Among the many reasons in which the Libertarian Party of Indiana, and society as a whole, is thankful in Indiana are the eight currently elected Libertarians in Indiana:
1. Susan Bell, Town Judge, Hagerstown
2. Conley Tillson, Clay Township Advisory Board, Wayne County
3. Steve Coffman, Liberty Township Advisory Board, Henry County
4. Anita M. Amspaugh, Clerk-Treasurer, Union City
5. Darren Nolan, City Council, Universal
6. Susan K. Pyle, City Council, Union City
7. Jay Thompson, Town Council, Gosport
8. Ed Dilts, Needham Township Advisory Board, Johnson County
3 comments:
I keep hearing how great it is that libertarians have gotten elected to these positions, and that's fine as far as it goes. But now it would be very helpful for people to see and understand what that means. I mean, what are some actions, and positions taken by these office holders that are different from the folks in the other parties who have held these positions?
What have some of these libertarians been doing in these offices that are libertarian in nature? Wouldn't some publicity on this be one of the best ways to help people see and understand what would be different if more libertarians held office?
Debbie - excellent points - you're preaching to the choir with me - I'd like to see this done, and have for a long time. However, it takes more than the State Chair pushing for it to get it done. It takes local activists doing it.
I can only address the specific cases that I am familiar with. When Susan Bell took office, she cut about $2000.00 worth of frivolous spending out of the Town Court annual budget. I believe that once Conley Tillson and Steve Coffman take office, they will do as much as an Advisory Board can do to control spending.
Frugality and fairness are as much as is possible from most non-legislative lower offices. Certainly a Town Court judge can't overturn a higher court ruling, and advisory boards are limited on programs that they can eliminate.
I think one of the most important aspects of electing Libertarians to these local offices is that it gives us a chance to show that we can work within the system, and instill enough confidence in voters to support us when we strive for higher, legislative offices where we can work to move government more in our direction.
We may never be able to put a hard answer on how much good it does to put Libertarians in lower offices. Just like when we write letters to the editor, or opinion columns, we always know that they might not influence anybody. But we keep writing because we know that one of our attempts might influence one person, or a few people, and then it will be worthwhile.
We have a long, hard road ahead of us, and we need all the help we can get, from whatever method we can get it.
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