I have to give Indiana House Democrats credit.  If you’re going to bolt to my home state of Illinois to put the brakes on legislation that you can’t stand, head to Champaign-Urbana, IL.  Unlike their Wisconsin counterparts who hid out in Rockford, Urbana is a pretty cool place.  It’s the home of the University of Illinois and it has lots of bars, some of which allow 18-year olds as long as they’re accompanied by an adult.  You can’t get that in Rockford.  Plus Rockford smells funny.

While they’re hanging out,  I hope Democrats  take a few minutes to think about a few things.   First of all, take a good look around you and take notes on what not to do with your state government.   Secondly, as a fellow minority, I realize life in the minority can be pretty tough, especially when the other side has a 60-40 advantage.   And to be honest, right-to-work legislation really wasn’t a campaign issue so bringing the government to a halt isn’t a too farfetched idea.  However, I think this is one of those days where my Democratic friends’ reach might be exceeding their grasp.

Why, you ask?  Well it would be one thing if Democrats were only protesting right-to-work legislation.  But they want guarantees that charter schools, vouchers, school accountability are also taken off the table.  And one provision that no one is discussing that Democrats really hate is one that would eliminate automatic pay withdrawal for teachers’ paychecks to cover union dues.

Had they just demanded right-to-work legislation be taken off the table, they might get a concession.  House Speaker Brian Bosma has basically told Democrats to get bent saying there won’t be any concessions as a condition to restart the government.   So what’s a political pundit to do?  Just wait.  I think eventually right-to-work will be taken off the table, but the education reform legislation will stay.   And I would not be surprised if a couple pieces of legislation show up between now and the end of session which really makes the Democrats wish they would have stayed in my home state by the time it’s all said and done.

By the way, I have to go back to Illinois on Friday so if I can figure out where the Democrats are hiding out, I’ll poke my head in and say hello.  I’ll also remind them that after two days of being gone they can have their pay docked.

Indiana State Treasurer Richard Mourdock is scheduled to announce this morning that he’s running for the U.S. Senate and will challenge incumbent Richard Lugar in the 2012 May primary.

I find this entire dynamic fascinating.   Both candidates will bring their own strengths and challenges to the race.  Lugar has the advantages of incumbency and fine-tuned, well-honed statewide organization.  Meanwhile Mourdock’s supporters have a lot of energy and enthusiasm and there is a noticeable undercurrent of discontent in some Republican circles over Lugar’s record.  I also expect both to be well-financed.

However, as the campaign goes forward, the people I’ll be keeping an eye not so much on these two as I will what happens on the Democratic side of the fence.   Because I would argue there is a good chance that Democrats may decide who the next Republican nominee might be.

Say what?

If the Lugar/Mourdock gets as competitive as I think it might, then there’s nothing like a reverse “Operation Chaos” to make life interesting for everyone.  You remember “Operation Chaos” from the 2008 Presidential election?  That’s when Republicans were encouraged to vote in Democratic Presidential primaries to keep the race between Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama going down to the final stretch?

I would not be surprised to see something like that happen here.   The foundation is already being laid out for such a scenario.  Already the scarce field potential gubernatorial candidates are getting smaller on the Democratic side with Evansville Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel taking a pass.  And if Democrats can settle on one candidate for Governor and the U.S. Senate, there won’t be much of a reason for to vote in the primary and people like to go where the action is, thus the Republican primary.

And don’t forget, it’s also very likely Republicans will have a gubernatorial primary as well between Congressman Mike Pence, Indianapolis businessman Jim Wallace and another candidate to be named later.   So with all the action in the Republican Party, I would not be surprised to see some Democratic gate crashers.

Sometime this week you will turn on your television and see thousands of people taking to the streets making demands on their governments.  If you’re watching Al-Jazeera the demonstrators will be demanding change.  If you’re watching an Indiana news channel,  the protesters are demanding the status quo.

Starting today hundreds of union activists and their supporters are expected to show up at the Statehouse in Indianapolis to protest what they call “anti-worker” legislation.   There are a number of bills in the Indiana General Assembly that unions claim would hurt workers by limiting collective bargaining rights.

