IT’S DOWN TO THE WIRE: A Letter from Gail Riecken

Election Day is almost here and I want to thank you for all your help. I am feeling very positive about the outcome of our election. I have avoided misrepresentations and exaggerations of the truth as my opponent enjoys and have stayed the course of honest discussion. You have told me you appreciate this.

• I continue to fight against utility rate increases because now is not the time to raise energy rates or taxes, especially in tough economic times.

• In the legislature I fought for a jobs bill that would create up to 30,000 new jobs and establish tax incentives for small businesses to help them grow and create new jobs in-state.

• I believe we need to enforce the immigration laws we have on the books and fine companies who knowingly hire illegal immigrants instead of legal citizens.

• We must put a stop to the outsourcing of Indiana jobs. I will require corporations doing business with the state to hire at least 80% of its workers from Indiana.

• Companies should be held accountable, and I would force them to return taxpayer dollars if they received tax breaks for promising new jobs in our state, but never created the jobs.

• I passed legislation that limits the burden foreclosures have on our community. The result was to speed up the process to sell vacant and abandoned homes, so that new owners can move in and our property values are not hurt by homes left to ruin.

• I will protect local schools from further budget cuts. I oppose the $9 million cuts to our local schools, which have increased class sizes and allows Indianapolis bureaucrats to control our local schools.

I believe you and I share similar values. I have two children, two grandchildren and am a former Sunday School teacher. With a friend and strong help from the Junior League of Evansville, I co-founded the ARK Crisis child care center. I believe our children should have a healthy and happy childhood.
I’ve talked face to face with you at your home, called you on the phone and asked others to call you. As we have talked, you have asked about the confusing and misleading statements of my opponent and I have answered. Until my opponent actually stepped over the line and called me a “liar”, I was comfortable with the tone of the campaign, however, unprofessional and degrading her remarks were to her, personally.
So, let me set the record straight on a few issues:

1.) The vote to not support 10,000 jobs was the right vote. The bill will put another new major highway in front of funding I 69 to compete with Major Moves money we need to complete I 69. It doesn’t provide one job to southwestern Indiana. Obviously, Musgrave would have voted for the bill.

• Was the bill on a statehouse mailer? Yes.
• But was this intentional? No.
• Rep. Jeb Bardon, who voted against the bill, had the same reference as I.
• A lie? Hardly. A mistake? Yes.
• Do I take responsibility? Certainly.

2.) The neighborhood meeting incident with the press. Perhaps Musgrave should tell what really happened at the meeting, how she refused to honor the “rules” the president of the neighborhood association had set. This was a new president and her first candidate meeting. Musgrave’s campaign was disrespectful.

3.) The debates. Neither I nor my campaign field manager nor the person representing me in the negotiation “promised” or even intimated that we would agree to three debates. If the truth be known, Musgrave never expected that I would agree to one; word is she and her husband were pretty upset when I did. Even then, in the debate she didn’t answer questions or present one idea or platform. I did and my constituents loved it.

We’ve come far from the announcement in February. We’ve brought our message to every part of the district. We’ve helped people understand that only one candidate in this race stands for jobs, for a balanced budget, for keeping taxes low, for reforming our schools, and for building a stronger Indiana. And that is me. But, there is still work to be done.

Over 50 people are working for our campaign daily but I need your help to contact those last few voters. Even though this race is not a close one, my opponent seems to want to steer everyone to that conclusion. Let’s prove her wrong. She fantasies this race the status of the historic McIntyre-McCloskey Eight District Congressional race. She compares herself to McIntyre. With your help, I can win this election and continue the work we are doing remembering we should be competing because we want to represent you and your interests not because we want to set another record.

You are what makes me work; you are why I endure being called a “liar” and other degrading, unprofessional and totally out-of-bounds criticisms. My opponent has spent a lot more money than I have been able to getting out her distortions of my record. We will see if she can buy an election with Indianapolis money.
I’m asking you to take action. Email me at my personal email griecken77@aol.com, if you can help me by:

• Volunteering at a precinct on Election Day or just as important,
• Calling or talking to your friends and neighbors, and asking them to vote for me or
• Very important, sending this email to three or four of your friends.

Paid for and authorized by Gail Riecken for State Representative, Treasurer, Marilyn Ratliff