Tully bases this notion on a Mellencamp concert the other night, when the rocker's words about family farms and racism struck a political chord in the columnist's imagination. "Mellencamp understands Indiana and its struggles better than any politician I've interviewed," Tully contends.
Is this really so far-fetched in the era of governors named Schwarzenegger and Jesse Ventura? Probably. The whole Mellencamp for Guv groundswell seems to be purely the product of Tully's fancy. "Is Tully just desperate for a column idea?", Tully writes.
Well, Matt Tully is a friend of mine. We used to work together at Governing's sister publications at Congressional Quarterly. In memory of that, and in keeping with the spirit of this season, I hope that this column, if nothing else, made his ticket purchase tax-deductible.
