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Showing posts with label Greg Pence. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Greg Pence. Show all posts

Monday, January 29, 2018

Indiana GOP Establishment Pushing Greg Pence to fill Luke Messer's Congress Seat

Greg Pence RINO

Previously we have written about Vice President Mike Pence's older brother Greg Pence's decision to run for the congressional seat now held by Luke Messer. Mister Messer is forgoing another run for his U.S. House seat and is instead running in the Senate GOP Primary to hopefully faceoff against the incumbent U.S. Senator Democrat Joe Donnelly. The party bosses in Indiana as you all know are hell bent on doing everything they can to elect Greg Pence to Congress. Fortunately the voters of the Indiana 6th Congressional District do not have to settle for another milquetoast Pence to represent them in Congress. Running in the GOP 6th CD Primary is Stephen Mackenzie. Mr. Mackenzie has had a good career in business, he has been a missionary, as well as serving in the Air Force Reserve.

Mr. Mackenzie released this statement on his Facebook page earlier today regarding the establishments pushing Greg Pence on Hoosier voters:

Stephen Mackenzie Real Republican



To date, twelve out of nineteen counties within the sixth Congressional District have announced their annual Lincoln Day Dinners’ dates and guest speakers. Two of those, Rush County and Franklin County, have announced Congressional Candidate Greg Pence as their speaker, despite the fact that the Republican Party, from county to state to the federal level, is encouraged to be objective towards all of the candidates running during the Primary season. Unfortunately, in this GOP Primary Congressional race, it has been proven to not be the case.
Here is Stephen MacKenzie's official statement:
“The Party Leaders have made it very clear that Greg Pence, the Vice-President’s older brother, is their chosen candidate in this GOP Primary. Greg might as well be the incumbent candidate for how the Party Elites have behaved behind the scenes. The Establishment has been involved in this Primary race at every level, from county to district to state to the Vice-President himself, attempting to get me to quit. But the last time I checked, the United States of America was a Constitutional Democratic Republic, where we, the people, have the right to choose our own candidates and vote for who we want! Yet the Establishment has done everything in its power to shut me out and destroy my candidacy.
But they didn’t count on me, a candidate with a strong military background, strong Christian values, strong ethics, and the will to fight back and expose them. You see, I know what is important to the people of Indiana and I intend to go to Washington to represent YOU, not the best interests of the Republican elite. And they didn’t count on you, the people, who are informed enough to know that the Establishment fights the true Conservative candidates more in the Primary, than they fight the Democrats in the General!
The two GOP counties who are hosting Greg Pence as their guest speaker for their Lincoln Day Dinner, while ignoring the rest of the candidates in this Congressional race, are merely proof of what has been happening to me privately behind the scenes since I declared my candidacy. I sincerely hope the Indiana voter will not let the Establishment get away with crowning Greg Pence as their next U.S. Representative, but will rise up to tell the Party Elites: “Enough!”

Indy Republican stands with Stephen Mackenzie and says: "Enough"! Enough with the Establishment and their tools telling us who we should and should not vote for. For this reason IR is proud to endorse Steve Mackenzie for Congress! Give them Hell Steve!

UPDATE: An IR reader was kind enough to bring to our attention a tweet from Stephen Mackenzie with a photocopy of his full statement and some additional background information on the eGOP's trying to "persuade" Mackenzie to drop out of the race for congress:





Link to Mackenzie's Facebook announcement: https://www.facebook.com/MacKenzieForCongress/?hc_ref=ARS5a1Hm7t8r4Z2uOM0cZzwDdjJVJJAx5U8XsyvF1HyQ9HgUfLo56PpypLy7MzIT79o&fref=nf

Monday, December 18, 2017

Mike Crider Drops Bid for Luke Messers Congress Seat


Mike Crider 

State Senator Mike Crider has announced that he will end his campaign to fill Luke Messer’s U.S. House seat. Mister Crider had this to say about his decision to exit the race:

Friends,

After extensive discussions with my campaign team and my family, I have decided to withdraw as a candidate for the United States Congress in Indiana’s sixth district. Unfortunately, congressional campaigns are very expensive endeavors and due to that we have determined that we do not and likely will not have the ability to spread our message as widely as will be required to achieve victory in May. While disappointed the campaign has come to an end, I am at peace with this decision and know that we all worked hard to put together a winning strategy.

The only negative to this whole adventure is that I find myself a bit jaded as I realize that this scenario is likely playing out in races all across the country. People who would be quality candidates simply cannot participate because they cannot afford to self finance campaigns and the political establishment locks down the remaining financial support. I hope that whomever is successful in this contest is serious about having the responsibilities of the position and not just having the position. There is much work to be done.

As for me, I remain committed to serving as State Senator in District 28 and trying to make a difference wherever and whenever I can. The trust that the people I represent have placed in me remains the honor of my lifetime. Sherri and I will always be grateful for the kindness and encouragement many of you continually extend. May God continue to bless the great state of Indiana and these United States.”

