[4] In 1979, Kruse left the collector car business to focus on local auctions and real estate.

[5] He is a past president of the Indiana Auctioneer's Association, and a member of their hall of fame.

[11] Kruse is a creationist and in 2012 proposed legislation to allow the teaching of "creation science" to be taught in Indiana schools,[12][13] The National Center for Science Education strongly opposed the bill, noting that it would violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment and the Supreme Court's ruling in Edwards v.

[14][15] In 2018, Kruse introduced legislation that would prohibit public schools from providing sex education to students without a parent's prior written permission ("opt-in").

The legislation would have changed the existing practice in may public schools, in which parents can exclude their children from sex education classes through an "opt-out" note.

[17] Kruse served three years as chairman of the Senate Pensions and Labor Committee, then became chairman of the influential Senate Committee on Education and Career Development from 2009-2018, resigning that position at the onset of his wife’s health issues.

[20] Republican Tyler Johnson, a physician at Parkview DeKalb Hospital in Auburn, was elected to succeed Kruse to his Senate seat.