INDIANAPOLIS —
There’s a new phrase starting to emerge in the lexicon of the Indiana Statehouse: “Getting Ritzed.”
It refers to the stunning Nov. 6 electoral victory of political newcomer Glenda Ritz over her giant of an opponent, Tony Bennett, in the race for superintendent of public instruction.
More so, it refers to the kind of campaign that rocketed Ritz past Bennett to win 1.3 million Hoosier votes.
Employing a mastery of social media that tapped into widening skepticism about the K-12 education overhaul that Bennett championed, the Ritz campaign pulled off the seemingly impossible: They beat the Republican incumbent in a Republican-loving state and did it with a fraction of the money, TV airtime, and powerful partisan pull that Bennett enjoyed. (And, and often noted since, they managed to get more votes for Ritz than Gov.-elect Mike Pence.)
Getting Ritzed is the 21st century version of the biblical tale of David and Goliath. (David Galvin, the engineer of Ritz’s social media campaign, tapped into that analogy in a fascinating article he wrote for the Nov. 15 issue of Howey Politics Indiana.)
If you remember the story from Sunday school, you’ll remember that little David picked up that slingshot because he figured out that his coat of mail, his brass helmet, and that sword girded to his side weren’t going to get him to where he needed.
“I cannot go in these,” David said, as he cast aside the conventional battle plan and scooped up a handful of rocks, “for I am unused to it.”
Hard not to think of that tale when listening to Republicans who are unused to losing.
As first reported by Maureen Groppe of the Indianapolis Star, outgoing Gov. Mitch Daniels — the true champion of the education reforms that the teachers’ union loathes — is still seething about Bennett’s loss. Speaking at a Washington, D.C., meeting of the Foundation for Excellence in Education last week, Daniels claimed that public school teachers used illegal and improper methods to oust Bennett.
He accused teachers of sending out anti-Bennett emails on school time and trashing Bennett during parent-teacher conferences. “Despite the great progress that’s been made in states like ours, the forces of reaction never quit,” Daniels said. “The last twitch of the dinosaur’s tail can still kill you, and that’s what happened.”
That’s strong stuff, assigning a dinosaur mentality to 1.3 million voters who picked Ritz over Bennett.
It also overlooks the possibility that those votes were neither a massive rejection of reforms that have brought things like more teacher accountability and more parental choice, nor the collective act of tiny-brained creatures controlled by disgruntled teachers.
In emails that I continue to receive, weeks after I wrote a column asking for Republicans to tell me why they voted for the Democrat Ritz, it seems much more complex and nuanced than that.
The changes brought during the Bennett-Daniels era came at schools, students, parents and communities in a fast-and-furious way and they didn’t always seem to make sense to the end-users.
Teacher accountability sounds great, for example, but is more high-stakes testing for students and a complicated A-to-F grading system for schools among the best way to accomplish that?
To mix up the metaphor, Ritz remains a David-like character as she readies herself to walk into the lions’ den that awaits her in the GOP-controlled Statehouse. Too early to know if she’ll get torn to shreds or emerge with hard-earned respect.
Maureen Hayden covers the Statehouse for the CNHI newspapers in Indiana. She can be reached at maureen.hayden@indianamediagroup.com.
Columns
Related Photos
-
CNHI statehouse reporter Maureen Hayden
Discussion
Maureen Hayden: ‘Getting Ritzed’ new catch phrase in Indianapolis
- Columns
-
-
Charo Boyd: Social Security honors all who serve
Every day of the year, Americans across the nation remember friends and family members who have served and sacrificed for their country. Memorial Day is a day when we all come together to honor those who have given their lives in the defense of freedom and the principles we hold dear in this country.
-
Scott Underwood: Spring brings new athletic inspiration
Spring is a great time for sports in the Madison County area. In addition to high school softball, baseball, tennis, track and field, and golf, younger kids and older folks are out and about participating in sports.
-
Maureen Hayden: Indiana’s liquor laws are confusing to consumers
I’m not much a drinker, so I haven’t spent much time thinking about how Indiana’s alcohol laws personally impact me, but that changed last fall when my daughter got married.
- Brinduse story full of war and laughter
-
Big Joe Clark column: Competing with tax policy difficult in a changing world
Years ago, I received valuable insight into the eyes of the Internal Revenue Service.
A client was being audited, and I saw the writing on the wall of the financial impact if the fines were truly assessed. -
Maleah Stringer: Pets, like humans, can get better with age
As I mentioned in the column last week the Animal Protection is full to the brim with wonderful adoptable pets. Unfortunately many of these pets are seniors, 8-plus-years-old.
-
Theresa Timmons: Covering the bases but not always in order
The weather had finally warmed up, and it made for a sticky Tuesday. The 6 p.m. sun was drooping in the sky, but it still packed a hot punch -—enough to start the oversized bobbleheads sweating under their brand new un-faded baseball hats.
-
Verna Davis: God gives us reasons to wake up each morning
Last Monday, I had a good morning. It started bright and early at my 8:15 doctor’s appointment. (I know that 8:15 a.m. is not bright and early to a lot of you. But to a night owl like me, 8:15 comes way, way too soon for me to be cheerful about a doctor’s appointment!)
-
Jim Bailey: Just what does it mean to be created equal?
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
-
Primus Mootry: Confessions of a weekend golfer
They say if you don’t like the weather around here, just stick around. I was all set to play golf this weekend. Cleaned my clubs. Polished my golf shoes. Got a good night’s sleep, and woke up in Antarctica. No golf.
- More Columns Headlines
-
Company Promises to Make All Snail Mail Digital
Analyst: Tumblr Fills Void in Yahoo's Offerings
Commuters Face Delays After Conn. Train Accident
Raw: Swarm of Tornadoes Slams Plains
Raw: Fierce Bombing in Qusair, Syria
RAW: TV Staff Take Cover From Tornado
Raw: Accused US Spy Reportedly Leaves Russia
AP CEO: Records Seizure 'Unconstitutional'
Fatal Hot Air Balloon Accident in Turkey
Tornadoes, Storms Strike Midwest
'Babyland': Camp Lejeune's Toxic Legacy?
Raw: Heavy Tornado Damage in Shawnee, Okla
NTSB Begins Investigation Into Conn. Train Crash
Could Tobacco Be the Next Biofuel?
