Sunday Morning Post
As always there’s nothing like a few Sunday morning tidbits to get the week started. I do plan to expand on some of these items this week, particularly the Mayor’s re-election bid and the Indianapolis FOP’s decision to pay for David Bisard’s legal defense.
Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard all but announced he is going to run for re-election. A formal announcement is expected this coming Saturday. I’ll be interested in seeing if anyone has done any polling over the course of the next 30 days to see how the incumbent matches up against the challengers. Democrats reportedly have done a poll, but the results, obviously, haven’t been made public. The Mayor will be a guest on the morning show Tuesday at 8:08 a.m.
The Indianapolis Fraternal Order of Police’s decision to pay for the legal defense of David Bisard has a lot of people in this town scratching their heads. Bisard is accused of driving drunk in a squad car back in August and killing one motorist while injuring two others. I’m told there were about 200-300 officers present at the vote which was overwhelmingly in favor of paying for Bisard’s defense. According to media reports newly re-elected FOP President Bill Owensby because the report concerning the case revealed none of the witnesses at the scene saw Bisard was intoxicated he entitled to defense since he was performing within the scope of his duties. This raises a couple questions; what about the blood alcohol draw? While inadmissible, no one has contested its validity. Secondly, the only way Bisard’s attorney can mount a credible defense is to attack other officers for not following procedure and if the attorney is representing Bisard can he do that without a serious ethical breach? And why vote to defend Bisard and not Candi Perry? Bill Owensby will be our guest Monday at 8:38 a.m.
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels and Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. Tony Bennett will unveil the details of their school reform plan this Wednesday at the Education Roundtable. I spoke to the Governor at an Economic Club of Indiana lunch on Friday. He said his plan will pretty much be what he’s been discussing publicly, more choice for parents, better measurements for accountability and allowing seniors who can finish high school in three years to start college early using the state dollars they would have spent in their senior year. I’m also hearing the state may offer parents a “tuition refund” which they can use to send their children to the public or private school of their choice. Since the tax dollars are being refunded to the parent, the Courts have recognized that does not violate the Establishment Clause of the Constitution since the parents would be paying for religious-based education and not the state. Dr. Tony Bennett will be a guest on the morning show this coming Thursday at 7:08 a.m.
The maneuvering continues in the 2012 race for Governor. I’m told that despite the talk of running for President, Indiana Congressman Mike Pence has quietly lining up support for a gubernatorial bid by reaching to key lobbyists and fundraisers. Lt. Governor Becky Skillman, I am told, is in the race regardless of what Pence decides to do and she may have a trick or two up her sleeve ready to go for the primary. Stay tuned. Lt. Governor Becky Skillman will be a guest on the morning show this Wednesday at 8:08 a.m.
That’s all for now. There are some other things going this week, but I wanted to keep this blog post to about 600 words. By the way, the “job search” continues to go well. I’ll fill you in later.
