Letter: Straight ticket voting can put poor candidates in office
Straight-ticket party voting is a bad idea for Indiana.
An example at the state level can be found in the supermajority of Republicans choosing Diego Morales for Secretary of State. He has been fired from that office in the past and is currently under investigation for voter fraud. On the other hand, Destiny Wells is much more qualified with a much better background and record. But because of voters going with the Indiana red wave, the whole state will end up with an unqualified and controversial candidate.
The same can be said with our county-level election results.
Even if you align with most of the party’s agenda, there may be local issues that you disagree with “your party” on.
At the city/county level, there could be very qualified candidates for jobs like auditor, assessor, coroner, clerk-treasurer, recorder, etc., that require a certain level of financial or organizational skills and expertise to effectively perform the job. Having a local party chairman pick the candidates to fill those slots can be risky. Some people that are active in the party are granted these positions as an entitlement for what they have done for the party rather than what they are qualified for.
National news can tend to make the voter lean one way or the other based on national-level issues such as immigration, foreign policies or abortion, but local candidates running for local offices have no influence on these issues. Rather the local issues can be things like spending on a new town square or hiring a much-needed assistant in the auditor’s office, etc.
We must do better at doing our homework prior to the election and reviewing what the individual candidate’s position is on local issues. Local news outlets do provide some information in the run-up to the election, and that should be a good source. It is usually nonpartisan information and simply a fair response to basic questions from each candidate.
The Supreme Court said with Citizens United that money is the same as free speech. The problem with this is that wealthy people have more free speech than a poor person does.
And this can go both ways. A democrat candidate can be unqualified for a position and get elected to office on the coattails of the party, but in Indiana, that currently is very unlikely in this part of the state.
So don’t be lazy and let someone else pick your individual candidates for you. Next time do your homework, listen to the candidate forums and read about them and their positions in the press. Then pick and choose wisely.
Chris Waltz, Jasper
I think most voters in Dubois County did a fine “homework” job, overall, in this recent election…of “picking and choosing wisely,” etc, as you suggested.
Including soundly re-electing Messmer and Lindauer whose platform is bull dozing a good chunk of the county for a highway no one wants.
I want to meet the people who voted to bulldoze their own homes. Just to see how they tick. Is it Stockholm syndrome or [redacted terms because it might hurt peoples feelings and get my comment deleted]?
JK:
I’ve read Senator Messmer’s weekly letters to his constituents honoring our vets, promoting adoptions, celebrating Thanksgiving, and praising the faith community. But, disturbingly, I don’t think I’ve ever heard him explain to his constituents how his close connections to big gambling interests in Northern Indiana benefit the citizens in his district. Am I missing something?
And we have yet to hear from Senator Messmer if he returned the illegal donation to his campaign in 2018 from a casino company executive. He admitted to knowing about that donation to Indy Star reporter Tony Cook in 2021, but requests to him for an explanation are ignored.
When the majority of voters vote straight ticket, they are not voting for a person but a party. Voting for legislators that want the state to take land from their constituents is not choosing wisely.
Except for what Mr. McDonald seems to think I personally don’t think most voters do any “homework” prior to voting and just follow
“the crowd” and whatever national issues “their” party supports . I don’t think most voters are capable of any independent thinking .
This is sadly very true and a result of the two party system.
In a perfect world, ranked choice voting would be expanded nationwide which could result in more viable third parties and candidates.
This is sadly very true and a result of the two party system.
In a perfect world, ranked choice voting would be expanded nationwide which could result in more viable third parties and candidates.
