Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 10 September 2004 — Page 8

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THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2004

EDITORIAL

JUST TOMTIT

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Endorsement of Daniels should be

wake up call to Kernan

A

t By SHANNON WILLIAMS Recorder Editor

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When I first heard the news that Bill Mays, founder of Mays Chemical Co. and publisher of The Recorder, was going to publicly endorse Republican Mitch Daniels’ candidacy for governor, my mouth dropped to the floor. I was incredibly shocked to say the least. After what seemed like eternity, my brain began to unthaw from the temporary freeze and I commenced to digest the information I was just given. My first thought was “Why?” And to

1: put it quite simply, it all boils down to I, Mays feeling that Daniels is a better candidate for governor than ;i incumbent Joe Kernan. The thing that brought me comfort and what I feel is important for the public to understand is that Mays s, is a strong Democrat and has been for a number of years. Although he is supporting Daniels, he’s made it known that he will continue to support all other Democratic officials, including federal offi- < cials, our city-county councilors and state legislators, j- Mays’ endorsement of Daniels will do two profound things in

my opinion.

VI The first is that it will hopefully make Kernan and his staff step * up their game as far as campaigning in the African-American -: community... something that they’ve done on a very minimal scale thus far. Although the majority of African Americans in this state are Democrats, Kernan can’t take the Black vote for granted. It’s ,; imperative that he becomes visible in our community and address i. our issues of concern. Many people might blame his staff for his i absence in the Black community and I agree to a certain extent. H is j? people should definitely look at African Americans as viable voters in this year’s election. However, ultimately, the responsibility lies v on Keman’s shoulders. For he knows the places he’s campaigned, i! the events he’s frequented, and the issues he’s addressed. Ifhis staff has been ignoring African Americans, then he should step up and correct the problem. Although I’d like to see Keman l: win in November’s election, what he does for the next eight weeks on the campaign trial will be atestament to the outcome. Everyone ! knows this governor’s race will be a close one, so both candidates c will have to do an exceptional job of addressing the issues of j, Indiana residents and prove why they would be the best man for

5 the job.

The second thing that Mays’ endorsement of Daniels does is set -. an example. By stepping outside the box Mays has decided to a- endorse Daniels solely on qualification, despite his long-standing Democratic ties. Mays’ one simple gesture, as minimal as it may seem to him, is evidence of the way people should vote. When n casting-a vote, one should examine each candidate’s game plan, ■ determine which one is more likely to execute the plan and get the - job done, then, based off the findings of probability of effective- . ness, one should cast their vote accordingly. When evaluating i candidates, it doesn’t always have to be Republican vs. Democrat. i\ It can also be about issue vs. issue. Depending on the issues, whoever has the strongest point for a particular individual gets j< that person’s vote. <: Despite what many Democrats may feel, Mays’ efforts have made him a trendsetter as far as forward thinking. At least we / know he doesn’t conform to the normal way of doing things. He • proves that he’s his own person and does what he wants to do. ,; I’m really interested to know how Keman and his staff really feel ..■ about Mays’ endorsement of Daniels. Some think it’s such a • : wonderful thing for Daniels to have the backing of Mays. I think f . it’s unfortunate that Keman couldn’t prove his creditability to Mays, one of the most influential African Americans in the state. -: It seems ofily logical that Kernan’s team would have reached out ri. to Mays not only because of his wealth, but also because of his business sense. Mays is connected in more endeavors than one can a imagine. I just wish Kernan could have taken advantage of having such a respected person on his party’s side. With Bill Mays’ endorsement of Daniels, many people have -: contacted Democratic State Representative and Recorder Presi- » dent Garolene Mays to discuss Bill Mays’ decision as well as her ! thoughts on the governor’s race. She adamantly supports Kernan, v Lt. Gov. Kathy Davis, as well as the entire Democratic Party. ’> Carolene has done an exceptional job establishing herself in her own right, based off her qualifications, experience and dedication >: to the community not only in the political arena, but also with her responsibilities at this publication. Although she is a relative of Bill lr Mays, Carolene is first an individual with her own mind and i. viewpoints. i It’s important to also stress that The Recorder’s coverage of Bill .. Mays’ endorsement of Mitch Daniels is an effort to keep the African American community abreast of the latest political hap- • penings.as we do every week. In no way does coverage of this issue v mean that The I ndianapolis Recorder supports or endorses Daniels’

campaign.

INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER DIREffORY Georg* P. Stewart Marcus C. Stawart Sr. Eunice Trotter William G. Mays Founder-Editor- Editor-Publisher Editor-In-Chief Publisher Publisher 1925-1983 Publisher 1990-present 1895-1924 1988-1990

PresMeftt/Cenerel Manager Carolene Mays '* Administrative Assnt .....Turae Dabney

EDITORIAL

Editor...—_.. Steft Writer

Copy Editor ..

Shannon Williams Joshua Cohen Brandon A. Porry Erlcka P. Thompson Erlcka C. Wheeler ....Jack Sales

ADVERTISING

Sales end Marketing Monager LoRoy Lewis Classified Advertising ...Sharon L. Mosey Locol Display Advertising. Lisa Shoamake Rita J. Wise ....... ..... C. Denise Potty BUSINESS/CIRCULATION Business Office Manager ...Angela Kuhn Interim Controller Arthur Cert or Business Office Crystal Dalton ... Kay Toliver SMrl Williams Brucell Mays

Circulation..

ART t PRODUCTION Production Manager.... Jeana Marla Lesrls Ouattara . Advertising/Production Terran James Senler Designer John L. Hurst Jr.

Th* /ndlanapeffs Recorder encourages short, concise letters to the editor and opinion artIclei from the ' 1 public. Letters end opinion articles will be used at the editor's discretion and are subfect te editing. We will net guarantee public at Ion of materiel received. We cannot guarantee dotes of publication. Letters containing Ubelous or untrue statements will net be published. All letters and opinion articles must Include T a verifiable full name, address end telephone number. This Information will not be published et the rogues! „ el the writer. Letters end articles should be typed but will be accepted If handwriting It legible.

Will Bill Mays’ endorsement of Mitch Daniels have meaning? We’ll see.

Bill Mays, Indiana’s leading AfricanAmerican businessman and a corporate titan in America’s 12 th largest city, endorsed Republican Mitch Daniels for governor Tuesday. The announcement was made live on our WTLC-AM (1310) “Afternoons with Amos” program. The publisher of this newspaper, Mays doesn’t believe his endorsement is a big deal. I disagree. The endorsement is significant; a severe wake-up call to Gov. Joe Kernan and his seemingly ineffectual campaign staff that it’s time to get their act together and get serious about motivating AfricanAmerican voters. Mays’ decision, while stunning and shocking top Black Democrats and the governor’s campaign, doesn’t really surprise me. Daniels’ campaign is an outgrowth of the severe dissatisfaction top Indianapolis business leaders, white and Black, have about Indiana. Mays and his corporate peers deeply believe that Indiana must undergo significant structural changes to improve employment opportunities, regain manufacturing jobs, and improve education so Indiana can again be an economic engine. Mays personally told me he feels more “comfortable” with Daniels than Kernan. Like many of Indy’s corporate titans, Bill Mays knows Mitch Daniels from years of working with him when Daniels was a top Lilly executive. Mays’ endorsement won’t cause scores of African Americans to switch their votes to Daniels, but the endorsement could be effective in convincing Black professionals, Black businesspersons and Black independent voters to take a closer look at Daniels’ candidacy. And those are Black votes that Joe

