Most Hoosiers aren’t elected officials.
That separates the vast majority of Indiana residents from Gov. Eric Holcomb and Sullivan Mayor Clint Lamb.
Still, a new public-service video featuring Holcomb, a Republican, and Lamb, a Democrat eating lunch at the Oasis diner in Plainfield could be quite relatable, if the viewers use their imagination.
In the ad, Holcomb and Lamb talk together about the value of not letting disagreements divide us all, as has increasingly been the case throughout the 21st century. “Actually, [the disagreements] should make us stronger,” Lamb says in the one-minute spot. “Listen, discuss and ask questions,” Holcomb adds.
“It’s not about showing the other side how wrong they are; it’s about what’s best for America,” Holcomb continues.
“In the end, we’re all Americans, and we’re all Hoosiers,” Lamb responds.
Their message is part of the Disagree Better initiative by the National Governors Association. The project aims “to show that as Americans, we can work through our differences to find solutions to the most difficult problems facing our states and nation,” and urges states and their governors to conduct community service projects with officials from both political parties; to record a brief civic education ad explaining how the nation’s founding principles are designed for people of different backgrounds and beliefs; to write op-eds with a member of the opposite party; and filming bipartisan ads such as the one from Holcomb and Lamb. Their ad was released on Tuesday.
All are excellent ideas. It’s harder to hate someone when you’re both pulling muddy tires from an illegal dump, for example.
It doesn’t just apply to politicians, though their behavior has mightily influenced average Joes and Janes.
Imagine two old friends or a pair of cousins — whose long relationship has been shredded by anger and whataboutism of red-hot, conspiracy-theory-driven politics of the past decade — sitting together at a diner and discussing their disagreements peacefully, while also emphasizing topics they have in common. And laughing occasionally.
For a lot of people, such camaraderie probably hasn’t happened in a few Thanksgivings.
The hurdle is tall. A Pew Research Center study last year showed most Republicans (72%) and most Democrats (64%) believe the other side is immoral. By similar numbers, the two sides believed the other is dishonest.
But the National Governors Association wants to reach the “exhausted majority” of Americans willing to live a different way, and sees the Disagree Better initiative as a way for elected officials to set an example.
Somebody in elected official needs to do that.
As mayor of his hometown of Sullivan for three terms, Lamb said he’s seen instances of Republicans and Democrats interacting and collaborating like fellow humans. That’s especially been the case for Lamb in the aftermath of the devastating March 31 tornado that killed three Sullivan residents and damaged or destroyed more than 150 homes in that city of 4,252.
Calls from fellow mayors, regardless of party affiliations, lit up Lamb’s phone. He and his community got support from the state’s Republican U.S. senators, 8th District Congressman Larry Bucshon, state legislators and, notably, Indiana’s top GOP official holder — Holcomb.
“It was bipartisanship and nobody realized it,” Lamb said in an interview Thursday.
As the depth of the storm’s devastation became clear, Lamb worried nonetheless if Sullivan’s troubles would be deemed worthy of being officially declared a disaster emergency by the governor, a step necessary to expedite federal assistance.
“He didn’t even think about it. He just said, ‘Absolutely,’” Lamb recalled of Holcomb’s response.
Holcomb’s support wasn’t just obligatory. Lamb said Holcomb put his own “boots on the ground” — the footwear he routinely chooses — in Sullivan and toured the damaged town the day after the EF-3 tornado hit. He and Lamb have communicated regularly ever since.
“He has not stopped texting me since March 31,” Lamb said of the governor.
Thus, their appearance in an ad promoting collaboration despite disagreements isn’t far-fetched. Neither is their upbeat conversation, shown in the ad, as they eat a very Hoosier meal of breaded tenderloin, fries and sugar cream pie.
“You’re always going to have disagreements, but I never think there’s any malice,” Lamb said. “These are the off-the-record things we talk about, but this time, we got to put it on video.”
The disagreements are real and significant. In the ad, Holcomb asks Lamb if he’d like to talk about the impact of Indiana’s property tax caps — enacted through a Republican-led effort in 2008 — on cities. Lamb says, yes, but first they needed to finish their pie.
Lamb is more than ready to discuss those caps, which curtailed Sullivan’s revenues by $720,000 last year, a subtraction to the city’s general fund, of which 80% goes to fund public safety.
“I’m not naïve,” Lamb said, acknowledging the ad has a “kumbaya” element and that the political world can get “nasty” at times.
Still, some issues can actually become common ground for a even Democratic mayor with FDR Democrats throughout his family tree, such as Lamb, and a Republican governor who was once state chairman of his party. Political division prevents progress on such commonly recognized needs.
“The job is just getting harder because you just get drowned out by this political bull----. And I really don’t think it’s politics. I think it’s social issues,” Lamb said.
Lamb recalled late Indiana’s late U.S. Sen. Birch Bayh, a liberal Democrat, telling him that one of his best friends in Congress was Gerald Ford, the House Republican minority leader and future president. Lamb drove Bayh to the Indianapolis airport after a visit, and on that ride, the Senate icon said of his friendship with Ford, “We disagreed on how to get there, but we both wanted to get there.”
Like Lamb, Holcomb agreed with the value of that approach to problems and appreciated Lamb’s role and work as a Hoosier mayor.
“Mayor Clint Lamb is a perfect example of someone who has come together with folks from all walks of life to leave this place better than he found it,” Holcomb said by email Thursday.
“In this moment, I feel compelled to add my voice to a list of other governors who are waking up every day trying to find solutions in a polarized world,” Holcomb added. “I’m hopeful this simple, straightforward message will resonate with others and with elected officials because, as Hoosiers and as Americans, we all can learn how to disagree better, especially if our aim is to make gain.”
Disagree Better is a ripe target for cynics, who see the hope of finding a productive coexistence in a hyper-partisan world as a dreamer’s folly. After all, both Holcomb and Lamb aren’t seeking reelection, making it easier for them to behave like they do.
Lamb understands that sentiment, but believes the greater good must be sought.
“Maybe we won’t change the world with this message,” Lamb said, “but I hope it’s the start of something that’s bigger than the fake outrage we live with today.”