Trump Ushers in Political Realignment

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V22, N23 Thursday, Feb. 2, 2017

Trump ushers in political realignment

egates unanimously backed Hill- Author J.D. Vance foresees ary Clinton and Gov. Mike Pence, Trump and Sanders melding and all but two members of the Republican National Convention into the same party delegation backed either Sen. Ted Cruz or Ohio Gov. John Kasich. By BRIAN A. HOWEY On Monday night at Pur- WEST LAFAYETTE – On a cloudy May 3, due University, bestselling author 2016, as tens of thousands of Hoosiers went to J.D. Vance, whose book, “Hillbilly the polls, a realignment occurred right before our Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and eyes. When the dust settled on primary election Culture in Crisis,” was interviewed night, Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders both won by President Mitch Daniels be- with 53 percent of the vote. It occurred despite the fact that Democratic leaders and super del- Continued on page 4 Great GOP fork in road By JOSHUA CLAYBOURN EVANSVILLE – We have reached a great fork in the road in the history of the Republican Party. The party’s bombastic leader and president has a passionate grip on many voters, giving them control of all branches of government. The coattails of “Rex Tillerson led his last success extend beyond Wash- ington and in Indiana helped organization in a lobbying keep Republican control of campaign to undermine the every office and body of state government as well as an over- national security interests of the whelming majority of the state’s municipalities. United States in favor of Russia, Faced with such success, Iran and corporation profit.” many of our Republican friends decided to strike a deal with the - U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly, who devil and urge loyalty and unity voted against Tillerson with Trump. In their minds, a Page 2 little immaturity on Twitter is a fair impartiality, the ethical use of legal price to pay to finally rein in Demo- process, and the rule of law as some- cratic policies and get things done. thing that must restrain the powerful Besides, they say, Donald Trump the as well as the common. He did not candidate or Donald Trump the show- flinch at the idea of giving unlawful man is different from the sane man orders to the military and expecting who will actually govern. them to be obeyed. This was Donald Nearly two weeks into the Trump the candidate, and if we have Trump presidency, we now know they learned anything during these first are wrong. The unprecedented begin- two weeks, it is that Donald Trump Howey Politics Indiana ning for the administration included the president is the same man with WWHowey Media, LLC 405 purposefully picked battles with the the same approach. How much longer Massachusetts Ave., Suite intelligence community, immigrants, will Republicans allow it to continue? 300 Indianapolis, IN 46204 and foreign allies; illegal executive As conservative icon David Brooks orders; elevation of political advis- wrote in the New York Times, “With www.howeypolitics.com ers over military and foreign policy most administrations you can agree experts; gaslight- Brian A. Howey, Publisher ing and lies; and a Mark Schoeff Jr., Washington general chaotic and Jack E. Howey, Editor bumbling approach to executive organi- Mary Lou Howey, Editor zation. This presi- Thomas Curry, Statehouse dency is everything Mark Curry, photography we feared and it will only get much worse. Subscriptions The focus HPI, HPI Daily Wire $599 now turns to our HPI Weekly, $350 Republican friends Ray Volpe, Account Manager who are the only 317.602.3620 ones with any real power to do something about it: sometimes and disagree other times. email: [email protected] What will you do as it inevitably gets But this one is a danger to the party Contact HPI worse and Trump pushes the bound- and the nation in its existential nature. [email protected] ary of what is right or constitutional? And so sooner or later all will have to Howey’s cell: 317.506.0883 Where is your red line that cannot be choose what side they are on, and live crossed? Your answer to those ques- forever after with the choice.” Washington: 202.256.5822 tions will color not only your own Sadly, the decision point Business Office: 317.602.3620 legacy and the party’s, but also the for too many of our Republican friends country’s. will come only when public opinion © 2017, Howey Politics Conservatives will under- polls or electoral results shift. Perhaps Indiana. All rights reserved. standably cheer Trump’s nomination of that will work to keep them in office, Judge Neil Gorsuch, but it may cause and perhaps their red line is simply Photocopying, Internet forward- some to momentarily overlook and the risk of electoral defeat. But that is ing, faxing or reproducing in forget Trump’s dangerous and de- cowardice, not leadership. any form, whole or part, is a structive approach to the law. Trump’s I believe some Hoosier Re- violation of federal law without entire career, as well as his campaign, publicans have the courage to stand permission from the publisher. show him to be someone who knows up on principles, decent behavior, and little and cares less about the U.S. the rule of law. We see glimmers of Constitution as a constraint on what hope from former Gov. Mitch Daniels, government can do; an open, repeat- state representative David Ober, and ed, boastful abuser of legal process LaPorte Mayor Blair Milo, who have against the weak and those who have each in their own way shown lead- crossed him; an explicit advocate of ership and courage in standing up the use of regulation and prosecution for what is right. We must fan those for political score-settling; someone flames and encourage them. with open contempt for the ideals of As former Bush administration Page 3 official Eliot Cohen wrote in The Atlantic, “All can dedi- time to determine which path you will take. History will cate themselves to restoring the qualities upon which this judge you, and all of us, for the decisions Republican offi- republic, like all republics depends: On reverence for the cials take in the coming months and years. We are praying truth; on a sober patriotism grounded in duty, moderation, it is the right one. v respect for law, commitment to tradition, knowledge of our history, and open-mindedness.” Claybourn is a Republican attorney in Evansville. We have reached a fork in the road. Now is the

may be too fast for Washington, but Americans can relate Trump and numbers to it because of our daily lives. How many of us never have enough time in a day between work and kids’ activi- By TONY SAMUEL ties and the unexpected daily twists and turns? But we INDIANAPOLIS – With my day job, I just had keep at it until it all gets done. The more Washington tries coffee with an up-and-coming Republican star who was to slow him down, the greater support for him will grow. not initially a Trump supporter. While not thrilled with The sheer number of problems being solved will everything our president has done overshadow any missteps. Trump is a man of action. He over the first two weeks, he was proved it with the Carrier announcement and other jobs happy with 85% of what has been announcements even before being sworn into office and accomplished. He was extremely he hit the ground running on Jan. 20 like nothing we’ve pleased with the selection of Judge ever seen. Neil Gorsuch as the Supreme Court This is what America will respond to and this nominee, as are so many others. is what will make the numbers come out in his favor. As the 85% statement Whether it’s bringing back jobs by cutting taxes and roll- sank in after our meeting, it struck ing back burdensome, job-stifling regulations, challenging me that this is going to be a num- pharmaceutical companies on high drug prices, taking the bers game. If someone who was appropriate steps to repeal and replace Obamacare, mak- probably one of the last Republi- ing the best choice for the Supreme Court, and yes even cans to come around to accept Trump is at 85% now and doing what he feels is necessary to keep Americans safe, says that he could be a great president if he changes a President Trump has already proven that he is a man of few things here and there, then I think the numbers will his word and that he won’t rest at all while there is work continue to look good for our president. to be done. Other numbers to look at are the thousands of Speaking of keeping us safe, while it’s easy to protestors and numbers of protests in parts of the country criticize the rollout of the moratorium on immigration from and what they represent. Will these numbers grow or will the seven countries plagued by terrorist recruitment and they burn out soon enough because of the lack of solu- training and easy to misinterpret the rationale behind it, tions offered and the unwillingness to engage in a grown- let’s not forget that we are at war with Islamic radical ter- up dialogue? rorism and this president is taking action to prevent an at- In two years, will the Republican Party do what tack rather than let one happen, only to condemn it later. I is needed to keep the high numbers of Trump support- for one am tired of the inaction that leads to more attacks. ers engaged to help ward off the usual backlash after a If one life was saved by these actions or will be saved by presidential election? Or will the numbers of protests scare future actions, then it’s worth it. What President Trump off the GOP establishment to the point that they distance did was the first part of just one piece of a comprehensive themselves from the president, possibly losing these new- plan to win this war and over the next several months we found voters? will see the complete plan in place and a change in direc- When we were out on the campaign trail, ev- tion of this war. erywhere Rex Early and I went, half of the crowd was These and so many other actions and accom- traditional GOPers. The other half was Trump supporters plishments are what will overshadow the constant critiques who would tell us they had not participated in the political and fake tears. process for decades, if ever. These were great Americans Trump is president, and he’s doing stuff. Shaking that just didn’t trust Washington. They told us that they things up and getting things done will, in the end, result in were waiting for someone like Trump – someone who winning the numbers game. v would shake things up and really get things done. I believe that the most important numbers to Samuel was vice chairman of the Indiana Donald these folks and most Americans will be the number of is- Trump presidential campaign. sues being addressed at such a dizzying pace. This pace Page 4

