the nickname he embraced. At quitting time one night, Harry emptied his final load of customers and then took the tour bus on a joy ride around the track. Jim Baxter, another driver, said he passed his bus on the Main Straight going very fast. Harry parked his bus, and he went home and died that night.

Jim Baxter was always seemed to be a nervous wreck. He was the epitome of professionalism, and he liked to toe the line. Jim always dressed to the nines with shined shoes, perfectly fitted slacks and an ironed shirt. He was retired from Allison's Transmission. He had a very dry sense of humor, and the best laugh of the bunch. Jim was a good-hearted and good-natured man who, along with Kenny, was my mom's favorite driver of the bunch. Jim died three days before Christmas in 2014 at the age of 91. My mom died on Christmas that same year.

I could go on. I could talk about "Little John" John Schenck. He was one of the nicest people I've ever met. There was his foil "Big John" whose last name I can't remember for the life of me. Big John often preferred to stay on his bus and keep to himself. There was our yellow shirt, Tom Blanford, who was hilarious. I could even talk regular customers like Crocky Wright, the racing journalist and motorcycle stuntman and "Doc" Sloan who grew up in Mooresville in the days of John Dillinger and once faced Dizzy Dean playing minor league baseball.

I guess the point of all this is that all these men I can remember to this date.  They're all gone now. I don't know why I felt the need to document them here tonight. I wanted to memorialize my memories of them and urge you to talk to the people around you. Get to know your coworkers and let their experiences enrich your life. Thanks for indulging me.

America, Meet Pete

Mayor Pete Buttigieg is set to announce his intentions for 2020 tomorrow in South Bend.

Almost everyone with a pulse knows what that announcement will probably be. He's going to say he's running for President of the United States. He's run a sensational campaign thus far, and this will take it to the next level.

He's done almost everything right, in my view, thus far. His campaign's been like a great roast in the crock pot. Its simmered all day long and now it's ready to go. I've been, frankly, shocked at his streaking rise to the top of the deck in the Democratic field. I mean, I always knew Pete was special, but I never thought a small city Mayor could do what he's done at 37 years old. He's a major contender in 2020.

It's the stuff of movies.

I first met him in 2010 at the IDEA Convention in French Lick. Turning the corner off 150 and heading down on 56 into the town, you saw these seemingly hundreds of homemade yard signs that read, "Meet Pete". It reminded me of the "See Rock City" and "See Ruby Falls" signs you see as you travel the South. I remember saying to my friend, Chris Jackson, "Who the hell's this Pete guy?"

After seeing a few friends and chatting around a bit, we finally met Pete in the guilded lobby of the resort. Maybe it's just my mind misremembering things, but I seem to remember getting a sticker that said, "Met Pete" from his campaign after you did meet Buttigieg. Regardless, it was brilliant marketing and a unique way to build conversation.

My friendship with Pete grew after that. He spoke at the Decatur Township Democratic Club that year, and he was a guest a few times on my Indiana Talks show after he was elected Mayor of South Bend. We've exchanged social media messages since. I've seen him and Chasten at party events over the years before and after they were married. I sent Pete condolences after I heard about the death of his father. He responded with a heartfelt thank you. Most recently, I fired off a congratulatory message to Pete after the town hall appearance on CNN which I believe sparked his rise in the polls that continues to this moment. I recieved another personal response from him the next day.

To me, that means that all this has not gone to his head.

It won't. That's because, as I tell everyone, Pete is exactly the person you see on TV. He's calm, cool, incredibly smart, frank, earnest, and honest. He's humble and contientious. He's exactly the opposite of the current man in the White House.

In a way, we're all turning into French Lick and seeing those signs. "Meet Pete" and it seems America is liking the man they're meeting.

I endorse him not only as an Indiana Democrat and a friend, but I endorse him because he's going to be President of the United States, someday. Given the current occupant, why shouldn't that be now? President Obama said, "We are the ones we've been waiting for," and I think Pete gets that.

Pete, if you read this, good luck. I'm hoping you'll be my President, but I'm glad you'll always be my friend.

Merritt, Indy GOP All Hat and No Cattle on Potholes and Tort Claims

We are one month away from the Primary Election, and we still have no idea what Jim Merritt wants to do if he's elected Mayor of Indianapolis.

He certainly can hold a press conference. We know that! So far, he's held several on potholes and tort claims, but, when pressed for solutions, he comes up empty. Most embarrassingly, the media asked Merritt if he would change the tort claim procedures for Indianapolis (which are largely dictated by state law and not city ordinance), and Merritt became the guy that couldn't find his wallet when it came time to pay the check.

Don't bother to look online for his ideas, either. His website provides no more guidance beyond a promise to roll out his policies during the campaign. Inspiring.

Here's the truth. Jim Merritt, as a state Senator, has been a member of a Indiana General Assembly that has Kathy Bates-in-Misery-style hobbled local governments. Time after time, they've pushed the funding of city governments back to the cities and towns and then cut off the ability for those entities to raise funds. Constitutional tax caps slapped a big governor on the engine of city and local governments.

Years of mismanagement of Republican City-County Councils and Mayors of Indianapolis has also placed us in this situation. Roads were not updated and repaired, and, when they were, they were done so in such a shoddy fashion that many of the improvements have simply fallen apart. Can Joe Hogsett do more? Sure! He has to have the ability to do so, though. In the current funding structure, it's just not feasible.

