V22, N25 Thursday, Feb. 23, 2017

Buttigieg has ‘traction’ for DNC vote mer DNC Chair and South Bend mayor is Gov. endorsed him ‘everyone’s second on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. “The most important thing is he’s the choice’ as Ellison, Perez outside-the-beltway candidate,” Dean said. “Our leadership is old lack first ballot mojo and creaky. He is really capable and smart. He’s what we need.” By BRIAN A. HOWEY Dean cited Buttigieg’s two tours INDIANAPOLIS – With both the of duty in Afghanistan with the and the U.S. Democratic parties U.S. Naval Reserve. Viewed as a in a state of crisis, South Bend Mayor dark horse, Dean said, “I think will attempt to become Pete’s everybody’s second choice.” the fourth Hoosier to take the helm of The Hill and re- the national organization. ported on Wednesday and today Buttigieg and a field of seven that Rep. “has the other candidates are vying for 224 votes edge over former Labor secretary in on Saturday. The winner will ” in surveys of DNC replace interim Chair , who members. But while both men stepped in last summer when U.S. Rep. claim they are close to securing was forced commitments from the majority of to resign in the wake of Wikileaks hacks the 447 voting members, neither of the party’s computer servers, perhaps candidate is assured victory. The with the assistance of the Kremlin. At that point, Hillary Hill has identified the stances of 240 DNC members, either Clinton was thought to be a clear frontrunner over Repub- lican Donald Trump. Continued on page 3 Buttigieg got a boost on Wednesday when for- Demise of the Democrats By TONY SAMUEL INDIANAPOLIS – Taking up from where I left off three weeks ago, the numbers have increased as far as protests, protestors and now rowdy town hall meet- ings. Also increasing are vandalism, violence, insults, and threats. I watched a news story “There is no place in America for the other night of a crowd of adults in Chicago encouraging hatred or acts of prejudice, kids to beat the crap out of a pi- violence and anti-Semitism.” ñata in the image of our president and rip its limbs off, after knock- - Vice President Mike Pence, ing it to the ground. Bizarre, disgusting and unbelievable! visiting a vandalized Jew ish To the far left, this hatred cemetery in Missouri looks like a “movement” that is getting stronger. I believe that we on Wednesday are actually witnessing the begin- ning of the end of the Democrat Page 2 Party on the national level as we have far left. This phenomenon is getting known it. so far out of hand so quickly that no This demise has taken off at reasonable member of the Democrat lightning speed since President Trump Party at the national level will be able was inaugurated, because of a lack to pull their party back to a relative of leadership. While Democrats need middle ground. new leadership with a new vision, Finally, 90% of the national they are paralyzed by the loss – I just media is also angry and assisting the heard of something ridiculous called misguided strategy of the far left. post-election stress disorder – and be- They would have the public believe Howey Politics Indiana cause of the wave of anger masked as that the anger from mostly recruited WWHowey Media, LLC 405 a “movement” taking place in pockets protestors yelling at their congress- Massachusetts Ave., Suite around the country. person at town hall meetings is real 300 Indianapolis, IN 46204 When you have three out- news. of-work, really mad, former Democrat In the meantime, Trump loyal- www.howeypolitics.com campaign staffers putting together a ists and Republicans will stick with the playbook to spread Brian A. Howey, Publisher anger over the Inter- Mark Schoeff Jr., Washington net, you don’t have a Jack E. Howey, Editor movement. You have a lack a strategy, Mary Lou Howey, Editor goals, or the ability to Thomas Curry, Statehouse engage in meaningful Mark Curry, photography dialogue. So what is happening and why so Subscriptions rapidly? HPI, HPI Daily Wire $599 First of all, the HPI Weekly, $350 radical far left would Ray Volpe, Account Manager have you believe that 317.602.3620 President Trump is not the legitimate win- email: [email protected] ner because he didn’t Contact HPI win the popular vote. [email protected] They will never admit Howey’s cell: 317.506.0883 that if the race was determined by popu- Washington: 202.256.5822 lar vote, we would Business Office: 317.602.3620 have had a completely different campaign, with candidate president and more independents and © 2017, Howey Politics Trump spending much more time and moderate and blue-collar traditional Indiana. All rights reserved. money in and California. Democrats will be driven further to the While he would not have won those middle ground that President Trump Photocopying, Internet forward- states, he would have ended up win- also inhabits. The independents and ing, faxing or reproducing in ning the popular vote in the nation by Democrats will resent the angry left any form, whole or part, is a what he would have added in those and reward a president who started violation of federal law without and other more populous states that doing what he said he would to create permission from the publisher. he did win like and Florida. But jobs even before day one. this isn’t the best way to conduct our The new voters, the Trump national election and this is why we loyalists, are folks we met on the have the Electoral College. road, that I’ve talked and written Secondly, the far left about from all around the state, and has taken over the Democrat Party they are everywhere throughout the because a new type of leadership has country. These are folks like Jerrald not emerged. Democrats that may Hawkins, who mowed the names have filled the void are now paralyzed TRUMP and PENCE into his lawn in by the media coverage given to the Cicero. And Gene Huber, who caught Page 3

President Trump’s attention when being interviewed for about significant change at a pace Washington has never being first in line for last Saturday’s Florida rally. I loved before witnessed. seeing Mr. Huber invited up on stage by the president to When the Russian story came up again last week, thank him and give him a moment in the spotlight. the national media again piled on and Democrats on Capi- The media doesn’t realize what these people tol Hill started calling for impeachment. Their true colors mean, or that most Americans are able to see through showed through brightly to the American public, while we their bias. When the media mistakes protection of our also saw a president directly take on the while borders for discrimination, they only draw attention to the fixing problems and also rallying his supporters. president’s actions to protect us from attack, drugs and In short, the efforts of the angry 90% of the gangs. The more the media dwells on the tweets or the national media and the angry radical far left that are tak- personality of the president while he is working hard on ing over the Democrat Party will all backfire over the next multiple fronts, the more people will recognize and ap- two and four years. It’s already started. They are letting plaud his results. the wrong type of emotions lead them. Anger and hatred As the national media looks at every turn for will lead only further into an abyss and to the demise of controversy, the more Americans are reminded that this the Democrat Party as we have known it at the national has been going on for two years now while this president level. v continues to stand strong to make America great again. It would be different if he was starting slow from the gate, Samuel is president of Samuel Solutions and was but Americans realize that he is working hard to bring vice chairman of the Trump Indiana campaign.

