January 8, 2003

Fax to:
Governor Frank O’Bannon
Fax:       317-232-3443
 

Dear Frank,

I suggest that you to request the resignation of J. Brian Nichol for his poor leadership of INDOT.  His representation of you in the past year has been embarrassing and his treatment of the voting public is most reminiscent of Soviet leaders of the cold war era.  He has in principle looked the other way as BLA has provided incomplete data by not requesting the background data for confirmation of the basis of conclusions to the I-69 DEIS.   The magnitude of this error will only be learned when millions if not billions of dollars more have been wasted after you pick your route.  This is a heart felt conviction, but it is mostly added here to prevent the forwarding of this document to Nichol for “your” comment.   I hope forwarding a letter calling for the firing of an employee to that employee for comment will be avoided.

While many politicians in Bloomington and Monroe County did not carry the "no-new-terrain-anywhere" stance that we would have preferred in the last election, it is still a fact that not one elected official or one candidate other than John Fernandez in all of Monroe
County and all of Bloomington government was in favor of a direct route of I-69 to Bloomington.

Candidates and elected officials know that I-69 is an issue that will get you not-elected.  This was our point in targeting John Fernandez.  It is not wanted and unpopular!   This despite the moneyed interests that so heavily influence the editorial content and reporting of the Bloomington newspaper the Herald Times.

If you are putting any stock in the words of John Fernandez, realize that the Democratic party in Bloomington is quickly coming together behind the new leadership of Mark Kruzan.  This is actually very exciting for this party that has been so divided over the past years under Fernandez.
 
 
 

 page 2. Comments of John Smith- ‘92 US. District 8 Democrat  candidate.

If you saw the polls in the Bloomington Herald Times in September regarding the popularity of the I -69 project, let me refresh your memory:
 1. Less than 50% of those polled favored the route to Bloomington.
 2.  39% were opposed to all new terrain routes or did not care if it were built, and yet they were  asked which route they would prefer and then reported in the additional data of the pole.  This is a fundamental error in poll science.
 3. Orange County-- who’s numbers were off the charts in support of the highway to their county, was not on any of the proposed routes and their numbers distorted the combined results.
 4. All of the counties of US 41 and I 70 were not polled, and omission that distorted the over all numbers since it is assumed that support for retaining traffic on that route would have dictated “no” to the new-terrain routes.
 5. A lot has happened since then.
  A. Government agencies have come out for IN 41- I-70
   1. EPA
   2. DOI
   3. DOA
   4. Marion County MPO
   5.Common Councils of Bloomington and Terre Haute
  B. Newspapers have endorsed US 41 - I 70.
   1. Indianapolis Star News
   2. Louisville Courier-Journal
   3. Lafayette Journal & Courier
   4. The Christian Science Monitor
   5. The Muncie Star & Press
   6. The Terre Haute Tribune Star
   7. The Gary Post Tribune
 
 I believe by now it is political suicide for any candidate outside of Evansville and a few wishful thinking small towns to support new terrain I 69.  I also believe that the study of the Karst in the Bloomington area is so flawed that if you select this route that the highway will never be build.  Ducking this issue is becoming more difficult.

 Remember why Marble Hill never went on line?
  1. The contractors were unable to overcome the power of the beast.
  2. As environmentalist had predicted the cost of fuel would overtake the profitability of nuclear industry,  it did.

 “Environmentalist” should not be a dirty word in the Democrat party.   You should listen to them.   It is your bread and butter.  Speaking of bread and butter, food production will soon be the greatest area for environmental protection.  Paving of the worlds “bread basket” for a Mexican Highway in a Chinese based recession economy will be looked back upon as foolhardy.    If not that, driving those with “environmental” interests to the Green or Republican party will perhaps be the biggest mistake that you can leave for the Democrat Party of Indiana!  A US 41 & I 70 or a no build decision is what is needed.

Sincerely,
 
 

John L. Smith