21
May
By Marilyn Odendahl
The Indiana Citizen
May 21, 2024
Standing before a crowd in Corydon, Indiana, that included Democrats, Republicans and Libertarians, Tim Peck made his pitch for finding common ground.
Peck, a former emergency room physician, won the Democratic nomination for the Indiana 9th Congressional District in the May primary and will face U.S. Rep. Erin Houchin, the Republican incumbent from Salem, in the November general election. He was at the Harrison County Art gallery one recent evening to introduce himself and explain why he is running for Congress.
The central theme of his speech was the “very big problem here in the United States” of political divisiveness. Pointing to the times when Democrats and Republicans had worked together in Washington, D.C., to create programs like Medicare and Medicaid and to balance the federal budget, Peck said the country no longer seems able to disagree and still move forward.
“We made progress because we listened,” Peck said. “Listening is the work. That’s the work of government is listening to one another, listening to your constituents, listening to those who disagree with you, making progress, not digging your heels in and complaining about how the world works.”
The crowd numbering about 100 seemed to like Peck’s message. They were attentive during his remarks and then clapped and shouted, “Here, Here!” when he finished.
Peck will need that support and more as he heads into the general election. Houchin is a formidable opponent. She was first elected to the Indiana Senate in 2014 and won subsequent reelections by comfortable margins. In 2022, she topped a crowded Republican primary to capture the nomination for the 9th congressional district before going on to win the November election, defeating her opponent, Democrat Matt Fyfe, with 63.6% of the votes.
However, Peck and his supporters believe the way to Capitol Hill is through a promise to work across the aisle and bridge the political divisiveness. Peck touted his experience as an entrepreneur who founded health technology companies and who worked with a bipartisan group of lawmakers in Congress to get four telemedicine bills passed.
Chris Blessing, an IT professional from Floyd County, said he hopes Peck’s message of bipartisanship resonates with voters. Asked if the assertion of using conversation and listening to overcome the deep, corrosive differences was a little pollyannaish, Blessing responded that we have to start somewhere.
During his speech, Peck talked about working in the ER and treating women who had been raped or had to make the difficult decision to terminate their pregnancies. He recalled talking about that experience with a non-denominational minister who was opposed to all abortions but eventually confided to Peck that he had to make the decision to end a pregnancy to save his own wife’s life.
“So I think there is a place that we can have that conversation and have some agreement and talk to one another,” Peck said. “You might have other beliefs around this issue, but there is a place that we can talk.”
That story hit home with Blessing. He and his wife had gone through a difficult pregnancy with triplets, he said, and, at one point, doctors were concerned that one was developing too slowly and might have to be terminated. “Luckily it turned out not to be an issue,” Blessing said, but he realized that most people do not understand how difficult and emotional the decisions about a baby’s life and a mother’s life can be.
The gathering at the art gallery, organized by supporters of Peck, was billed as “bipartisan meet and greet” and designed to get people of difficult political views talking. As people arrived at the venue, they were given a small card. On one side was an open-ended question – such as “Why do politics matter to me?” – to help initiate some potentially difficult conversations. The reverse of the card listed six tips for how to engage in substantive and civil discussions with others who hold different views.
Before Peck spoke, the people were encouraged to find someone new in the room and then talk about the questions on their cards.
Sandy Gettelfinger, 73, read her card asking how she would resolve the political issues she considered most pressing and quipped, “How much time do you have?”
As a young woman, newly married and getting used to life in Corydon after growing up in Los Angeles, Gettelfinger got some advice about civility and kindness that highlighted the benefit of face-to-face conversation. Gettelfinger had asked an elderly woman what in modern society had created the most upheaval, and, while she was prepared for complaints about women working outside the home, she was surprised to hear, instead, about air conditioning.
The woman, Gettelfinger explained, had said with central cooling, people no longer sat on their front porches and visited with their neighbors. Gettelfinger sees a similar problem with cellphones. People are not only constantly looking at their phones, instead of talking with others, she said, but they are looking at messages on the internet and social media which often give a darker view.
Gettelfinger, who described herself as an Independent, said one solution for emerging from these troubled times might be electing principled leaders. She pointed to former U.S. Reps. Liz Chaney, R-Wyoming, and Adam Kinzinger, R-Illinois, who battled against former President Donald Trump, even though it cost both of them their congressional seats.
“We need people to stand for principles, not politics,” Gettelfinger said. “Principles will lead to having people who work for the greater good.”
Dwight Adams, a freelance editor and writer based in Indianapolis, edited this article. He is a former content editor, copy editor and digital producer at The Indianapolis Star and IndyStar.com, and worked as a planner for other newspapers, including the Louisville Courier Journal.
The Indiana Citizen is a nonpartisan, nonprofit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed and engaged Hoosier citizens. We are operated by the Indiana Citizen Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity. For questions about the story, contact Marilyn Odendahl at marilyn.odendahl@indianacitizen.org