The two big items are a right to work bill that would eliminate joining a union or paying union dues as a condition of employment.  The second bill would limit teacher contracts to wages and benefits.   Apparently, unions and their supporters find these things as offensive as I do watching a Vanilla Ice special on Black Entertainment Television.  However, where I get lost in the translation is why unions are afraid of this legislation that to me comes across as common sense?  Maybe I see things differently than they do because I’m not a member of a union.  And looking at recent figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, neither are a lot of other people.

• Union membership went down in 2010 from 12.3 to 10.9 percent.  That number was more than 20 percent in 1983.

• The union membership rate was 36.2 percent in the public sector as opposed to 6.9 percent in the private sector.

• Local government workers have the highest union membership rate; 42 percent.

• Blacks were more likely to be members of a union than whites and older workers tended to be more likely to be part of a union than younger workers.

• The median income of union workers was $917 a week, while those of non-union employees were $717, although non-union employees don’t have union dues taken out of their paychecks.

• If a union member has a college degree or better, they more likely to be employed in the public sector than the private sector.

From a global perspective, if you are union leader, right to work legislation should not bother you.   The premise is very simple, if you are providing good service to your members they won’t mind paying for it.  If you are responding to your members’ needs they should glad to give you a portion of their paychecks and to pay for quality service you provide them.  You’re numbers are already shrinking so I doubt if right to work will make it worse.

And as far as public employee unions go, I don’t know if you’ve been keeping up on current events, but there isn’t a whole lot of money running around these days.   If the rest of us have to tighten our belts, you should too.   And while you’re getting mad at different Governors from across the state, you may want to save some of that anger for the  Obama administration and the stimulus package passed a couple years ago.  As some of us tried to tell you, spending money on people instead of infrastructure was a bad idea because when the money runs out, you are back in the same boat.  When I spend money on a road, I’ve got an asset that’s going to be around for a while; people, not so much.

I will acknowledge your right to protest, peacefully assemble and address your grievances with your government.  However, at the end of the day, what does it accomplish?  Your numbers are still declining and the government is still broke.  But I guess if it all that makes you feel better, that counts for something.  Right?

I’ve decided to try something new on Sundays; a thought for the week.   It will be a quick, short statement about a topic designed to stimulate discussion and hopefully, intelligent debate.   If the first one goes well, I may try and do it again.  So here we go…

Thought for the Week

If you don’t like the government taking money out of your back pocket, then by that same logic, shouldn’t you get offended when the government reaches around and starts digging in your front pockets as well?

Feel free to discuss.

The bad thing about nice weather is you have no desire to stay indoors and blog about the news of the day.  Luckily, it’s a little cooler outside this morning so I can scribble down a few thoughts before the lovely Mrs. Shabazz and I go spend the day just hanging out and enjoying each others company.  So here we go.

Richard Mourdock is expected to announce Tuesday (George Washington’s Birthday) that he is running for the U.S. Senate in 2012 and challenging Dick Lugar in the primary.  I’m told Mourdock reportedly has some polling data that puts him in the 40s in a run against Lugar.   I also hear Lugar has added more campaign staff including a field director and grass roots coordinator.  My current assessment is that Lugar has more supporters, but Mourdock’s are more intense so this should prove to be interesting.

It looks like former Attorney General Steve Carter is seriously considering getting in the race for Governor.  I’ve been told Carter has been polling lately trying to garner where he stands with the voters and whether a run would be worth it.   Meanwhile as Congressman Mike Pence gets ready to make a formal decision one thing he may want to focus on is more bread and butter issues.  A number of Republicans can respect his dedication to social conservative values, but as one of them put it  to me “Jesus doesn’t plow roads or work in FSSA”.   So Pence is really going to have to make it clear to a significant number of Republicans that he can do more than be a great speaker, but that he can manage.

The Evansville media is reporting this morning that Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel won’t be getting in the race for Governor in 2012.   A formal announcement could come as early as today.   Weinzapfel was once considered a rising star in Democratic politics, however recent controversies involving tax increases in his city reportedly knocked him out of the running.