Senator Messmer’s support of Indiana Gaming is an important revenue stream for the state as well as Senate District 48 and Dubois County, Part of the fund pays for a reduction of excise tax in each of the state counties. Another portion pays for City and Town police and fire pensions. Another part goes toward each school district getting school and library internet connections. Total cost for all of the above for Senate District 48 was $5 million in revenue of which Dubois County received $1.8 million. Indiana share of the gaming revenue for the state reached $1 billion in FY2021. This is just a small portion of how the revenue is spent from gaming to reduce Indiana tax payers costs. You can read the full report for FY 2018 at the below link.
https://www.playusa.com/tax-revenue-slots-2022-indiana-casinos/
https://www.in.gov/sba/files/2018-Lottery-and-Gaming-Report.pdf
As far as the highway no one wants. The voters recently re-elected many of the politicians who support the Mid-States Corridor, so their must be a silent majority who do want the highway. But that doesn’t matter because the Federal Government wants the highway. It is their road and they are paying for it. Thanks Democrat Joe Biden, who wants that highway built. He sent Indiana $8.8 billion in highway revenue to fund the Mid-States Corridor. Indiana tax payers are off the hook for paying for the Mid-States Corridor. I guess if you keep gaslighting that “no one wants it”, you might add a few more uninformed people to your ranks. No issue in the county got more publicity and public meetings than the Mid-States Corridor in 2022. Every voter in the county was well informed about the corridor, but the reality is the voters have spoken and they reject your notion that they are uninformed. The voters support of the candidates, democrats trashed in the media and social media, was rejected as most of them were re-elected by huge margins. Candidates Messmer and Lindauer crushed their opponents in the 2022 election.
As far as Destiny Wells defeat by the voters of Indiana, her positions just don’t align with the voters in Indiana. Doesn’t matter how good her resume looks, she ran on “Destiny’s policy positions closely align with her values”. The voters chose a flawed candidate, who values more align with them, than the opponent whose values did not. If she were a “Birch/Evan Bayh” democrat, she just might have gotten elected. The Dubois County voting in this race was equal in who pulled the lever by party at 30%.
Daryl Hensley, Jasper
Daryl,
I had an enlightening conversation with someone at Wings and Rings a few years back. He stood to lose a significant livelihood altering amount of land if the highway proposal went through but despite me sharing links to press conferences attended by the state senator Braun and other activities done by Lindauer and Messmer that pushed the highway. However at the end of conversation he wouldn’t be swayed from his ultimate vote for those people. He was more interested in the national culture war topics and was generally pro Trump. He felt that was more important.
Congrats on working in a buzz word of “gas lighting” somehow – but, I’m only reporting what I experienced in the county. Without exaggeration, This man will watch his livelihood have bulldozed over and will still be satisfied with his decision because he can stick it to democrats.
So I can spell it out for you, someone who doesn’t view people or place any kind of value on something as anything more than their economic output: This doesn’t make any sense! What makes somebody vote against their own physical interests? How far can it go? Could we bulldoze St Joesph Church or St Benedict’s if it meant a little bit more County “income” that the average person will never see in their lifetime? You are right, Messmer and Lindauer won handily. They could install prima noctis for their districts and probably get 60% That’s my whole point and the point of the letter: there isn’t informed voting going on there is indoctrinated voting. Dubois County has been so indoctrinated that they would literally vote to harm themselves. As they did by re-electing Lindauer and Messmer.
It’s a fascinating little microcosm of American Democracy that I’d like to keep studying. Surely effectively one party rule in Southern Indiana, and a case could be made for the rest of Indiana, that has zero accountability from the electorate won’t have any kind of negative consequences, right?
JK and Daryl,
JK: The framers of the Constitution depended on a well informed citizenry to ensure that democracy survived. That’s why the Constitution itself created post roads, whose purpose was to see to it that the people in the hinterlands had access to periodicals that could help them make intelligent decisions. Sadly, the citizenry of Indiana (and the rest of the country) is about as far away from informed as can be measured.
Daryl: So if the benefits of big gambling inure to the benefit of District 49, why doesn’t the senator brag about it? After all, he has carried the bills for the gambling industry for a long time. Maybe it was just inconvenient for him to be brought in and questioned about the transfer of a casino license from Lake County to Vigo County. That transfer resulted in indictments and guilty pleas. I’m guessing that’s something you don’t want to share in a letter to your constituents. Better to stick with praising our vets.
