Frank O'Bannon on Principles & Values Former Democratic IN Governor

Religious affiliation: United Methodist.

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Member of Democratic Governors Association.

Governors are, by definition, a different type of politician. They must be independent and pragmatic leaders, often reaching across party lines to get the people’s business done. Democratic Governors bring these skills to bear for the benefit of all of their citizens. They are leading the way with innovative ways to strengthen families, improve the quality of life, and prepare for the future. These principles are why Democratic Governors are good executives, good candidates, and will regain the majority of statehouses in 2002.
• Balancing budgets, investing in priorities and providing responsible tax cuts: support tax relief that is fair for working families.
• Creating new jobs and succeeding in the new economy: sustain economic development, particularly for small businesses that create the majority of new jobs.
• Supporting economic development in rural areas: ensure that rural and underserved communities have the technology needed to participate in the New Economy.
• Improving public schools and investing in our youngest children: the most important aspect to insure a child’s education is to have the best possible teachers in the classroom.
• Protecting patients’ rights and providing seniors with affordable prescription drugs: guarantee that doctors and patients, not HMO bureaucrats, make medical decisions.
• Keeping streets, schools and communities safe: anti-crime measures that promise swift, severe and certain punishment, [plus] smart prevention measures like community policing.
• Improving quality of life through smart growth: excessive growth and sprawl threaten our communities
• Promoting clean air, clean water and clean neighborhoods: the old debate between environmental protection and economic development presented a false choice.
• Promoting personal responsibility through the next generation of welfare reform

Member of Midwestern Governors' Association.

The Midwestern Governors’ Conference (MGC) was created in December, 1962. The members of the conference include the governors of 13 Midwestern states. The MGC is a non-profit, bipartisan organization that brings together top state leaders to work cooperatively on important regional public policy issues.

The purpose of the Midwestern Governors’ Conference is “to foster regional development, to attain greater efficiency in state administration, to facilitate interstate cooperation and improve intergovernmental relationships, and to provide a medium for the exchange of views and experiences on subjects of general importance to the people of the Midwestern states.” In pursuit of these objectives, the conference has, through the years, established a wide array of committees, task forces and study groups charged with investigating and reporting on various issues of regional concern.

Recent subject areas addressed by various MGC committees and working groups have included agriculture, economic development, trade, child support enforcement, worker retention and recruitment, and tourism promotion. The results of these efforts have ranged from written reports to cooperative efforts. The conference also addresses these and other issues through policy statements and resolutions.

The conference also seeks to meet its goal of providing a forum for the exchange of information by sponsoring periodic meetings. In addition to the annual meetings, the conference has occasionally sponsored special meetings and regional roundtables devoted to specific issues such as international trade, state anti-drug strategies, and child support enforcement efforts. The MGC is increasingly concentrating on federal programs and policies and their impact on the region. This growing focus led to the addition (in late 1998) of a Washington-based staff person to monitor federal issues for the MGC.

Member, National Governors Association/Economic Development.

The National Governors Association (NGA) is the collective voice of the nation’s governors and one of Washington’s most respected public policy organizations. NGA provides governors with services that range from representing states on Capitol Hill and before the Administration on key federal issues to developing policy reports on innovative state programs and hosting networking seminars for state government executive branch officials. The NGA Center for Best Practices focuses on state innovations and best practices on issues that range from education and health to technology, welfare reform, and the environment. NGA also provides management and technical assistance to both new and incumbent governors.

Since their initial meeting in 1908 to discuss interstate water problems, governors have worked through the National Governors Association to deal with issues of public policy and governance relating to the states. The association’s ongoing mission is to support the work of the governors by providing a bipartisan forum to help shape and implement national policy and to solve state problems.

Fortune Magazine recently named NGA as one of Washington’s most powerful lobbying organizations due, in large part, to NGA’s ability to lead the debate on issues that impact states. From welfare reform to education, from the historic tobacco settlement to wireless communications tax policies, NGA has influenced major public policy issues while maintaining the strength of our Federalist system of government.

There are three standing committees—on Economic Development and Commerce, Human Resources, and Natural Resources—that provide a venue for governors to examine and develop policy positions on key state and national issues.

[Note: NGA positions represent a majority view of the nation’s governors, but do not necessarily reflect a governor’s individual viewpoint. Governors vote on NGA policy positions but the votes are not made public.]