distance” between economic demographics and the con- Realignment, from page 1 cept of “upward mobility” that is the heart of our evolution fore a packed Loeb Theater assembly. Daniels noted the in the face of a global economy and the encroachment of Vance’s book “opened up a world to the elites they didn’t artificial intelligence that must either be “maintained or know existed,” and called the author’s family migration recovered.” from the hollers of Jackson, Ky., to Middletown, Ohio, “a The Hoosier folk who voted early in camouflage giant revelation.” The upper crust of American culture and and flooded Republican precincts from the Elkhart RV the news media had reacted to the Trump nomination, as patch to the four Howard County voting centers in the New York Times columnist Frank Bruni observed, with an shadows of the Chrysler/Fiat complex, to our own hollers air of “smugness and sanctimony.” of Oldenburg, Gnaw Bone and Sulphur Springs felt such Trump’s stunning upset victory on Nov. 8 was an a stirring in their civic souls, some for the first time in a epic thunderclap, a microbust so compelling that it has generation, if ever. The Indiana Trump brain trust of Rex scattered the American political lawn furniture well up into Early and Tony Samuel witnessed dozens of denizens who the treeline. had never turned out before, filling Golden Corral dining While his book never included the name “Donald rooms, and mowing Trump’s name into the Hoosier ver- Trump,” Vance picked up the cue. “How else would they sion of Kentucky bluegrass, viewing the Manhattan mogul know?” Vance said. He explained that his fame over the past year had positioned him as the “Trump whisperer” as scores of union workers, so-called Reagan Democrats and blue collar Republicans not only flooded GOP precincts throughout Indiana, the upper Midwest and the val- leys of Pennsylvania down the southern Author J.D. Vance with Purdue President Mitch Daniels at Westwood on Monday. Vance wrote the best-selling range, but fueled book, “Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis.” one of the greatest presidential upsets in American history. Vance would observe that many of as either an economic savior or a raging bull preparing to “those who voted for Trump would lose their Obamacare smash Capitol Hill marble and stuffy Senate decorum. coverage.” After Daniels hosted a dinner honoring Vance at Vance and the hardscrabble grandmother who Westwood, the Purdue president’s residence, additional raised him after his father disappeared and his mother questions were raised. Daniels political operative Mark grappled with a lifetime of addiction lived both a reality Lubbers and this writer pressed Vance on the populist up- and a mirage. “Life is unfair for people like us,” he said, rising “unfolding before our eyes” and how to interpret not but added that his Mamaw Blanton would insist, “Don’t let only the jarring upset of Nov. 8, 2016, but the intriguing to them say the deck is stacked against you.” disturbing first days of the Trump presidency. Lubbers noted the “common social markers” of the Bridges and divides Scots-Irish of Appalachia and the inner city black culture that emerged mid-20th Century, presenting parallel policy Questioned about the “bridges and divides” he challenges and a range of addictions spanning from crack faced as he coursed his way from the Kentucky hollers cocaine, to methamphetamine, and now heroin, a terror- to Middletown, then the U.S. Marine Corps, Ohio State izing staple in both realms. This writer pressed him on University, Yale and finally Silicon Valley, Vance said he how to gauge the Trumpian upheaval that has gripped the wanted his kin and community to read his book “and feel capitol and filled airports and public squares with protest- we’re not as good as we thought we were.” He came to ers this past week. “I don’t think anyone in this room can realize that the plight of “urban black poor was not so dif- say where we’re going to end up in the next three or four ferent than the white poor.” years,” I observed. Daniels concluded the public event by observing Vance described an on-going conversation with that America faces two problems: An “increasing social Michael Lind, co-founder of the New America Foundation, Page 5 and a contributor to Politico. than $100 million in small “He argued something that donations, is not beholden to earned a lot of scorn and a super PACs and special inter- lot of derision, but he said ests, and is promising a ‘revo- basically what we’re witness- lution’ that the broader public ing is a political realignment, appears to be embracing. The which we haven’t seen since $7 billion in profits by United the 1930s,” Vance explained. Technologies, and its move “Unless you appreciate how to Mexico to save $65 million truly transformational this is, while abandoning a city it you’re going to miss all the called home for six decades, implications of the trend.” has become the poster for Vance then offered middle class angst. Sand- this jaw-dropper: “In 20 ers conjures notions of $100 years, Donald Trump and million golden parachutes for Bernie Sanders will be in the departing executives, and an same party. And in 20 years, extreme bent for shareholder Hillary Clinton and Paul Ryan profits over any scraps for the will be in the same party. I middle and lower classes that think that is very, very inter- resonates in a different prism esting and that shift will be a than the one Trump pres- big part of where we go over ents.” the next 20 or 30 years.” During the Indiana Transitioning presidential primary, Hoo- political tectonics siers witnessed both Trump In January 2014, Lind and Sanders insisting that wrote, “American politics the economic and political looks to be on the verge of systems were “rigged.” Both a grand transition from one used the Carrier and United political era to another; the Technology job flight to Mex- declining coherency of the ico as evidence. But on the politics espoused by both ideological spectrum, they Reaganite Conservatives and were approaching the vortex Clintonite New Democrats seemingly 180 degrees apart. has opened the way for more HPI observed in assertive social democratic May when coming face to progressives and a more face with Trump at Shapiro’s libertarian, anti-statist right. where he ordered a reu- Rust Belt and Appalachian scenes from Pennyslvania and Middle- The left-right divide in the ben sandwich, “Like Bobby ton, Ohio. years and decades ahead may Knight, Trump has an impos- be defined more by economic ing, bigger-than-life presence, differences between increasingly assertive social demo- and moves like a shark. He has proven to find weaknesses cratic progressives and a more-libertarian, anti-statist of his opponents, tag them with monikers that play to his right. Like Richard Nixon, whose election marked a transi- audiences, and poke his rivals with extreme effectiveness. tion between the New Deal era of Franklin Roosevelt and He feeds off the same middle class angst that is fueling, Dwight Eisenhower and the conservative era of Ronald 180 degrees away, the Bernie Sanders campaign. These Reagan and Bill Clinton, Barack Obama may prove to be a are two political movements running in tandem. Trump has transitional figure, marking the divide between one era in created a narrative, finding a voice that reaches the middle American politics and the next.” class, Reagan Democrats-turned-Republicans, and other In July 2015, Lind warned of a coming realign- folks who are consumed in sets of grievances. His rallies ment. “Economic inequality has only grown dramatically are streams of consciousness that reach the hearts of Hoo- after three decades of warmed-over Reaganism, fueling siers believing they are being left behind in a society.” the resurrection of the sort of liberal populism that Bernie As for Sanders, HPI observed, “I watched Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have harnessed, and which Sanders indict the current economic and political status Clinton is plainly taking on board to a degree,” Lind wrote. quo in front of about 10,000 people on Monument Circle “Another reason for the surge of the left is that progres- on primary election eve. His campaign has raised more Page 6 sives have won the culture war. Support for gay rights and Michael’s point is that if you look at the demographics, the gay marriage among a national majority, including most Republican Party if you liked it or not, has inherited the young Republicans, is only the most dramatic example of FDR coalition of the 1930s, minus black voters. There’s a the national trend toward greater social liberalism.” question whether that coalition is stable, or whether the Lind added, “Just as Jimmy Carter was a tran- Democratic Party coalition is stable because it is increas- sitional figure between New Deal liberalism and New ingly composed of culturally elite upper crust people on Democrat neoliberalism, so Barack Obama may prove to the one hand, that’s the Democratic coalition, and that have been a transitional figure between neoliberalism and used to be the province of the Republican Party. That’s one a more self-confident progressivism.” core part of the Democratic base now. And last July 4, Lind observed, “The very funda- “More money from Wall Street went to Hillary Clin- mentals of American identity ton than Donald Trump for the appear to be up for debate first time since the post-World this year. And in many ways, War II era,” Vance stated. they are. The problem, “The second part of the though, is this: Neither side Democratic Party coalition is is spelling out a vision for be- minority voters. So Michael’s ing an American that actually argument is eventually minor- works for all Americans. On ity voters will come along. The July 4, it’s time to consider an white middle class will have inclusive idea of the American to make concessions, minor- nation – a melting pot vision of ity voters will have to make American identity that recon- concessions, maybe less than ciles America’s founding ideals the Democratic coalition, but with its racial and ethnic di- we will have a reformulation versity. This is a problem that of the FDR coalition of the America has always grappled 1930s, but it will call itself with.” Republican. And consequently Lind continued, “The the policies that will come claim that the Founders sought will be much more populist to create a multiracial democ- than current Republican Party racy that welcomed immi- politics. They already are grants from all over the world compared to 2012.” might make inspiring Fourth of J.D. Vance listens to a question at the Purdue presidential July oratory, but it isn’t true. residence of Westwood on Monday night. (HPI Photo by Brian A. Epilogue The first U.S. naturalization Howey) In the first two weeks act of 1790 limited citizen- of the Trump presidency, ship to immigrants who were Americans are witnessing on ‘free white persons,’ excluding Africans, Asians and others. a daily basis the political temblors indicative of the politi- America’s white only-naturalization policy lasted until after cal tectonic plates shifting. Some are seeing an emerging World War II.” authoritarianism that corresponds with Republican National Committeeman John Hammond III’s observation more Slaughtering Republican sacred cows than a year ago that some Americans were seeking a Vanced explained, “If you think about what Trump “strongman” president. really ran on, he made the centerpiece of his campaign, he Others view the initial Trump orders rolling back slaughtered a lot of Republican sacred cows. You go to his EPA edicts and crimping access to American shores via the website and talk about his tax plan, it was a tax plan that prism of religious tests as the embodiment of campaign wasn’t much different than the one Mitt Romney ran on in promises evolving into reality. ’12. What did he talk about: Raising taxes on hedge funds As we learned during the New Deal, political on billionaires, he talked about closing the carried interest realignments are not tidy affairs, the change moving like a loophole. He talked about immigration and primarily talked Kentucky Kingdom rollercoaster. As we learned when the about it through the lens of wages and wage competition, Great Society forged Richard Nixon’s New South, some of another Republican sacred cow to be sacrificed. the most compelling dramas occur on southern bridges, in “He was very critical of the foreign policy that jail cells, sweltering hotel kitchens and a balcony in Mem- exists on the right and the left, especially on the right,” phis. Vance said of Trump. “He framed the whole host of issues Today we face the same type of challenges, the a pretty radical departure from George W. Bush in 2004 final chapters of this emerging era unfathomable at this and very few people seemed to really appreciate that fact. writing. v Page 7