I don’t think the voters are as uninformed as they are as misinformed. For instance you conflating three incidents together to make it look criminal in nature. The entire Indiana House and Senate voted BIPARTISAN to approve the transfer of license from Lake to Vigo county. In fact one democrat said, “I think it benefits everyone and even the state makes money off of this,” said Rep. Terri Austin, D-Anderson. Senator Messmer received a legal campaign contribution from a person who illegally deducted the contribution on his taxes. campaign contributions are not tax deductible but the donor deducted the contribution as a business expense. That person has plead guilty. “State election officials are also not aware of an investigation involving Messmer’s campaign.” The third story is gaming officials who have plead guilty to funneling money to the Marion County Republican Party.
https://www.tristatehomepage.com/news/indiana-news/messmer-calls-campaign-straw-donor-allegations-blatant-political-attack/
Scott, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt that you have fallen victim to political fake news.
Daryl Hensley, Jasper
Daryl, Messmer can claim the straw donor stuff is false all he wants, but the truth is he admitted taking the illegal donation to Indy Star reporter Tony Cook in 2021. The $5,000 donation came to his campaign online from a friend of Kyle Waggoner, a former casino exectutive. Waggoner, admitted to making the illegal donation and was indicted in court, and paid a fine. Messmer on the other hand has denied this even happened even though is part of a court filing. He has yet to explain what happened to the money; was it returned or did he distribute that to other legislators to gain favor for their vote? Another fact, there was no deduction on anyone’s taxes for a political contribution as that is not allowed by the IRS, or the State of Indiana.
From the Indy Star article 8/17/21: “But IndyStar identified a campaign contribution for $5,000 on March 20, 2018, from someone who appears to be a close friend of Waggoner’s. That’s the same date the charging documents say Waggoner made the illegal contribution.
The contribution went to Sen. Mark Messmer, a Jasper Republican who carried legislation the following year that benefitted Waggoner’s employers.
The legislation cleared a path for a company called Spectacle Entertainment to move two casino licenses from the Lake Michigan waterfront to more profitable locations in Terre Haute and near an interstate in Gary. Spectacle was led by some of the same longtime Centaur executives who owned Indiana Grand at the time of Waggoner’s illegal contribution.” https://www.indystar.com/story/news/investigations/2021/08/17/kyle-waggoner-guilty-plea-leads-questions-casinos-statehouse/5536531001/
The result of his inappropriate actions has led him to be fired as the Majority Floor Leader in the State Senate an most recently was stripped of his committee leadership role. Mr. Messmer has some explaining to do to his constituents.
The donation by Duncan was a legal donation as he is not part of any gaming operation in Indiana. Waggoner using Duncan was illegal. Duncan tried to deduct the donation on his taxes and got caught. Legally Messmer has no legal obligation to return the money. Of course your theory seems odd that Senator Bray would wait an entire year to punish Senator Messmer.
When it comes to integrity, I believe the great majority of the citizens of Dubois County and the state would tell you that Mark Messmer’s integrity is second to no one in the state. Though I am not donor or a friend of Senator Messmer and my only conversation with him was to introduce him to a high ranking retired army officer. I read that he lost his leadership positions because of his lack of support for the abortion bill that passed which was less restrictive than the current abortion law that was in place after the SCOTUS overturn of Roe v Wade.
https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/briefs/indiana-gop-announces-major-change-in-senate-majority-leadership/
It appears the senator chose principle over power.
Again the election commission says Senator Messmer is not under investigation. I know that as politicians, you are always on the attack.
Daryl Hensley, Jasper
It appears the senator chose principle over power.
Teresa, thanks for the assist.
Do people in Dubois County even know of Senator Messmer’s association with big casinos? I’ve never heard the issue even raised. Again, If gambling profits inure to the benefit of District 49, why then doesn’t he hop on his soap box and proudly explain why he is the one leading the charge toward maximizing casino gambling? Just an explanation would be helpful. Say, even something along the lines that Daryl pointed out above. To say nothing, though, makes the whole affair seem shady.
But, then again, the senator may not want anybody digging too deeply here. Who wants to run on the campaign slogan “Vote for Mark Messmer. He’s not under investigation.”
Scott & Teresa, in just a few hours, I debunked your fake news story. I’ m positive the other informed voters new your false narrative was not true. The voters in this county grew up with Senator Messmer, they know his true character. Others around the state know it as well. I’m guessing he’s on the short list for Lt. Governor in 2024. You democrats keep making this garbage up and like every 2 years you get your clock’s cleaned in our state and local elections. My advise, quit playing the victim and bring some value to the voters.
