Todd Young's blog

1/21/2010: Todd Young Officially Files for Candidacy

Yesterday, Marine Veteran and current Orange County Deputy Prosecutor Todd Young filed his official candidacy forms to run for US Congress in Indiana's Ninth Congressional District. He immediately embarked on a "Reclaiming Our Congress" Tour to highlight the needs of a district that has been misrepresented in Washington for far too long.

Young has been campaigning for the Ninth District seat since January of last year. In that time, he has contacted thousands of voters across the district to hear their concerns; set new fundraising records for a Republican challenger in the district; and earned the public support of nearly every statewide officeholder and the bulk of the district's Republican county chairmen.

Young spoke to a packed room full of supporters at his first tour stop at local business Chapman Kelly in Jeffersonville.

"I am running for office because I am tired of Washington politicians giving lip service to things I care about, like fiscal responsibility, and then going to Washington and supporting the same reckless agenda we have seen leaders of both parties pursue in recent years."

"Baron Hill seems confident that he can rubber stamp Nancy Pelosi's big government, big spending agenda with no consequences for his actions," Young said.

"Ninth District voters are tired of rubber stamps -- of either party," Young continued. "We need responsible leaders who will stand on principle, challenge the excesses of the past, and fight for fiscal responsibility and long-term job growth. In short, we need more leaders in Washington."

Young, who is the father of two young girls, and whose wife Jenny is pregnant with twins, is running for Congress out of concern for his children's' future.

"We cannot continue to spend money we don't have on things we don't need. At some point, we have to stop borrowing from foreign governments like China and passing the debts on to our children and grandchildren."

1/11/2010: Todd Young's Response to Mike Sodrel's Challenge in Indiana's Ninth Congressional District Republican Primary

Mr. Sodrel, welcome to the race. Over the last year, I have criss-crossed the 9th District talking to Hoosiers about the important issues of the day. While you were largely silent on these issues during that time, I look forward to a robust primary where voters will choose the candidate to lead the charge for a new era of responsible leadership in Congress.

In liberty,

Todd

Here's what others are saying about the upcoming 2010 campaign:

"The party has started to transition nationally, looking to the future to a new crop of young guns, guys like 9th District candidate Todd Young. Republican's Southern Indiana strategy has a strong ballot from top to bottom, including all-star Indiana House candidates running against incumbent Democrats who aren't used to a challenge. A retread Sodrel campaign does more harm than good to the broader strategy, and is as symbolically damaging as it is practically misguided." - Mike O'Brien, Capitol Watch Blog 1/11/10

"Hill resoundingly defeated Sodrel by 20 points, 58 to 38 percent, in last year's contest." -Politico 9/24/2009

"National Republican Congressional Committee officials have met with Young, and GOP aides have said they would prefer he run against Hill instead of Sodrel." - Roll Call 10/06/2009

"Sodrel wants to challenge U.S. Rep. Baron Hill for the fifth time. Sodrel will face Bloomington attorney Todd Young in the Republican primary. That race in itself will be fascinating after there was a bloody battle for the 9th CD chair that saw Erin [Houcin] defeat Larry Shickles last March, with Sodrel speaking for Shickles right before he was defeated. The 9th CD old guard has been outspoken in its opposition to Young. But Young has been endorsed by Lt. Gov. Skillman, Treasurer Mourdock, Attorney General Greg Zoeller, Supt. Bennett, State Auditor Tim Berry, and Secretary of State Rokita. Will 9th CD Republicans go with the familiar Sodrel, or switch to a new GOP brand? Whoever wins will find himself in a race against Hill will likely attract national attention." - Howey Political Report 1/07/2010

"Unlike in his previous bids, Sodrel will not be a runaway favorite in the Republican primary... Young raised $216,000 through the end of September, all of it from individual donors..." - Greg Giroux CQ Politics 1/11/ 2010

"Young is easily outperforming historic fundraising for a Republican in that district." Frugal Hoosiers 07/16/2009

"Hill will campaign for another U.S. House term this year, facing a potentially strong challenge from Bloomington Republican Todd Young. He also is thinking about a run for governor, which would distract him from the House in 2011 in preparing for the 2012 election. "- Indianapolis Star 1/08/2010

'He's [Baron Hill] facing a credible challenge against Republican attorney Todd Young, who has already banked $205,000 at the end of September." - Politico 12/21/2009

"The question isn't whether [Republicans] will win seats in the House and Senate this year, and the question isn't even how many. The question is whether the party will be worthy of victory, whether it learned from its losses in 2006 and '08, whether it deserves leadership. Whether Republicans are a worthy alternative. Whether, in short, they are serious." - Peggy Noonan, Wall Street Journal 1/11/2010