later, he won his U.S. Senate seat despite a full-on assault SCOTUS confronts by the Republican nominee Richard Mourdock, who used Obamacare as one of his key issues. Inside Elections already rates the Indiana Senate Donnelly; Brooks out, race as a “tossup,” and other national prognosticators view it as an endangered Democratic seat. Hurt in, Ballard might The Gorsuch battle, which could include a Senate filibuster attempt by Democrats, will likely fade in scope By BRIAN A. HOWEY by the time the 2018 race shifts into gear. But Donnelly’s INDIANAPOLIS – The 2018 challenge to U.S. Sen. decision on whether to fall in line with Democrats or, as he Joe Donnelly began taking shape on Tuesday as U.S. Rep. has done several times in the past, side with his constitu- Susan Brooks said she wouldn’t run, and Kokomo attor- ents over party priorities, will almost certainly have echoes ney Mark Hurt said he will. The two Republican decisions two years hence. came on the same day that President Trump named Judge By most accounts, Judge Gorsuch is a credible Neil Gorsuch as his U.S. Supreme nominee, though a conservative jurist possessing many of Court nominee, and the com- the constitutional constructionist sentiments and writing ing Senate showdown will thrust skills that Justice Scalia did until his death in February Donnelly into one of the first big 2016. But Democrats are still angered that before rigor battles of the Trump era. mortis set in, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell As the South Bend Tri- vowed to keep the seat open, hoping for a Republican bune reported on Wednesday, president. “The conservative Judicial Crisis Network already has an- As for the 2018 Senate race, Brooks, R-Carmel, nounced a $10 million ad campaign for Trump’s nominee, focusing on senators in states that Trump won, including Indiana. Other conservative groups are expected to join the fray. Democrats, mean- while, still are upset over Republicans’ decision last year not to consider President Obama’s nominee for the high court, Merrick Garland, and many are considering organizing a filibuster of Trump’s pick. They will want Donnelly on their side.” Donnelly vowed to weigh the merits of the nomination. “As I have said part of our job as senators includes considering, debating, and voting on judicial nominations, including to U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly addresses protesters at Indianapolis International Airport after President Trump the Supreme Court,” Don- signed the immigration ban order. nelly said in a Wednesday statement. “I will care- said in a statement, “Our country has many opportunities fully review and consider the record and qualifications of and challenges ahead, and I love and am focused on being Neil Gorsuch.” a strong leader for the 5th District in Congress.” Donnelly has faced arduous policy votes that Her decision not to run, as HPI noted in its had vast political ramifications. He voted for the Afford- analysis in the Jan. 26 edition, isn’t surprising. She went able Care Act in March 2010, then defended his 2nd CD through a bruising 12-day gubernatorial race last July, de- seat against then-State Rep. Jackie Walorski. Two years feated in the 22-person caucus by Gov. Eric Holcomb. But Page 8 her congressional career, most believe, has about 18 years helped me pick up the real- a high arc. There is also speculation that ism. I’m really trying to deal with the issues.” she possesses a potential cabinet pedigree. Hurt said he will base his Brooks’ decision leaves U.S. Reps. Senate campaign on opposing the Iranian Luke Messer and Todd Rokita, House nuclear deal, supporting Israel, and adding Speaker Brian Bosma and former India- border security with Mexico. While he said napolis mayor Greg Ballard pondering a he supports President Donald Trump, Hurt run. Ballard told HPI that he is “definitely said building the wall is not the only solu- considering” a bid. Messer allies are signal- tion, saying he advocates sensor technology ing he will formally enter the race in May. Israel uses, as well as adding border security Rokita supporters have posted a “draft” agents on both sides of the border. “There Facebook page, presumably with the are meandering rivers, and lot of tunnels congressman’s imprimatur. State Sen. Mike under the current wall,” he said. “We need Delph, R-Carmel, has told HPI he will make more border patrol agents and better tech- a decision, likely after the General Assembly nology on both sides.” session ends in April, adding that he will Republican John Hurt kicked off Asked how he could win a Republican pri- not be deterred by other potential candi- his U.S. Senate campaign this mary that could include Messer, Rokita, Delph dates. week week. and potentially others, Hurt said, “I think if The dark horse in the GOP equa- you look at me, I’m the long shot. Part of that tion is Mark Hurt, a former aide to U.S. Sen. Dan Coats will be who runs. There could be five or 10 people. You and Michigan Gov. John Engler, who launched his candida- adapt your strategy on who you’re competing.” cy at Shapiro’s Deli in Indianapolis on Wednesday, followed Hurt said he’s already spoken to 30 Rotary clubs by stops in Fort Wayne today and Evansville on Friday. and will attend Lincoln Day dinners, Young Republican and “I’m a compassionate conservative,” said Hurt, women’s events. “It will be a grassroots campaign,” he whose brother-in-law is former congressman Mark Souder. said. “Trump is a good model in that he mounted a popu- “I would say a common sense conservative. I’ve been run- list campaign.” v ning my own businesses. Being out in the real world for Page 9

