A big win for an OK candidate

Surely the campaign for change must have done Rep. Baron Hill, D-9th, a lot of good. Locked in a perpetual contest with his Republican challenger - this was their fourth meeting - Hill finally scored the decisive victory he was looking for. Just four years after Mike Sodrel unseated Hill in 2004, Hill achieved a crushing victory with 58 percent of the vote.

His success might be attributable to how he crafted his image going into this campaign, emphasizing his stance on the bailout to show himself responsive to Hoosier families. It might also be because his derogatory (and unfair) caricature of Sodrel as the bumbling “Millionaire Mike” finally stuck.

Hill calls himself an “independent voice in Congress.”

He might be independent, but not the kind of independent Indiana students would like.

As a member of the Blue Dog Democrats, he is too conservative for many students’ progressive tastes. Furthermore, his brand of populism is bad for the economy.

The principle behind his vote against the Wall Street bailout is lost when he constantly supports farm subsidies that over-proportionately favor high-earning farmers. According to the Environmental Working Group, farmers earning more than $250,000 received 73 percent of all subsidies in 2001. Furthermore, subsidies have tripled since 1991 for the largest farms but have remained stagnant for small farms.  

Hill also has a confusing set of views on energy. He supported a bill this year that would add layers of regulation to speculators in an attempt to lower oil prices. He said he supports many measures to lower gas prices, including expanding oil drilling and raising fuel efficiency standards.  However, he voted against an amendment in 2001 that would have raised fuel efficiency standards for vehicles.

As for his Blue Dog views, many on this editorial board are put off by his NRA endorsement. We are also concerned about his vote to ban gays from adopting in Washington, D.C. and his support for school prayer.

But the disappointment we feel regarding two more years of Hill’s mediocrity doesn’t mean Republican challenger Sodrel would have been much better. After four election attempts and only one victory, we think Sodrel should drive his truck into the sunset for good.

Hill can have a positive influence on students if he increases funding to IU and makes college more affordable, but we hope both the Republicans and Democrats put forward stronger candidates in the future.