Keman can’t afford to lose. In a sense, this was an endorsement that Keman lost, rather than one Daniels’ gained. Bill Mays’ clout and independence allowed him to make a choice other Blacks wished they could. Many Black leaders have been disappointed and distrustful of the folks Joe Keman has surrounded himself with during the past year. It’s not just that the governor relies on a virtually impenetrable inner circle of old associates, but compared to former Govs. Evan Bayh and Frank O’Bannon, Kernan’s AfricanAmerican staffers and appointments are the weakest of any governor in years. Keman’s Black staffers haven’t connected with the leaders of Indiana’s largest Black community, nor, I hear, have they connected with Lake County’s Black leadership. As Indiana’s leading AfricanAmerican businessman, Mays feels strongly that African Americans must be involved in key leadership positions with both Republican and Democratic officeholders. He hopes that prominent African-American Republican business leaders will now come forward and endorse Daniels. While Democrats will bitterly criticize Mays’ decision, those who really know him understand Bill Mays follows his conscience and business sense. Jim Kittle won’t get Mays to turn on his strong Democratic ties as Mays will continue to strongly support Congresswoman Julia Carson, Mayor Bart Peterson, Sheriff Frank Anderson and our Afri-can-American councilors and legislators. Political psychoanalysts will wonder how Bill Mays reconciled his support for Mitch Daniels with the strong support for Joe Keman by his niece, state Rep. Carolene Mays, the president and general manager of this newspaper. I won’t comment on that, waiting instead for Bill and Carolene to let me have the book and movie rights. • Now, instead of the Kernan crew getting mad and vowing revenge, they need to suck it up, emulate baseball great Reggie

Jackson, and swing for the fences by getting serious about motivating African Americans to vote. Kernan must aggressively give Black voters specific reasons why four years of Keman/Davis will benefit our Black community. The governor’s race is close. And while I don’t believe that Mays’ endorsement will tip the scales, Keman and the Democrats can’t take that chance. They must spend the dollars and invest the organizational savvy and muscle to rally and motivate Black voters on Election Day, Nov. 2. If they don’t, this election won’t be close or pretty for Joe Kernan. What I’m hearing in the streets When he was a Libertarian, Andy Horning was a model of civility and decency in politics, but now he’s contracted the Republican disease of personal attack as last week he went after Congresswoman Julia Carson with a meat ax. Even though Carson has treated Homing with civility and respect, in an e-mail sent to local media, Horning demeaned and belittled Carson calling the veteran lawmaker and AfricanAmerican icon, “a trash-talkin’-street-fightin’ Machiavelli,” openly questioning Carson’s health declaring that “her Mustang has slowed down,” a play on one of Carson’s pet phrases. Instead of telling voters where he stands on the issues, Horning’s adopted the politics of sleaze. Horning’s demeaning insult to Carson is shameful from a candidate who’s previously positioned himself as a paragon of decency and virtue. I guess when one becomes a Republican candidate Karl Rove’s dirty tricks manual comes with the membership card. Contrast Horning’s negativity with the positive speech given at the Republican National Convention by Senate candidate Marvin Scott. I thought making Indiana’s first Black Senate candidate speak at noon was demeaning, but Scott was showcased between Colorado Senate candidate Pete Coors, (of beer fame) and South Dakota Rep. John Thune, who’s running against Senate Majority Leader

Tom Daschle. ***** 1 Saturday’s Labor Day Parade downtown featured a great turnout of organized labor along with top Democratic elected officials including Congresswoman Julia Carson, Gov. Joe Keman, Mayor Bart Peterson, Sheriff Frank Anderson and numerous CityCounty Council members and state legislators. Andy Homing, Marvin Scott and Mitch Daniels were absent but Republican County Treasurer candidate Monty Combs was present. And could someone tell Evan Bayh’s campaign that with a $7 million war chest they could’ve bought some “Bayh for Senate”Tshirts and had volunteers march in the Labor Day parade wearing them. ***** For several months the Indiana State Museum has been searching for someone to handle African-American programming and liaison with Black communities in the state. Distressingly, I’m hearing that the leading candidate for the position has no experience in educational or cultural programming, no experience working with African-American organizations and worse dislikes and refuses to work with Blackoriented media. It would be a drastic mistake and severe insult to our AfricanAmerican community, if the State Museum hires this individual. ***** Could the departure ofWRTV/ Channel 6 anchor Kristi Tedesco cause the station to reverse its reluctance to have an AfricanAmerican co-anchor their afternoon newscasts? The veteran Stacia Matthews, morning anchor Grace Trahan and weekend anchor Erica Flye are more than capable of replacing Tedesco. A Black co-anchor at 5,5:30 or 6, could reverse Channel 6’s Nielsen ratings’ woes. See ‘ya next week! Amos Brown’s opinions are not necessarily those of the Indianapolis Recorder. You can contact him at (317) 2210915 or e-mail him at [email protected].