Some veteran Republican State lawmakers are expressing concerns privately over some of the legislation making headlines out of the Indiana General Assembly, whether it be immigration, marriage, abortion or gun rights legislation.  They tell me they are worried that the public will not perceive them as creating jobs and dealing with the economy, but instead focusing on divisive wedge issues which could come back to haunt them if the economy doesn’t turn around.  I tend to agree with them.

A decision is expected by the end of next week as to whether a Hamilton County Grand Jury will return an indictment against Indiana Secretary of State Charlie White for voter fraud.   This past week both White’s current wife and ex-wife testified in his favor.

Indianapolis Public Schools are are trying to stack the deck with an Indianapolis Business Journal poll regarding school vouchers.  Spokeswoman Mary Louise Bewley sent out an e-mail to all IPS employees with a link to the IBJ’s home page and encouraging them to vote against vouchers.

And just when you thought politics couldn’t get more interesting, I hear some Indiana Libertarians are interested in recruiting “Rupert” from Survivor to run for public office.  Rupert, his full name is Rupert Boneham, is scheduled to appear at an April fundraiser during their state convention in LaPorte. It’s unclear what office Libertarians would try to recruit Ruppert to run for, but the choices include the U.S. Senate, Governor and Mayor of Indianapolis.   Now that would be interesting.

That’s all for now.   Enjoy your weekend.

Once again, I have a lot of little things to report on that worth a mention or two so here they are.

Indiana State Treasurer Richard Mourdock is formally announcing next week he’s going to challenge incumbent U.S. Senator Dick Lugar.   Mourdock was reportedly at C-PAC making the rounds and made a lot of contacts with potential campaign strategists.

Mourdock may find a crowded field waiting for him next year.  On his Facebook page, State Senator Mike Delph says he was not publicly endorsing Mourdock next week.  When I asked Delph if that meant he was getting in the race, he told me to “interpret it as you wish”.  I’ll definitely keep an eye out on this one.  By the way, I’m also hearing rumblings that some other politicos may get into the race as well.  Stay tuned.

Life could get interesting in Indiana real fast and real quick.  Gay activists are furious that lawmakers in general, Democrats in particular, overwhelmingly passed the marriage amendment this week that would prohibit the state from recognizing same-sex marriages.  The web blog Bilerico is pulling a Larry Flynt and asking for dirt on Indiana lawmakers who may profess one moral code but living another in their private lives.  They plan to publish it.  I’ve also heard that some activists may hire private investigators to look into lawmakers backgrounds as well.

And this may surprise a few folks,  I think Democratic candidate Melina Kennedy supports Mayor Ballard’s deal with Citizens Gas to transfer the city’s water and waste water facilities.  At a northside Kiwanis club meeting yesterday, Kennedy did not come out and say the deal was bad for the city and that she opposed it, but instead said she hoped the money would be spent wisely.

Speaking of money, I’m hearing through the grapevine that Kennedy will have a fundraiser soon in Chicago.  The host, the outgoing Mayor Daley.

That’s all for now.

I had someone contact me yesterday with what I thought was a legitimate criticism.  They asked me that if were in charge of Indianapolis Public Schools, what would I do to make them better, provided I had the same power as Dr. Eugene White.  I thought it was a fair question.  After all, if you’re going to throw bombs you better be ready to  do some building.  So I decided to spell out a few things I would do if I were Superintendent.

