Puzzled over Gregg's campaign

Anyone who has ever met John Gregg will tell you he seems like a nice guy.
Smart, down-to-earth, with his head screwed on tight.
Based upon his career as a state legislator, one might even come to the conclusion that he would be a competent governor.
So why is he running an inept campaign?
The Gregg campaign so far appears to be founded on one key premise: An assumption that he will lose.
From the beginning, polls have shown that Congressman Mike Pence is running well ahead.
You can argue with Pence’s positions on the issues, but you can’t argue with his effectiveness as a campaigner. And since Indiana has long been considered to be a Republican state, Pence begins with an advantage.
That advantage explains the low-key approach of the Pence campaign. It’s aimed at humanizing the guy, ice skates and all.
The Pence campaign hasn’t exactly set off fireworks, but given his big advantage in the polls it doesn’t have to.
The puzzle is the Gregg campaign, which seems bent upon being even more low-key than Pence’s.
Instead of hearing why John Gregg wants to be governor, we’re treated to TV ads about a buddy named Hobo and the local coffee shop. Nice, folksy stuff, but it doesn’t do much to convince people to vote for Hobo’s buddy.
None of this is to suggest that the gubernatorial candidates should be running harsh or negative ads on television.
But when the challenger, Gregg, doesn’t challenge, it allows the favorite to coast.
As a result, Hoosier voters don’t really have a handle on why either of the candidates wants the job or what their administrations would look like.
Everyone benefits — especially voters — when clear, competing positions are outlined.
So far, after months of dubious campaign spending, there’s not been much of that.
The last chance appears to be the gubernatorial debates. The first one is Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. It will be televised on PBS.
Two others will follow on Oct. 17 and Oct. 25.
All three could answer some very basic questions: Why do you want the job? What’s your agenda, both administratively and legislatively? What would your administration look like? What would you like to look back on as your greatest accomplishment as governor? What’s the most effective way to lead a state that’s divided roughly 55-45 on a host of issues? And why should we vote for you instead of the other guy?
Neither campaign has answered those so far. The voters are waiting. — J.R.

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