Indiana Equality PAC Endorses Candidate Kurt Webber (R-District 86)

Indiana Equality PAC has announced several endorsements for the 2010 election cycle, which includes the General Assembly's House of Representatives. One of the endorsements is for Kurt Webber, a Republican running in House District 86 against Democratic incumbent Ed DeLaney.

I sat down with Kurt earlier in the summer for lunch, after discovering that he might've been the only Republican (candidate or elected) attending Indy Pride. He confirmed what I heard, and expressed to me that he didn't see Pride any differently than the several other festivals and parades that take place downtown. He saw it as an opportunity to reach out to possible voters at a big event.

I specifically asked him how he would vote on a proposed Marriage Protection Amendment if it came to a vote. He said he'd vote no. He said that he doesn't believe the government really should have a place in defining marriage, but as long as it does do so (and provides benefits to married couples), it should be open to all.

We also discussed Indiana's public records laws. We agreed that the laws themselves are quite strong, but there is almost no punishment for government agencies that fail to provide government documents unless one wants to hire a lawyer and sue for it. A bill recently failed in the General Assembly strengthening public records laws, and Kurt said he'd certainly be open to proposing or sponsoring similar legislation.

Finally, I asked him what his political ambitions are. He flat out told be "None." He believes that part-time legislative bodies should compose of citizens, and after a few terms, he'll step aside and let someone else run for the office if he does get elected and re-elected. That's a refreshing attitude, one I wish more politicians would adopt.

Unlike some candidates that I've interacted with, Kurt Webber was open to every question I had and answered them without hesitation. If you have a question visit his website and e-mail him. I got a response within a few hours of e-mailing him.

In a separate piece, the LGBT blog The Bilerico Project published this post by one of Indiana Equality PAC's board members explaining their take on the endorsement. What struck me as unusual was DeLaney's attitude toward marriage equality. Which is basically, there shouldn't be marriage equality. This attitude completely baffles me, and it's that kind of attitude that will keep our state backwards on social issues such as LGBT equality.

Good luck to Kurt Webber. I suspect we'd be a bit better off if we had more men like him involved in state government.