tential “gay president.” He is a Rhodes Scholar and in 2014 Buttigieg, from page 1 he served in the Afghanistan war theater as an intelligence through their private responses to a survey circulated over officer with the U.S. Naval Reserve. the past week or from public endorsements. Out of those In the age of Trump, Buttigieg has spent the last who responded to The Hill survey, Ellison leads with 105 month trading shots with the president, while attempting supporters to Perez’s 57. The remaining major candidates to wake up his moribund party with a vastly different re- have less than a dozen supporters each, while more than sume than the current field or any of his predecessors. He 50 DNC members remain undecided. has positioned himself as building the Democratic Party up Politico reports today that many DNC members from the roots after Trump ramrodded through the “blue expect multiple ballots, adding: While he trailed far behind wall” upper Midwestern states by appealing to union mem- Ellison and Perez in the survey, Buttigieg has gotten trac- bers, Reagan Democrats and a waning middle class. In his tion recently in his own bid for the chairmanship. own state, Buttigieg’s Democrats have essentially receded The shock and awe of Trump’s stunning upset to Lake, Porter, St. Joseph counties, Indianapolis, and the last November has launched American Democrats into an university towns. existential search for a new path. It comes as an emerging “It’s time for the DNC to view itself as a re- issue centered on Kremlin contacts with the hierarchy of source for state and local parties and allied movements, the Trump campaign threatens to ignite not the other way around,” Buttigieg the biggest scandal since Watergate. said this week via . “The solu- Buttigieg is positioning himself tions our party needs won’t begin as a dark horse alternative, particularly with Washington, they’ll come from if the vote goes to multiple ballots, as communities across our country. expected. The second-term mayor was The DNC will spin its wheels if we always seen in the Indiana context as a continue to treat the presidency like rising star, perhaps a future nominee for it’s the only office that matters. The governor or Congress. Instead, he has GOP didn’t make this mistake.” leapfrogged onto the national stage. If lightning strikes, His stance earned him the support of former Ohio and after 2016 just about anything in American politics is Gov. Ted Strickland, who said, “I’m supporting Mayor Pete possible, Buttigieg would join Hoosiers , Buttigieg because he knows that the Democratic come- Frank McKinney and in taking the helm of the back won’t start in Washington. It will start in communities national party. like Youngstown, Dayton and Zanesville. He has shown Buttigieg is cut from an entirely different cloth through his work turning around South Bend and electing than those chairs. He is the highest level Indiana politi- Democrats in Indiana that he is up to the task.” cian to acknowledge he is gay, prompting New York Times Buttigieg adds, “We like to think of Democrats as columnist Frank Bruni to cast him in 2016 as the first po- the party of youth, but RNC put an estimated $6 million Page 4 into young and college organizing last former Labor secretary Perez, backed by both President year. We’re behind. Lots of us are protest- Obama and the wing, and Rep. Ellison, a ing. But actually fixing it? That will require Muslim who is backed by U.S. Sens. and a political strategy. Democrats must get Elizabeth Warren. organized. We will learn from 2016, but At a recent forum, Buttigieg positioned himself as not relive it.” a multi-ballot compromise. “If we’re all saying we’ve got And Buttigieg has taken a series to fight in red and purple states, put in somebody from In- of jabs at President Trump, whose primary diana. If we’re saying we’ve got to pay attention from the means of communication is to more than top of the ticket on down, put in a mayor, someone whose 20 million Twitter followers. bread and butter is local office,” Buttigieg explained. “And Last night during a forum in Atlanta, Buttigieg if we’re all saying that the solutions for our party are not called Trump a “computer virus in the American political going to come from Washington, put in somebody that system. Yes, we’ve got to take the fight to him. But we does not get up in the morning and go to work in Wash- can’t let him dominate our imagination, because it’s our ington every day.” values and our candidates that matter,” he said. “The DNC is looking for a real change,” Dean When Trump declared the news media last Friday told USA Today. “I was speaking at a Yale Young Demo- as an “enemy of the American people,” Buttigieg respond- crats meeting (the other) night and that’s all they wanted ed, “Critical stories from local reporters do not make us to talk about – Pete.” enemies. They make me better at my job. That’s how free As for the direction of the party, Buttigieg told press works. Facing tough questions from the press is part NPR, “One thing that I’ve noticed about the other side of of the job, even if we don’t love it. An executive with a the aisle is they are very patient in building their majori- victim mentality limits himself.” ties. You know, you had organizations that started by He responded to the uptick in immigration raids, running people for school board in the ‘80s and are seeing saying, “Our community was put on edge by the (false) dividends on that now. And we’ve got to have the same rumors of ICE raids yesterday. Peaceful families should not patience. We, as a party, can’t treat the next cycle like it’s be ripped apart by the government.” And on the “alterna- the only one that matters. For example, you know, 2020 tive news” and emerging Trump/Russia scandal fronts, is a year that will have huge implications for redistricting. the mayor noted, “But amusing as it is, every minute we And so we’ve got to be looking at the statehouses, not discuss #SwedishIncident or #BowlingGreenMasacre is treating the presidency like it’s the only office that mat- one we’re not scrutinizing the Russia/Flynn affair.” ters.” Buttigieg’s primary competition appears to be While the 2016 Clinton campaign focused primar- Page 5 ily on Trump’s temperament, it glossed over values and a As mayor, Buttigieg worked with then Indiana Gov. sagging middle class. “There have been a lot of outrages Mike Pence on issues like Regional Cities. The two were coming from Washington in the last few weeks, and they friendly in public. But Buttigieg wants to draw a contrast rightly inspire a level of anger, but we can’t have that be with Vice President Pence. “If we’re saying we want to the only thing anybody hears from us,” Buttigieg ex- compete and win in red and purple states, find somebody plained. who’s been competing and winning in as red a state as it “We’ve got to be talking about what our values gets, Mike Pence’s Indiana. And if we’re recognizing that actually are and what the policies are that flow from them. the solutions are not going to come from Washington, When we’re talking about things like the deportation rates, D.C., put in somebody who doesn’t get up in the morning we should also be talking about the importance of family, and go to an office in Washington, D.C., every day.” why we believe it’s important to keep families intact and Buttigieg has been endorsed by Joe Andrew, allow families to stay together. Every time we’re saying former Gov. , and former DNC no to something, we’ve got to be saying yes to something Chair , and former Maryland Gov. Martin else. And I do think that we can have an energy that is at O’Malley, a 2016 Democratic presidential candidate. v or above the level of what you saw with the Tea Party.”

tracking and mainstreaming outstanding Hoosier women Why no Lugar Series into positions of influence in the public arena. And it has been working. Currently, Republicans have five women elected to statewide office, two women for Democrats? serving in Congress, several mayors serving in chief execu- By CHRISTINA HALE tive municipal roles, and a number of city councillors and INDIANAPOLIS – Democrats may not like what I other office holders. Yes, all Republicans. am about to say, but we need to hear it. In fact, the success of the Lugar Series led to Clearly women have woken up and donned their the implementation of 19 similar programs across the pussy hats, protesting, meeting, marching and learning country. To date, there are 469 alumnae of the Lugar how to more effectively influence good public policy in our Series just here in Indiana, and more than 2000 graduates state. Invigorated participation in nationwide. That is remarkable. politics is a very good thing, par- Yet where are our Democrats? Where is our series ticularly here in Indiana where we for women? Clearly in this political climate it is beyond have such traditionally low voter obvious why we may not have as many women currently turnout. serving, but this climate won’t last forever. How are we That said, although the preparing our pipeline now? Democrat Party is supposed to be The answer is simple. We are not. the party of inclusion, I have to The Lugar Series is in its 27th year of provid- express sincere appreciation for ing quality programming and networking opportunities to our Indiana Republicans in this women that have already demonstrated a