Meet Evan

It's been raining all morning here at Nutwood, but you won't hear us complaining! We've been needing rain for a while now, and the farmers were getting a little worried. It's a nice, steady rain, giving everything a good soaking. We've got a couple of errands to run (Ken has been saving his pennies for something...stay tuned!), and it seems like it might be a good afternoon to put together the table. Oh boy!

 

Do you all know this guy? Unless you're a fellow Hoosier, probably not. This is our junior Senator, Evan Bayh. He spent 8 years as governor (I believe he was the youngest governor in the country at the time), and has been one of our senators since 1999. I bring him up because I've been reading plenty of articles that say he's on the "short list" to be Obama's running mate. I lean towards thinking that Obama might go with someone older, to counterbalance his own youth, but otherwise, I think Senator Bayh would be an excellent choice.

 

Evan Bayh (that's pronounced "bye"), a Democrat, is one of the most popular figures in Indiana politics in recent history. In a staunchly Republican state, that's a remarkable accomplishment. He was incredibly popular as governor, due to his fiscal conservatism, tax cuts, and consistently balanced budgets. His popularity continues as a Senator, with both his initial bid and his re-election victories garnering over 60% of the vote. He is most definitely a very conservative Democrat, and even most Republicans like the guy!

 

When he went to Washington, he seemed to toe the party line a little more than he did here at home, and I was a bit disappointed in him. I wrote him a letter saying that I felt he was moving away from his constituents' wishes, and he wrote back a very kind letter stating his reasons for voting the way he did. I still didn't agree with him, but I really appreciated the response.

 

In the recent primary, he supported Senator Clinton, and actively campaigned for her. With Senator Obama the presumptive nominee, he is now campaigning for him--including a short video on Obama's web site. He might be a very good choice for Obama, if he can bring Senator Clinton's supporters along with him. His fairly conservative positions, especially fiscally, might be very attractive to a lot of people. The guy is really good looking, too, with a sort of quiet charisma. And before you call me shallow for commenting on his looks, people are drawn to that--we're hardwired that way. He's got a beautiful wife who is a lawyer (and former cheerleader) and they have twin sons, Beau and Nicholas. The guy is a natural.

 

The Obama campaign is putting Indiana "in the game," believing that they have a chance to win a state that for 40 years has been a GOP stronghold. They may be right, and we're seeing plenty of ads already. In a very volatile political year, Indiana may very well a "battleground" state. It's something I've never seen as an adult, so it's pretty exciting! If nothing else, we're going to get some actual campaigning going on, like during the Democratic primary.

 

I just thought I'd introduce you to Evan (we're on a first-name basis, y'know), because it's a possibility that you might be seeing more of him in the near future.

 

Tags: Evan Bayh, Barack Obama