IIthis is a test of posting with my Blackberry.
I’m trying to see if I can post while mobile.

The David Bisard Report is scheduled to be released later today.  I’ll have the details posted as soon as I can get them typed.  Check back here sometime after 3 p.m.   One thing I can say for sure is that if you are a big fan of grassy knolls, book depositories and second shooters, you’re going to be disappointed.

In their zeal to get an early start on 2011, Marion County Democrats are unveiling their first attack ad against incumbent Mayor Greg Ballard.  It plays on familiar themes, even though it is fast and lose with the truth in some places and outright lies in others.    However, it is effective to the uninformed individual, so if I were the Mayor’s people, I’d kick my re-election game plan into high gear because this is just a sample of what Melina Kennedy and Ed Treacy are bringing to the table.

Now that we’re a few days out from the Election, I think now would be the perfect time to take a step back, relax and provide most of you with a friendly reminder about what I do for a living.

I am a political commentator who gets paid to offer up his opinions.   My opinions are based on a couple factors.  The facts, which are usually the result of direct observation or engagement with the people and issues that I write about.   My opinions are also based on my political philosophy which can be best defined as a moderate conservative.  I’m big on fiscal conservatism, but on the social issues, as long as your private behavior isn’t costing me money, I frankly don’t care and don’t want to know.   If I want to see it or pay for it, I’ll look for your web address.  I am not a Libertarian, because I do believe a certain amount of government is a necessity.  There are times the government has to spend money when I wish it wouldn’t, but that’s a fact of life.

I am in the unique position of being someone who is an opinion writer, but uses traditional journalism techniques to gather information.  Yes, I do have an agenda.  That agenda usually includes promoting economic growth, quality education, personal freedom and law and order.  And I see the world through that filter.  Now I am not so narcissistic so as not to acknowledge other points of view.  If I did, I’d simply never take a phone call on the morning show and turn the comment section off on this blog and that would be the end of the discussion.

I also freely admit I am not a big fan of teachers unions nor do I care much for the limousine liberal mindset or the outdated black civil rights establishment.  I believe they have done more harm than good in this world over the last 40 years.  I know there are a number of you who accuse me of being a shill or mouthpiece for the Mayor or Governor.  That’s fine.   I’ve been called worse by my wife and that was after our first date.   I don’t shill for anyone; believe it or not I just happen to agree with most of the Mayor and Governor’s agenda.  There are a few things I’d do differently.  But why is anyone surprised that a moderate conservative would agree philosophically more with Republicans than Democrats, overall.

Now that doesn’t mean Democrats and liberals won’t get a fair shake.  Regardless of what I think of their positions on some issues, in order for the city and state to move forward, I believe a good healthy debate is always welcome.  And I have never turned away anyone from the airwaves or blog space because I differed with their opinion.  All I ask you to do is if you’re going to say “no” have an alternative or politely sit down and be quiet.

So as we go forward from here on out, please keep in mind what I’ve written and occasionally refer back to it.  And please, don’t be surprised if a moderate conservative advocates or supports a position that he believes is consistent with his beliefs and criticizes one that he doesn’t.   This isn’t rocket scientist, this political commentary.

Now let’s be careful out there.

One of the big things items this upcoming session will be the issue of education reform.   In order to move Indiana forward, this state is really going to have to step up its reform efforts.  One of the big things it can do is to revamp collective bargaining.  I’ve been reviewing some of the silly and outrageous provisions that are in current teacher contracts from across the state.  And to be honest, I frankly don’t know which one is more ridiculous, the teachers who asked for the provisions or the idiotic school boards that agreed to them.  Here’s a sample…

• During a Reduction in Force, a teacher with tied seniority will be dismissed based on:  birth date, blind draw, roll of a die, the sum of the last four digits of the social security number. The higher sum of the two is granted the greater seniority.

• Principals have no authority to appoint teachers to classrooms. Teachers choose their own classroom assignments based on seniority. Each teacher submits to the Board their top 3 choices. The Board shall then work down the seniority list in assigning classes. If a less senior teacher prefers a class already requested by a more senior teacher, the Board shall move on to the less senior teacher’s second preference, and so on, until all teachers receive their most desired available pick. Then, the Board shall repeat for two more cycles to assign as many teachers as possible to their respective preferences.