commitment to regard. They just get it better than community service. Many of their graduates I both admire we do. Even though most mem- and call friends. We have so many Democrat women who bers of my party (and others) may deserve such a high value opportunity, and soon. hold issue with the opposition’s approach to a number of Democrats have been caught flat-footed, and issues that resonate mostly with females, we all have to we are now several generations behind. It is time to get admire the opportunity that the organized and offer this kind of aspirational, educational has afforded women in our state. programming to the women who have now emerged, This does not happen by accident. interested and fired-up about participating in the political Yes, women Democrats may have invigorated process. interest and participation, but we have no organized pro- We can and must get started, and I invite all gram to help women learn how to channel their interest interested parties to help me get this done. It is time to and energy in this regard as effectively as possible. We do act on our responsibility as Democrats to help cultivate the not have a place to send our upcoming women leaders for women leaders of tomorrow. There is no time to waste. training; however our Republican friends do. After all, we are more than 27 years late to the party. v In 1990 several Hoosier women, including Judy Singleton, then-State Sen. Teresa Lubbers, former Secre- Hale is the 2016 Democratic lieutenant governor tary of State Sue Anne Gilroy, and others founded a politi- nominee and a former member of the Indiana cal leadership development program designed for fast- House. v Page 6

both sides and bring party unity to oppose the agenda of Buttigieg may not win, President Donald Trump. “Why not go with somebody who isn’t a product of one faction or another faction, but somebody who is here but he can’t lose to deliver the fresh start our party needs,” Buttigieg said in By JACK COLWELL . “I don’t know why we’d want to live through it SOUTH BEND – South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg a second time.” doesn’t have the votes to be selected Democratic national Also at that forum, Buttigieg called Trump “a chairman. But right now it appears that nobody does. draft-dodging chickenhawk” who could be “ordering people The two chairmanship contenders regarded as I served with (on active duty in Afghanistan) back into frontrunners are in a way still fighting the fight from the another conflict because he can’t be bothered to do his job Democratic presidential primaries of 2016. They are Min- properly.” nesota Congressman Keith Ellison, who was a zealot for That remark, referring to reports of Trump re- Bernie Sanders, and Tom Perez, labor secretary in the ceiving five deferments from the draft during the Vietnam Obama administration, who is favored by long-time sup- War, took some of the mayor’s South Bend constituents by porters of Hillary Clinton. surprise. He has not been known for such strong rhetoric. According to the New York But Buttigieg wasn’t talking to the South Bend Rotary. He Times analysis of the contest was appealing to highly partisan members of the DNC who after the final regional faceoff want a leader who will take on Trump forcefully. of the contenders in Baltimore It was helpful to Buttigieg that former Maryland last weekend, neither of the Gov. Martin O’Malley endorsed him on the eve of the frontrunners “has secured the Baltimore meeting. Perez is from Maryland. Also, last support of anywhere close to weekend in Chicago, Buttigieg was a guest at a meeting a majority” of the 447 Demo- of some influential Illinois Democrats, including former cratic National Committee Commerce Secretary Bill Daley of the powerful Daley fam- members who will pick a win- ily. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that Daley endorsed ner in Atlanta later this week. Buttigieg. Craine’s Chicago Business reported that Illinois For an upset win in a Senate President John Cullerton “effectively endorsed” him crowded field of 10 candidates as well. for chairman, Buttigieg needs Even more significant was that, as Craine’s re- to be a widespread second choice, or to come up through ported, the meeting of “about 60 people including former the middle, a compromise choice between the Sanders White House Press Secretary , was hosted by and Clinton primary combatants. Susan and Michel Axelrod, the wife and son of David Axel- Being a second choice could be decisive if neither rod, the political guru behind the successful presidential of the frontrunners wins with the needed majority on a campaigns of . Axelrod has had nice things first ballot. If the contest goes to a second ballot or more, to say about Buttigieg, but for various reasons he has the committee members could then look for a compromise refrained from making a formal endorsement. The activity choice to break the deadlock. If Buttigieg is viewed by a of his wife and son sent a very effective message.” lot of the Ellison and Perez Four former Dem- backers as their second ocratic national chairmen choice, as a good compro- have endorsed Buttigieg. mise, he could eventually He may not win. win. But he can’t lose. As a Long shot? Yes. key backer of the mayor Possible? Yes, in view of observed, Buttigieg al- the favorable national ready has won enhanced news coverage and some national attention and key endorsements that prestige and has expand- the mayor has received. ed his donor base for His strategy is to come whatever he seeks in the up through the middle, future. v convincing the DNC mem- bers that they should stop Colwell has covered fighting the Bernie vs. Hill- politics over five de- ary fight and pick some- cades for the South body occupying middle Bend Tribune. ground, able to work with Page 7

after the Senate rejection. Appointed school chief The key takeaway here is that this legislation is not dead. a Holcomb priority Four Republicans changed vote By BRIAN A. HOWEY In the aftermath of Monday’s Senate surprise ‘nay’ and THOMAS CURRY vote on the superintendent appointment issue, the ques- INDIANAPOLIS – During the winter of 2005, new tion that remains is why did this happen. How it failed is Gov. Mitch Daniels listened to Senate President Pro Tem- simple, SB 179 got voted down 23-26 with 17 Republicans pore Robert Garton on why he didn’t want to pursue leg- joining the nine Democrats in shooting down one of Gover- islation that would turn the elect superintendent of public nor Holcomb’s legislative priorities. But that doesn’t explain instruction into a gubernatorially appointed office. why Senate leadership just needed a few more Republican “He didn’t want to do the superintendent,” an votes to carry out an executive wish and signal a unified, inside source related of Garton. focused statehouse and couldn’t pull through. Perhaps He said that Republican Supt. then the first culprits Sen. Long and Gov. Holcomb need Suellen Reed didn’t support the to contact are four Republican Senators who supported legislation. Listening to the discus- the bill in committee but not on the floor; Sens. Grooms, sion was a young governor staffer Bohacek, Ford and Crane. named Eric Holcomb. In an effort to find out why these four in particu- Daniels tried to convince lar switched their vote, HPI managed to reach one of the Garton that he would appoint Reed and let her serve out defectors in Sen. Grooms, who explained that he “voted her term. But Garton insisted that the issue could be dealt ‘yea’ in committee in order to hear discussion on the floor. with over the next two years. In 2006, Garton was upset “I wasn’t sure how I thought about it at the time,” Grooms in the Republican primary by . And, as our said. “After I met with constituents and heard their con- source observed, “Here we are 12 years later and there’s cerns on the issue, I now believe that this power should still an elected superintendent.” stay with the people.” It was a lesson Asked if he had not lost on now Gov. felt any pressure to Holcomb, who is mov- vote yes from Sen- ing in his first legislative ate leadership or the session to make the governor, Grooms change. It is part of simply shook his head his legislative agenda. and replied “there was When Holcomb was none of that.” state chairman, both Obviously, this he and Democratic pressure from con- counterpart Dan Parker stituents worked on agreed with the . other Senators as well, In 2012, both Repub- but what is clear is lican and Democratic State Sens. Bohacek, Doriot, Crane and Grooms were four of 17 Republicans who that Senate leadership platforms advocated defected on SB 179. didn’t expect this pres- the change. sure to force a switch from the committee vote. If the four On Monday, with the Statehouse halls filled with they were counting on had stayed in support of SB 179, it educators on ISTA Day, Holcomb absorbed his first legisla- would have passed through to the House. tive setback when the Senate voted 26-23 to defeat SB Still, there remains a strong chance for the issue 179, with 17 Republicans defecting. It was a stinging vote to return due to the House passing HB 1005, a similarly for Senate President David Long, who is a co-author of the worded bill to SB 179. If HB 1005 got a chance on a vote bill. Senate sources tell Howey Politics Indiana that three in the Senate, minds would have to be