First off, let me assure you that that headline above represents the final horrible pun of the year from me. I promise.

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In a city that is overwhelmingly Republican, officials found themselves awash in political strife early in 2019 that exposed some internal tensions. Here’s my recap on some of those moments:

• The incident involving Police Chief Scott Whitaker mushroomed into a full-blown controversy in February and is probably still not forgotten. Whitaker, off duty at the time, was accused of being too rough on an elderly man who he thought might have been an impaired driver. City Council attempted to look into the matter, but support waned after a strong showing of police at a council meeting. One thing we can agree on: things might have been different if the couple had chosen to file charges.
• 

  Warsaw Police Chief Scott Whitaker responds to Jean Northernor during a Warsaw City Council meeting on March 29. InkFreeNews photo by Dan Spalding.

  Longtime Republican leader Jean Northener’s confrontation with Whitaker on March 29 stands out as one of the most unique and intense political exchanges I’ve ever witnessed.

• Looking back, I regret giving two city hall agitators more attention than they deserved as the Whitaker incident and the mayoral primary played out. They stirred the pot and twisted issues in ways rarely seen before. They took advantage of social media and had some momentary momentum, but the scorched earth attempt to burn Mayor Joe Thallemer caught up to them.
• It went as badly as could be expected for the Kosciusko County Fair Board this year as a judge ruled against their efforts to revive motorized racing at the fairgrounds. In doing so, they burned some bridges and are now left looking like an isolated group that needs to retool and move on.
• 2019 proved again that Kosciusko County is one of the most challenging places for Democrats seeking victory, but a handful of them put forth a solid effort in Warsaw City Council races and gave voters a choice for a change.
• With a third term on the horizon, Mayor Thallemer has a chance to round out an agenda that embraces growth while improving the quality of life in the city. Don’t look for Thallemer to start coasting any time soon.
• Organizers of Warsaw One-Celebrating Us had a successful first year as they retooled the annual diversity festival and saw a strong turnout at the September event. The group seems to have gained a sense of credibility and will surely return in 2020 bigger and better. 

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A picture of the suspect in the recent robbery attempt at a Lake City Bank. Photo provided.

NICE CAMERA WORK –  Kudos to Lake City Bank for its use of high-quality equipment that produced some impressive photos of a robbery in Pierceton on Dec. 23. I don’t recall ever seeing video stills of a robbery suspect with such clarity as the one at the right.

While the suspect completely hid his identity, that’s often not the case for other bozos who are dumb enough to try such a stunt. Here’s hoping police find the suspect and that other banks and stores see the value in such technology.

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POLL RESULTS – How divided are we as a country? When it comes to politics, it’s as big and ugly as I’ve seen in my lifetime. But the division seems to extend to other aspects – even the sentence of Alyssa Shepherd, the driver who struck and killed three kids at a bus stop in 2018. We asked readers this week for their opinions on what an appropriate sentence would be for Shepherd. The most popular choices were the two biggest extremes. I don’t think that’s a coincidence.

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Signs thanking Mayor Pete Buttigieg were on display last week in downtown South Bend. InkFreeNews photo by Dan Spalding.

FOR PETE’S SAKE – The biggest political story in Indiana in 2019 has been South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s presidential run. His presence in the campaign has put South Bend on map. In fact, you can often catch commentators referencing the city without mentioning Indiana. Not all of the publicity has been good, especially Buttigieg’s issues with race in the city, but people across the country are now much more familiar with the city. Overall, I’m sure there’s some value in that.

Lastly, I must say the image at the right from downtown South Bend last week was a bit different. I’ve never seen a city salute an out-going mayor with such fanfare.

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Dan Spalding is the editor at InkFreeNews.com.
He covers city government and politics and always welcomes your input.
He can be reached at [email protected] or at (574) 855-7612.