1. Anything IPS is doing that has nothing to do with the direct education of children is getting outsourced or consolidated with another school district: cafeteria, janitorial, human resources, payroll, professional development, property care, etc.  The money we save goes back into classroom instruction.  I’m also going to unload any surplus property.
2. I’m going to fire 1/2 the central office, including human resources.  They won’t be needed because power will be returned to the individual schools and principals would have control over hiring their staff.  And with the savings we put the resources back into the classroom.
3. Unless there is some reason why they can’t,  all my high school students are getting IndyGo year-round bus passes. They can catch the bus to school and then also use it to get to work in the summer.
4. Kiss the overall district budget good-bye.  I am eliminating it and giving each principal a budget for his/her school and virtual autonomy on how to run it.   We’ll spell out some general guidelines (I’ll use an independent board for purchasing and other related matters) and expectations, but after that, it’s their baby.  And they better get results.  Everyone will be held accountable.
5. As far as teachers go, I’m putting together a kitchen cabinet with a member from every school to tell me what I NEED to know, not want to know.   And they will be involved in developing our evaluation models for student and teacher performance.  Their selection will be based on effectiveness and history of implementing classroom reform.
6. I’m also going to create several charter schools from existing schools.  And if you want your child to attend, you have to sign an agreement that  you will make at least four (hour) visits to the school per year and participate in four activities.   And if I can pull it off,  I’m going to turn Northwest into a charter boarding school, where kids can be in a learning environment 24 hours a day.  If the parents won’t do their job, then we will.
7. I’m going to the state and ask for virtually every waiver I can get; particularly for those students with special needs that justifiably impede their ability to take standardized tests.
8. I’m going to partner with every church and institution of higher learning in the county to create an after-school mentoring and tutoring program.
9. Every 7 years I am going to require teachers take a year-long paid sabbatical to recharge and refresh their skills.
10. I’m going to apologize to the citizens of Indianapolis for not doing this sooner.

Granted the devil would be in the details, but I truly believe that empowering staff, returning power to individual schools and not hiding behind excuses are the way to go.  My goal would be to offer parents and kids the most awesome education they could get that every charter and private school would go out of business because everybody would be beating a path to my school doors.

I’m interested in your thoughts.

I was recently featured in a story in the Indianapolis Business Journal about what I do for a living, which I still can’t figure out.   As part of the story the reporter asked IPS Spokeswoman Mary Louise Bewley what she thought about some of my comments regarding the state’s largest school district.  Her response was as follows…

“IPS has no interest in comments made by Mr. Shabazz that unfairly attack the character of the superintendent, IPS administration, school board, teachers or district policies. Our focus is on ensuring the best quality education for our students, not the vitriolic rhetoric of naysayers who have nothing positive to contribute to our district or our city.”

Really?  Now this is not about getting into a public fight with Mary Louise, although I have fought heavyweights before.   But if we want to talk about having nothing positive to contribute to Indianapolis, let’s look at IPS’ track record as of late…

• The school district gives raises to administrators at failing schools to take over other failing schools, meanwhile hundreds of teachers are about to be laid off at the end of the school year.
• The Superintendent’s son gets a $14,000 raise.
• The State of Indiana is getting ready to takeover several IPS schools and its administrators accuse the state of racism.
• IPS brags about graduation rates that turn out to be “questionable” at best.
• During one of the worse ice storms in the city’s history when IPS couldn’t  even clear its own walkways at schools, its Superintendent was at the Super Bowl.*
• More than 170 administrators earn more than $100,000 annually in salary and benefits.
• The District accuses charter schools of taking away students, however any common sense analysis of the district’s population loss would show IPS loses more students to township schools than charters.

All that, and I’m the bad guy?  I think I hear a pot calling a kettle African-American.

* I wasn’t going to go down that road, but since other people went after the Mayor for the same thing, I figured Dr. White was fair game.

Hope you have a good Valentine’s Day.   Spend the day with someone you love, which for some of you means hanging out by yourself.  Me, I’ll take the lovely Mrs. Shabazz.

Abdul,

Today, I received a call on my personal cell phone, from the teacher’s union presumably, from a young man who was very pleasant, asking if I was aware of the attempts at the State House to dismantle public education and harm teachers (I’m paraphrasing but that is the gist), etc.  He went on for some time and asked me if he could put me through to Representative Thompson’s office to express my opposition to the education measures.

I said I would like to be patched through, because as someone who has been a teacher, I fully support the reforms, think that they provide real opportunities for kids, provide many new opportunities in education, and are good for teachers as well (the pay for performance, and so forth).

He thanked me very much for my time and hung up of course without patching me through.  I was amazed to receive a call on my unpublished cell phone number from 200-200-2000, which I called back to see what would happen and received a recording that the number is out of service.

Anyway there must be a really deep effort to be reaching people to be able to get a hold of an unlisted cell phone number. Thought you would find it interesting as well.