Nineveh resident Maggie Ketchum, 5, gives a hug to then-presidential candidate George W. Bush after a rally at Indianapolis International Airport on Sept. 6, 2000.
Daily Journal Archive Photo
News from around Johnson County as reported on Sept. 7 in the pages of the Daily Journal and the Franklin Evening Star from the last 111 years.
On this day in 2000, one of the main stories on the front page of the Daily Journal was about the time a little girl from Nineveh met a Republican presidential candidate while he was in Indianapolis.
“George W. Bush apparently has captured the kindergarten vote — or at least the vote of one 5-year-old Nineveh resident,” the story began.
After speaking at a GOP campaign rally in an open hangar at Indianapolis International Airport the day prior, then-candidate Bush invited 5-year-old Maggie Ketchum backstage.
“I hugged him and I got to see him,” an excited Maggie Ketchum said.
Maggie’s mother, Tammy Ketchum, said Maggie had been obsessed with Bush since January 2000. Maggie’s father, Pete Ketchum, was employed at the Franklin Police Department and was a member of the Prince’s Lakes Town Council at the time.
Tammy Ketchum said she purchased Bush campaign buttons for the couple’s four children at a political memorabilia shop in Washington, D.C while attending an essay contest with her son.
When Tammy Ketchum returned home, she explained the election and the candidates to her children. Maggie started wearing the buttons and telling everyone to vote for Bush.
At the Indianapolis rally, Maggie and Tammy Ketchum were in the audience when Bush moved through the crowd. He passed Maggie by and she began to cry.
Bush’s wife, Laura, asked why Maggie was crying. They explained that Maggie wanted to shake his hand. Laura Bush said she would see what she could do.
Eventually, the Secret Service let them backstage. Maggie ran up into Bush’s arms saying, “George W., I love you,” Tammy Ketchum said.
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Other memorable Johnson County stories from this day
2002
A controversial Johnson County ordinance that prohibited some residents from having a loaded or assembled gun in their homes was repealed.
1973
Police were investigating after a tear gas canister exploded in a restroom at Franklin Community High School, delaying the start of some classes.
1963
The body of a premature baby was recovered from a sewage plant in Greenwood, leading to an investigation.
