Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Ethics: Republicans still don't get it!

From the Floyd County Democratic Party
Today, we added an article from the Indianapolis Star about Jon Elrod, the Republican 7th Congressional District candidate, working on his campaign from the floor of the Indiana House of Representatives. While the conduct doesn't officially violate any house rules on his part, it illustrates a stark ethical question about what is and isn't appropriate on public time.
Ethical issues played a major role in the 2006 election. Republicans were troubled with ethical scandals throughout the 109th Congress and previously unknown names such as Jack Abramoff, Tom Delay, Robert Ney, Mark Foley and Curt Weldon became household names as news coverage reported their transgressions.

Democrats championed reform of the system. Our 9th District Congressman Baron Hill has even promoted an independent Ethics Committee composed of former members of Congress and not the current members. Within days of assuming the majority, the Party lead Congress to follow through on their promise and restricted gifts for lobbyists and closed other loopholes in the system. This new attitude toward reform was even realized by some Republicans who, to their credit, admitted that the system was broken.

Unfortunately, however, that sentiment seems to have quickly faded, at least for Republicans in Indiana. As the Star reported, on multiple occasions Jon Elrod was taped writing campaign correspondences and had legislative staff mail campaign letters on official time.

State Republican Chairman Murry Clark, a former legislator himself, called the findings “absolute nonsense.” He even had the audacity to state, “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it.”

Such a statement is unacceptable and only underlines that Clark and other Republicans' don't understand what Indiana citizens expect from their government officials. The campaign and the official office cannot be intertwined. With a property tax crises among other issues in Indiana, the bottom line is that our legislators need to focus their attention on the session business and make other time for their ambition to higher office.

As Democrats, we don't celebrate in Jon Elrod's mistake in judgment. Such errors only cast doubt on all public servants and elected officials and increase the cynicism of the public. We also admit that while the Republicans have perpetuated the bulk of these "ethical errors" in recent years, our party is not immune from those that have abused the the system.

However, as Democrats, we find this conduct repulsive and instead of accepting it, such as Clark, work to ensure that the system is made stronger by raising the level of expectation for all public officials and punishing those that break the rules. Our citizens deserve the best we can offer, not just in policy but also in conduct.

The 7th Congressional District of Indianapolis is miles away from Floyd County. We can consider ourselves lucky that our Congressman, Democrat Baron Hill, has a strong record on ethical issues and we support his efforts to continue reforming the current system. We are also blessed with strong state leaders like Representative Bill Cochran and State Senator Connie Sipes who understand that on public time, campaigning takes a back seat.

But, we have to wonder, if the Indiana Republican Chairman doesn't see anything "wrong" with Jon Elrod's conduct, is this the behavior we can routinely expect from Republican candidates and officials?

Dems tape Elrod tending campaign on House floor

From the Indianapolis Star

By Mary Beth Schneider
mary.beth.schneider@indystar.com

State Rep. Jon Elrod, the Republican nominee in the upcoming 7th Congressional District race, was caught on video by state Democrats writing campaign letters while on the floor of the House and handing them to a legislative employee to mail.

Elrod on Wednesday apologized for the incidents, calling them “really poor judgment on my part” and said it would never happen again.

There are few ethical rules for legislators, and no law or regulation appears to bar Elrod from signing political letters at his House desk.But House Minority Leader Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, said the legislative employee who mailed the letters — Graig Lubsen, deputy media director for House Republicans — violated House personnel rules that bar employees from political activity during work hours.

“There will be consequences,” Bosma said, though he did not specify what they would be.Elrod, running against Democrat Andre Carson, said he was simply “multi-tasking” by signing thank-you letters to volunteers and contributors to his congressional campaign.“I feel horrible about it. I really do. To put our caucus and everyone else in this position, it’s just inexcusable,” he said.From now on, he said, “there will be none of my (campaign) materials anywhere near the Statehouse.”

Indiana Democratic Party Chairman Dan Parker said Democrats had heard that Elrod was working on his campaign while in the House chamber, so they sent a staff member with a video camera to watch. From a House balcony, the aide twice videotaped Elrod, once Feb. 5 and once Tuesday, signing the campaign letters.

“It raises questions about Jon Elrod’s ethics,” Parker said. “Here he is on the floor of the House doing campaign work. That says that politics is more important than the people’s work.”Indiana Republican Party Chairman Murray Clark, a former state senator, call the Democrats’ accusations “absolute nonsense.”

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it,” Clark said.

It shows, he said, that Democrats are desperate to hold onto the 7th Congressional District seat after losing control of the Indianapolis mayor’s office and City-County Council.“Democrats are going to pull out every trick in the book,” Clark said. “I’m going to call Jon and make sure he pulls his shades at night.”

Bosma also raised questions about the ethics of videotaping House members’ correspondence, saying legislators have communications with constituents that should be kept confidential. Julia Vaughn, who follows governmental ethics issues as policy director for the citizen watchdog group Common Cause/Indiana, said the incident “isn’t the biggest scandal since Watergate” but that lawmakers should refrain from doing campaign work in the Statehouse.

Using a House employee to mail the letters, she said, is the bigger concern.Lubsen said he had “no idea” the letters were campaign related, and that he routinely mails correspondence for legislators. Bosma said that while the incident was only “180 seconds,” it was a clear violation of House policy. He said he had a “stern talk” with Elrod and Lubsen.“I’m confident it has not ever happened before, and I’m very confident it will never, ever happen again,” Bosma said.

State Rep. Clyde Kersey, the Terre Haute Democrat who is chairman of the House Ethics Committee, said the legislative Code of Ethics doesn’t specifically prevent lawmakers from working on their campaigns while the House is in session. But, he said, “I think it’s a given.”