We had previously blogged on Crider’s initial entry into the race back in August here

If the following comment left on that post is any indication as to the kind of man Senator Crider is then his leaving the race is not a bad thing:

“campaign Chairwoman is former State Senator Beverly Gard, also of Greenfield, whom he replaced in the Senate after her retirement in 2012.” That told me all I need to know about Mr. Crider and that he should be kicked to the curb and thoroughly rejected by the voters and every and any time he runs for office.

Anyone with half a brain recalls just what an establishment Hoosier GOP tool Ms. Gard has been throughout her political career. Gard is a long-term, long-time Republican political hack who apparently never found any distaste against political schemes that enriched the corrupt estabishment Republican attorneys who run the Hoosier “R” Party and the corrupt career Republican office holders who knew how to butter the bread of the connected and when to do it.

Establishment Hoosier “R’s” are truly The Stupid Party whose only apparent goals are to enrich themselves and their crony pals at the expense of everyday Indiana citizens. Beverly Gard’s boy Crider for political office? Nah, no way, no thanks.

With Crider’s exit there are three other candidates running in the GOP Primary to succeed Luke Messer. They are Greg Pence brother to Vice President Mike Pence of whose possible run for office we have discussed previously. Stephen McKenzie a veteran and Jonathan Lamb a businessman from Muncie. In the interest of full disclosure IR would like to point out our sympathies in this race lie with Mr. McKenzie. But to the other candidates we shall of course act with complete fairness. 


Wednesday, August 23, 2017

State Senator Mike Crider to run for Luke Messer's Congressional Seat


State Senator Mike Crider

Hello fellow truth seekers! You may remember back in June we blogged about the possibility that Vice President Mike Pence's brother Greg might run for Luke Messer's seat. Well today State Senator Mike Crider has announced that he will run for Messer's seat. So if Greg Pence is going to jump into the ring he is going to have some competition.

WSVX-FM reports the news of Crider's announcement here:

Today Republican State Senator Mike Crider formally announced his campaign for election to Indiana’s 6th District in the US House of Representatives. Crider, who represents Senate District 28, is seeking to replace incumbent Rep. Luke Messer (R-Shelbyville) who is running for US Senate.

“At a time when our nation is facing serious threats to our national security, the national debt has reached staggering proportions – saddling future generations with trillions of dollars in debt, federal government spending is far out-pacing revenues, and Congress is mired in gridlock and partisan bickering, I feel called to use my experience as a law-enforcement professional and my track record of passing tax cuts and pro-growth policies to help lead our country out of this crisis,” Crider said.

“Hoosiers, like all Americans, want our federal government to get down to business and solve the problems at hand. During my tenure in the Indiana Senate, our state’s unemployment rate has declined to 3.1 percent, below the national average. During last year alone, our unemployment rate experienced the largest decline (1.4 percent) in the nation, and during the first half of 2017, the Indiana Economic Development Commission has secured commitments of $5.4 billion in investments with plans to create nearly 18,000 new jobs with an average wage of $28.60 per hour. These are the kind of results folks are demanding from Washington, and I want to be part of the solution.”

WSVX gives some background information on Mr. Crider's life before he decided to run for congress:

Before being elected to the Indiana State Senate, Crider spent 30 years at the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR). During that time, he was appointed by Gov. Mitch Daniels to serve as director of the DNR Division of Law Enforcement. He retired with the rank of Colonel.  Crider graduated from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in 1981 and the FBI National Academy in 2003. He now chairs the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Transportation, and is ranking member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs and the Military.

INDY REPUBLICAN must confess that Mr. Crider's having been appointed to any position by the traitor former Godfather Governor Mitch Daniels makes us uneasy about him. But we will evaluate him on his merits.

The article goes onto give more details on Crider's campaign:

His campaign Chairwoman is former State Senator Beverly Gard, also of Greenfield, whom he replaced in the Senate after her retirement in 2012.

“Sen. Mike Crider will be an outstanding Congressman,” Gard said. “His very successful service in our State Senate is invaluable. I had my eye on Mike for some time and recruited him to replace me when I retired in 2012. His integrity, work ethic, experience, and remarkable ability to bring people together to make good public policy are exactly what we need in our next Congressman.”

According to Dana Caldwell, Crider’s Campaign Finance Chairman, the campaign already has more than $100,000 in committed contributions. Caldwell is a Shelbyville businessman.

“I am excited to be on Mike’s team because I trust him, and I am certain Indiana will trust him too, Caldwell said.  “Mike and I have known each other for most of our lives. We played sports against each other for many years growing up. Mike has always been one to do his ‘homework’ no matter what the task he is facing. He is a rock with a solid foundation. If elected, Mike will be one of the best Congressmen we have ever had. “

The rest of the article gives the following information about Crider's family life, where he lives and a rough outline of the congressional district he is running in:

Crider served as a member of Neighborhoods Against Substance Abuse for 20 years, and was president for seven of those years. He and his wife Sherri live in Greenfield and have two sons and four grandchildren.