changed in order to senators shifted their votes after the majority caucus. Four get a different result. Grooms said that he “wouldn’t sup- senators - freshmen John Crane, Mike Boheck, Jon Ford port” the bill if it were to comeback a second time. Grooms and veteran Ron Grooms changed their votes from yay in stated that “ I would listen to my constituents thoughts committee to nay on the floor. on the issue” if the superintendent bill found a new pair of Holcomb sources tell HPI that the change is “still legs this session. a priority” and that he will work to shift some of the GOP Even if Grooms remained a no vote, there are votes who sided with the nine Senate Democrats. still 16 other Senators that leadership could sway, mean- It is HB 1005 that the administration is prioritizing. ing that Monday’s shoot down of the bill is more of a mild It breezed through the House on a 68-29 about an hour inconvenience then an early loss for Statehouse leader- Page 8 ship. That doesn’t change the fact, though, that the issue Opponents say requiring parent involvement could push continues to energize the public to contact their represen- pregnant minors into dangerous situations because their tatives. greatest fear is often being disowned by their families. Long’s office provided “no comment” when ques- The bill also would give parents the right to sue adults tioned on the issue but Long is due to address the issue who help their child get an abortion without their consent. during a Thursday press conference. Senators Bohacek, And it opens up abortion doctors to potentially losing their Ford and Crane were unable to be reached for comment. medical licenses if they fail to properly inform the state when they provide an abortion to a girl younger than 16. Redistricting reform punted to 2018 The bill was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee While advocates for redistricting reform were on a 6-4 vote. disappointed when HB1014 died in committee this ses- sion, they remain hopeful 2018 is the year for the issue. House approves voting registration bill At a press conference Wednesday, Indiana Common Cause Hoosiers soon may be provided more opportuni- leader Julia Vaughn stated that the group “is not deterred” ties to register to vote and more convenient locations by the HB1014 vote being dodged by House Elections at which to cast their ballots under legislation approved Committee Chair Milo Smith. Wednesday by the Indiana House (Carden, NWI Times). HB1014 was co-sponsored by Speaker Brian House Bill 1178 mandates Bureau of Motor Vehicles Bosma and was expected by Common Cause to pass the employees ask customers transacting any business at House, according to Vaughn. The bill would have created a license branch whether they want to register to vote an independent committee which would draw district lines or update their registration. Voting itself might become for the legislature’s approval. more convenient if additional counties choose to replace However, Vaughn speculated that “there were their precinct polling places with vote centers using the other priorities for the Speaker this session,” and that it provisions of House Bill 1472, co-sponsored by state Rep. wasn’t the right year for reform. “In a conversation with Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso. Finally, House Bill 1521, co- Speaker Bosma, he told me that he was 100% focused on sponsored by Soliday and state Rep. Chuck Moseley, D- road-funding this session,” continued Vaughn. Portage, obligates Indiana’s presidential electors to vote Indiana Common Cause also remains pessimistic for the candidate who wins the most votes in the state, toward redistricting’s chances in the Senate, citing op- regardless of an elector’s personal preference. position by Senate Pro-Temp David Long. Vaughn said that while they feel they have support of leadership in the Opioid prescription limit bill House, “It hasn’t translated to Senate leadership yet.” Some patients who need Oxycodone or Vicodin Vaughn urged state lawmakers to consider that may find that their doctor can only prescribe the medica- “this issue affects all Hoosiers and is a fundamental part tion for a week if bill continues to advance through the of our democracy. Many citizens are passionate about this General Assembly (Mullis, Statehouse File). Minors and issue.” first-time users would be limited under Senate Bill 226 Ultimately, redistricting advocates believe that the with the hopes of preventing opioid addiction. With only 2018 session “has to be about redistricting reform” and a week’s worth of medication, a patient is less likely to vow to increase their efforts for next year. Also, have leftover pills. But Sen. , R-Noblesville, 2018 is an election year, which Vaughn believes will be said seven days is too short. The bill’s author, Indianapolis beneficial to their cause. Republican Sen. , said there are exceptions to Other groups represented at the event included the seven-day limit, such as prescriptions for cancer and the League of Woman Voters, the Hoosier Environmental hospice care, as well as for patients who must travel a Council and the Citizens Action Commission. long distance to their doctor. Documentation would be required before the exceptions could be made. Juvenile abortion bill advances When a pregnant minor seeks an abortion in Vaping overhaul passes committee Indiana without her parents’ consent, she has one op- A state Senate panel has advanced a bill to tion: a hearing involving her attorney and a juvenile court drastically overhaul the Indiana vaping industry law that judge who decides whether she is mature enough to make granted a monopoly to one company and sparked an the decision for herself (King, IndyStar). A bill that ad- FBI probe last summer (). The measure vanced in the on Wednesday would give from state Sen. Randy Head, R-Logansport, was approved her parents the right to enter the courtroom and even Wednesday on an 8-1 vote, clearing the way for the bill testify on whether she is competent to make the decision. to be taken up by the full Senate. Lawmakers passed Supporters of Senate Bill 404 say parents should have a the vaping law ostensibly to ensure consumer safety. It role in deciding their daughter’s well-being and whether imposed strict safety standards for manufacturers of the she can undergo a surgical procedure such as an abortion. nicotine-laced “e-liquid” used in vaping. But Lafayette- Page 9 based Mulhaupt’s Inc. was the only company that was been written. qualified to handle security permitting for producers under the law. And Mulhaupt’s approved only six companies to House approves $20 for record searches produce. Head’s bill removes provisions from the law that The cost to access public records could rise sharp- created a monopoly for Mulhaupt’s. ly under a bill the Indiana House has approved (South Bend Tribune). House Bill 1523 would allow state and local Protest bill heads to study governments to charge up to $20 an hour for public record A bill filed by a Southwestern Indiana lawmaker searches, the Indianapolis Star reported. Those fees would that initially allowed for the removal of protesters by “any apply when government officials spend more than two means necessary” will instead create a summer study hours searching for a record requested by members of the committee on the topic, lawmakers said (Lange, Evansville public or journalists. The measure would prohibit, with cer- Courier & Press). Before the Senate Local Government tain exceptions, an agency from charging a fee for provid- committee heard Senate Bill 285 about a month ago, ing a public record by electronic mail. Lawmakers passed a committee chair Sen. James Buck said they had received similar measure in 2015, but then-Gov. Mike Pence vetoed many phone calls and emails in opposition of the bill and it. none in support. The bill, written by state Sen. (R-Wadesville), initially required public officials to clear Senate promotes jobs for disabled people blocked roadways of protesters within 15 minutes. Tomes’ According to information provided by the Senate reasoning for the bill was to help limit traffic obstruc- Republican Caucus, a bill authored by State Sen. John tions, which can delay emergency vehicles. The language Ruckelshaus (R-Indianapolis) passed the full Senate yes- most in opposition took issue with was the by “any means terday by a vote of 48-0. Senate Bill 390 would increase necessary” phrase. “There is nothing in this language by the number of people on the Commission on Rehabilitation any means necessary, that includes the word reasonable,” Services in addition to increasing its duties. The bill would Sen. , D-Portage, had said during the previous also state that Indiana’s policy is to promote employment committee hearing. “That’s normally the standard for a as the first and preferred option when providing services police force. This does not include excessive or deadly, and to individuals with disabilities who are of working age. I think that’s a real problem with this.” Lawmakers took out that language in an amendment Wednesday, and in- Stormwater bill would cost utilities stead added that it was local police officers’ duties to keep Legislation currently pending in the Indiana Gen- streets unobstructed. Those who obstruct traffic would still eral Assembly could cost the Chesterton Stormwater Utility