Lucas Duncan did not deduct his campaign contribution on his taxes, that is nothing but hearsay. And yes, Messmer does have to return the contribution that was made illegally. Duncan was fully aware of what was going on, and Waggoner, the guy who gave his former Butler Baseball teammate the money, committed the crime of making a straw donation. I think my sources, the Indiana State Election Division, are far more credible than yours Daryl.
Mark Messmer lost his leadership positions because he is too close to the situation where former State Legislators (Bret Waltz, former GOP State Senator) and lobbyists got sent to Federal prison for getting involved with the gambling folks that were using money to buy influence in the State Legislature. Messmer needs to quit being disrespectful to his constituents and come clean about this donation.
As far as Democrats getting our “clocks cleaned,” we did lose. But I will stand by our candidates any day that respected their voters by actually getting out and campaigning and talking with them instead of mailing out bogus “term limit” post cards, and refusing to attend public events and forums. The time will come soon, when the candidates that ignore their constituents and refuse to campaign will backfire on them.
Daryl,
All I want to know is why Mark Messmer doesn’t boast about the benefits he is delivering to Dubois County through his association with big gambling interests.
That’s all.
There was literally no press about the Messmer thing locally. The Indy Star covered it and their article was reprinted in the Evansville paper. When ever I would bring it up to voters, they would question why they had not heard of it and I would refer them to the Indy Star article and that would make them ask why there was no news coverage. I think it is because the other players involved in the scheme had committed serious crimes like former State Senator Bret Waltz who is now sitting in a Federal Prison for the next 10 years.
Messmer his from the public during the campaign by sending postcards and doing radio ads. Never once attended any public event where someone might ask him a question. But that is SOP for Messmer, never talk to anyone in public because you might not like what your constituents have to say.
Your gonna double down on the fake news? I’m not surprised. It is probably why you got 5% less of the county’s votes than you did in 2020. You went from 31% to 26%, gonna have to bring more value then mudslinging and talking points. Why should the Senator debate a person who can’t even get her own party to support her at the polls. Perhaps you should take your carpetbag and head back to Indy. You seem to like the news there more than here.
A straw donor donation can also be sent to the U.S. Treasury Department vs returning it. So yes, Senator Messmer doesn’t have to give it back to the straw donor.
I guess you and the senator don’t travel in the same circles? I witnessed the senator out at several public events during the campaign season. Constituents stopped and talked to him at every event I witnessed. I’m not sure you could say he “hid”. I wasn’t at every event so he may have actually spent more time with his constituents then you did. Of course you have to win an election to have some constituents.
Best wishes on your next election, I’m out.
Daryl Hensley, Jasper IN
Thanks so much for the kind words Daryl. I lived in Indy before moving here with my husband who was born and raised here and even represented Dubois County as a State Senator. Even though my husband passed away, I am still here and not going anywhere. I hope you have a wonderful new year, and find truthful and accurate sources for information.
So when did Daryl get banned from posting? I had comments half as malice filled deleted. Or do you just like playing favorites?
Oh I AM allowed to post now?
Can you please approve my comments in the Braun for Governor thread? Feel free to send me an email to explain why a was not allowed to criticize our senator but somebody was allowed to impersonate me? Otherwise I can just call out your inconsistent moderation the old fashioned way.
You comment was not approved because of your name-calling. We can approve your complaint against us if you want.
It’s hard to determine someone if someone is impersonating another individual when they simply use their initials. However, the other commenter did write their initials in lower case compared to your consistent caps.
And “ Perhaps you should take your carpetbag and head back to Indy.” Isn’t?
Either way, Please do.
Matthew, people had being impersonating me for YEARS and NOTHING was ever done about it. On more than one occasion somebody would use “JK” both caps and say things like “whoops I’m off my meds” and it’s just approved like normal? But no, I can’t call a politician who will never read this comment section a “dish rag” for shame!
The easy solution is to have people register for accounts to post comments but that might require some effort on your part. Not to mention the other serious vulnerabilities I’ve pointed out.
Just do better. Please.