I like Mike... or Mitch.

Because of the tremendous position our great state enjoys when compared to others across the nation, two of our elected public servants have been receiving substantial presidential buzz — Gov. Mitch Daniels and Rep. Mike Pence.

But how are Hoosier Republicans supposed to choose between these two outstanding men, who have each served our state and nation as warriors in the conservative movement?

For me, at least, the choice would be nearly impossible.

Gov. Daniels — a graduate of Princeton and Georgetown, a former corporate executive at Eli Lilly and the former chairman of the United States Office of Management and Budget — has a resume rivaling the best of the GOP contenders for our 2012 nomination.

His performance as governor is one that primary voters in Iowa and New Hampshire will be calling for come late 2011: he turned a state with a weighty budget deficit into a sustainable budget surplus, he took on teachers unions to ensure a “students-first, teachers-second” approach to education and he attracted private sector jobs by transforming our state into a business-friendly economic development zone.  

As the House Republican Conference Chairman — the third ranking member of the GOP in the U.S. House — Pence has led the GOP minority in Congress during the past two years in united opposition to Obama’s health care reform legislation, the stimulus package and the cap-and-trade tax.

His commitment to conservatism, even in the face of a Republican president who sometimes deviated from his conservative values, won him the praise of Human Events, the Weekly Standard and conservative talk radio hosts across the country. He also recently placed first in the presidential straw poll at the Value Voters Summit, due in part to his unceasing social conservatism and advocacy for issues of faith and life.  

But what will the Republican primary voters in the early states — Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada — desire in their presidential nominee?

Neither Pence nor Daniels are as pretty as Sarah Palin, nor do they  possess her nationwide name recognition and web of endorsements in key primary states.

Neither possesses the self-financing capabilities of Mitt Romney, nor have they led a national Republican revolution like Newt Gingrich.

It is my firm belief that whichever Hoosier ends up seeking the GOP nod will be the most viable candidate to defeat an incumbent president in true Reagan fashion (with Reagan, of course, being the last Republican candidate to successfully unseat a sitting Democratic president).

Mitch’s inspiring leadership has righted our ship of State — making Indiana a shining city upon a hill in a region full of defaulting or near-defaulting states — Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, the list goes on.

Businesses that have consolidated their American operations, and many newly-created businesses, are choosing to locate in Indiana, putting Hoosiers to work and allowing our state to stay afloat during these troubled financial times.

He easily ranks as the current Republican governor with the most extensive knowledge of the Washington policy process.

Mike’s speeches immediately call the listener back to Ronald Reagan’s incredible way of boiling an issue down to its simplest form and convincing audiences of all political backgrounds to see the world as he did.

I would put my money on Mike Pence in any debate, especially one with our teleprompted incumbent president.

His following in the socially conservative community is large and continuously growing, and he has already demonstrated his excellence at standing up against, and offering alternatives to, the Obama-Pelosi agenda.

His “America-First” rhetoric could restore pride in American exceptionalism, an idea that we have neglected in recent years.

His present focus upon regaining a Republican majority in the Indiana General Assembly could bolster his qualifications even more: With a friendly state legislature, the governor will be able to finalize property tax legislation, dramatically transform Indiana’s public education system and accomplish local government reform to restructure Indiana’s county and township governance.

Mike Pence will continue to travel around the state and country to support conservative candidates and recapture the House in 2010.

Early 2011 will shed light on his true aspirations — Indiana governor or president of the United States?

In a contest between Mitch and Mike, the true winner will be the state of Indiana. I, personally, am ready to go to Iowa for either of them.


E-mail: jkingsol@indiana.edu