Indiana has run up is surplus on the backs of local governments, cities, and schools. Jim Merritt won't tell you that at his next press conference. He'll tell you that the General Assembly threw some chump change at the problem when in reality it's going to take a concerted effort and much more political capital to truly fix our problems.

Are the attacks on Joe Hogsett fair? I don't think so unless you're going to do something different than what he's done. Indy's Department of Public Works is doing what it can, and I think Hogsett is, too.

Merritt is all hat and no cattle at this point. His party likes to throw up memes on social media and tag Hogsett as "Pothole Joe", but they ignore their role in getting us here. As for Merritt, he wants your vote without any plan to fix anything in this city, so I've got a nickname for Jim Merritt since he has no plan: "Meritless Merritt".

I think it fits.

Reflecting on Dr. King's Assassination and RFK's Speech 51 Years Later

Fifty-one years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was gunned down by an assassin in Memphis, Tennessee. Most of you probably know the details by now, but he was in Memphis on behalf of the sanitation workers who were striking for better working conditions.

The death threats mounted, and Dr. King went to Memphis anyway. He was taken from us at 39, and we were robbed of whatever he would have done after April 4, 1968. While his journey stopped, others picked up the standard and have continued to push for racial equality in our country.

In Indiana that same day, another young man was campaigning for the office of President of the United States. Robert F. Kennedy was relatively new to the race for President in 1968, and he was fighting for every vote in every primary.

On the way from Muncie to Indianapolis, he was informed of King's assassination and was urged to cancel his rally in Indianapolis. Instead of canceling his rally, Kennedy climbed on the back of a flatbed truck and delivered a speech with very little preparation that not only informed the gathered audience of King's shooting but consoled them and soothed them.

While many other cities erupted in violence that evening, Indianapolis was quiet.

All of this happened before I was born, but I remember my father telling me the story and showing me the text of the speech as a boy. It's something every parent should do because in just a few minutes, Kennedy gave us a great eulogy of Dr. King and a road map for fixing what continues to plague our society.

Going back and looking at the rhetorical structure of the speech, one would wonder if any other person in any other place could have delivered those particular remarks. The words are beautiful, well-chosen and extremely prescient even to today. In particular, the last few lines of the speech flash like a beacon through the fog of history.

What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence or lawlessness; but love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or they be black. 

So I shall ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King, that's true, but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love--a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke. 

We can do well in this country. We will have difficult times; we've had difficult times in the past; we will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; it is not the end of disorder. 

But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, and want justice for all human beings who abide in our land. 

Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life of this world. 

Let us dedicate ourselves to that, and say a prayer for our country and for our people.

I wonder if we are capable of doing what Kennedy asks. Today, 51 years after these lines were delivered, I wonder if we even trust one another or trust the institutions enough to show that love or that compassion. Are we capable of that?

Tonight, let's honor Dr. King for his sacrifice, his courage and his work. Let's mourn what we lost and let's lift our heads tomorrow and move forward in search of the love and compassion we need to solve our nation's problems.

Incidentally, as you probably know, on June 4, 1968, Senator Kennedy won the California Primary. At the victory party in the wee hours of June 5, Kennedy would also be assassinated.

Begin Again? Indy Democrat is BACK!

Your Host

This is the Indy Democrat Blog. My name is Jon Easter.

For those of you who know me, welcome back, and, if you're just stopping by, welcome.

Many years ago, I wrote a column for a very brief period of time that was published in the Mooresville/Decatur Times called Democratically Speaking in Indy. It was my first foray into real opinion writing since my high school days back at Ben Davis High School, and I loved it. I actually earned a few fans. My time at the Times ended and so did the column.

Indirectly, that column gave birth to the first version of the Indy Democrat Blog. That was my baby for nearly 10 years. At first, I published sporadically. Eventually, I moved into seven-days-a-week posting schedule. I wasn't getting paid for it, and I started to run short on information and ideas. Eventually, I scaled it back to a weekday only schedule. The thing went on life support when I went back to posting only sporadically. Eventually, I mercifully put the pillow over the thing, and I killed it.

Then, I made one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I deleted the whole thing. I burned it down and bulldozed the remains. Nine years and nine months of work was gone in the click of a mouse.

Recently, I went back, and I actually began to think about my blog and what it accomplished. That little thing that was started for free here on Blogspot generated mentions in national publications. Because of my work, I created a radio talk show that aired on Indiana Talks. Senators, Representatives, Councillors, Mayors, Members of Congress began to ask me what I thought on issues. I couldn't believe, in retrospect, what I had thrown away.

I threw away my voice. I went silent. I thought I'd be happy.

I wasn't. I'm a creature of politics. I love the strategy. I love the analysis, and you probably shouldn't take me too seriously. I didn't go to school for this. Education's my day job, and I am happiest in the classroom. This is something else for me. This is my mental exercise: crafting these words here.

Well, here I am again. I don't know if anyone will listen to my voice or read my words, but I feel the need to opine again. Pardon my self-important tone. I really do not take myself that seriously.

On this blog, I'll give you my opinion on things political or otherwise, but I won't toss red meat. I will practice good journalism when I report, and I'll be like an unbiased baseball umpire. I'll call them like I see them. My loyal readers probably won't notice much of a difference than before.

In short, I want to apologize to Version 1.0 of this blog. I tossed you out. I unceremoniously kicked you to the curb. I pretended not to feel the loss.

Truth is...I did. I need to do this again even if I hate it sometimes. I can't promise I'll be here every day, but I'll try to do this regularly. Writing for me comes easier when I feel really good. I do right now.

So, let's try to make it right this time. So, I begin.