be committing “mass traffic obstruction” - a class C infrac- more than $25,000 in annual revenues from the storm- tion - if they don’t clear the streets when ordered to. water fee which it currently charges certain categories of customers (Nevers, Chesterton Tribune). Under Senate Bill Bill requires licenses for home dealers 502- - authored by State Sens. Aaron Freeman, R-32nd, The Indiana House of Representatives Tuesday and Blake Doriot, R-12th - church, school, and agricultural voted unanimously in support of State Rep. Doug Miller’s property all would be exempted from paying stormwater (R-Elkhart) bill that would require manufactured home fees, as Associate Town Attorney Connor Nolan told the dealers to be licensed through the Secretary of State, Stormwater Management Board at its meeting Tuesday the House Republican Caucus reported (Howey Politics night. As matters stand now, the Stormwater Utility col- Indiana). Miller said manufactured homes, also known as lects an annual total of $26,341.20 from the 12 churches mobile homes, are prefabricated housing that are largely and five Duneland School properties located in the Town assembled in factories and then transported to home sites. of Chesterton. The Stormwater Management Board voted unanimously to voice its opposition to SB 502 and to in- Amendment on riverboard earnings struct its attorney to draft a letter against the legislation. The Indiana House approved an amendment authored by State Rep. Randy Frye (R-Greensburg) that Water utilties bill passes would help protect the revenue local communities receive Information provided by the House Republican from riverboat earnings, a news release stated (Howey Caucus stated the Indiana House of Representatives unan- Politics Indiana). House Bill 1350 would have reduced the imously passed State Rep. Heath VanNatter’s (R-Kokomo) amount of supplemental distribution funds, commonly bill Wednesday that would provide for the responsible, referred to as hold harmless funds, that are distributed to accountable expansion of clean water sources by utilities local units within counties where riverboats are located. (Howey Politics Indiana). House Bill 1519 would allow a Frye said the bill, as originally written, would have lowered utility, such as a municipality or company, to build sewers, the hold harmless fund from $48 million to $40 million. water mains and service lines into a new infrastructure Frye’s amendment keeps the $48 million in the hold harm- development zone. v less fund instead of decreasing it as the bill originally had Page 10

In terms of Per Capita Personal Income, Indiana had the Fall of HB 1014 is a 25th best growth rate, ahead of 11 of the RTW states. In effect, Indiana’s economic performance 2008 to 2015 without RTW was very average, traditionally me- a legislative failure diocre, but better than the 1977-to-2008 period. The leg- By MORTON MARCUS islature had been bulldozed again by special interests and INDIANAPOLIS – In the past week, the Committee their specious, ideological onslaught. Redistricting should on Elections and Apportionment failed to move HB1014 bring about more careful consideration of facts by improv- along to the full House. That anti-gerrymandering bill calls ing the quality of representation, removing the deadwood, for establishing a commission to oversee redistricting. Un- and reducing the impact of special interests. But can it be less bold action has been taken since this writing, the bill done with the current low quality of representation, the is dead for this session. accumulated deadwood, and the dominance of special There is no other bill of greater importance before interests? v the . A Mr. Marcus is an economist, writer, and redistricting commission would speaker who may be reached at mortonjmarcus@ help correct the corrupt practice of yahoo.com. providing safe seats for Indiana’s congressional representatives and those holding positions in the State Senate and House. However, our self-serving, one-party legislature has no inter- est in promoting democracy. Even Why is road funding those in the minority party have little concern for fair primaries and wedded to user fee? elections. By LARRY DeBOER Indiana will continue to have a WEST LAFAYETTE – The General Assembly is in legislature that is not representative of the people and session, and the big issue this year looks to be road fund- not focused on the future of our economy. Instead, the ing. How will we raise the additional $1 billion or more that General Assembly will persist as an instrument of the we need to maintain our roads? powerful and the privileged. The priorities of slumbering Funny thing, we seem to be wedded to the idea and backward industries will prevail, subjecting Hoosier that those who use the roads should pay for them. We communities and workers to a spiral of weak and mediocre don’t always think this way for economic performance. other expenditures. We don’t for Let’s look at just one example of how it works. In K-12 education. The Constitution January 2011, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce issued doesn’t allow tuition for public “Right to Work and Indiana’s Economic Future.” The report schools. The authors must have suggested a grim future for the state, if RTW did not pass. thought that an educated pub- It was as impressive as the performance of a stage magi- lic benefitted everyone, not just cian, a masterpiece of misdirection. the kids and their parents. You At that time right to work (RTW) was in place in could make the same argument 22 of the 50 states. With the U.S. and Indiana in the mas- for roads. We all benefit whether sive Great Recession, the General Assembly, grasping at we drive or not. Even if you walk anything which promised more jobs, passed RTW in 2012. to the grocery store, the food on The law did not clear the Indiana Supreme Court until the shelves has arrived in trucks, November 2014. driven on roads. The Chamber’s 2011 report showed the growth of But, for whatever reason, we want drivers to Indiana’s Gross State Product (GSP) and Per Capita Per- pay for roads. That’s why we accept excise taxes on motor sonal Income (PCPI) lagged well behind both the 22 RTW fuel as a way to fund road maintenance. Cars and trucks states and the 28 Non-RTW states from 1977 to 2008. wear down the roads. Cars and trucks need fuel. Taxes on Clearly, the Hoosier experience was due to more than the fuel pay for roads. So owners of cars and trucks pay for presence or absence of RTW. This may have come as a maintaining the roads. Neat. surprise to legislators who had been dozing for the past Lately the revenue from the excise taxes has not three decades. been enough to maintain the roads. The excise taxes are What then happened without RTW during the peri- levied as cents per gallon. Inflation has driven up the price od 2008 to 2015? In terms of Gross State Product, Indiana of maintaining roads, but the excise tax rates are fixed. In had the 24th best growth, ahead of 12 of the RTW states. Page 11 the 20th Century, fixed tax rates delivered ever-higher rev- cut from 3.4 percent in 2014 to 3.23 percent this year. enue because Indiana fuel sales were rising. Since 2000, The corporate income tax was 8.5 percent in 2011, is though, gasoline sales have stagnated. That’s partly due 6.25 percent now, and is heading toward 4.9 percent by to slow economic growth. A growing economy gets more 2022. In fiscal 2017 these tax cuts have reduced revenue people driving to and from work and delivering goods and by about $800 million. services. Those taxes don’t have much to do with wear Stagnant sales are partly due to the high price and tear on roads. We’ve seldom devoted general rev- of fuel in most years between 2005 and 2014. Fuel sales enue sources to road maintenance, because there’s no began to increase some when prices dropped in 2015. neat connection between the people who pay those taxes And, of course, stagnant sales are partly due to more and the people who drive on the roads. If those taxes had efficient vehicles. If cars put wear and tear on roads but not been cut, would we be using that revenue for roads? don’t use much gasoline, that neat link between driving Probably not. and road maintenance is broken. Then there’s the sales tax. Indiana is one What can we do? We could increase the excise of only seven states that applies its general sales tax to taxes. The gasoline excise tax is 18 cents per gallon, and motor fuel. At $2.25 a gallon, our 7 percent sales tax it was last increased in 2003. There are two special fuel yields about 15 cents. Multiply by the 3.1 billion gallons of excise taxes that add up to 27 cents per gallon, mostly gasoline and 1.2 billion gallons of diesel fuel, and you get paid by drivers of big trucks. Those taxes were last in- $645 million. That’s a tax on fuel sales paid by drivers. creased in 1988. A penny on the gasoline tax raises about Devote that to roads, though, and you leave a hole in the $31 million, and a penny on each of the two excise taxes state’s general fund. That means you either cut growth in raises about $21 million combined. We could index the tax education and health spending, or cancel those income rates to consumer prices, so they’d keep up with inflation. tax cuts. We could raise registration fees at the Bureau of Motor Ve- House Bill 1002 covers road funding. It relies hicles, or put tolls on the interstate highways (with permis- mostly on excise taxes and fees. But the session has a sion from the feds). long way to go. v But here we are talking about tax increases, when we’re in the midst of cutting taxes. The inheritance tax DeBoer is a professor of agriculture economics at was eliminated after 2012. The individual income tax was Purdue University. Page 12

