Friday, March 13, 2009
Sunday, March 8, 2009
THE TRUTH? CAN YOU HANDLE THE TRUTH?
By: Mark Kiesling
Sunday, March 08, 2009
I can't tell you how much I dislike the overused cliche about "speaking truth to power" but that is what Gov. Mitch Daniels did to an overflow crowd in Griffith on Friday.
That's right. The governor is not the power, you are.
You vote. You put the decision-makers in office. You deserve the government you get, and in Lake County's case, "you are entitled to all the crummy, graft-ridden government you are prepared to pay for," as Daniels put it.
His message was to clean house at a local level before appealing for assistance on a state level, and even from a Lake County point of view it's hard to see where his logic goes wrong.
"I can't get a business to come to Lake County if they think they are going to get ripped off on arrival," he said.
The Griffith Town Council and Team Hammond Taxpayers' Group sponsored Daniels' visit to Griffith High School on Friday and they got what they wanted -- a blunt message delivered with the subtlety of a train wreck and the charm of a tire iron.
Daniels bruised the feelings of some Lake County pols Friday. Cry me a river.
One of the smartest things Daniels has done as governor is to appoint a former political opponent, ex-Gov. Joe Kernan, as the co-chairman of a panel that came up with a report on how to reform, streamline and maximize efficiency in local and state government.What was the reaction of the Lake County contingent? To exempt Lake County from the reform.
Our situation is "unique," said state Sen. Sue Landske, the Cedar Lake Republican who voted with state Sen. Lonnie Randolph, D-East Chicago, for the exemption, as well as sinking a move to eliminate township government and revamp county government through constitutional changes.
Lake County Surveyor George Van Til, a Democrat who often finds himself at odds politically with Daniels, nevertheless called "eliminating township boards a no-brainer," and said "excluding Lake County from the reforms was a cop-out, it's wrong, it an insult and does us all a disservice."
Lake County Republican Chairman John Curley, who would normally be expected to support the governor, chastised him instead. "I don't think it fits what should be happening in Lake County," he said. "Sue (Landske) looked at the whole bill, and thought it looked better for Lake County the way she voted. We'll have to wait and see how this thing shakes out."
It may be that Curley as Winfield Township trustee-assessor has a personal stake in this, but so does Van Til. The bill to amend the constitution would eliminate his elected surveyor position and replace it with an appointment.
Politics makes strange bedfellows indeed, to use another workhorse cliche.
When is Lake County going to wake up?
The opinions are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at markk@nwitimes.com or (219) 933-4170
Sunday, March 08, 2009
I can't tell you how much I dislike the overused cliche about "speaking truth to power" but that is what Gov. Mitch Daniels did to an overflow crowd in Griffith on Friday.
That's right. The governor is not the power, you are.
You vote. You put the decision-makers in office. You deserve the government you get, and in Lake County's case, "you are entitled to all the crummy, graft-ridden government you are prepared to pay for," as Daniels put it.
His message was to clean house at a local level before appealing for assistance on a state level, and even from a Lake County point of view it's hard to see where his logic goes wrong.
"I can't get a business to come to Lake County if they think they are going to get ripped off on arrival," he said.
The Griffith Town Council and Team Hammond Taxpayers' Group sponsored Daniels' visit to Griffith High School on Friday and they got what they wanted -- a blunt message delivered with the subtlety of a train wreck and the charm of a tire iron.
Daniels bruised the feelings of some Lake County pols Friday. Cry me a river.
One of the smartest things Daniels has done as governor is to appoint a former political opponent, ex-Gov. Joe Kernan, as the co-chairman of a panel that came up with a report on how to reform, streamline and maximize efficiency in local and state government.What was the reaction of the Lake County contingent? To exempt Lake County from the reform.
Our situation is "unique," said state Sen. Sue Landske, the Cedar Lake Republican who voted with state Sen. Lonnie Randolph, D-East Chicago, for the exemption, as well as sinking a move to eliminate township government and revamp county government through constitutional changes.
Lake County Surveyor George Van Til, a Democrat who often finds himself at odds politically with Daniels, nevertheless called "eliminating township boards a no-brainer," and said "excluding Lake County from the reforms was a cop-out, it's wrong, it an insult and does us all a disservice."
Lake County Republican Chairman John Curley, who would normally be expected to support the governor, chastised him instead. "I don't think it fits what should be happening in Lake County," he said. "Sue (Landske) looked at the whole bill, and thought it looked better for Lake County the way she voted. We'll have to wait and see how this thing shakes out."
It may be that Curley as Winfield Township trustee-assessor has a personal stake in this, but so does Van Til. The bill to amend the constitution would eliminate his elected surveyor position and replace it with an appointment.
Politics makes strange bedfellows indeed, to use another workhorse cliche.
When is Lake County going to wake up?
The opinions are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at markk@nwitimes.com or (219) 933-4170