• No material may be sent to a prospective outside employer without the consent of the teacher.

• No staff meetings on Mondays, except in emergencies.

• Sixteen (16) days in each even-numbered year and twenty-four (24) days in each odd-numbered year shall be available for released time for teachers to work on legislative matters, including visits to the Indiana General Assembly and related activities which may include meetings with the Legislative Liaison Office.

• A teacher has the right to displace a less senior teacher in another subject area to avoid involuntary transfer.

• Association has equal say as to which teachers are hired for summer school. Teachers offered summer school positions based on seniority.

• Teachers may not be required to report more than 20 minutes before the class day begins.

• Teachers hired before 2008 pay only $1.00 for health insurance.

• The classroom teacher is solely responsible for the evaluation and measurement of pupil progress, retention and promotion.

• No teacher evaluation shall be based on ISTEP scores.

• Teachers with 5 years of experience will not be subject to evaluation, with exceptions.

• Teachers with 5 years of experience may only be evaluated once every 3 years.

• Open houses may not exceed one per semester at secondary schools and two per semester at elementary schools

That’s just a sample.  While I have no problem with people negotiating reasonable working conditions,  no one can be serious about some of the stuff you see written above.   Let the school reform begin!!!!

Several years ago when I was going to law school part-time and working for the Illinois Attorney General during the day, an older lawyer who was getting ready to wind down his career gave me some of the best advice I’d ever heard.  He said Abdul; if you end up practicing regularly remember this, “some days you get the bear, other days the bear gets you.”   I think that is advice we should all take to heart in the wake of Friday’s decision by the Police Merit Board (PMB) to overrule IMPD Chief Paul Ciesielski’s recommendation that Officer Jerry Piland be terminated because of the excessive force used against Brandon Johnson.

I was in post-election mode so I did not get a chance to watch the hearing.  However, the decision drew strong reaction from the Mayor, Chief, Public Safety Director as well as some segments of the African-American Community.   However, if you take a closer look at the PMB’s record you can see it’s pretty clear that some days you get the bear and other days the bear gets you.

• Earlier this year the PMB upheld the Chief’s recommendation that Officer Nhat Nguyen be terminated for choking a subject and making no arrest.
• The PMB overruled the Chief’s recommendation that Officer Bobby Jefferson be terminated for stealing $1,000 from an arrested subject,
• The PMB upheld the recommendation for termination of Officer Anthony Smith who was charged with confining a woman in his car and having sex with her.
• In 2009, the PMB upheld a recommendation that Officer Christopher Poindexter be fired for filing a fake accident report and lying about the investigation.  Poindexter is appealing the decision.

Overall, looking at PMB decisions since 2007 the decisions have come down 4-2 in favor of termination, with a couple “out of court” settlements.   That tells me that most of the time, IMPD gets what it wants.

The problem here is that the entire Brandon Johnson situation is so emotionally and politically charged (by the way most of the board is made up of Bart Peterson and Frank Anderson appointees) that I don’t think there would have been anyone not complaining about the decision regardless of how it turned out.

I do not believe the PMB should be dismantled, because everyone is entitled to due process.  However, I do think a little tinkering may be in order so that the PMB comes in on the front end of the process and makes a non-binding recommendation to the police Chief, who then has the final say regarding an Officer’s disposition.

I get very nervous when we don’t get decisions that go our way and we start talking about throwing out the entire system.  There is nothing worse than watching the people who whine about “judicial activism” when really all they are complaining about is the decision that didn’t go their way.    The PMB, like everyone else, has a job to do.  It may be time for it for it to do its job a little differently, but like most of us; it still has a job to do.

While on the set of RTV 6 Election night, I got a message from a former Melina Kennedy campaign staffer who was still holding a grudge from the 2006 county prosecutor’s race.  As Terry Curry was solidifying his lead over Mark Massa, the staffer gleefully reminded me that Marion County was a Democratic County.  I politely reminded him that thought should keep him quite warm this January  as he’s walking over to the GOP-controlled Statehouse.

