At the time, the common DC joke was: Indiana’s two senators are Bayh and Bought.  

If Mourdock wins the new mantra could be: our two senators are Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dumber.

As for Sen. Lugar: there’s a huge difference in his case and most others.  He actually SOLD his voting-residence for a profit over two decades ago.  

Simple solution: he asks the new owner if he can use the home as his voting address, pays a small lease fee, and there you have it.

He didn’t do that.

Big mistake.  Arrogant.  Forgetful.  All of the above.

And it would be a crying shame for Indiana, if a dope like Mourdock was the beneficiary of public anger over this issue.

But….that’s politics.

The qualifications provision is a separate issue from voting. As I’ve said before as to Lugar, I am aware of no exception in the voter fraud/perjury statutes that allow you to sign documents under oath saying you live at a house you sold 35 years ago,  when you know you don’t. 

You’re of course dead right about the spouse when it comes to voting.  But in fairness to the Lugars, he’s not the only one doing this sort of thing.  Look at Evan Bayh for example.  Still Lugar takes it to a new level using someone else’s house he sold 35 years ago.

As a former Federal Worker (GI) for two decades, here’s how it goes for those in military service, (and I lived in MANY states as well as over seas).

When I entered, my home of record at the moment I took the Oath of Enlistment stayed the same unless I took ‘positive steps’ to change that home of record. 

The ‘BIG 3′ Positive Steps were;
1) Registering to vote in that ‘new’ state.
2) Changing my State Income Tax location so as not to have to pay taxes in my home of record.
3) Getting a new drivers license in that new state.

Now, there were things I could do, like own a home in the state I was based, or register a car there also, all while keeping my original home of record.  I did not have to own property in  my home of record. All I needed was a mailing address.  Most GI’s used the address of a family member, or a PO Box.  Simple as that. 

Now, that was a whole different ball game for my civilian spouse.  Even though she was a veteran herself, she had to become a resident of what ever state we resided in, as she was not in Federal Service.

When we were in Michigan, she had a drivers license, paid taxes, registered to vote and census counts in Michigan.  Same for South Dakota, same for Alaska, same for Louisiana.  Usually this is required to be done in 30 – 90 days, depending on the State’s requirements.  It was a hassle, especially when we went outside of the Continental US…. that’s when her residency reverted to my home of record.

Millions of GI’s have gone thru this residency thing since the AVF started in the mid 70′s, so I fail to see what the debate is about as far as Sen. Lugar himself.

Now, about his non-elected, civilian spouse….. unless there is ‘hard paper’ showing an exemption to elected officials’ spouses, she is NOT and Indiana resident. (At least by the rules/laws that govern millions of other federal workers).