Read more online at the Indianapols Star

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Democrats Announce New State Website

From Daniel Parker
State Democratic Chairman

I'm very excited to let you know that the Indiana Democratic Party website has a new look -- and plenty of interactive options to make it easier for you to connect with Democrats in your community.

The website address -- www.indems.org -- is the same, but you should find the content and design much more user-friendly than before.

In addition to all of the information that was available on our old website, here are a few of the features we've upgraded and added:

Social Networking -- find Indiana Democrats on Facebook and MySpace; check out and share photos and videos on Flickr and YouTube; sample some of Indiana's political blogs

Party Information -- read about the history of the Indiana Democratic Party and learn more about the party rules

Video Clips -- Watch videos featuring Indiana Democratic candidates and elected officials

Event Planning - Submit your local party events

Get Local -- Find out what's going on in your county

Contribute -- Help support the Indiana Democratic Party with a one-time or recurring donation

News and Press Releases -- Keep track of Democrats in the news and learn more about the party's message

Volunteer -- Sign up to volunteer at Indiana Democratic Party events

This is going to be an exciting year for Hoosier Democrats as we work to maintain control of the Indiana House of Representatives and re-elect our Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives while fighting to take back the White House and the Governor's Office.

Our new website is still a work in progress, which means we need your feedback to make it even better. We're counting on you to be our eyes and ears as this election cycle heats up. Winning elections is never easy, but we believe that by working together, we can build on our Democratic principles and create a brighter future for all Hoosiers.

Please feel free to send your feedback on and ideas for the new website to Jennifer Wagner at jwagner@indems.org. We welcome your input and hope you will be able to use these new tools to spread our message to every corner of the state.

FILING DEADLINE REMINDER

The deadline to file for the primary ballot for is FRIDAY (2/22) at NOON, so don't forget to stop by your county clerk's office and file! The Floyd County Democratic Party is currently recruiting for state delegates and looks forward to a positive primary for other county and state wide officers. Keep in mind that to run or vote for state and national convention delegates, you must be a registered voter (which you should be anyway!). If you miss the filing deadline or aren't elected in the primary, contact County Chairman Randy Stumler to be appointed to any vacant slots that may go unfilled.

For more information contact County Clerk Linda Moeller at (812) 948-5411.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Congressional Update

at 2006 dinner
News from Congressman Baron Hill
Proudly Serving the Ninth District of Indiana

In This Issue
House Stimulus Package
Vote to Override SCHIP Veto Again
Fundraising
Quick Links
Sign up to volunteer!
Contact the Campaign
Hoosiers for Hill
PO Box 1071
Seymour, IN 47274
(812) 525-2391

February 4, 2008

Dear Adam,

I hope this newsletter finds you well as we enter February and move forward into the election cycle. It is an exciting time to be a part of the Democratic party, as we are watching history in the making during this primary season.
I am also preparing to enter my own campaign. If you can, please take a moment to visit www.hoosiersforhill.com or visit the "volunteer" link to the left in order to update your contact information. Feel free to forward this newsletter and the website as well. I couldn't be here without your support, and we'll need to work hard again this fall.
Today marks my thirteenth month back in Congress as your representative, and it is my honor and privilege to serve you. As always this session of Congress remains busy. Much significant legislation sits before us, last week was the State of the Union Address, and today I'm home visiting with Hoosiers in the western part of the district before I return to Washington.
I assure you that I will continue to represent the values of all across Indiana's Ninth District. Thank you so much for your support, and please feel free to contact my offices with any questions or concerns. My staff and I want to hear from you in order to determine how we can best serve you. I look forward to seeing you around the District soon.

Sincerely,

Rally Pic 1
Baron P. Hill
Ninth District of Indiana
U.S. House of Representatives
House Stimulus Package

On Tuesday, January 29, 2008 the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 5140, the Recovery Rebates and Economic Stimulus for the American People Act of 2008.

Years of reckless spending and few, if any, sound fiscal policies by the current administration have led us to our current economic state. While I supported the economic stimulus package today, we must remember that this is only a temporary, stop-gap measure. We must also remember that our underlying economic problems remain to be addressed. The long-term solution will require much more than rebates, but a real commitment to fiscal conservancy.

Vote to Override President's Veto of SCHIP Again
On Wednesday, January 23, 2008 I voted to override the President's veto of H.R. 976, the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007, for a second time this afternoon. Provisions were added to this version of the bill that would strengthen the prohibition of illegal immigrants gaining access to the SCHIP program.

Although I still have reservations about how this expansion of SCHIP is funded, my support for providing health insurance for our nation's children surpasses my complaints about the bill. I want to once again be very clear that I fully support the SCHIP program. Guaranteeing access to health insurance for all children is not only a worthy goal, but it is the right thing to do. In fact, I have consistently supported the SCHIP program during my previous terms in Congress, and have recently voted to extend the program until the President approves an expansion of the program.

The vote on the veto override failed, 260 to 152. In order to override a presidential veto, two-thirds of Members present and voting must vote "aye."

Fundraising - Thank you for your support!

I cannot thank you enough for your support. I could not serve without your help. I want to ensure that Southern Indiana values remain represented in Congress, but to do so we'll have to fight hard in order to retain this seat.

We finished the 2007 fundraising year strongly, with close to $250,000 for the last quarter and almost $1 million cash-on-hand. This is more money than I've ever raised before and I've been very successful in my fundraising. But my opponent will be well-funded by his Republican allies on the national level, and it will take all the resources we've got to counter his deep pockets. If you're interested in helping me raise money, please contact Erica Bordador at (812) 525-2391 or erica@hoosiersforhill.com.