District 28(Mike Crider's State Senate District) includes all of Hancock County and portions of Marion and Shelby counties.

Indiana’s 6th Congressional District is composed of Bartholomew, Dearborn, Decatur, Delaware, Fayette, Franklin, Hancock, Henry, Jefferson, Jennings, Ohio, Randolph, Ripley, Rush, Shelby, Switzerland, Union, and Wayne counties and a portion of Scott County.

Nobody here at IR seems to have heard much about Mike Crider. He is referred to in a Ogden on Politics blog post from 2013. Click here to read that post.




Friday, June 9, 2017

Keeping it in the family! Mike Pence's brother may run for Pence's former congress seat!


Greg Pence older brother of Vice President Mike Pence  
Greg Pence older brother of Vice President Mike Pence 

Gary Welsh liked to say politics in Indiana is an incestous business. Well with the news that Mike Pence's older brother Greg may run for his little brothers former congress seat. It is very clear why so many have come to agree with Gary's observation. Kaitlin Lange and Tony Cook wrote for the Indianapolis Star on June 8th, 2017 about Greg Pence's possible run in their article: "Is Vice President Mike Pence's brother considering a run for congress?"

Mr. Cook & Ms. Lange wrote:

Greg Pence, the vice president's older sibling, isn't ruling it out and a source close to the Pence family said this week that a group of Republican donors is encouraging him to run for the seat once held by his brother.

Greg Pence, who once ran the family's Kiel Bros. Oil Co. gas station and convenience store business, has been a close confidant to the vice president, frequently traveling with him during last year's presidential campaign.

Greg Pence took his first formal step into the political arena earlier this year when he became statewide finance chairman for U.S. Rep. Luke Messer, who is expected to run for Indiana's U.S. Senate seat in 2018.

That would leave Indiana's predominately Republican 6th District House seat vacant. Stretching from Muncie to Madison, it's the same district Mike Pence represented for 12 years and one where he continues to enjoy wide support.

In an interview with IndyStar, Greg Pence acknowledged regular overtures encouraging a congressional run but said he's focused on Messer's campaign right now.

"The funny thing is I’m getting asked that a lot," he said. "And right now the only thing I’m focused on is helping Luke and Jennifer (Messer) make a big decision on whether or not they should run (for Senate)."

That would leave Indiana's predominately Republican 6th District House seat vacant. Stretching from Muncie to Madison, it's the same district Mike Pence represented for 12 years and one where he continues to enjoy wide support.

In an interview with IndyStar, Greg Pence acknowledged regular overtures encouraging a congressional run but said he's focused on Messer's campaign right now.

"The funny thing is I’m getting asked that a lot," he said. "And right now the only thing I’m focused on is helping Luke and Jennifer (Messer) make a big decision on whether or not they should run (for Senate)."

The eldest of six siblings, Greg Pence and his wife, Denise, now own antique malls in Edinburgh and Bloomington. Denise was also a delegate to the Republican National Convention last summer, where she saw her brother-in-law's formal nomination as the party's vice presidential candidate. 

Greg Pence also served a brief and controversial stint as the top deputy at the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. He was hired in 2005 to streamline the agency under Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels, but the appointment raised eyebrows because he had no environmental credentials and his former company, Kiel Oil, had been cited by the agency for environmental violations in the past.

He left the post after just 2½ months. 

Greg Pence's latest role as chairman of Messer's finance committee could help the political novice establish relationships with key donors for a potential run of his own, while also lending Messer a prominent last name to help with fundraising. 

One major GOP fundraiser, Bob Grand, said Greg Pence "would be a great choice" to fill Messer's seat. But such decisions are premature given that Messer hasn't even officially declared a Senate run.

"I just think it’s too early to speculate," Grand said. "You can’t start running for a seat that isn’t vacant yet."

If he does decide to run, Greg Pence would almost certainly enter the race as a heavy Republican favorite, preventing what might otherwise be a competitive and potentially contentious GOP primary.

"When you're looking for a candidate to recruit, you want somebody with an ability to raise money, somebody who has name recognition, somebody who fits well with the district and those things would seem to characterize Greg Pence if he were to choose to run," said Robert Dion, a political scientist at the University of Evansville. 

It also doesn't hurt to be the vice president's brother. Mike Pence plays a key role in Indiana politics, most recently aiding in Gov. Eric Holcomb's rise to power after Pence dropped out of the gubernatorial race to join Trump on the national ballot.  

IR's belief is that if Luke Messer does run for the Senate, as we believe he will. Greg Pence will run for his brothers former congress seat. His brief service at IDEM under "Godfather" Mitch Daniels doesn't inspire confidence. Our advice to Mikey's older brother is: "Greg, if you do wind up getting elected to congress don't ever run for another office and become a national joke like your brother. "