Civility Rules Night in Indiana Gubernatorial Debate

Indiana Gubernatorial Candidates
Eric Holcomb (R), Woody Myers (D), Donald Rainwater (L)
Photos from Official Sources or Campaigns

The Indiana Gubernatorial Debate was Tuesday night, and there was something there for everyone. I'm not sure it changes the race much, but it did provide an opportunity to see the three candidates out there pushing their own values and views.

As far as the red meat goes, there really was little in the way of insults or interruptions fired at each other. By and large, it was an hour of candidates following the rules of the debate and a moderator named Andrew Downs who did a great job keeping the hour moving.

The biggest area of disagreement came on COVID-19 restrictions. Governor Eric Holcomb defended his record on the COVID-19 response despite the fact that since the state moved to Stage 5 of the "Back on Track" plan the cases, deaths and hospitalizations have been on the rise. Holcomb touted his partial shutdown of the state and the so-called mask mandate (which is less of a mandate and more of a pretty pretty please) as reasons why Indiana's dealing with the pandemic well. 

Dr. Woody Myers, the Democratic nominee, was the only candidate to say he would go further than what's going on right now in the state. Holcomb said he'd put restrictions in place and let the courts decide later on those restrictions in order to keep Hoosiers safe. He promised a real mask mandate with teeth if he's elected Governor and promised to listen to scientists. Myers is, of course, a medical doctor.

Then, there was Donald Rainwater. The Libertarian candidate, Rainwater seemed to call into question the science of mask wearing and mask mandates. Unsurprisingly, many of his supporters have been very critical of this part of Governor Holcomb's response. Rainwater also said that COVID-19 had not caused businesses to go out of business in Indiana. He, instead, blamed that on Holcomb's response to the virus. 

Rainwater and Holcomb sparred a bit over the duties granted by the Indiana General Assembly to the Governor of Indiana. Myers criticized the Governor for not calling a special session of the Indiana General Assembly to deal with the pandemic.

Holcomb painted a rosy picture of things in Indiana on the economy touting the number job commitments companies have said they'll bring to Hoosiers. Several times, he praised state agencies for their response to environmental issues and management of the pandemic. Myers and Rainwater both used the opportunity to attack the Governor's record on these topics. 

In his opening and closing statement, Myers promised to reappoint Superintendent of Public Instruction, Jennifer McCormick to the soon-to-be appointed position. McCormick has endorsed Myers over her fellow Republican, Holcomb. Myers also spent time hammering away at Holcomb and the GOP's record on teacher pay and education. Rainwater promised to return schools to local control. Holcomb touted the one-time only pay raises many teachers in many districts negotiated and the commission he formed on teacher pay as reasons why he's dealing with that issue. Holcomb has refused to release the findings of that commission until after the election. 

Guns were also a meaty issue in this debate. Myers said he did not support constitutional carry and endorsed background checks. He also talked about his experience as an ER physician dealing with the effects of gun violence. He touted his Moms Demand Action endorsement. Holcomb noted that Indiana has made it very easy to get a gun permit by making it a free application process. Rainwater came out in complete support of constitutional carry.

Again, it was a very good debate, but I didn't see any Mourdock moments. It's likely that this did not change any hearts or minds other than to make you feel really good about the candidate you were already supporting.