"I endorse Todd because I know when elected to Congress he will act to protect the interest of all Hoosiers. We need fiscally responsible leaders in Congress to protect the funds and investments of Hoosiers in these uncertain times." Richard Mourdock, Indiana Treasurer

"I endorse Todd because he possesses the wherewithal and drive needed to win this congressional seat." Melissa Acton, Jackson County Republican Chairperson

"Todd is a breath of fresh air. His experience and knowledge are what we need to represent us in Congress." Ted Ogle, Bartholomew County Republican Chairperson

"Todd's campaign for one of the most competitive congressional seats in the country has gotten off to a great start." Connie Nass, Former Indiana State Auditor

"Todd Young will be the next congressman for southern Indiana" - Vice President Dan Quayle

"Now, with Republican Todd Young showing fundraising success in Hill's 9th District and the GOP questioning campaign contributions to Hill on the eve of the cap and trade vote, he announces opposition to the current health care reform bill. -Jim Shella, Wish TV

"Young has been active this summer. He hosted several town halls in Jasper and Brownstown on the health care reform topic; events he said that led to Hill finally holding late town halls in New Albany and Bloomington." -Howey Politics

"The Cook Political Report, one of the top congressional race handicappers, thinks southeastern Indiana is heating up (Indianapolis Star). The newsletter recently changed its assessment of Rep. Baron Hill's re-election chances from "likely Democratic" to "leans Democratic." The reasons include the $205,000 that GOP attorney Todd Young has accumulated and Hill's vote for a House bill to limit greenhouse gas emissions. - Howey Politics

"It seems increasingly likely that in seeking to be returned to his House seat, Hill will face Republican Todd Young, of Bloomington, who has mounted an active campaign." -Louisville Courier Journal

1/07/10: Political Opportunist in Indiana's Ninth District

The White House is sending one of its biggest guns to help Baron Hill. Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel is scheduled to attend a Bloomington fund-raiser Saturday.

This goes a long way to explain why over the past year Baron Hill has been so consistent in voting for more deficit spending and enormous increases in the national debt. For better or worse, he's enlisted as a loyal soldier on the President's team, and now he's getting his reward.

Rahm Emanuel has a well-deserved reputation as being a hard-nosed and demanding political operator on Capitol Hill. You can be sure the only reason he is coming to Bloomington is that he expects he can count on Hill's vote regardless of how high it might drive up the deficit or how many Indiana jobs it might kill.

Hill's recent voting record stands in direct contradiction to all the platitudes that he and his fellow "Blue Dog" Democrats have voiced about the need to control federal spending and stimulate job growth.

If he hasn't done so already, Hill should turn in his Blue Dog membership card. He's on Rahm Emanuel's leash now.

Hill voted for a package of spending bills that virtually guarantee the federal deficit will remain well above the trillion-dollar mark over the next several years. He voted for the Pelosi-backed health care bill that will raise taxes and reduce benefits for millions of Americans in a giant step toward nationalization of our health care system. And, he voted for the so-called cap-and-trade energy bill, which would dramatically raise the cost of electricity and gasoline for all Americans, kill jobs in Indiana and have no appreciable effect on climate change.

All this came in a year when Job Number One for Congress should have been looking for ways to encourage job growth in the private sector and strengthen the American dollar.

As I've traveled all across the Ninth Congressional District, not a day goes by that I don't hear Hoosiers tell me how disappointed they have been in Baron Hill's performance. They want Congress to stop piling billions more on to the national debt. They want Congress to end all the irresponsible and wasteful spending that has continued unabated through the past decade. And, they don't want Congress to pile on loads of direct and indirect taxes on the American middle class to help pay for its fiscal recklessness.

That's why I believe the 2010 election will turn into a national referendum on the fiscal policies of the Obama Administration.

Baron Hill has staked out his position as solidly in support of higher deficits, more spending and more costly social programs.

I say it's time to stop. I believe that hefty amounts of federal spending can be eliminated without causing any harm to the economy or beneficiaries of existing social programs. I believe the time has come to start reducing the federal deficit. I believe we can improve the health care system without dramatic cuts to Medicare and dramatic tax hikes for the middle class. And I believe we can be responsible stewards of our environment without jamming a massive energy tax down the throats of hard-pressed Americans.

That's why I look forward to the 2010 election. It's time for Hoosiers to send a message to Washington that it will understand.

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