(INDIANAPOLIS) — Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and long-time political commentator George F. Will is the keynote speaker for the Indiana Chamber’s annual celebration of business on November 15 – exactly one week after the election. The event, presented in partnership with Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield, takes place at the Indiana Convention Center in downtown Indianapolis. More than 1,500 business and community leaders, lawmakers and state officials are expected to attend.

Recently, Will spoke to the Indiana Chamber’s BizVoice® magazine about his thoughts on the increasingly partisan political landscape and his reaction to the rise of Donald Trump as the Republican nominee for president. At the awards dinner, he will offer his take on the national elections, as well as “the ongoing, slow, predictable crisis of the entitlement state.”

“It’s unavailing to try to explain to people that the separation of powers that Madison and the other framers of the constitution put in place is supposed to make it difficult to work your will. You cannot govern this country just from Congress; similarly, you cannot govern it just from the White House. The separation of powers and checks and balance is supposed to provide compromise and centrism and moderation – and it hasn’t done so,” Will asserts.

One thing that has stood the test of time is Will’s fondness for his Midwestern roots; he’s originally from Champaign, Ill.

“I always like coming back to the Midwest. I remember the last time I was in Indianapolis … I looked out my window and was going by Crispus Attucks High School and I thought, ‘Oh my goodness, Oscar Robertson played there.’ It’s always fun to come back,” he says.

Check out the September-October edition of BizVoice, at www.bizvoicemagazine.com, for more from Will.

Four awards will be presented during the Indiana Chamber’s 27th Annual Awards Dinner: Business Leader, Government Leader, Community of the Year, sponsored by Lifeline Data Centers, and the Indiana Vision 2025 Dynamic Leader of the Year, sponsored by the Indiana Chamber Foundation. The Indiana Vision 2025 Dynamic Leader award emphasizes entrepreneurship and other aspects of the Dynamic and Creative Culture driver from the Indiana Chamber’s long-range economic development plan, Indiana Vision 2025.

Seating is limited. Tables of 10 start at $1,450; individual tickets are $149 each. Either can be purchased online at www.indianachamber.com/ad or by calling (800) 824-6885.

Ivy Tech Community College is the event’s speaker sponsor. The opening reception sponsor is Uzelac & Associates, Inc.; Hirons Advertising + Public Relations is the speaker reception sponsor.

Corporate sponsors: AT&T; French Lick Resort; Hoosier Park Racing & Casino and Indiana Grand Racing & Casino; Ogletree Deakins; OneAmerica Financial Partners; NIPSCO; Tilson; Wellness Council of Indiana; and Zimmer Biomet.

Contributing sponsors: Allison Transmission; City Securities Corporation; Community Health Network; Dow AgroSciences; FedEx; Fineline Printing Group; Hunt Construction Group, An AECOM Company; Keystone Realty Group; Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick; Indiana Soybean Alliance/Indiana Corn Marketing Council; JPMorgan Chase & Co.; KERAMIDA Inc.; Markey’s Rental & Staging; Pacers Sports & Entertainment; Roche Diagnostics Corporation; Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc.; The Kroger Co.; Vectren; WFYI Productions; and WGU Indiana.

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The Indiana Chamber partners with 25,000 members and investors – representing over four million Hoosiers – to achieve the mission of “cultivating a world-class environment which provides economic opportunity and prosperity.”