ing Republican field with data sets. “We are preparing Hupfer takes helm at to show how Sen. Donnelly is voting, and how it doesn’t match with Hoosiers’ expectations.” As Hupfer spoke, incoming strategist and commu- GOP highwater mark nications director Pete Seat relayed breaking news: Sen. By BRIAN A. HOWEY Donnelly had voted against secretary of state nominee Rex INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana Republican Chairman Tillerson. Kyle Hupfer was elected to that position on Wednesday Hupfer also said that the party will identify and unanimously. He takes the helm of the party at one of its reach out to the swarm of new Trump voters which pro- historic high water marks, dominating the Statehouse, the pelled the party to its current lofty position. Trump will congressional delegation, as well as at the county level. likely make the mid-terms a challenge, as with any first He also may be one of the first sitting Republican term president. “We’ve got a little bit of our own history to Central Committee members view this through,” said Hupfer. to ascend to the chair. Hup- “Gov. Daniels said in one of his fer was unopposed to replace early speeches that while ‘all Chairman Jeff Cardwell, with politicians are the same’, people Gov. Eric Holcomb nominat- were going to see something dif- ing his old friend and ally. ferent from a Daniels administra- Cardwell is expecting to tion. President Trump is going to become ambassador to El approach this in a different man- Salvador. ner. He’s beginning to do what “I want to be inclu- he told the American people he sive as possible and set that was going to do. They expect tone,” Hupfer said Wednes- change.” day afternoon at a north side As for Gov. Holcomb, Hup- Starbucks. “We have a really fer will be charged to run the involved transition process. state party and set the stage for We had over 50 folks help- his reelection campaign in 2020. ing us with transition. We “He and I have had a personal are benchmarking with relationship and friendship well other states and the national before Mitch Daniels came. We parties. We’ve got the involvement of every statewide were two of the first people on the road with Mitch. We leadership official and every Member of our congressional were doing our roles even before he was candidate, in the delegation.” days of the Phoenix Project, doing the early Lincoln Days Many incoming chairs take the helm after defeat. when he was at OMB.” Hupfer finds the party coming off a 19% win by President That was in reference to the Phoenix Project Donald Trump while the state extended its gubernatorial staged by Jim Kittle, Bob Grand and Randy Tobias, who dominance to 16 years with the election of his long-time successfully sought to wrest control of the Republican friend, Gov. Eric Holcomb. Hupfer co-chaired Holcomb’s Party in 2002 and 2003, setting the stage for Daniels to transition committee and served as his campaign treasurer. come back and run in 2004. “It’s easy to lose and do a post-mortem. When you win, you take a step back,” he said. “We don’t want to Hupfer announces staff changes rest on our laurels. We want to continue to be the party of Hupfer announced the three individuals who will purpose. We have the best office support. As we’re hear- comprise the Party’s senior staff team for the 2018 election ing from folks, we want to improve communications from cycle. Matt Huckleby, Pete Seat and Mindy Colbert most the party outward. Data plays a bigger role and we want recently worked on the historic 100-day gubernatorial to be accumulating and disseminating that data. We want campaign of Gov. Holcomb and each bring a unique skill to get to the cutting edge of data, the quality of it and our set to their new roles. ability to use it. Since Mitch Daniels was governor, we’ve “Matt, Pete and Mindy are a political trifecta,” put metrics in place and we will measure ourselves con- Hupfer said. “Between them, they have unparalleled ex- stantly.” perience in every facet of a campaign and together they Immediately on the radar is the 2018 mid-term will be a true asset to candidates, elected officials and election where the GOP will try and unseat U.S. Sen. Joe Republicans statewide as we prepare to both maintain our Donnelly. “It’s a long way off,” Hupfer said. “We need to hold of statewide offices, and most importantly, defeat Joe spend 2017 to strengthen our base. From the top of the Donnelly in 2018.” ticket, from Sen. Donnelly on down, we’ll have to sell our Holcomb for Indiana campaign manager Mike message.” He said that he is prepared to arm the emerg- O’Brien added, “Matt, Pete and Mindy were senior mem- Page 10 bers of a team that did what a strong bench of future no other group has done in campaign staff and the history of our state win candidates. Seat most a gubernatorial campaign in recently was communi- just 100 days. Their com- cations director for Eric bined skills and knowledge, Holcomb for Indiana. He from the grassroots levels previously was senior of cities and towns across project manager at Indiana to The White House, Hathaway Strategies and will be invaluable to Chair- communications director man Hupfer and our entire of the Indiana Republican Republican team.” Matt Huckleby, Mindy Colbert and Pete Seat are staffing the Indiana Party under then-Chair- Huckleby, a Harri- Republican Party. man Holcomb. He also son County native, will be the party’s executive director of served in the George W. Bush White House. political strategy and operations. In this role, he will man- Colbert, a Tipton County native, will be the age the party’s field operations, data analytics and internal party’s director of fundraising operations in addition to operations. Huckleby most recently was political director assuming the role of finance director for Eric Holcomb for for the Holcomb campaign. He previously was political Indiana. For both entities she will coordinate fundraising director for Mike Pence for Indiana and district director and operations and manage donor relations. Most recently, she campaign manager for U.S. Rep. Larry Bucshon. was deputy finance director for the governor’s campaign Seat, a Lake County native, will be the party’s while running her own political finance consulting firm, executive director of strategic communications and talent Colbert Consulting, LLC. She previously was the party’s development. In this role, he will oversee messaging and finance director and also raised funds for the Indiana media relations for the party, including serving as chief Chamber of Commerce. v spokesman, and take the lead in identifying and training Page 11

In 2010, The Atlantic magazine reported some Investing in shocking findings: n Americans were more able to identify Michael Jackson as the composer of a number of songs than to civics education know that the Bill of Rights was the first 10 amendments By CHRISTINA HALE to the U.S. Constitution. INDIANAPOLIS – There has been a great deal of n When asked in what century the American controversy and legislation to address voter fraud here in Revolution took place and whether the Civil War, the War Indiana and now nationally in the recent and very recent of 1812, and the Emancipation Proclamation preceded or past. In fact, since 2005, Indiana has had one of the most followed the Revolution, more than 30 percent of respon- stringent voter ID laws in the country. dents answered that question incorrectly. Long before the issue of fraud was raised in the n More than a third of Americans did not know recent national election, here Indiana we’ve attempted that the Bill of Rights guarantees a right to a trial by jury. to legislate even more prescrip- The Atlantic also reported more recently that in a study of tive law, even though as U.S. historical knowledge carried out in 2015 for the American Supreme Court Justice John Paul Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA), more than 80 per- Stevens, writing for the Supreme cent of college seniors at 55 top-ranked institutions would Court’s majority that held up the have received a grade of either a D or F. law’s constitutionality in Crawford n Only about 20 percent knew that James Madi- v. Marion County Election Board, son was the father of the Constitution, while over 60 said that “the record contains no percent gave the title to Thomas Jefferson. evidence of any such fraud actu- n More than 40 percent of college graduates did ally occurring in Indiana at any not know that the Constitution grants the power to declare time in its history.” war to Congress. OK. We all get that the n Roughly half of college students could not cor- American political landscape since rectly state the length of the terms of members of the then has changed significantly, and we struggle to under- Senate or the House of Representatives. stand how and why. Certainly there are a number of con- Several years ago I attended a Tea Party tributing factors. Compounding our obsession with phan- meeting. I had been invited by a constituent, and appreci- tom fraud is the anemic voter turnout for which Indiana ated the opportunity talk with people I wouldn’t usually has become infamous. Notably, we had the worst turnout have a chance to meet. in the nation in 2014. Sitting at a round table, listening to the speaker, Rather than spending time on problems we don’t a pretty woman shook her head so sadly. She whispered have, perhaps it is time to help people engage in the civic to me about how depressed the meeting made her feel. process and make better informed decisions at the poll- She was depressed and angry. I walked out of there im- ing place. Rather than worry about phantom voter fraud, pressed. perhaps we should be addressing the the issue of relative The conversations there were a bit dire and angry civic ignorance here in Indiana (as well as nationally). for certain, but the people there knew their stuff. A young You won’t find these topics we used to call man even handed me a pocket copy of the Indiana Consti- social studies on the ISTEP, but there is currently a com- tution. My hope is that people in all political parties value mendable move in the legislature to beef up requirements knowledge of government and our governing documents for our high school students to gain a better mastery of so well. government, American and We have a golden oppor- Indiana history. This is both tunity now to support this effort timely and important. in the General Assembly to amp Clearly, it has been up our approach to civics educa- demonstrated time and again tion for the Indiana students of that a high percentage of the today to become better informed voting-age population is ig- voters of tomorrow. Let’s run with norant of very basic facts we it. v expect them to know. Most of us accept that knowledge Hale is the 2016 Democratic of civics that is necessary to lieutenant governor nominee make rational choices as we and a former member of the cast our ballots, but evidence Indiana House of Representa- suggests that we fall short of tives. the mark. Page 12