his thoughts better directly through his Fireside Chats than Pondering FDR on way by trusting his message to the print media. Trump has Twitter, but Roosevelt had the fireside sitter. Roosevelt cabinet comprises mainly white to Trump Memorial males: Despite pandering to both women and minorities By CRAIG DUNN for their votes, Roosevelt had little diversity in his cabinet, KOKOMO – Some good news for my liberal and the only woman being Secretary of Labor . Democrat friends suffering from DTIBS (Donald Trump Experts shocked that Roosevelt wants to Irritable Bowel Syndrome.) Someday, maybe just someday, pay people not to work and farmers not to farm: your grandchildren and great grandchildren will take a trip Various New Deal programs involved providing workers to Washington, D.C., to see the newly constructed Presi- with income for little or no work. Farmers paid to let fields dent Donald Trump Monument. While I was in our nation’s lie idle in effort to stabilize farm prices. capital for the inauguration, I began the process of scout- Thousands of poor citizens forced to leave ing locations for the Trump homes for FDR dam project: The Tennessee Valley Au- Monument. thority uprooted thousands of citizens from their homes to There’s a yuuuuuuge make way for massive flood-control and power-generating green space between the dam projects. Roosevelt Memorial and the Roosevelt appoints KKK supporter Hugo Jefferson Memorial that would Black to U.S. Supreme Court: FDR appointed former be a perfect location for a bigly KKK member Hugo Black to the Supreme Court despite monument to the accomplish- the fact that he did not believe in a Constitutional right of ments of Donald J. Trump. privacy and fashioned himself a “tectualist” when it came When I say bigly, I mean bigly. to interpreting the Constitution. I’m talking at least two tons of FDR joins Hitler in snubbing Olympic cham- monumental bronze hair! pion Jesse Owens: Roosevelt invited white Olympic For those of you who champions to the White House in 1936, but refused to have spent the time since Nov. invite Jesse Owens, the hero of the games, because it 8 wailing, moaning and living in a perpetual purple haze of would anger . As Owens put it, “Hitler melancholy funk, I say, “Take heart. If historians can make didn’t snub me; it was our president who snubbed me. Franklin Delano Roosevelt worthy of his own memorial, The president didn’t even send a telegram.” there may be an equal opportunity for President Donald J. Roosevelt seeks to trash constitution by Trump.” packing Supreme Court: Frustrated with his inability To prove my point, I have prepared a suitably to get many of his legislative initiatives past the Supreme one-sided argument slanted to illustrate my case. Helping Court, Roosevelt proposed the Judicial Procedures Reform me in this effort are three of the best mainstream media Bill of 1937. The main provision of the legislation would headline writers in existence today: Phil O. Dendrun of the have granted the president power to appoint an additional New York Times, Seymour Butts of justice to the U.S. Supreme Court, up to a maximum of and Gertrude A. Pacolypse of the Huffington Post. I’ve six, for every member of the court over the age of 70 asked these masters of disasters to craft headlines to go years and six months. with true stories from the great Franklin Roosevelt’s tenure Roosevelt joins racist Democrats in opposi- in the Oval Office, written as if it was Donald Trump they tion to Republican anti-lynching legislation: Yes, it’s were writing about. I will provide you with the stories to true. FDR opposed Republican legislation against lynching match the headlines. of blacks. Roosevelt feared it would anger much of his For those Millennials who might wonder where political base. information like the following is found, I would direct your FDR condemns Jewish immigrants to clutch- attention to these amazing low tech inventions called es of Nazis: In 1939, Roosevelt turned away over 900 books. German Jewish immigrants who were trying to escape Roosvelt campaigns using trite slogan that Adolph Hitler. They were passengers on the S.S. St. Louis. appeals to populist voters: Franklin Roosevelt cam- It sailed up and down the Florida coast hoping for permis- paigned using the theme of “Happy Days Are Here Again.” sion to save its human cargo. Roosevelt refused entry and It went with a melody and was the centerpiece of his elec- ordered the Coast Guard to repel the ship. It has been tion strategy. It would have looked good on a red baseball estimated that as many as a third of the passengers even- cap and a t-shirt. tually died in death camps during the Holocaust. Roosevelt bypasses media by using new Roosevelt sits idly by while France is con- technology: FDR used a relatively new technological de- quered and England brought to her knees: Wishing velopment, the radio, to carry his message directly to the to remain neutral, a politically popular position, FDR failed American people. He believed that he could communicate to offer any support or assistance to either France or Great Page 13

Britain. Roosevelt initially turned down Churchill’s plea for wanted to remember the man who led them through the the lending of surplus American naval vessels. Great Depression and World War II. FDR refuses help to Jewish immigrants by It takes the wisdom of time to divorce ourselves allowing 1941 immigration quotas to go unused: from the here-and-now daily evaluations of our president and Lady Liberty will really cry about this made by hysterical media elites and Hollywood celebrities one. FDR turned away Jewish immigration requests even and give the passage of time coupled with an examination though current immigration quotas were unfilled. of his collective body of work to make an accurate judg- Roosevelt sleeps while Pacific fleet is sunk ment as to his ultimate success or failure. Only time will by surprise at Pearl Harbor: Even though Roosevelt tell whether Donald Trump ranks with Millard Fillmore or knew that war with Japan was imminent, he failed to ad- Ronald Reagan. Until then, can’t we just all get along? equately inform his Pacific forces of known intelligence. As my wife and I were driving to the Reagan Helpless Japanese-American women and National Airport to return to Indiana, we passed numerous children forced into concentration camps: Amid female protestors holding signs referencing our president fear over issues of national security following the attack and a part of the female anatomy. I wanted to direct the on Pearl Harbor, FDR ordered lawful Japanese-American ladies to the Roosevelt Memorial where they might con- citizens interned in concentration camps. template FDR and his five mistresses, including a distant FDR renegs on 1940 election promise to civil cousin. I’m pretty sure that even though ole FDR wasn’t rights leader: In an effort to gain support from black po- caught on tape discussing grabbing anything, with a stable litical leaders, FDR promised to fully integrate the Ameri- of fawning mistresses, he was most likely grabbing some- can armed forces. He failed to do so and left the task to thing. In the long run, it just didn’t matter. Truman. I certainly believe that Donald Trump will be a Disarray in the White House as Roosevelts controversial president. Someone as bombastic as The sacks his second vice president: FDR first dumped Donald just won’t be able to escape the inevitable dust- Vice President in 1940 over philosophi- up with both his friends and enemies. That being said, I cal differences. Garner’s replacement, Henry Wallace, was also see the real potential for presidential greatness. Let’s sacked in 1944 for similar reasons. Wallace had distinct just hope that the sideshow doesn’t deter us from making Communist sympathies and he was replaced with the rela- it into the big tent. For the sake of every American man, tively unknown and lightly regarded Harry Truman. woman, child or gender neutral personhood, I sure hope FDR refuses to bomb Auschwitz death camp that a monument to President Trump is built someday. and save Jewish lives: Even though intelligence reports The biglier, the better! v informed FDR about the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz, Roosevelt refused to allow the Army Air Corps to bomb the Dunn is the chairman of the Howard County Repub- camps or the rail lines leading to the camps. lican Party. Doomsday clock turned up to one second before midnight as FDR prepares for the big one: Although Roos- evelt left it to Truman to make the ultimate decision on the use of the atomic bomb, it was FDR’s willingness and determination to create a nuclear bomb that made the bomb- ing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki possible. On May 2, 1997, the Roosevelt Memorial was dedi- cated. Despite many actions or inactions on FDR’s part, a grate- ful American people Page 14

