AARP Indiana Asks the Candidates for Governor

AARP Indiana released the general election edition of its video series entitled “AARP Asks the Candidates” featuring the three candidates for Governor: Sen. Mike Braun, Jennifer McCormick, and Donald Rainwater. The videos are part of AARP Indiana’s continued efforts to ensure 50-plus voters know where candidates stand on the issues.

Prior to Indiana’s primary, AARP Indiana released videos with the leading Republican candidates that asked the same questions as were asked to the general election candidates. Sen. Mike Braun’s answers from those videos were included in this edition.

Each candidate was asked the following questions:

What policies or programs would you implement to ensure working Hoosiers can save their own money for retirement?

Mike Braun: When it comes to saving for retirement, that should be something you don't wait and do until you're close to retirement. And we've become a nation, sadly, of kind of consumers and spenders. I want to make sure that every Hoosier starts early on what can even be fun: investing for the future. I did that in my own planning for that day when you're going to want to make sure that nest egg is there. Some things are going to come from government. That's even in peril. I've worked there now on Social Security. In terms of what it's going to be like, we don't know. It's got a lot of challenges ahead of it, so in all the ways you can, leading the state, you want to promote saving and investing as opposed to consuming and spending. If you don't get good at that, you're never going to be building a nest egg. And I'll use all the tools through the executive side and legislatively to make sure that that's going to be an easy job for you.

Donald Rainwater: So, one of the first things that we need to do is make Indiana less taxing for all Hoosiers. And by that, I mean we need to eliminate the state income tax. We need to reduce the property tax to my plan being 1% of the purchase price of your property for seven years and then you're done. We need to eliminate the gasoline excise tax, which is $0.35 a gallon currently. We need to eliminate the excise tax on vehicles. And all of this money, Hoosiers can then turn around and save for whether they want to use it for retirement or for vacations or expanding their home, whatever they want to use it for, they will be able to utilize that money because the government won't be taking it from them.

Jennifer McCormick: Hello, Hoosiers. I'm Jennifer McCormick, and I'm here to talk about the fiscal security of our retirees. It's incredibly important that our retirees have the fiscal means to be successful. Also, it's unfortunate that 48% of our Hoosiers do not have access to a pension or a private plan. As your governor, I will make sure we can change that. We can start programs such as the work and save programs to make sure that our retirees have what they need. It's also incredibly important that you have the revenue and access to revenue and securities in order to be successful. And so part of the McCormick Goodin tax relief plan is to make sure that you have a tax deduction and make sure that we are raising the threshold of those incomes so that you are eligible. So as your governor, I will take care of you. I understand the importance of making sure that you have the fiscal security that you deserve. Thank you.

What will you do to ensure that Indiana’s Multi-Sector Plan on Aging is fully developed, implemented, and supported?

Donald Rainwater: So, I believe that one of the most important things that I can do as governor of the State of Indiana is refocus our state legislature and our state agencies on individuals and away from the corporate growth and the economic development focus that we currently have in the State of Indiana. I believe that we need as a state government to focus on the individual rights and the benefits for the individual Hoosier. Especially, the individual Hoosier who, like me, is an everyday citizen in their 60s or 70s who's worked hard and should be able to enjoy the fruits of their labor and not have the state stealing it from them.

Jennifer McCormick: Hello Hoosiers, I'm Jennifer McCormick. And it is incredibly important that Indiana have a multi-sector plan. It's also incredibly important to recognize as the governor that that will have a multi-generational impact. So, it not only takes care of our retirees of today, but our retirees of tomorrow. It also addresses many of the issues that Hoosiers across the state of Indiana are feeling as far as housing, transportation, health care, and that fiscal security that we're all after once we retire. So, I will work tirelessly and making sure that we work with stakeholders both at the local level, the state level, and making sure we have good partners at the table to make this plan as good as it can be for the sake of all Hoosiers.

Mike Braun: Ironically, I'm on the task force in D.C. among about eight senators on the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act. And multisector is being talked about there in terms of something that we need to do better. What that simply means, every agency within our own state has got to be working together because if you're not talking to one another, you're probably going to have disaggregated approaches to it. It was very similar to when I was in the legislature a few years ago on workforce development. You had 15 to 20 plans, all of them trying to do the same thing, not being coordinated. So here when it comes to multisector approach, that means you take all the tools within your own state government, make sure they're communicating among one another and that you all lead to that key purpose of how you make aging in later years being better. I'm looking forward to that.


What financial policies or programs would you implement to support family caregivers?

Jennifer McCormick: Hello Hoosiers, I'm Jennifer McCormick and I am here to talk about talk about caregivers. I know firsthand as I am a caregiver to my dad who his mind is sharp as a tack, but his vision is not. So, we have lived for a couple years in order to make sure that he is self-sufficient, he is living within our family home and it is incredibly important that we take care of our caregivers because it's incredibly important our retirees have an opportunity to stay with what's familiar and good memories. It's also important we take care of our caregivers to make sure they have tax credits and make sure they have opportunities to resources that are good for them so they can take care of themselves mentally and physically so that they are able to take care of our retirees. So, caregivers are incredibly important and as your governor I will take care of them.

Mike Braun: So, when you elect me governor, I've been working on this five years so far, plus as a senator on the Aging Committee, so we spent a lot of time with caregiving, how you plan for your future, all of that. The keystone to what I'm going to be doing is offering choice and transparency. So, when it comes to family caregiving, that's becoming more and more important, and of course, you're up against the institutional caregivers. Whenever a paradigm changes, there's always going to be a tug-of-war. The old methodology is going to try to hang on. So, for me, in anything, I like an even playing field, I like full transparency and the competition of how all these will work together. And especially when a family is trying to do it, that's kind of like a Main Street entrepreneur at the most basic level. I'm going to look at all that, make sure it's an even playing field, so all can do a good job at it.

Donald Rainwater: So first of all, I believe that we need to talk about the $1 billion Medicaid shortfall that the state government says they discovered their mathematical error. We need to get that billion dollars back into the Medicaid budget. And I would do that first and foremost by taking that money from things like the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and giving it back to the Medicaid programs that were specifically designed to help home caregivers. And I would make sure that home caregivers are given the funding that they were promised. By the Indiana State Medicaid program and make sure that that's fully funded.