the caucus said that needle exchange rates are as high as Hill opposes Holcomb 97% and have proven effective. Gov. Holcomb’s press secretary, Stephanie Wilson, reacted to Hill’s criticism. “The governor is clear about his on needle exchange position on giving local communities the authority to es- By THOMAS CURRY tablish and implement needle exchange programs. Locals INDIANAPOLIS – Early into the 2017 session, Gov. are best positioned to make these determinations,” Wilson Eric Holcomb and the Republican-controlled Statehouse said. “The people making the decisions should be the ones have shared the same priorities and ideas to solve Indi- closest to the problem.” ana’s most pressing issues. One Asked if the governor is concerned about Hill’s has been a focused effort on comments making needle exchange harder to get done fighting Indiana’s drug crisis. Last this session, Wilson responded that the governor believes week, however, new Attorney “addiction is a chronic disease, not a moral failure. This General Curtis Hill openly op- epidemic touches the lives of Hoosiers from every segment posed the governor’s viewpoint of society and in every part of the state. We’ll continue to on needle exchange programs work with community partners, state leaders and lawmak- and their effectiveness in tackling the heroin crisis. ers to ensure Indiana advances key legislation that attacks Hill, Indiana’s top vote-getter last November, came this epidemic.” out against needle exchange programs during testimony AG Hill told HPI, “There is no rift between to the Public House Committee, cautioning myself and Gov. Holcomb. We both continue to that some programs are ineffective and are work in the best interest for all Hoosiers.” giving away more needles than they are Hill said that he hopes to continue receiving. “The current needle exchange working with Holcomb on fighting Indiana’s drug program may be well intended, but it has epidemic. “We remain hopeful that our contin- evolved into a needle give-away, ultimately ued collaborative efforts with the Indiana Gen- contributing to more syringes being passed eral Assembly and the governor’s office will lead around and shared in our communities. It to a comprehensive solution that will effectively will only serve to further trap them in the address heroin abuse and, on a broader level, vicious cycle of opioid addiction.” opioid addiction in our state.” Needle exchange has seen support His continued hesitation is despite in both the House and Senate as well as some claims of 97% exchange rate at these from members on both sides of the aisle. programs, Hill citing data from an article in the The current stance on needle exchange Richmond Palladium-Item. “In this article, it was is a swift departure from former Gov. Attorney General Curtis Hill reported that 580 used needles were turned in Mike Pence, and there was vocal support during the Republican Con- and 800 new needles were handed out ear- against the idea. At this time in Indiana vention. (HPI Photo by Mark lier this month,” Hill said. “In just the last two politics, however, many members sing a Curry) months, there was a net increase of 366 more different tune on the issue. Senate Presi- needles in Wayne County because of the needle dent David Long said early in January that he supports exchange program.” needle exchange and that he “has come around to it and understands it better now.” Bosma defends Smaltz In the House, HB1438 calls for expanding the House Speaker Brian Bosma strongly defended a ability of local communities to create needle exchanges. Republican colleague Tuesday after an anti-abortion group The issue has been backed by both Republicans and picketed the legislator’s home in Auburn for several hours Democrats. House speaker Brian Bosma told members of Sunday and also attempted to demonstrate at his church the media that he supports what the state is doing now (Kelly, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette). The protest against and wants to give “more flexibility” to local communities in Rep. Ben Smaltz came after his decision not to hear a bill establishing needle exchange programs. banning abortion in Indiana. “I think some of the tactics Minority leader Scott Pelath called Hill’s testimony of the proponents are not appropriate,” Bosma said. “It’s before the committee “a bad audition” for the new AG. not appropriate to show up at someone’s house of worship Pelath has praised Gov. Holcomb for his stance on needle and call their faith into question. It’s not effective.” Bosma exchange and said it’s a “welcomed difference from his said Smaltz is a strong pro-life conservative and he made predecessor.” the right decision not to hear a bill that would lead to a Last week, members of the Legislative Black Cau- sure lawsuit with little chance of success. “Passing some- cus also signaled disapproval of Hill’s testimony. State Rep. thing that is going to be unsuccessful just to make a point Charlie Brown called it “disappointing” and said that he I don’t think is advisable,” the speaker said. hopes “we can change his mind on the issue.” Members of Page 13

Study on Terre Haute casino cies evaluating water rate hike proposals to consider long- A state analysis estimates 800,000 people would term infrastructure replacement and regulatory costs. In visit a proposed Terre Haute casino each year, generating addition, it aims to prevent a water crisis like that in Flint, between $75 million and $88 million in adjusted gaming Michigan, from happening in Indiana by authorizing water revenue (Taylor, Terre Haute Tribune-Star). The review quality tests before the water source of a public utility is by the Indiana Legislative Services Agency says about 43 changed. percent of that revenue would come from other gaming locations. State Sen. Jon Ford moved Wednesday to make Lawmakers weigh gaming tax change his Terre Haute casino bill more palatable to some existing Lawmakers are weighing a bill that would make gaming interests (Taylor, Terre Haute Tribune-Star). Ford expansive changes to Indiana’s gaming taxes (Smith, introduced and the Senate Public Policy Committee ap- Indiana Public Media). Republican Representative Todd proved, an amendment requiring the owner of a proposed Huston says his legislation aims to help Indiana casinos casino to pay local governments in Madison and Shelby stay viable as they face increasing competition. Changes it counties more than $500,000 per year and $900,000 an- would make to current law include eliminating the admis- nually to the Indiana Horse Racing Commission. sions tax - a three dollar fee each time a person enters the gaming floor. Huston says this discourages casinos Senate passes water infrastructure bill from adding attractions like restaurants and bars. Huston’s The days of Hoosiers simply taking water avail- bill would instead charge a three percent tax on casinos’ ability for granted may be over (Carden, NWI Times). On gaming revenue. Republican Representative Randy Frye Monday, the Indiana Senate voted 49-0 for legislation, says, while the bill’s changes might not make a big impact sponsored by state Sen. Ed Charbonneau, R-Valparaiso, on state revenues, the impact on small communities with that begins the process of determining the state’s current casinos in his district would be enormous. “We aren’t just water capacity and future need, as well as how to rebuild thinking about the impact here, financially to the state its broken water infrastructure. Senate Bill 511, which now of Indiana. We’re thinking about the impact financially goes to the House, puts the Indiana Finance Authority in to those small communities, some of which have bonds charge of various water studies and requires state agen- against their riverboat money.” Legislative fiscal analysts Page 14 estimate a yearly revenue hit of around 50 million dollars end, he would like to see the bill’s language tightened up for local communities. Huston stresses that the bill is far in terms of the difference between vacated and exoner- from a final product. ated.