rule against his sloppy executive orders. His aide, Stephen An ‘enemy’ retort Miller, suggested earlier this month that the president “will not be questioned.” Trump has compared our intelligence services to to Our President “Nazi Germany.” Our president went to the CIA lobby in By BRIAN A. HOWEY Langley, stood in front of 117 stars of fallen agents and INDIANAPOLIS – Last Friday night on the Twitter spewed a series of lies the day after he was inaugurated. Machine, our president, Donald J. Trump, branded me and It prompted former deputy CIA Director Michael Morrell to other journalists as the “enemy of the American people.” note that on another wall in that same lobby, the agency’s People who know and love me watched as I ethos are described from the Gospel of John, “And ye shall grappled with the designation know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” over the weekend, trying to Morrell notes, “The ethos is a key tenet of both come up with an apt response the operational and analytic sides of the organization. It that did not match Trump’s hys- is a deeply embedded part of the culture. Any perception terics. Our president goads his of someone trying to alter the truth, as the officers see it, citizens, seeking anger which creates immediate antibodies. It is an irony because, as he can exploit to his base. has become clear, the president seems to shun the truth I wrote on Sunday that, and he alters it with alarming frequency. In speaking to “Over the past four decades, I the American people, he misrepresents the facts almost have been a committed journal- daily.” ist, motivated as a career, but The Washington Post on Tuesday reported that also as a steward of our com- in Trump’s first 33 days in office, he uttered 132 false or munity, state and nation, serv- mostly false statements, or “alternative facts” in Conwayl- ing readers with fact, analysis and commentary. My career ian parlance. goal has been to leave a better Indiana and America than Our president has been reckless in conveying when I found it.” context. On Saturday our president talked about a terror I reminded my readers of Purdue President Mitch incident in Sweden that didn’t happen, baffling the Swedes Daniels’ book, “Keeping the Republic,” echoing a fork-in- and just about everyone else. He reacted to that con- the-road assessment of Founding Father Benjamin Frank- sternation with this tweet: “Give the public a break – The lin, who was asked what kind of nation will we be? He FAKE NEWS media is trying to say that large scale immi- responded, “A republic, if you can keep it.” And I imparted: gration in Sweden is working out just beautifully. NOT!” “We now find ourselves at a similar junction. The stew- On Monday, this all became a self-fulfilling prophe- ards of the press, three sy as Swedish immigrants branches of government, rioted. Our president cre- an array of civic institu- ated a riot. tions and our citizens are And on Wednes- faced with the arduous day, Amnesty Inter- task of defending more national weighed in, than two centuries of tra- comparing the rise of dition, now under assault Trump to the authoritar- from what appears to be ian fascism of the 1930s. a president who either “Donald Trump’s poison- lacks a fundamental grasp of our guiding concepts, or who ous campaign rhetoric exemplifies a global trend toward seeks to pervert them.” angrier and more divisive politics,” said the introduction of U.S. Sen. John McCain, the 2008 Republican the report. “Across the world, leaders and politicians wa- presidential nominee, observed, “Attacks on the press gered their future power on narratives of fear and disunity, are how dictators get started.” U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, the pinning blame on the ‘other’ for the real or manufactured ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, grievances of the electorate. The limits of what is accept- said attacks on the press are “something that you hear able have shifted. Politicians are shamelessly and actively tin-pot dictators say when they want to control all of the legitimizing all sorts of hateful rhetoric and policies based information.” Sunday host Chris Wallace said on people’s identity: Misogyny, racism and homophobia.” Trump “crossed an important line.” So 2016 became “the year when the cynical use of ‘us vs. The modus operandi of our president has been to them’ narratives of blame, hate and fear took on a global take roundhouse rhetorical swings at American institutions prominence to a level not seen since the 1930s.” that helped create the greatest nation this planet has ever Since the election, we’ve seen the hate rise in seen. The truth is disposable. He has blasted our judiciary, Indiana, with a church defaced in Bean Blossom, Latino calling out “so-called judges” who had the temerity to students harassed in Vice President Pence’s hometown Page 15 of Columbus, and swastikas president. President Trump defacing public spaces in Bloom- can push all the pretty but- ington. Back then, I suggested tons on the command deck to the vice president-elect that of the Starship Enterprise, he use this intolerance to set but don’t expect anything a new tone. Mike Pence took to actually happen, because a pass until Wednesday when they are not attached.” he showed up at the vandal- Trump is attached ized Jewish cemetery in Mis- to his base. souri. There have been dozens So we watch of threats to Jewish Community this unfold on an authoritar- Centers, a St. Louis cemetery ian bent, while news filters vandalized. The Washington Post out of Trump campaign ties reported that 54 Jewish com- to the Kremlin. These are munity centers have faced 69 surreal times in America. threats, including three waves Author William L. of bomb threats, since January. Shirer, writing in his book, Finally on Tuesday our president “20th Century Journey,” described it as “horrible” and observed Adolph Hitler’s “painful.” “uncanny” communications The Anne Frank with his audiences. “He Center for Mutual Respect was established a rapport almost not impressed. “The president’s immediately and deepened sudden acknowledgment is a and intensified it as he went Band-Aid on the cancer of anti- on speaking, holding them Semitism that has infected his completely in his spell. In own administration,” the group’s such a state, it seemed to executive director, Steven Goldstein, said in a social media me, they easily believed anything he said, even the most post. “(Trump’s) statement today is a pathetic asterisk of foolish nonsense. Over the years as I listened to scores of condescension after weeks in which he and his staff have Hitler’s major speeches, I would pause in my own mind to committed grotesque acts and omissions reflecting anti- exclaim, ‘What utter rubbish! What brazen lies!’ Semitism, yet day after day have refused to apologize and “Then I would look around at the audience. His correct the record.” German listeners were lapping up every word as the utter Conservative New York Times columnist David truth.” v Brooks predicts, “We’re going to have an administration that has morally and politically col- lapsed, without actually going away. What does that look like? First, it means an administration that is pas- sive, full of sound and fury, but signi- fying nothing. To get anything done, a president depends on the vast ma- chinery of the U.S. government. But Trump doesn’t mesh with that machin- ery. He is personality-based while it is rule-based. Furthermore, he’s declared war on it. And when you declare war on the establishment, it declares war on you.” Brooks continues: “The Civil Service has a thousand ways to ignore or sit on any presidential order. The court system has given itself carte blanche to overturn any Trump initiative, even on the flimsiest legal grounds. The intelligence community has only just begun to undermine this Page 16

Matt Tully, IndyStar: So, I asked Sen. Todd Young, means we’d better get used to the chaos of Trump’s first is Washington, D.C., as dysfunctional up close as it seems month in office, because it’s going to last for four years. from afar? Sitting over a cup of coffee at a breakfast joint Cable news is ruling Trump’s attention. As various reports near Downtown, the state’s junior senator offered this from inside the White House have documented, it’s a fix- response: “That’s a complicated question.” ture of his day from morning until night. He starts off the Hey, these are complicated times. Young told me that day with “Morning Joe” and the festival of nincompoopery Capitol Hill “is certainly dysfunctional if you benchmark that is “Fox & Friends” (which he even praised in his last the rate at which Congress has approved this administra- news conference, saying, “Fox & Friends in the morning, tion’s nominees.” Or some of the rhetoric. Still, they’re very honorable people … they have the most hon- time and again Young argued that he sees the est morning show”). After suffering through some potential for positive movement on big issues of the day’s drudgery, he returns to cable; as the in the coming months and years. Young is a New York Times reported, “he recently upgraded conservative Republican, obviously. But he’s the flat-screen TV in his private dining room so he not a bomb-thrower and he keeps partisanship can watch the news while eating lunch.” When the at arm’s length in his speeches and conversa- day is done, he retreats to the empty residence — tions. You