TheBanyanTree: Indiana, possibly in the political spotlight

[Julie Anna Teague]

The rumors are flying folks.  Little ol' Indiana.  Right here in the
middle of nowhere, and yet Indiana's past Governor and now Senator,
Evan Bayh, may just be Obama's VP choice.  I know, I know, it's all up
in the air yet.  And after the Dan Quayle fiasco, I'd be surprised if
anyone gave anyone from Indiana a chance, ever again. Indiana
University (my alma mater and place of gainful employment) still
suffers the embarrassment of having awarded a law degree to a total
idjit.  We attempt to turn 'em out smarter here at the U, but
occasionally one slips through. At this point, I'd love to regale you
with all the incredibly funny--if made by someone other than the
second-in-command to the most powerful leader in the world--quotes by
Dan Quayle, but there are too many to choose from.  You can go here and
read for yourself: http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Dan_Quayle/.
And I throw this out there in good faith that you will not think that
everyone from Indiana is so, um, articulate.

In the early 70's, the years my family was deep into local politics, I
attended rallies and handed out leaflets for Evan's dad, our Senator at
that time, Birch Bayh.  Birch was a Senator for nearly 20 years andvery
popular in Indiana. Here's something I just read about him on
Wikipedia--something I did not know about him, and something I think
should be more widely known about the father of the potential next Vice
President of the U-nited States:

"On June 19, 1964, Bayh, his wife, Senator Ted Kennedy and legislative
aide Edward Moss were on board a small plane that crashed in heavy fog
near Springfield, Massachusetts. Senator Bayh pulled a badly injured
Senator Kennedy from the wreckage. Senator and Mrs. Bayh were
relatively unhurt, while the pilot and Moss were both killed in the
crash."

Birch was succeeded by J. Danforth Quayle in 1981, who apparently rode
in on the coattails of the Reagan era, and kept on riding till he
reached the penultimate position of power, where his true abilities
shined, and Indiana was bathed in the backwash...er...glow.  I wouldn't
trust us either.  But now comes little Evan--he's only six years older
than me and, although I don't recall specifically, I did see his family
at events and can imagine that I was awestruck by his handsome teenaged
self at some point in my young political life.  At any rate, I think of
him as the young Evan, following his dad into politics, rather than the
50-something Senator Bayh, a powerful man in his own right.  I will get
there eventually.

Evan Bayh has always been called a "centrist".  I suppose that's good
for Obama's campaign.  I'm not much of a centrist myself, and even
though Evan was a Democrat, I found my views at odds with him as
Governor at times. Still, as qualities go for a Vice President, I think
it's a good thing.  He's a candidate I could get happy about, if I
weren't already so damned deliriously happy with our Presidential
candidate.  I think he's prepared for the job, and as the past Vice
President from Indiana says, so eloquently, "One word sums up probably
the responsibility of any vice president, and that one word is 'to be
prepared'." (Dan Quayle, 12/6/89)

Julie


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