More on Football and Politics

If there is one thing out there that can bridge the gap between politicians on both ends of the spectrum, it's sports. You saw it in St. Louis this past October where both a Democrat (Mayor Francis Slay) and a Republican (Governor Matt Blunt) shared the stage at the World Championship Rally for my beloved St. Louis Cardinals.

Anyway, back to the issue of sports and politics, here is the latest from our good friends in Indianapolis:

Gov. Mitch Daniels and Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson may be in different political camps, but they're both Indianapolis Colts fans.

Peterson invited Daniels and his family to join him in the city's suite at the RCA Dome to watch today's AFC Championship Game against the New England Patriots -- an invitation the governor was pleased to accept, along with two of his daughters.

In addition to being a Colts fan, Daniels sounded a lot like a Peterson fan Friday.
Speaking to reporters at his semiregular media availability, Daniels had lots of kind words about Peterson -- a Democrat who is weighing whether to run for a third term as mayor this year or to run for governor in 2008, most likely against Republican Daniels.

Daniels was so complimentary of Peterson that he was asked whether he envisioned a bipartisan Daniels-Peterson ticket.

"That's an idea," Daniels said with a smile. "Look, I like the mayor a lot. Always have. He's doing a good job under very difficult circumstances. I'm always looking for ways to support him.

"The more I know him, the more I like him," he added.

While the idea of a bipartisan ticket sounds very interesting, the governor has been losing popularity in Indiana. I'm sure this article will come back to haunt the Governor in the 2008 election. Should Senator Evan Bayh become the Vice Presidential candidate and then get elected for that office in 2008, maybe Gov. Daniels, assuming he is not defeated, would appoint Mayor Peterson to the senate seat?