get the sense that he’d prefer not his wife and young son remain in New York — to talk about the current craziness in Washington because — end the day with more cable news. Which means that well, because he tells you very clearly that he’d rather not cable, and Fox News in particular, is setting the president’s talk about it. He’s among those lawmakers who routinely mental agenda. So the erratic nature of cable news makes dodge questions from the Capitol Hill press corps about Trump’s focus more erratic. v the latest political uproar. But he did offer an insider’s perspective on the political show we’re all watching from Jeff Rea, South Bend Tribune: I’ve sat through a several hundred miles away. About Trump, Young argued lot of zoning hearings during my career, including several “he has overperformed” when it comes to the caliber of in recent weeks. I’ve seen them change over the years his cabinet nominees. Beyond that, he said, “it’s too early and each time I get more concerned about the tone, tenor to judge his performance.” But, he added, “There is a and emotionally charged debate that can dominate the responsibility as president to choose your words carefully, discussions. Signs of protest, disruptive crowds, angry especially on foreign policy, and to speak as clearly as pos- complaints and name calling have become more prevalent. sible. He has sent mixed signals at times with respect to And we’ve seen that both from those petitioning for a proj- our nation’s foreign policy.” I asked Young about the lack ect as well as those opposing a new development. v of outrage from within Republican ranks, with the excep- tion of a few members, such as Sens. John McCain and New York Times: Donald Lindsay Graham, to reports of Russian interference in our Maureen Dowd, Trump is stuck in his own skull. He’s unreachable. “He lives elections. He calmly said that he supports an investigation inside his head, where he runs the same continuous loop by the Intelligence Committee but doesn’t see the need to of conflict with people he turns into enemies for the pur- yell about it.” v poses of his psychodrama,” says Trump biographer Michael D’Antonio. Because Trump holds Thor’s hammer, with its Paul Waldman, Washington Post: Over the notably short handle, we must keep trying to figure out weekend, the president of the declared the his strange, perverse, aggrieved style of reasoning. So news media “the enemy of the American People” and pub- we’re stuck in Trump’s head with him. It’s a very cluttered licly decried a terrorist attack in Sweden that happened as place to be, a fine-tuned machine spewing a torrent of a result of the inflow of immigrants to that country, except chaos, cruelty, confusion, farce and transfixing craziness. that there was no such terrorist attack; he apparently got Of course, this is merely the observation of someone who the idea from a segment he saw on the Fox News program is “the enemy of the American people,” according to our “Tucker Carlson Tonight.” The former assertion with its president. Like all narcissists, he doesn’t like to be told if fascist undertones led to widespread condemnation, even he’s screwing up, so he surrounds himself with people who from “Fox News Sunday” host Chris Wallace, who said the don’t tell him. The more he defends the odd duck Michael attack “crosses an important line.” The latter led to wide- Flynn, saying he fired him only because Flynn misled Mike spread mockery, including many, many Ikea jokes. Pence about talking sanctions with the Russian ambas- Just an average couple of days in the Trump era? Certain- sador before Pence went on “Face the Nation,” the more ly. But it demonstrates something important: We’ve never it raises the question: Why didn’t Trump himself tell Pence had a president who was this obsessed with the news when the White House counsel told him? Trump got into media, and that obsession is going to continue to shape another megalomaniacal “Me the People” swivet Friday, his presidency. Cable news in particular seems to be a far tweeting the “FAKE NEWS media” was “the enemy of the more important influence on Trump’s thinking than any in- American people!” So Trump is even using the rhetoric of telligence briefing or government economic data. And that Lenin? Putin is lovely and the press is the Evil Empire? v Page 17

Trump. The Tribune called Walorski’s Senator Joe Donnelly is reserving No town halls for office Wednesday and requested a judgment on the Trump administra- phone interview with her, or at least tion’s second try at cracking down on Trey, Luke & Jackie her communications director, Jack illegal immigration (Berman, WIBC). Morrisey. Morrisey replied that Wal- Donnelly says he hasn’t read the order JEFFERSONVILLE — U.S. Rep. orski wouldn’t be available for an yet and doesn’t want to judge it until Trey Hollingsworth (R-IN) is one of interview, but he offered a written he does. He does say it’s mislead- several members of Congress who statement. ing for the White House to suggest isn’t holding a town hall with constitu- immigrants weren’t being adequately ents during this week’s recess, despite Coats confirmation reviewed before. He notes the old several requests for one (Beilman, vetting process sometimes took more News & Tribune). The Republican hearing Tuesday than three years, as the State Depart- freshman said he prefers speaking ment reviewed backgrounds down with residents of Indiana’s 9th District WASHINGTON — The U.S. to biometric screenings. Last month, through individual meet- Senate Intelligence Committee Donnelly joined protesters of the ings, where he believes will have a confirmation hear- administration’s first order, which was better discussions can ing next week for President blocked by a federal court. occur. “The focus is Donald Trump’s nominee for on having meaning- director of national intelligence, 2nd audit finds ful, individual dialogue former Indiana senator Dan with Hoosiers rather Coats (Francisco, Fort Wayne fault in Muncie than ramping up the volume, because Journal Gazette). Committee Chair- I think what a lot of people don’t man Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Vice MUNCIE — The state’s latest like about D.C. is the screaming and Chairman announced audit of Muncie government found talking at each other instead of the Wednesday that the open hearing will more deficiencies in how the city con- talking collectively about how we get be at 2 p.m. Tuesday in the Dirksen trols its financial practices (Roysdon, a better outcome,” Hollingsworth said Senate Office Building. Coats had Muncie Star Press). The second half during an interview at the News and been a member of the Intelligence of the state’s first audit of Muncie city Tribune’s Jeffersonville office Tuesday. Committee until he left the Senate government in three years appears Hollingsworth would rather go “nar- early this year after not seeking re- to show no large-scale problems and rower but deeper” when answering election to the Senate in 2016. does not make recommendations for to Southern Indiana residents be- further action by other agencies. Like cause complex policy issues can’t be Poll puts Trump ap- the first audit, the new audit shows a properly explored through 30-second lack of internal controls and practices answers, he said. proval at 38% governing city spending. Besides con- trols over expenditures, also missing, U.S. Rep. Luke Messer will not WASHINGTON — A major- have any town halls either, according according to the state, were internal ity of voters disapprove of Donald controls over payroll disbursements. to the Muncie Star Press. Trump’s handling of the presidency, While protesters have con- That lack of controls was also cited in according to a Quinnipiac University the report on 2014. In their answer to vened outside recent closed events poll released Wednesday. Less than that Indiana 2nd District GOP Con- the state, city officials said that when five weeks into his presidency, Trump they became aware of the audit find- gresswoman Jackie Walorski has held has an approval rating of 38 percent in Goshen and Mishawaka, heated ings, a process was put into place that and a disapproval rating of 55 percent. means that Mayor Dennis Tyler will town hall encounters haven’t yet Trump’s approval is a slight uptick transpired here (Parrott, South Bend sign the time sheets of department from where he stood in Quinnipiac’s heads. Tribune). That’s because Walorski Jan. 26 survey but 4 points lower doesn’t do town halls, a fact that pre- than just two weeks ago. Meantime, Henry County dates Trump’s presidency. Since first his disapproval rating has steadily winning election to office in 2012, she climbed, from 44 percent days after trustee arrested has held just one, in the small Fulton he took office to 51 percent on Feb. 7 County city of Rochester in 2013, a and 55 percent Wednesday. NEW CASTLE — The trustee fact that is increasingly angering crit- in Henry County’s Liberty Township ics. They fear the dramatic changes Donnelly awaits was arrested Wednesday on allega- proposed for everything from health tions she stole public funds (Walker, care to immigration and the environ- new order Muncie Star Press). Phyllis J. Shafer, ment, and they want congressional 61, is accused of overpaying herself Republicans to serve as a check on WASHINGTON — Indiana about $9,000 in 2013-2015.