People keep saying 2020 has been a bizarre year as though it is an anomaly. This is not random at all. It is a collision of aggressive campaign strategies combined with the politicization of a virus released by China. All of it has to do with it being an election year combined with local incompetence.
Fear has been the motivation of choice, and it works… until we turn off our televisions, put down our phones and experience real life. We take their power away when we do this. Only then can we strip down all the narratives and find reality and possibility as we look at what is really effecting our daily lives.
One exciting possibility of 2020 will be if Democrat… I mean, Republican… sort of… Gov. Eric Holcomb has to hand the keys to the governor’s mansion to Libertarian Donald Rainwater. As we move forward without really moving forward in what can only be described as Common Core math — Stage 4.5 equals Stage 5.0 — I just sit here shaking my head. My only conclusion is Gov. Holcomb thinks we are stupid. We will prove him correct if we vote him back into office. I hope Mr. Rainwater gets the chance to say, “Hey, Holcomb! You forgot this last box of masks!” with a despondent Holcomb replying, “Just throw them in the trash. They didn’t work out the way I planned.”
I realize it is too soon to predict the outcome of this election, but it is amazing to see numerous constitutional conservatives pulling together as we try to elect a governor who gets it. The momentum is in favor of the Libertarian. As of this writing,Rainwater raised over $160,000 in one week, and donations keep coming. This doesn’t compare to the over $10 million Gov. Holcomb has, but it represents an encouraging sample of the number of people who believe in Donald Rainwater enough to open their wallets. Holcomb’s money comes in large chunks from businesses and organizations. Rainwater’s money comes from the people. This should tell us everything we need to know regarding for whom each candidate wants to work.
But Holcomb is a conservative’s conservative, right? After all, he received an endorsement from Indiana Right to Life! They endorsed the guy who made us close our churches but deemed Planned Parenthood an essential business. Again, I shake my head because I have no idea how to interpret this. They endorsed a candidate that has a proven track record of not being pro-life. Donald Rainwater is not the poster child for pro-life either, but he wants to stop tax money from going to Planned Parenthood. I am OK with starting there.
Our governor is showing himself to be incompetent from the womb to the tomb. He still has not condemned the riots. Innocent people died and he remains quiet. On a national level, the domestic terrorists have threatened to “burn it all down” when President Trump gets re-elected. Is he going to let it happen again? We might be on our own. Fortunately, we are not as divided as we are being told. Since the orchestrated riots began, I have had numerous encounters with people throughout Hancock and Marion Counties. I have talked with people of many races, political affiliations, religions and numerous other identities. Not ONCE have any of the conversations been about which lives matter or privilege nonsense. To the contrary, I have experienced people driven to kindness toward each other. This is what Hoosier values look like. The citizens moved forward. Meanwhile, the governor caters to the violent few.
Holcomb is accustomed to saying the “right” things and associating with the “right” groups to get votes. That used to work. His problem, ironically, is President Trump. The days of voting for someone who says the right words is over. We have seen what a candidate who follows through on promises to the people looks like. President Trump let the genie out of the bottle, and it will never go back to the way it was. He works for the people, not the government, and we like that. I am not saying Donald Rainwater will do as great of a job as President Trump. Maybe he will. Maybe he won’t. However, I know for certain Eric Holcomb will not as he has proven to be a politician for himself — not a servant of the people. I’ll take my chances with our Libertarian candidate. After all, 2020 is a bizarre year, right?
Dennis Cole is a husband of 30 years, father of four and a resident of Greenfield.