Soliday pledges to rework Tesla bill Bill would vacate victim convictions Indiana lawmakers are reworking a bill after crit- Victims of human trafficking in Indiana could soon ics charged that it would sound the death knell for auto have a new mechanism for relief from charges brought manufacturer Tesla’s ability to sell cars in the state (Associ- against them while they were under the control of a traf- ated Press). After nearly two hours of testimony Wednes- ficker if a new bill designed to vacate those charges is day, House transportation committee Chairman Ed Soliday passed (Covington, Indiana Lawyer). Although members called a recess and said he would hammer out a com- of the Senate Corrections and Criminal Law Committee promise between conventional auto manufacturers, their did not vote on Senate Bill 166 when its author, Sen. Jack dealership franchises and Tesla. The Valparaiso Republican Sandlin, R-Indianapolis, presented it on Tuesday, lawmak- said the committee would reconvene Thursday for a vote ers indicated that they were supportive of the concept. on an amendment. “We are a very pro-business state, but If passed, SB 166 would allow individuals convicted of at the same time, (we need to) maintain loyalty to those non-violent offenses, such as prostitution or adjudica- people who have provided jobs, invested billions of dollars tion as juvenile delinquents for prostitution, to petition in our state and have serviced the consumers of Indiana the court to vacate their convictions if they can prove by for many, many years,” said Soliday. a preponderance of evidence that their actions were the result of trafficking-related coercion. Sandlin, who has a ATV safety bill passes committee background in law enforcement, told committee members The House Committee on Roads and Transporta- that he retrospectively realizes that many individuals who tion approved a proposal authored by State Reps. Ron were prosecuted for prostitution charges during his career Bacon (R-Chandler) and Wendy McNamara (R-Evansville) were actually trafficking victims. that works to increase ATV safety, a news release stated (Howey Politics Indiana). If passed into law, House Bill Schools overdose bill advances 1200 would require anyone under the age of 18 to wear Indiana schools could store and administer life- a helmet while riding or operating off-road vehicles, like saving drugs to treat heroin overdoses and asthma at- ATVs. “ tacks under a measure that a state Senate committee Lawson throws support to notaries bill unanimously approved Wednesday (Costello, Associated The Indiana State Senate passed Senate Bill 539 Press). The bill would allow schools or school corporations regarding Notaries Public out of committee, with Secretary to fill prescriptions to then keep a supply of naloxone and of State Connie Lawson supporting the amended bill, her albuterol, an asthma treatment, in their buildings for use office stated in a news release. Lawson remains optimis- in emergency situations. Existing law allows them to stock tic about the future of introducing new technologies of epinephrine to treat severe allergic reactions. Democratic remote notarization to the process. Below is her statement Sen. Mark Stoops, the measure’s author, said expanding on the issue. “As Secretary of State, I am strongly support- the permitted emergency medications could help prevent ive of legislation to authorize Indiana notaries to conduct “tragic situations” when children have reactions, overdoses notarizations by means of a secure, recorded two-way live or respiratory attacks while at school. Schools wouldn’t audio-video call. have to participate. Under the Bloomington lawmaker’s bill, a nurse or trained school employee could administer the Wrongful conviction bill advances drugs when a person is demonstrating signs or symptoms A bill that would provide monetary compensation of a life-threatening emergency. A report to the Indiana to wrongly convicted Hoosiers is advancing (Stancombe, Department of Education would be required after adminis- Statehouse File). Under House Bill 1062, individuals sen- tration. tenced for a crime they did not commit could apply to receive a $25,000 compensation for every year they spent in Setback for Vanderburgh tax bill the Department of Corrections. However, the money would Indiana lawmakers likely won’t vote on, or even be available only if the person is vacated by DNA evidence. discuss, a bill that would have let Vanderburgh County of- “I’ve got to stick with DNA,” said author Rep. Greg Steuer- ficials raise the local income tax to expand the county jail wald, R-Avon. “It’s the most scientific basis I can think (Evans, Evansville Courier & Press). The bill’s future isn’t of in determining the innocent.” But Rep. Ryan Dvorak, clear, but county officials have chalked the legislation as a D-South Bend, though in favor of the general idea, said he loss. Vanderburgh County Council President John Montras- thinks limiting it to DNA evidence is too restrictive. “In fact telle, R-District 4, said during Wednesday’s meeting the bill most sentences that are vacated don’t have anything to do was “pulled” and won’t receive a hearing. v with DNA,” he said. Dvorak also said that on the opposite Page 15

Q. What has Father Jenkins said? Notre Dame ponders A. He is weighing the invitation tradition against what Trump at commencement would mean for graduates and their parents. He said there was “a bit of a political a Trump invitation circus” with Obama in 2009 and: “My concern a little bit is By JACK COLWELL that, should the new president come, it may be even more SOUTH BEND – “The University of Notre Dame of a circus.” confers the degree of doctor of laws, honoris causa, on the Q. Would Trump bring more protest at commence- 45th president of the United States ... Donald J. Trump.” ment than there was in ’09? Q. Will those words be spoken by the Rev. John A. More by far. Most of the Obama protest took Jenkins, Notre Dame president, on May 21 at the univer- place before commencement, such as with a plane flying sity’s 172nd commencement? around and around campus for days with an anti-abortion A. Only if two things sign. A brief attempt in the audience to interrupt Obama happen: Jenkins invites Trump was put down by graduates drowning out the few protest- as commencement speaker and ers with a loud, proud claim: “We are ND!” Most students Trump accepts the invitation. were content that Obama, no matter his political views, Q. Are an invitation and was being recognized as the first African-American presi- acceptance likely? dent and was there really to honor the late Rev. Theodore A. We don’t know what M. Hesburgh, a giant in civil rights. could be in the works – negotia- Q. Wouldn’t students be content with honoring tions with the White House? – Trump for achieving the presidency? but neither invitation nor ac- A. Some would. Some wouldn’t. Strong sentiment ceptance was regarded as either against Trump on deportation was shown by both the stu- likely or impossible as strong dent senate and faculty senate urging that the university opinions were heard on campus, including differing views be declared a “sanctuary campus” to protect undocument- in letters to the Observer, the student newspaper. ed students against any Trump efforts to remove them. Q. Some students want Trump invited? Some students walked out of class in a demonstration call- A. Sure. Some, even if not liking all of the divi- ing on Jenkins to declare sanctuary status. They wouldn’t sive things Trump has said and done, think the university be silent during a Trump appearance. should follow a tradition of inviting presidents to speak at Q. Would Trump come, if invited? commencement, especially newly elected presidents. A. He might not. He doesn’t think kindly of those Q. An example? who criticize him. There would be a lot of criticism at Notre A. In a letter to the Observer, junior Maximilian Dame. But if he came, he would answer back. v Towey wrote, “I’m trying to think who’s under more pres- sure at ND right now: Brian Kelly or Father Jenkins? One Colwell has covered Indiana politics over five de- is coming off a 4-8 football season despite markedly high cades for the South Bend Tribune. preseason expectations, while the other is confronted with the quandary of either abiding by the Notre Dame tradition of inviting the United States president for commencement, or shirking this tradition to keep perhaps the most polar- izing figure in America off our campus.” Towey said it was Radical thoughts right to invite President Obama as 2009 speaker, despite some protests then, and that “we owe the same courtesy to his controversial successor.” on commuting Q. There’s disagreement with that? By MORTON MARCUS A. Sure is. Thousands of students and faculty INDIANAPOLIS – Snow Flake wears a “Hippie for members have signed petitions urging Jenkins not to invite Goldwater” pin and a “Make Indiana Trump. Junior Liam Maher presented that view in the Ob- Great Again” cap. After she reads a server, responding to Towey: “The author errs in normal- draft of the column intended for this izing Trump’s behavior so as to compare it to the contro- week, she says, “Rewrite it.” versy surrounding President Barack Obama. The latter was I’m aghast. No one has ever criticized primarily due to his political policies (read: his told me to rewrite an entire column. stance on abortion), whereas the former stirs controversy Seething, I ask, “Why?” through his blatant disregard for people and their human “It doesn’t promote the policy dignity.” Maher said that inviting Trump would go beyond needed in this country,” she says. “It politics and condone “language of hate, fear, selfishness fails to advocate civic and environ- and anger.” mental responsibility, an end to urban Page 16 sprawl, and a restoration of family life by reducing cross- give up their land, endure the traffic, and risk decades of county commuting.” pollution by providing jobs to people who don’t live there.” “Snow,” I answer, “this is just a column pointing out “That’s a horrifying picture of our society,” I say. the magnitudes of money that cross Hoosier county lines “We can change it,” Snow says. “Charge fees on by commuting, something like $63 billion in 2015.” vehicles with out-of-county license plates for parking in our “We’d be better off,” she responds, “if that money county. Place a tax on the income of non-residents. Tax stayed where it was made. People ought to live where employers who hire out-of-county workers or give them they work and work where they live. All this commuting tax breaks for hiring in-county workers.” causes time lost in needless travel, excess use of energy, “Some of those ideas have been tried,” I say. “But, pollution, congestion, and alienation from community.” economies work best when goods, services, capital and “Hardly useless,” I insist. “Commuting allows people can cross boundaries freely.” workers greater choice in jobs and families greater choice “That’s old-style thinking,” Snow smirks. “We all in residences.” know that taking care of ourselves first is the best way to “But it rips people out of their communities,” Snow increase the welfare of everyone. says. “What interest do you have in the problems of the “That would mean no inter-state commuting?” I county in which you work, if you live elsewhere? And com- say. “Right on!” she says. “If you work in Chicago or Louis- muters probably have less time or concern with their home ville or Cincinnati, go live there or find a job in your home county because it is not the source of their livelihoods.” county.” “Reality…” I start to say. But she interrupts, “Don’t “That policy would deprive Hoosiers of about $5.8 give me your take on reality. Each county, each state, each billion dollars in earnings,” I note. “There’s more to life nation needs to do what’s best for itself. Over a billion than money,” Snow chants. “Change your column from dull dollars a year are stolen via commuting from each of six numbers to these patriotic ideas and you’ll have people Indiana counties, Marion, Elkhart, Vanderburgh, Allen, cheering.” Bartholomew and Tippecanoe. They’re the biggest of the I’m listening for the cheers or jeers. v 19 exporters of earnings in the state. “The other 73 counties are leaches,” she contin- Mr. Marcus is an economist, writer, and speaker ues, “sucking the life out of the exporting counties that who may be reached at mortonjmarcus@yahoo.

