Published: October 11, 2008 06:35 pm            

Candidates for governor differ on economics, taxes

For Gov. Mitch Daniels and challenger Jill Long Thompson, it’s a race about economics.

Daniels, an incumbent Republican who took office in 2005, has built his campaign around what he believes are successes in his first term. He touts an improved business climate that has led to record job creation.

Meantime, his opponent, Long Thompson, has rallied supporters by pointing out the number of jobs that have been lost this year. And she notes the lower salaries that Hoosiers make compared to the rest of the nation.

Libertarian Andy Horning, a candidate polling far lower than those in the major parties, believes it’s time to change the landscape of government.



Two economies, one state

When he talks about jobs, he’s looking at those created, not those that have been lost, Long Thompson said in a recent interview. At campaign appearances, she’s repeatedly said that 64,000 jobs have been lost this year alone. She also notes that Hoosiers make 87 cents on the dollar compared to the rest of the nation.

Daniels rebuts that much of the job loss has been a result of national concerns.

Businesses small and large, for example, are having trouble getting credit, he said.

Additionally, the RV industry in the northwestern part of the state has taken a major hit as a result of higher gas prices.

“That really accounts for most of the increases we’ve had in unemployment,” Daniels said in a telephone interview earlier this week.

The state’s unemployment rate for August, the latest month in which data was available, was 6.4 percent — near the national average of 6.1 percent, but nearly a percentage point higher than it was when Daniels took office.

However, it’s had low points as well — even coming in at 4.8 percent earlier this year.

He also argues that despite the losses this year, more jobs have been created under his administration than have been lost.



Ties to Bush

Long Thompson believes Daniels can’t scapegoat the national economy. A frequently used phrase at her campaign rallies this year has been “Bush-Daniels economics” — an attempt to tie him to the unpopular president.

“I think he has to take some responsibility for the national economy,” she said, noting that Daniels served as White House Budget Director during the first half of Bush’s first term.

In that role, Daniels was “the architect of the largest budget deficit in the world,” she said.

Daniels said he was proud to serve the Bush administration and that he believes she is exaggerating his role.

“I don’t claim responsibility for all the jobs created” during that time, he said.



Distinct views on 2008’s tax overhaul

The two candidates also clash on issues such as property taxes.

Daniels considers House Bill 1001, a piece of legislation passed earlier this year that caps homeowner property taxes at 1 percent, as one of his first term’s major accomplishments.

Long Thompson argues against the bill, saying it hurt local government services by taking property taxes out of its hands. It also increased sales tax in order to offset the cap, which hurts lower income families.



New ideas from both

And aside from the arguments about what does and what does not define the last four years, each candidate offers ideas for the next.

Long Thompson has offered ideas about mediators who would step in to aid failing mortgage-holders. She’s pushed for insurance pooling. Thus, the state would facilitate larger insurance pools in which small business could have their employees join.

And she wants to give tax incentives for those creating environmentally-focused, or “green,” jobs.

Daniels has put much of his focus on education for the next four years.

He’s campaigned for increased legal protection for teachers keeping discipline in the classroom. And he wants to provide high school graduates with two free years at Ivy Tech Community College. He’s also argued for making a constitutional amendment that would permanently cap property taxes at 1 percent for homeowners, 2 percent for businesses and 3 percent for landlords.

And he’s argued for a program that would allow taxpayer refunds after the state revenues reach a certain threshold — about 10 percent above what’s needed for the state’s budget.

Horning advocates massive spending cuts.

“There just no two ways about it,” he said.

He would like to see cuts made to education and the Department of Child Services — both of which would cut out what he describes as bloated bureaucracy. And he’d like to get politicians back on to a tight constitutional leash, leaving groups like Kiwanis or Habitat for Humanity back into the service roles they once occupied.

“Government has failed us left and right,” he said.

According to the Associated Press, Daniels has a slight lead in the latest statewide poll, conducted by WISH-TV Indiana.

The poll was released earlier this week and found 49 percent of likely voters support Daniels and 45 percent support Long Thompson. The four-point difference is just outside of the poll’s margin of error.

The election is Nov. 4

        

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