Letter to Bill Clinton

By GEORGE E CURRY For NNPA

President

Dear

Clinton, I am deeply troubled by how my profession is easily manipulated as was evident last week when the GOP launched a withering attack on John Kerry. Rough-and-tumble politics don’t bother me. In fact, if the Democrats were rougher, they wouldn’t tumble as far as they usually do Election Day. I was embarrassed last week to see the national media serve as little more than political stenographers. Not only was the public treated to a well-orchestrated production characterized by lie after lie, reruns were featured all night on C-SPAN. The complete texts of speeches were available on line within hours and even computer illiterates could read the transcripts in the following day’s newspapers. To be fair, the Democratic National Convention in Boston was accorded the same saturation. The difference, however, was that the Democrats were so intent on showcasing a “positive” image that they neglected to vigorously attack Bush’s record. It was not so much how Republicans attacked Kerry but the level of deceit they deployed to tarnish him. And that’s where

the media failed miserably. Sure there were the obligatory stories contrasting rhetoric with reality, but in the main stories, the media were accomplices in the hijacking of truth. They were weapons of mass destruction. My plan was to expose the lies. For example, Vice President Dick Cheney said of Kerry: “He declared at the Democratic Convention that he will forcefully defend America after we have been attacked....” Kerry said no such thing. Rather, he said the only justification for going to war is “to protect the American people, fundamental American values from a threat that was real and imminent.” Even George Bush knows that imminent does not mean afterwards. Sen. Zell Miller, a Republican in everything but name, said: “Kerry has made it clear that he would use military force only if approved by the United Nations.” This is what Kerry actually said: “I will never hesitate to use force when it is required. Any attack will be met with a swift and certain response. I will never give any nation or international institution a veto over our national security.” My plan to expose these brazen lies changed after I learned that on Labor Day, you were undergoing a quadruple bypass. That’s when I decided to forgo recounting the Republicans transgressions and instead write you this letter. Seven years ago, I underwent a triple-bypass operation. It was a shock

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to learn that my coronary arteries were clogged. After all, I was a former college athlete and I didn’t drink or smoke. That didn’t prevent my chest from being cut open from neck to breastbone so that my rib cage could be parted for the surgery. You had the same operation and I am writing to let you know how fortunate you are. Yes, fortunate. You’re only 18 months older than I am, we’re both Southerners and enjoyed anything but model diets. We’re blessed to be alive. Reginald Henderson, one of my first-grade classmates back in Tuscaloosa, Ala., died several years ago of a heart attack. Other schoolmates and friends have died of heart attacks, strokes and other disorders, all before reaching the age of 60. And if I hadn’t gone to the hospital after experiencing chest pains - just as you did - I might not be around to write you this letter. Talks with doctors can be overwhelming and sometimes you may need to talk to a lay person who has gone through the surgery and recovery period. Joseph Boyce, a former writer and editor for the Wall Street Journal, served that role for me. Joe assured me that my life would be better after the surgery because my heart would be receiving more blood and oxygen than in its corroded state. Joe told me about the recovery period - it will be a while before you will regain your strength - and how imperative it will be to exercise on a regular basis and quit eating all of those foods that were never good for us anyway. I’ll close by telling you what Joe Boyce told me - your recovery will be just fine. You’re not going to have a speedy recovery, so I won’t waste time wishing you one. Those of us who have been where you are now look at our chests and see the zipper-like marks that serve as perpetual reminders of our surgery. So, we welcome you into the Zipper Club. It’s a unique organization. Membership is limited. And God has given every member a second chance at life. Sincerely, George E. Curry George E. Curry is editor-in-chief of the NNPA News Service and BlackPressUSA.com. He can be reached through his Web site, georgecurry.com.

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