This is What Hanky-Panky Fallout Looks Like

Yana Paskova for The New York Times

A lawyer for the Lake County Board of Elections, David Saks, talking to reporters on Wednesday about vote counting in Hammond, Ind.

This just sooooo reminds me of Northwest Indiana for some reason.

"There is No Hanky-Panky Going On Here in Lake County"

Those are the words of the moronic Rudy Clay, Mayor of Gary, Indiana, deflecting criticism of The Region's late reporting of election returns on Tuesday.

I grew up in Lake County, went to high school a few blocks away from the Gary border and find the whole spectacle to be embarrassing and predictable.

Rudy was a stated Obama supporter and it's not absurd to think that he wanted to model a stunt based on Cook County's (IL) role in the 1960 Presidential Election when the Daley machine delivered the margin for Jack Kennedy.

I find it particularly embarrassing that the first time I ever recall seeing a New York Times article about the area I grew up in, it's because of a situation like this.

The jackasses of Gary who elected this charlatan are getting what they asked for.

While Rudy's incentive to engage in monkeyshines is clear, his inability to pull it off is something that anyone who's seen Gary's official website could have predicted.

Just look at the welcome message from the City of the Century's Mayor. I've added some bold red for you, but not changed any grammar or punctuation.

Gary, Indiana: "We Are Doing Great Things"
I just want to say "Thank You"! I am proud to be the Mayor of my hometown. As Gary's best days are ahead, we look forward to many new development initiatives to bring jobs to our community, to revitalize, and to rebuild our city.

Gary, Indiana has a great history and has the greatest people. Now we must build the greatest city. I believe that Gary will realize it's full potential and will see a resurgence that will surpass many of our visions. Together we can make it happen.

Mayor Rudy Clay

A Nice Primer on Indiana Politics

As a native of Northwest Indiana, I never thought I'd see the day when the revered New York Times explained even a little bit about the politics of The Region.

Well, these are strange days.

Tuesday's primary in the Hoosier State (as well as North Carolina) represents the first time in 40 years that Indiana's primary has accumulated a hill of beans' relevance.

Anyway, the Times article is pretty cool because it explains a little bit of the regional quirkiness of Indiana politics. My favorite part of the article, because it fits with what I know, is that the people in Gary had never heard of this little southern town they were also interviewing in.

And the people of that southern town, Salem, had, in fact heard of Gary. And they warned the interviewer to steer clear of there.

Enjoy, too, the sound of noted ladies man and macadamia nut farmer, Jim Nabors, singing Back Home Again in Indiana at the Brickyard.

Beer Goggles

Some people might need one of these to vote for Hillary in the fall, but the former First Lady tooled through the Calumet Region, where I grew up, this week.

Here she is, tipping back what I think would be called a Patrician's Boilermaker...who the hell ever ever heard of having an Old Style with Crown Royal?

Anyway, this was at Bronko's in beautiful Crown Point, Indiana.