Diego Morales Favored at GOP Convention Despite Controversy, Insider Politics Drive Outcome

Jacob Stewart from the Indy Star has an article out today. He’s the deputy opinion editor, writing about how he believes Diego Morales is going to win at the Republican convention this June. And I’ve said this from the beginning, and my stance has not changed. Any person who desires to be a member of decent society should 100%, with great enthusiasm, emphatically and loudly cast their vote against Diego Morales. The guy is a piece of trash. We’ve laid it all out for you. Do it again if you want. You guys know the story on this guy. He’s awful. Not just awful at his job, which he is, he’s a rotten human. He’s rotten because he’s in it for himself, 100%. He’s 100% in it for himself, and he will screw you using your money however he can.

Why Diego Morales Remains the Favorite Despite Ongoing Controversy

But Stewart, I think having said all that, I think Stewart is right. If you asked me right now, let’s just do sports betting. If you were to ask me what are the odds Diego Morales wins at the convention, what would FanDuel have the Diego Morales odds at? I would say probably -150, which would make him a pretty decent favorite. Certainly a chance David Shelton can win, but the smart money is on Diego. And you say to yourself, well Rob, if all of those things are true about him being a rotten person, a rotten elected official, abuser of finances, abuser of the public trust, he uses his office as a 24/7 campaign machine, how could he win? Because the people who will vote, many of them, they don’t care. The Republican Party, so most of you know this, but for those of you who don’t, we pick the Secretary of State, we pick our treasurer, our comptroller, attorney general, lieutenant governor. They’re nominated at the party conventions every two years. So every two years there’s a state party convention. Democrats and Republicans, same way they nominate those people, and then the public votes in the fall.

How Party Conventions Have Become Insider-Driven Decision Making

And more and more, and Stewart makes this case in his article, the party conventions have just become ultimate insider club events. Part of it is because the Republicans use it as a fundraising mechanism. They force you to pay. Did you guys know this? If you’re elected delegate to the Republican Party, it’s the only time you win an election and then pay the party money. A lot of people are like $150 or whatever the thing is. People ask me all the time, are you running for delegate? Oh no, no, no. I would sooner just dab ice picks into my eyes than give the Republican Party money anymore. And so a lot of people just won’t run that are interested in change because they won’t give the party their money. The independent people don’t want to give the party their money, which I don’t blame them. But the party itself is becoming more and more an insider-only exercise. And the party is about the party. The party is not about the people. The Republicans and Democrats alike have clearly shown that. They don’t give a damn about you, the people. They care about growing the party and maintaining control. It’s why the ballot access laws are so restrictive. It’s why you’ve got to vote in consecutive primaries. They can’t fund their elections without your money, but they don’t want you being part of their club. And now there’s a movement against David Shelton because he’s been supported by John Rust. All the stuff Diego has pulled in the office itself, and these Republicans, these elected Republicans, they don’t care. The corruption, the unethical behavior, the flaunting of it, they don’t care. The power structure doesn’t care because it’s not about good government. But David Shelton being supported by John Rust, that’s what sets them off. Rust is a threat because he’s super rich, doesn’t play by their rules, and money is no object to him. The party hates that. They can’t control Rust, they can’t manipulate Rust, and they don’t want any Rust people in those offices. They don’t want independent thinkers. They are scared to death that if David Shelton gets in there, he will be somewhat independent, and they can’t have that. Especially with everything Morales has done over the past four years. If an independent thinker got in there, who knows what he might uncover, not just about Morales, but the people around him. It’s the same reason they’re petrified of Greg Ballard. I’m telling you right now, if Morales and Ballard are on the ballot, Beau Bayh will be the Secretary of State. Because once you get outside the confines of the party convention, a lot of people hate Diego Morales. Now they’ll vote red if they’re forced into it, but if you give them a viable option, they’ll take it. I’m not saying Ballard’s going to win. I don’t think there’s a path. But I think Greg Ballard can serve a very important purpose in our state’s history, which is breaking the two-party monopoly. I thought the same thing about Don Rainwater in 2020. He came up short. But if you get a guy getting 20%, you’ve got something. Ballard has the ability to not only hit that 15–20%, which gets Primary ballot access, he has the ability to cost Diego Morales the election. That’s a bigger deal, because now you have a third party that can actually disrupt the monopoly.

Why Power, Money, and Control Continue to Shape Indiana GOP Outcomes

But Stewart writes that despite everything Morales has done, the likely outcome is still him winning at the convention. Even though it defies logic, even though it defies reason. The problem is we come at it from the wrong perspective. We think the party wants better government, more ethical people, more competent people. They don’t. They want power. Follow the money. The money that touches Diego touches a lot of these people. Jim Banks knows what Diego is. Rokita knows what Diego is. They all know. And yet they support him because it’s about money and power. And sadly, I think Jacob Stewart is right. The party only cares about the party. Diego Morales is a con man who can charm enough people at Lincoln Day dinners, and when you combine those people with insiders protecting the system and the money, they will probably nominate him. It’s crazy that David Shelton being supported by an outsider with money, and the fact his wife ran a legal business selling sex toys, is somehow a bigger issue than blatant corruption and incompetence in the Secretary of State’s office. That’s your Republican Party. That’s what it stands for now. And I said this earlier, Diego Morales winning that convention will be great for our show. The show gets kind of boring if Shelton wins. Not overall, we’d find other things, but on that topic. The best thing for our show is for Diego to win.