Democratic candidates accentuate the positive in Greencastle bus stop visit
With just only eight days left in the 2016 election campaign, Democrat candidates for Indiana state offices rolled into Greencastle Monday afternoon on the Moving Indiana Forward Bus Tour.
In an election campaign that has seen more than its share of contentious moments and negative advertising, the 2016 Democrat hopefuls came off the bus happy and smiling and offering positive statements about their campaigns and the future of Indiana without a single, solitary slam at the opposition.
Joining Democrat gubernatorial candidate John Gregg and his running mate, Christina Hale, on the bus tour that also made stops in Terre Haute and Brazil were incumbent State Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz, Indiana attorney general hopeful Judge Lorenzo Arredondo, former Indiana first lady Susan Bayh campaigning for her husband Evan for his return to the U.S. Senate, and Greencastle resident Kim Fidler, who is seeking the District 44 seat in the Indiana House of Representatives.
Last to speak although first on the Hoosier ballot, Gregg said his 2016 campaign has raised more than $16.5 million to battle Republican Eric Holcomb for the governor’s race, after having only a fraction of that to work with in his 2012 race against Mike Pence. That $16.5 million breaks all previous records for Democratic candidates for governor (and is $500,000 shy of Mitch Daniels’ fundraising mark).
Because of that, Gregg has been able to hammer home his ideas via ever-present TV advertising.
“I know you may be tired of seeing me on TV,” he told a crowd of 50 some supporters at The Swizzle Stick on the north side of the courthouse square while suggesting the TV spots are vital, “but the average voter is just starting to pay attention.”
The polls have Gregg out in front in the governor’s race but he doesn’t plan to rest on his laurels.
“We’ve got a lead in this race, and we can win this. But I’ve got to have your help,” he told the group, asking each of them to reach out to four Republican friends and tell them about a campaign that he believes transcends party lines.
“This election is about bringing people together,” Gregg stressed, “about taking some of the best ideas from Republicans and from Democrats and from independents and moving us forward, and we can do that.”
Gregg told the crowd he has been endorsed, among others, by “the school teachers in your community,” the Indiana State Police Alliance and newspapers in Terre Haute, Evansville, Fort Wayne and even the Indianapolis Star, the latter extremely rare for a Democrat gubernatorial hopeful.
As he prepared to reboard the bus for the next destination -- 54 communities in all by Sunday -- Gregg took time to ponder the polls.
“We don’t discuss ours,” he said of poll results, adding with a smile, “but they’re good.”
He reminded that while Indiana is considered a Republican state, “we’ve got a lot of undecided voters out there and we want to reach out to the independents as well.”
“We’re very encouraged,” he told the Banner Graphic, noting that “most places we (his campaign) go, we’re seeing new faces, which is good.”
Gregg’s running mate, Indiana lieutenant governor hopeful Christina Hale, also addressed the gathering and spent much of her time praising Gregg.
“On so many levels John Gregg gets it,” Hale said, adding that “it’s about time we send someone to the Statehouse who understands what it’s like” to grow up and live and work in Indiana.
“John Gregg and I have gotten to change the conversation to things that really matter,” she said.
“We’re in it for all the right reasons,” Hale said of the Democrat team and its emphasis on four major issues -- economic development, education, public infrastructure and public safety.
Meanwhile, Susan Bayh, whose first-ever campaign stop for her husband’s candidacy for Indiana secretary of state was in Greencastle years ago, assured voters, “If you have our backs for the next eight days, my husband will have your backs for the next six years.”
She also reminded supporters that Evan Bayh was at the forefront of Indiana’s 20th Century Scholars program, which awards qualified students with up to four years of undergraduate tuition at any participating public college or university in Indiana.
“Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton talked about it,” Susan Bayh said. “Evan Bayh and John Gregg did it.”
First to speak to the crowd was Fidler, who is trying to oust State Rep. Jim Baird (R-Greencastle) after three terms in the statehouse.
“What a great day,” Fidler beamed after riding the bus with Gregg and Hale and Ritz and more.
“I don’t want to diminish the births of my children, but ...”
She then stole a line from the national opposition to characterize the state Democrat team.
“We will make Indiana great again,” Fidler vowed.