Bielak was white and Rucker was black, it became a very Justice Rucker’s racist campaign. And the unbecoming photo of Rucker seemed to have come from a police lineup. At the time, black candidates didn’t win primary journey ending elections for countywide offices in Lake County. And, By RICH JAMES Rucker didn’t become the exception. Bielak trounced the MERRILLVILLE – Indiana Supreme Court Justice man who seemed to have a leg up in terms of qualifica- Robert Rucker plans to retire sometime this spring. Rucker, tions. a Gary native, and I met some 37 years ago when he Rucker’s loss – and the fact that blacks didn’t was on the campaign trail. He was hold countywide offices at the time – angered Gary Mayor bright, good looking and it seemed Richard G. Hatcher, who with Carl Stokes in Cleveland, like his future was going to be became the first black mayors of major U.S. cities in 1967. bright. Hatcher wanted to see blacks win countywide offices and But, it didn’t start out moved to make that happen at a county Democratic con- too well. Rucker decided to run vention. After all, Hatcher argued that blacks delivered 25 for judge, Lake Superior Court, percent of the Democratic vote and deserved some gains County Division, in 1980. I guess in return. they called them small claims court The Gary mayor introduced a resolution calling judges back then. His opponent in on the party to back a black candidate for a countywide the Democratic primary was East office. When the party refused to do so, Hatcher and his Chicago native Steven Bielak, who, delegation walked out of the convention. like Rucker, was an upcoming judicial and political star. It Things, of course, have changed. There are three was quite a primary, and in true Lake County tradition, the blacks holding countywide office, Clerk Mike Brown, Asses- mud flew freely. sor Jerome Prince and Prosecutor Bernard Carter. Bielak’s handlers insisted on newspaper ads Rucker, of course, got named to the Supreme depicting the two candidates, and many of the ads con- Court, not elected. I remember talking to Rucker a few tained photographs of the two candidates. And, because years later when he visited Lake County. I joked that he Page 17 couldn’t even win a small claims court election and now As for Bielak, he got in legal trouble and left the he was on the Supreme Court. In true Rucker style, he bench. And, Bielak’s replacement? Sheila Moss, a black laughed. woman from Gary, got the job and remains on the bench. I also found it interesting that as a Supreme v Court justice, he took a seat on the Lake County Judicial Nominating Commission which screened judge applicants Rich James has been writing about state and local and sent three names to the governor from which one was government and politics for more than 30 years. He picked to fill a judicial vacancy. is a columnist for the Times of Northwest Indiana.

which people can retreat into “bubbles,” both geographic Obama’s farewell and ideological, in which we see only people we identify with and hear only information that already fits our pre- By LEE HAMILTON conceived notions. BLOOMINGTON – The responsibility for making This makes the underpinnings of a successful rep- this a better country lies with each of us. As a country, we resentative democracy – the search for common ground, make a habit of looking forward, not backward. But I’m the willingness to negotiate, the freedom to compromise – going to ask you to turn your attention back a few weeks, difficult if not impossible to pursue. to Barack Obama’s Jan. 10 farewell address to the Ameri- Yet what may be most striking about the can people. farewell address is that it is filled with hope, and with a I’ve been reading presidential farewell speeches clear optimism that we can overcome division and tempo- for many years. Most of them give rary steps backward. Not that this will be easy, Mr. Obama good advice. This speech, however, notes. Restoring a sense of common purpose will require a was exceptional. It can be read with change both in hearts and in beliefs. “We all have to start benefit by Republicans and Demo- with the premise that each of our fellow citizens loves this crats, conservatives and liberals, be- country just as much as we do; that they value hard work cause it says a lot of things that we and family just like we do; that their children are just as need to hear about our system and curious and hopeful and worthy of love as our own,” he our country. I hope that for some says. time to come, this speech will be a Furthermore, he recognizes that while politics topic of conversation in classrooms, is a battle of ideas, “without some common baseline of at church socials, and around the facts, without a willingness to admit new information and table at local service clubs. concede that your opponent might be making a fair point, Why? To begin with, the speech is filled with and that science and reason matter, then we’re going to confidence in ordinary people and respect for what worka- keep talking past each other.” These are challenges, but day Americans can accomplish. This is a founding value they’re hardly insurmountable, especially if we learn to put of our country – both a promise and a call to civic arms. ourselves in others’ shoes. Our rights, the former president notes, “have never been As you read this speech, it’s hard to avoid self-executing.” Instead, our system is built around the a sense of the basic strength of our country. There’s a belief “that We, the People, through the instrument of our celebration of the peaceful transfer of power, a straightfor- democracy, can form a more perfect union.” ward discussion of race and ways to surmount the burdens The responsibility for making this a better country, that racial discord have imposed on our society, a magna- in other words, lies with each of us. “Show up, dive in, nimity toward ideological adversaries, an underlying sense stay at it,” he says. “And more often than not, your faith in of inclusiveness and decency. These are wise words from a America and in Americans will be confirmed.” mature politician who clearly has confidence in the nation’s At the same time, throughout the speech, Mr. ability to forge ahead and meet its challenges. Obama makes it clear that it’s challenging to make rep- I understand that a lot of people in this country resentative democracy work. As a nation, he argues, we don’t agree with former President Obama on many things. have enormous potential, but we cannot take our success But set aside the person who wrote it for a moment; this for granted. If we don’t “create opportunity for all people,” speech is instructive for all of us on what this country is all he warns, “the disaffection and division that has stalled about and how we can make it better. v our progress will only sharpen in years to come.” Indeed, our democracy is being severely tested Lee Hamilton is a Senior Advisor for the Indiana right now, in part by a disintegrating sense of common University Center on Representative Government; ground among Americans of different racial, ethnic, and He was a member of the U.S. House of Representa- class background, and in part by the growing ease with Page 18

