People, fill in your census and send it in. Every resident of Cedar Lake is worth an average of 830 dollars per person per year for the next ten years for the town government. Now, do you want to send in that form or do you want the Town Council to raise your water rates?
We are now less than a month from the Indiana Primary. Do you know who you are voting for? Do you know WHAT you are voting for? You see, the year after the Census is taken the Indiana Congress gets to determine any redistricing takes place...ten years ago the Dems had the steering wheel and in the State of Indiana they gerrymandered their way to be able to lose the popular vote and still control one side of the Statehouse.
No matter what new rules are in place, the majority makes the final decisions. So we need to be sure the majority is conservative and Republicans are the only viable hope.
Indiana Senate approves sweeping redistricting reforms
By Staff Reports, Lafayette Online News
Posted January 28, 2010
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Indiana lawmakers today approved the Senate Republicans’ sweeping redistricting reforms establishing objective guidelines for creating legislative and congressional districts after the 2010 census and requiring an in-depth bipartisan review of best redistricting practices used by other states.
District 22’s representative, State Sen. Ron Alting (R-Lafayette), supported the measure establishing guidelines “because there has been little direction in either Indiana law or the Indiana Constitution regarding redistricting.”
Senate Bill 80, which passed by a vote of 47-1, will require lawmakers to consider the following factors when drawing future districts:
“This committee will openly discuss what is and is not working among the other 49 states’ redistricting efforts,” Alting said. “I believe that it’s important to take time to allow Hoosiers the opportunity to share their thoughts and concerns on this issue. Then, lawmakers can make decisions that best serve their constituents.”
SB 80 and SB 136 now move to the House of Representatives for further consideration.
For additional information, background and otherwise, see Secretary of State Todd Rotika’s Web site “Rethinking Redistricting” list of online resources.
Map of possible redefined senate districts
Senate Bill 80, which passed by a vote of 47-1, will require lawmakers to consider the following factors when drawing future districts:
- Preservation of traditional neighborhoods;
- Preservation of local communities of interests;
- Protection of minority voting rights;
- Simply-shaped, compact districts; and
- Respect for county and precinct lines.
“This committee will openly discuss what is and is not working among the other 49 states’ redistricting efforts,” Alting said. “I believe that it’s important to take time to allow Hoosiers the opportunity to share their thoughts and concerns on this issue. Then, lawmakers can make decisions that best serve their constituents.”
SB 80 and SB 136 now move to the House of Representatives for further consideration.
For additional information, background and otherwise, see Secretary of State Todd Rotika’s Web site “Rethinking Redistricting” list of online resources.
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Even with Republicans trying to make sure that redistricing is done in a more common sense manner, you know that if the Democrats win they will be trying to frustrate the process. This year's elections could well be the most important of your life!
1) The White House is filled with some of the most radical extremists imaginable.
2) If Congress is filled with new, conservative members the liberal left agenda of the Administration will be slowed if not stopped.
3) In Indiana the general distrust of Democrats has made offices on both the state and federal and even the local level more attainable by Republicans.
4) Democrats are trying to demonize Tea Party Patriots.
5) If the Republicans can win the Tea Party votes then Republicans can be in control in Indianapolis AND Washington and perhaps the crazed spending and unfunded mandates and the attempt to stifle opposition and various other attacks on normal Americans will come to an end.
6) Your weapon is your vote.
7) Never fire your weapon with your eyes closed!
Right now is the time for people who care to think about who do vote for and you do that by going to debates and campaign websites and talking to people. Meanwhile yours truly is doing a little digging into the backside of those nice facades candidates put up. Some of those four story buildings are genuinely big, lots of offices and a full basement. Some of them have a one story little bitty shack behind them with a tarpaper roof and a regular call by the police for domestic abuse and all that stuff. Politics can be dirty work.
But the Republican Senate race is actually pretty easy. Hey Republicans?
I would like to encourage you by telling you the the four candidates who emerged from the Tea Party movement in the last year for the Republican Senate nomination look like the real deal. Richard Behney and Don Bates may be political rookies but they are earnest and apparently honest guys. I would go so far as to say admirable. However it is likely that the combination of having limited campaign funds and no experience will likely KO them.
Candidates John Hostettler and Marlin Stutzman have a lot going for them. They are stand up guys who know how to govern and lead others to do the right thing. Neither of them are phenomenal fundraisers but with the Tea Party votes tending to go to these two and all other things being equal one of them would win.
People, this is where you come in. Dan Coats is the ONLY candidate in the Senate race who is not a Hoosier any more. He is a lobbyist. His record was shaky although he started off well. But the only thing he has going for him now is money and name recognition. So remember it...remember he has been a lobbyist and a foreign government representative for this WHOLE LONG Century living the high life in Virginia, a Beltway Boy coming back to get that nice fat empty Senate seat. Whereupon he would go back to Virginia, hobnob with his other Beltway Boys and the needs of Indiana will recede back into the past just like his residence receded and moved itself to Virginia officially back in 1999,
So let me save you some time. Bate and Behney are great guys. I hope they run for State office next round and get some experience. Your choices are Marlin Stutzman (my favorite), John Hostettler and...well, you know. We have to get someone on the ticket that the guys back in Indianapolis can comfortably support and both Stutzman and Hostettler can be that guy.
Tea Party friends...I would be glad to support Behney or Bates in the future and I am glad to say that Richard is a great guy and an honorable one. I frankly believe that Marlin Stutzman is like a Bates or Behney with the experience and track record. Now I promise you that Hostettler would not be bad either.
So I promise not to say anything about the Senate race for awhile. But I am going to offer you a deal you should not refuse. The Lake County Indiana GOP site has a LOT of information. This Saturday the candidates for the District One US Representative on the Republican side, slated to face off against Porky Pete.
April 10th is the Dyer Waffle Breakfast starting at 7am and the Lake Co GOP will be hosting a US Congress Republican Candidate forum at 9am there. So far we have confirmation from Adam Domkowski, Pete Lindemulder, Ric Holtz, Mark Leyva, Rob Pastore, and Eric Olsen that they will be attending.
Dyer Presbyterian Church2501 Hart Street, Dyer, IN 46311-2117
Contact: Mary Tanis at mtanis5229@aol.com
Please come and say hello and give me the downlow on what is going on in your little corner of the political world. We still have freedom of speech (for now) and I have a good ear. Cheers!
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