My counterpart Jon Easter over at Indy Democrat is already painting the picture of gloom and doom after Tuesday’s election which gave Indiana House Republicans a near 60-61 seat majority in the House and a quorum proof majority in the Senate.   I don’t quite see it that way.  In fact, if Republicans can stay away divisive cultural issues like gay marriage and meaningless issues like smoking bans, they have an opportunity to do quite a bit of good.

In the field of education, there can now be true reform where more dollars follow the student, there is real accountability in the classroom where good teachers are rewarded and bad teachers are sent on their way.   And the Indiana State Teachers Association stranglehold on education can finally be broken and parents can have more control over their child’s education.

With local government reform, there can be a lot more movement forward, without the usual obstructionism from the Center Township crowd.  Already I am hearing that legislation may be introduced to consolidate the rest of Marion County township fire departments and poor relief into one countywide efficient system that truly serves the needs of the poor.  In addition, the fact that property tax caps will also force a lot of local governments to work closer together and collaborate or consolidate to provide services.  Thus,  more efficient use of the taxpayers’ money.  And this is bad, why?

And don’t be surprised if we see real reform in unemployment insurance.  On a per capita basis, Indiana has very generous unemployment benefits and there are a lot of mid-level paying jobs that are not going filled because people make more on unemployment than they would working.  Expect that to change.

My best advice to the GOP is focus on the stuff that matters.  Focus on jobs, the economy and good government.  Leave the divisive, wedge issues alone.  And for Democrats, do some soul searching and reflecting, and look for a message and policies that will resonate with voters.  Most importantly, look for some new blood.  You have a lot of smart, young  raw talent out there that needs a chance to shine.  You know who they are.

Welcome to the brave new world folks, it’s gonna be a blast.

I’m writing this while still on the set of RTV 6, so bear with me.  Here’s my post 2010 Mid-term election assessment.

1. Indiana is a Republican state.
2. Marion County is a Democratic County.
3. Mike Pence and Becky Skillman are running for Governor.
4. Democrats are going to have some major soul searching to do if they want to regain statewide power.
5. Republicans are going to have a lot of work to do if they want to keep what they have in Indianapolis.
6. The State Teachers Union is royally screwed.
7. Mitch Daniels is about to become unleashed.
8. Joe Donnelly is going to find Capitol Hill very lonely.
9. Todd Young will now be known as “Carmel Man”.
10. If Charlie White knows how to do anything, it’s ride a wave.
11. Life over at the Statehouse is about to get a lot more interesting.
12. No matter how much I complain, I still love elections, however, I love my wife more and she gets my undivided attention for the next few days.

See you later.

Although the polls are closing as I am writing this blog post.  I’ve been going through some interesting data on the early voting in Marion County.

Out of the nearly 23,000 ballots already cast, 33% can be identified as Republican/Republican leaning; 28% Democratic/Democratic leaning and 38% undecided/unidentifiable.

As expected, Republicans did well in the early voting category, with 40% of the ballots identified as Republican.  Democrats did better with early voting with 30% of their party showing up in person.

The bigger issue though is where did the rest of the voters go.  33% could not be identified by party in absentee voting and 49% of them couldn’t be identified with early voting.

Now this is not to say every Republican and every Democrat cast straight ticket ballots, but it does  help make for an interesting evening.

You can catch me tonight on RTV-6 and simulcast at wxnt.com.

My political colleagues have started dropping predictions, so I figured I may as well get on the bandwagon.  My predictions are based on what I’ve been picking up this morning as well as over the past several weeks.  Of course, things can change if we have a late surge after 3 p.m.

• U.S. Senate – Dan Coats
• 2nd Congressional District – Joe Donnelly
• 8th Congressional District – Larry Buschon
• 9th Congressional District – Todd Young*
• Secretary of State – Charlie White
• Treasurer – Richard Mourdock
• Auditor – Tim Berry
• Marion County Prosecutor – Mark Massa*
• Indiana House of Representatives – Republicans – 53, Democrats – 47.
• Tax Caps – 65-percent in favor.

* If Young and Massa win, their victories will likely be within 2-percentage points.