No debate but Baird, Fidler share views at forum

All decked out in his best suit, seated at a table alone, responding to a series of questions ... it was more of job interview than a debate when District 44 Republican candidate Beau Baird appeared Tuesday night at the Greencastle League of Women Voters Candidates Forum.

The event, featuring the candidates for District 44 state representative and the District 4 seat in the U.S. Congress, was co-sponsored at Watson Forum of the DePauw University Center for Contemporary Media by WGRE radio and the Banner Graphic.

Baird, who is opposed by Jess Norton on the Republican ballot, appeared alone when Norton was unable to attend due to a work schedule issue, League officials noted. Thus Baird took direct questions from the three panelists without rebuttal.

Democrat candidate Kim Fidler, who is unopposed in the primary, was given three minutes to introduce herself and make a statement about her candidacy. However, she did not participate in the primary questioning because she is unopposed.

District 44 covers all of Putnam, and parts of Clay, Parke, Morgan and Owen counties. After serving eight years in the statehouse, State Rep. Jim Baird (R-Greencastle) -- father of candidate Beau Baird -- has decided to instead seek the District 4 seat in the U.S. Congress.

During the forum, Beau Baird tackled questions on teacher wages, redistricting, township consolidation, infrastructure needs, school safety, marijuana legalization, industrial recruitment, the opioid crisis and gun control.

Describing himself as a pro-life Christian with an endorsement from Indiana Right-to-Life, and pro-2nd Amendment, having just received an A rating from the National Rifle Association (NRA), Baird said if he could leave the audience with one message, it was that "I truly care about Indiana and specifically District 44."

Baird said he is running for the District 44 seat "so I can help maintain the progress that's been made in Indiana over the last 10 years -- passing balanced budgets, allowing us to have a AAA bond rating, driving down unemployment to below national averages while also standing with the governor, Gov. Eric Holcomb, as he tries to take Indiana to the next level."

At least twice during his appearance, Baird -- who is chief financial officer for a local home health care company and owns Baird Ranch, an internationally recognized American Quarter Horse operation -- said District 44 "is uniquely positioned with a unique set of assets that would allow it to benefit from national and international focus."

During a question about industrial recruitment, Baird disclosed his specifics, commending Holcomb for starting to focus on an "international platform."

Currently working on his International Masters in business management from Purdue University's Krannert School of Business in conjunction with an MBA from Tilburg University in The Netherlands, Baird said he believes District 44 has a unique set of assets that would benefit from such attention.

"Obviously we're the crossroads of America, and I think District 44 truly embodies that with U.S. 231, U.S. 40 and Interstate 70 but we're also in a unique area where we have a unique set of intellectual capacity that's not being fully utilized," he said. "We have a ton of tremendous educational institutions. We're sitting in one of those right here at DePauw, and I think we somehow need to create a venue that would allow all those schools to come together and allow that intellectual capacity to be utilized in some kind of format to attract business."

In response to a question about working to provide funding for infrastructure needs, Baird spoke from personal experience, calling the issue "one of the primary driving forces for me deciding to step up and run for state representative."

"I want to make sure that the promise that was made with the user fees is kept and make sure those fees are returned to District 44 and actually used to help the commissioners develop a long-term strategy for improving our infrastructure.

"I live on a gravel road," Baird added. "My road's full of chuckholes and potholes and everything else, and I understand the importance of improving that infrastructure."

Meanwhile, the Republican hopeful said he believes Indiana is on the right track toward solving the opioid problem.

"It's been destigmatized," he said, "and I think that's crucial, and that we're now allowed to have these critical conversations without casting judgment on each other is going to be extremely beneficial.

"It's important to understand that it's not just the individuals who are being affected by the opioid addiction themselves. It's also their family members that are around as their support staff. If a father has a son who is suffering from an opioid addiction, when he goes to work, he may be worried about his son overdosing or what's happening to his son somewhere. So we have to realize it's not just the individual that's affected by the addiction but it's also everybody that's around them.

"The next step," Baird continued, "is to increase our conversation about mental health because I think increasing the awareness discussion and solutions for mental health will critically drive the solution to the opioid epidemic."

As for marijuana legalization, it's more of a wait-and-see approach, he suggested.

"I think enough states have passed marijuana that I think it would be important first to look at those states, maybe even contact some of those states' agencies and see what some of the ramifications have been from legalizing marijuana and discuss with them what they think the pros and cons and the consequences have been," Baird said. "And then have a discussion here, and see what constituents want because ultimately it's not my opinion, it's the opinion of the constituents, and I'm just there to represent them."

Baird, having earlier noted his A rating from the NRA, was also asked for his stance on gun control.

"I believe we currently have statutes that restrict regulation," he responded, "and I would not be for increasing restrictions. I do believe the current system is adequate."

Meanwhile, Democrat candidate Fidler, making her second run for the District 44 position against a second Baird candidate, told the forum audience she wants to go to the Statehouse "to fight for the people in District 44."

"I am 100 percent invested in the people of this district," she said during the three minutes she was allowed as an unopposed primary candidate. "You all deserve someone who listens, responds and fights for you."

Over the past decade, Fidler said, "bad laws have been passed" that have negatively impacted Indiana's finances and reputation.

She enumerated those as "laws expanding vouchers that harm public schools, Right to Work and the repeal of the common construction wage that hurt working men and women, and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act that discriminates against our LGBTQ community members."

"Every law that is passed affects someone," she said. "It is unacceptable to pass laws that legislators have not read, cannot understand or cannot explain. This is reckless and unacceptable."

Fidler listed her priorities as improving infrastructure, supporting public schools, treating addiction and not consolidating townships via legislation like that proposed in House Bill 1005.

"We pay taxes, we deserve services in our communities," Fidler continued, vowing to work with county commissioners to find ways to repair Hoosier roads and bridges.

"We must provide broadband internet service throughout Indiana in order to ensure that our rural families, small business owners and farmers have reliable internet and cell phone service. Our children should not have to go to McDonald's to do homework because they do not have internet access at home."

In support of public schools, she urged adequate funding for pre-K through grade 12 in every school corporation and ending standardized testing "that costs millions annually and is used to punish teachers through evaluation and pay."

Fidler, who taught for 16 years at South Putnam and has been a Uniserve director for the Indiana State Teachers Association the past 11 years, stressed that Indiana must stop diverting tax dollars from public schools to charter schools and private schools that accept vouchers.

"Do not allow for one more of our public school buildings to be closed and taken over by a charter," she urged.

The evening also featured six of the 13 primary candidates running for the District 4 seat in the U.S. Congress -- Republicans Steve Braun and James Nease and Democrats Tobi Beck, Roger Day, Darin Griesey and Joe Mackey.

Jim Baird of Greencastle was not on hand, instead attending a simultaneous candidate forum in Jasper County at Rensselaer.