Late last year I had a speaking engagement where a member of the audience, when invited to pose a question, felt the need to make a statement.  He said, “I enjoy the fact that Mitch Daniels is a businessman and not a politician.”

I responded by pointing out that most of Daniels professional life has been spent in political pursuits.  He has business experience and business success in his background but, I said, “I enjoy the fact that you think he’s a businessman.  That points out just how good a politician he is.”

That’s a long set up to my point that last night’s State of the State was another good example of the governor’s political skills.  All the buildup promised nothing but property tax talk and indeed property tax reform was the sole major initiative presented.  Yet it was wrapped in a campaign speech that devoted more time to spelling out accomplishments than solving problems.

And, here’s the kicker, it was a pretty good speech.

Things to watch for in tonight’s State of the State Address from Republican Governor Mitch Daniels:

-Will his property tax plan change from the plan he announced in October?  I don’t expect that to happen, but, see next item.

-What will he say about repeal?  His position against it seemed to soften in the last week.

 -How much will he speak to the audience at home and how much to the lawmakers in the room?  He needs support from both, but, (and this is a change) his biggest problem may be in the room.

-Will Democrats clap this year?  I mean, more than just at the beginning and the end.  They seem to like the Daniels property tax plan better than Republicans do.

-How much time will Daniels leave at the end?  His staff says he won’t run over the half hour time slot for the first time in four tries.  That leaves time, however, for Democrat rebuttal.  Could it be that he’s not afraid of what the D’s have to say this year?

-How do you make a half hour speech about property taxes interesting?

-Will he sound more like a governor, or a candidate for re-election?

  Governor Mitch Daniels says he will start working on the State of the State Address over the holiday weekend.  He already has a main theme:  Property tax relief.  In fact, Daniels says that his 2008 agenda will include property tax relief and “not much” else.  By his assessment (and most others, not doubt), that’s a big departure from previous years.   His plan to privatize the lottery will wait at least until 2009. 

Its more evidence that Daniels recognizes that his re-election may well depend on the delivery of property tax relief.  (He heard the Ballard alarm.)

 By the way, the governor says his family will have turkey on Thanksgiving but this year it won’t be deep fried turkey.