Daniels deserves 2nd term to meet further challenges
Star Editorial Board Endorsement
Indianapolis Star; October, 2008

Our position: Mitch Daniels has served with distinction in first term as governor.

In 2004, Mitch Daniels crisscrossed Indiana promising, if elected governor, to press for rapid and aggressive change in how state government operates.

Four years later, Daniels has delivered on much of that promise.

The new governor inherited a child protection system that was among the worst in the nation. He not only created a new agency devoted to children's services, divorcing it from the unwieldy Family and Social Services Administration, but also hired 800 additional caseworkers, raised standards for employment and improved training. One result: The number of children who die from abuse and neglect in Indiana has finally declined, after years of little or no progress.

The state's finances were a mess in January 2005. The budget shortfall approached $800 million. Reserve funds had been raided and payments to schools and local governments delayed in order for state government to pay its bills. In his first months in office, Daniels slowed the growth in spending and pushed through the General Assembly a truly balanced budget, the state's first in years. He repeated that task in 2007.

As a result, while other states are begging the federal government for bailouts, Indiana's finances remain healthy and it now enjoys the highest credit rating in its history.

Daniels was elected on a pledge to transform Indiana's outdated economy. He's scored solid, although partial, success in that category. Honda committed to and opened a new auto plant on Daniels' watch. Toyota has expanded its operations in Lafayette. Medco, Amazon, Nestle and other companies are in line to create thousands of jobs. But Indiana's economy remains too dependent on traditional manufacturing, per-capita income is still well below the national average and the adult work force remains woefully undereducated. Daniels, in a second term, must aggressively attack each of those needs.

Change is often met with resistance, especially in Indiana where caution has been almost a way of life. So when Daniels pushed the state to finally adopt daylight-saving time, he earned praise from employers but scorn from some regular Hoosiers upset by the inconvenience. Likewise, he upset critics with the lease of the Indiana Toll Road. But that $3.8 billion deal has enabled the state to make substantial improvements in infrastructure.

Daniels also led effectively in bringing the option of full-day kindergarten to more students, creating a low-income health-care plan, and transforming the long-broken Bureau of Motor Vehicles into an efficient service provider.

Daniels isn't without faults. He can be overly defensive when pressed to explain controversial measures. He also can be abrasive, a problem that early in his term created unnecessary friction in the General Assembly and with the public.

Yet, his leadership, intellect and willingness to take reasonable risks have served the state exceptionally well in the past four years and are likely to do so in a second term.

Democratic challenger Jill Long Thompson has mounted one of the more ineffective and frustrating statewide campaigns in memory. She has failed to lay out a coherent vision for the state's future. Instead, the overriding strategy of her campaign has been to relentlessly attack Daniels on almost every issue. As a result, voters have little idea of what Long Thompson would do if elected.

Libertarian Andy Horning has provided a welcome sense of humor during the campaign. He's also matured as a candidate and a person since previous bids for elected office.

Voters on Nov. 4 will have a clear choice to make about whether Indiana continues to pursue bold and transformational change or turns back toward a guarded and cautious past. At a time when Indiana most needed a strong leader, Mitch Daniels stepped forward to serve with distinction. The Star enthusiastically endorses him for a second term.