Michael Morrell, Washington Post: As you ability to bend global history toward freedom. He had a walk through the main lobby of the CIA, your gaze is sunny faith in the free market to deliver prosperity to all. drawn to the right — toward the Memorial Wall, with its The mood of the party is so different today. Donald Trump 117 stars, one for each CIA officer who has died in the expressed the party’s new mood to David Muir of ABC, line of duty; toward the Book of Honor listing the names when asked about his decision to suspend immigration of those officers, where cover considerations allow; and from some Muslim countries: “The world is a mess. The toward the fresh flowers that are almost always there, world is as angry as it gets. What, you think this is going placed by friends and colleagues inspired by their sacrifice. to cause a little more anger? The world is an angry place.” It was this wall that drew so much negative commentary Consider the tenor of Trump’s first week in office. It’s all about President Trump’s visit to the CIA this month — the about threat perception. He has made moves to build a president’s brief, almost offhand reference wall against the Mexican threat, to build barriers against to a memorial that is the soul of the agency, the Muslim threat, to end a trade deal with Asia and his clear elevation of his ego above the to fight the foreign economic threat, to build black sacrifices of those memorialized on the wall. site torture chambers against the terrorist threat. Such commentaries were on the mark, and Trump is on his political honeymoon, which should they captured my own feelings as well. But be a moment of joy and promise. But he seems there is another wall in the lobby that carries to suffer from an angry form of anhedonia, the almost as much significance as the Memorial Wall — the inability to experience happiness. Instead of savor- wall that is to the left as you enter, the wall that your eye ing the moment, he’s spent the week in a series of nasty often misses. On that wall is a verse from the Gospel of squabbles about his ratings and crowd sizes. If Reagan’s John that reads, “And ye shall know the truth, and the dominant emotional note was optimism, Trump’s is fear. truth shall make you free.” The CIA website notes that this If Reagan’s optimism was expansive, Trump’s fear propels verse is the agency’s “motto,” but it is much more. It is the him to close in: Pull in from Asian entanglements through ethos of the agency — the strongly held belief that is the rejection of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Pull in from job of the CIA, as it relates to national security, to discover European entanglements by disparaging NATO. It’s not a the truth and share it with the president, no matter what cowering, timid fear; it’s more a dark, resentful porcupine the implications might be for policy, politics or the presi- fear. We have a word for people who are dominated by dent himself. This ethos is discussed on an employee’s fear. We call them cowards. Students, the party didn’t used first day on the job, when a young officer raises his or to be this way. A mean wind is blowing. v her right hand and takes the oath of office — in the very lobby where Trump spoke. The ethos is stressed in train- Matt Tully, IndyStar: Many Hoosiers spoke out this ing classes, directors reference it in speeches, and it is weekend against the Trump administration’s immigration reinforced in the lore shared when officers gather to have order. Their voices were as welcome as they were neces- a drink after a long week. The ethos is a key tenet of both sary. They cannot go away. Let’s take a moment to thank the operational and analytic sides of the organization. It those who drove to the Indianapolis airport this weekend is a deeply embedded part of the culture. Any perception to protest the latest display of hatred coming from Donald of someone trying to alter the truth, as the officers see it, J. Trump, a man so unfit for the U.S. presidency that it’s creates immediate antibodies — complaints to manage- still hard to believe he holds that position. The protesters ment, complaints to the agency ombudsman (itself a cre- held hand-made signs saying “Indy welcomes all,” and ation of the ethos), complaints to Congress and, unfortu- “We are all immigrants.” They stared into TV cameras and nately, occasional leaks to the media. It was, therefore, a spoke in an all-American way in support of refugees and deep irony that Trump chose the CIA lobby, with its quote others targeted by the new administration. In doing so, from John’s Gospel, as the location of his first official act they spoke not only to but for many of us who understand as president. It is an irony because, as has become clear, that safety and security are critical issues but that Trump is the president seems to shun the truth and he alters it with exploiting fears to push through the type of government- alarming frequency. In speaking to the American people, sponsored discrimination that will serve as a sad mark on he misrepresents the facts almost daily. v our nation’s history. To all those who protested, thank you. The only good news is that Donald Trump’s discrimination David Brooks, New York Times: This is a column has been met by so many voices of dissent. so many wise directed at high school and college students. I’m going to voices emerged this weekend. Voices like that of Mitch try to convey to you how astoundingly different the Repub- Daniels, the Purdue University president. Daniels issued a lican Party felt when I was your age. The big guy then was statement condemning Trump’s executive order on im- Ronald Reagan. Temperamentally, though not politically, migration as “a bad idea, poorly implemented.” That said Reagan was heir to the two Roosevelts. He inherited a love it all: The Trump White House — these are my words, not of audacity from T.R. and optimism and charm from F.D.R. Daniels’ — is not only misguided but apparently incompe- He had a sunny faith in America’s destiny and in America’s tent. v Page 19

first tie-breaking vote in the Senate Holcomb to head (Groppe, IndyStar). Two Republicans “Iran is rapidly taking over more and - Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa more of Iraq even after the U.S. has to East Chicago Murkowski of Alaska - announced squandered three trillion dollars there. Wednesday they will vote against the Obvious long ago!” he said on Twitter.. EAST CHICAGO — Residents confirmation of Betsy DeVos as educa- of the lead- and arsenic-contaminated tion secretary. If the 50 other Senate Scales bolts USS Lead Superfund site hope to get Republicans vote for DeVos, and the some face-to-face time with GOP Gov. 46 Democrats and two independents Republican Party Eric Holcomb when he plans to visit who caucus with them oppose her, the East Chicago later this month (Cross, Senate would split 50-50. INDIANAPOLIS — City- NWI Times). “We want him to meet County Councilwoman Christine with us, take a tour of the entire Su- Deputy Indy mayor Scales announced Wednesday she is perfund site and really find out what’s dumping the GOP and becoming a going on and hear it first-hand from posts Facebook slur Democrat (Ryckaert, IndyStar). “I ran the residents,” said Maritza Lopez, a for my council office as a Republican resident in East Calumet and member TERRE HAUTE — The deputy and have voted with the party for of the Community Advisory Group, mayor of Indianapolis’ neighborhood more than 40 years,” Scales said on a resident-led organiza- engagement has been ac- Facebook. “This is a difficult decision tion advocating on behalf cused of writing a racially for me, but one I feel I must make in of residents during the offensive slur over Facebook order to serve the best interest of my Environmental Protection (WISH-TV). In the photo, you constituents.” Scales praised Mayor Agency’s cleanup of the can see David A. Hampton’s Joe Hogsett and council President Superfund site. Holcomb name next to some racially Maggie A. Lewis for their leader- spokeswoman Stephanie offensive comments in what ship and inclusiveness. “I anticipate Wilson confirmed Wednesday that appears to be a reply to a photo of accomplishing more of behalf of my Holcomb is planning a trip to meet President Trump holding a meeting constituents, as well as being able to with local officials regarding the city’s to honor Black History Month. Hamp- better work toward the greater good lead contamination problems. She did ton also serves as the senior pastor of the City of Indianapolis,” Scales said not have additional details and could of Light the World Christian Church. not say if Holcomb will also be meet- Councillor Michael McQuillen has Trump badgers ing with residents. “That trip will help called on Mayor Hogsett to take ac- inform next steps,” Wilson said in an tion. Austrialian PM email. Flynn threatens WASHINGTON — It should Tony Bennett joins have been one of the most congenial Iran after missile calls for the new commander in chief Clark Couty Council — a conversation with the leader of WASHINGTON — National Australia, one of America’s staunch- JEFFERSONVILLE — For- Security Adviser Michael Flynn said est allies, at the end of a triumphant mer State Superintendent of Public Wednesday that President Donald week (Washington Post). Instead, Instruction and Clark County native Trump’s administration is “officially President Trump blasted Australian Tony Bennett is now a member of the putting Iran on notice,” and senior Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull over a Clark County Council (Beilman, News administration officials later refused refugee agreement and boasted about & Tribune). Bennett was one of two to rule out military action against the the magnitude of his electoral college Republicans caucused onto the board Islamic Republic (Politico). Senior win, according to senior U.S. officials Wednesday evening in an unexpected administration officials Wednesday briefed on the Saturday exchange. move. “Our family’s roots are in Clark afternoon said Iran’s “highly pro- Then, 25 minutes into what was ex- County,” Bennett said. “When my fam- vocative” behavior, including a recent pected to be an hour-long call, Trump ily and I moved back to the area, it missile test, “is a destabilizing factor in abruptly ended it. At one point, Trump was an opportunity I saw.” the region” and promised a response. informed Turnbull that he had spoken The administration is considering “a with four other world leaders that day Pence could large number of options” to address — including Russian President Vladimir Iran, but refused to say whether Putin — and that “this was the worst break DeVos tie military action is among them. Later call by far.” Wednesday, Trump echoed Flynn’s WASHINGTON — Vice Presi- more aggressive stance toward Iran in dent Pence may soon get to cast his a tweet.