State Treasurer speaks at Lincoln Dinner
WANDA ENGLISH BURNETT PHOTO
Daniel Elliott, Indiana Treasurer of State, left, talked with constituents before and after the Lincoln Day Dinner last week. Pictured with him is retired US Navy Chief Petty Officer Mike Harshbarger of Batesville.
Daniel Elliott, Indiana’s 56th Indiana State Treasurer, spoke at the Lincoln Day Dinner last Thursday, April 3 at the Shift Restaurant in Batesville.
Elliott said, “Southeast Indiana is a special place with its creeks, road bends, coon hunting (at which the crowd laughed). I learned how to work hard in a little town called Nebraska, Indiana,” he continued. Those attending know Nebraska (Jennings County) is just a spot in the road one town west of Holton, which is in Ripley County. He lives in Morgan County, but grew up in Nebraska.
Admittedly he drives a red pick-up truck, wears cowboy boots and loves to crunch numbers, Elliott said, “My job is to make money for you.” He has the smallest office in the Statehouse and raised over $1B in a two-year cycle, more than had been raised in the past 10 years in that office. He is making money for Hoosiers.
Elliott is a man of principle. He said when he first went into politics, the Republican Party in Indiana was wavering on whether a marriage could be classified as something other than a man and a woman. He firmly applied his ethics saying a marriage is definitely a man and a woman. This wasn’t a popular belief, and he was told quite frankly to “shut up” about it. But he didn’t. He kept talking. He didn’t care about political rules and stood on his home-grown values. “Stand up. You’ll be surprised how many people will be standing with you,” he said. “I know the importance of family and 95% of the voters stood with me and now we’ve set a standard.”
He stood against the “woke” ideology and worked to get Black Rock out of Indiana pensions, a group that stood against what Elliott stood for. The Chief Investment Officer for the State says he will fight with all that is within him for what he believes is right. He is an advocate for traditional Hoosier values and the first in his family to attend college graduating from Utah Valley University. He is also the first Latter-Day Saint to be elected to statewide office in the state.
Elliott said although the tariff talk is making some people nervous, he believes in President Donald Trump. “Apparently others saw the mess we were in and voted for him too,” he said. He said foreign countries were taking advantage of the United States, levying tariffs, messing with the currency, etc. He says Indiana is the top steel producer and top in manufacturing in the country. He believes the United States will come out better and stronger with a president who will stand up. “Nobody can produce more than Americans. This is a great time for us,” Elliott concluded.
He praised Governor Mike Braun, saying he has lunch with him and other leaders every two weeks just listening to what they have to say.
Before becoming Treasurer of State, Elliott had served in local government as a member of the Morgan County Council and President of the Morgan County Redevelopment Commission. He makes his home in Morgan County with his wife and four children. He loves being with his family and the great outdoors.
Ripley County Republican Chairman John Moton welcomed the crowd with Michaela Brizius leading the Pledge of Allegiance. Several officer holders were there with Moton having each one stand and introduce themselves. According to Carol Siefert, it was a good crowd for an off year, and she thanked the Shift for hosting them, along with Bertie Schmidt for the cookies.
The event was sponsored by the Ripley County Republican Women’s Club which meets every fourth Monday at the Osgood Town Hall. For more information about the Club, you can go to ripleycountyrepublicans@gmail.com.
