Author: John M. Sproles, Sheriff of Henry County
When I became a law enforcement officer, I took an oath to protect and serve the people of Henry County. I do not use the office or my position for personal gain, but rather for the betterment of my community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Career politicians aren\u2019t public servants. As candidates, they promise us the moon and the stars: they\u2019ll fight for us!\u201d and \u201calways have our backs!\u201d. Once elected, they seem to quickly forget or neglect the oath they also take to support and defend the Constitution, and instead serve their own interests and higher ambitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ll be honest \u2013 I once was a Mike Braun guy. When Mike first ran for Senate, I thought he could be a plainspoken outsider who could shake up the status quo. He was a vocal advocate for law enforcement and promised to \u2018back the blue\u2019 when we needed it most. Now, I realize he had quickly become a typical politician.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I remember flipping on Fox News one evening when the country was in the fever pitch of violent riots. Law enforcement officers all over the country, including myself, felt under attack as we watched our cities burn and our profession be publicly denigrated. To my pleasant surprise, as I flipped on the TV, Senator Braun was on Tucker Carlson Tonight. \u201cFantastic!\u201d I thought, \u201cHe\u2019ll stand up for us and not back down.\u201d To my shock, I watched Senator Braun fumble his way through explaining why he thought it made sense to make it easier to sue law enforcement for doing our jobs. That\u2019s right, instead of taking on the mob, he took up their cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was confused and disappointed by Senator Braun\u2019s inability to have our backs in his public remarks on national television at a critical time. But, I thought, before I jump to any conclusions, I\u2019ll give him the benefit of the doubt and ask him about it myself. After all, this was a guy who campaigned on being a vocal advocate for law enforcement and backing the blue\u2014maybe he just had an off day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As it turned out, Senator Braun wasn\u2019t having an off day. He simply said, \u201cThere are only a couple thousand law enforcement officers in the state and there will be nearly a million votes for governor, so a few thousand voters are not important.\u201d It was a gut punch. While Mike Braun campaigned on \u201cbacking the blue\u201d enthusiastically, he was just like any other career politician as it turned out: a smooth talker who says what they need to say to get elected, but doesn\u2019t have your back when it counts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was skeptical of any outsider running for politics. I thought they were all like Braun: people pretending to be outsiders but who are really cut from the same career politician, self-interested cloth when push comes to shove. While Senator Braun may have been fool\u2019s gold, I\u2019ve found the real deal in Eric Doden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Eric is a man of God and leads with a servant\u2019s heart. As a candidate, he\u2019s already proven he has our backs by taking on Mayor Joe Hogsett on crime in Indianapolis before even getting elected. He is a vocal supporter of qualified immunity, and he\u2019s never flip-flopped or backed down on his stance. He even has a Zero-Cost adoption plan to find safe and loving homes for foster children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Eric and I share the same values: we love our God, our family, and our state. We take our oaths seriously. Our word is our bond. Eric Doden has my total endorsement to be the next governor of Indiana, and I\u2019ll be honored to serve alongside him to protect and serve the people of Indiana.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Continue reading here: https:\/\/www.thecouriertimes.com\/opinion\/eric-doden-will-be-the-governor-law-enforcement-can-trust\/article_295aa4c2-de7e-5e9e-8311-d425e3dbd357.html<\/a><\/p>\n\n