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Rod Bray: Candidacy for state Senate not about heritage

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ConfusedAgain
Thursday, January 26, 2012: 12:20 pm
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Good luck Rod....

Code red
Thursday, January 26, 2012: 6:14 pm
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Solid work Mr Bray. I believe in your views for our community. I for one welcome such an energetic well spoken visionary for our area. I look forward to your representation in our state government. I am anxious for your voice and personal views to be heard! Thank you for your genuine service to our community.

nobodyimportant
Friday, January 27, 2012: 8:57 am
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I'll preface the following remarks with this....Rod Bray is a very nice man, well respected, and my remarks are not about him personaaly.

We have too many lawyers in politics, especially here in Indiana in the General Assembly. The "club" extends from the trial bench through trial and defense attorneys to the appelate and supreme court to the people who pass the laws. It is out of balance and the people of Indiana are not particularly well-served by that pattern.

Before someone responds that we need lawyers in the legislature because they write the bills, let me remind you that they do not. You or I as a legislator can author a bill and never write a word. At their service, legislators have a non-political Legislative Services Agency that takes their ideas, conducts the research, and drafts the proposed bills.

We have a citizen legislature. It should reflect the make-up of the citizens. We don't need more lawyers in State government.

thumper342
Sunday, January 29, 2012: 4:28 pm
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I totally agree with nobody important. GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!

Ratcatcher
Monday, January 30, 2012: 8:50 am
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We need lawyers in the legislature so they can sit on judiciary committees.
I find it ironic that the same people that bash lawyers are usually the first in line to call one when they need legal advice.

nobodyimportant
Monday, January 30, 2012: 9:04 am
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Ratcatcher...that is tongue in cheek right? That's like saying we need teachers and superintendents to sit on the education committee, economists on the ways and means committee, doctors and nurses on the health committee....on and on. What is needed on all of these committees and casting votes in the chambers are common sense citizens who represent a very diverse citizenry and not the interests of their professions.

Ratcatcher
Monday, January 30, 2012: 11:51 am
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I agree we need common sense citizens to represent but I wouldn't feel qualified to be on a judiciary committee, would you? I think at least one attorney should be on that committee and not necessarily all members of a particular committee should be from any one profession. Besides you should worry more about the lobbyists representing certain professions than anything else. For example the Indiana Teachers Union lobbyists pull more weight than one teacher sitting on an education committee. And if this is the way you believe then I guess you won't be voting for Peggy Welch since she is a nurse and might be put on a healthcare committee.

nobodyimportant
Monday, January 30, 2012: 10:15 pm
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RC, you are taking my initial observation way our of context. Everyone has some background, experience, and/or education that is compatible with one or more committees in legislative governance. We need a breadth of perspective in the General Assembly and that is my whole point. If you get a health committee that is made up largely of health providers, the perspectives of health services consumers and the general populace can be buried. Likewise, a judiciary committee made up of lawyers can become incestuous. Particularly when the majority of those attorneys are trial lawyers.

Law is not hard to understand. Common ordinary citizens with a 12th grade reading level can understand what a bill proposes. Remember, the proposed bills are written by Legislative Services attorneys. Even when the bill is being heard in committee, the Legislative Services Staff person (attorney) is present to see that it is understood. Similarly, the bill has been reviewed by other staff attorneys for fiscal impact.

Of course you would not want a Judiciary Committee devoid of representation from the legal profession. But the current Senate Judiciary Committee is 70% attorneys, with the Chairman (R. Bray), and ranking members of both parties also attorneys. I'd say that the attorneys have their way in that committee.

The Indiana General Assembly needs breadth of, not narrowly channeled perspective.
Attorneys make up the single largest profession represented in state legislatures. The only group that is larger is "retired", and some of them are retired attorneys!

But then people have to step up to run for the office. I rather suspect that attorneys have some selfish motives for wanting to be a legislator. You get to pass laws and laws are your business now and in the future.

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