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Indiana Supreme Court won’t fast track abortion case
The Indiana Supreme Court has declined to take a second case involving Indiana’s near-total abortion ban — sending the matter through the usual lower court process instead. Attorney General Todd Rokita had asked to bypass the Indiana Court of Appeals after a Marion Superior Court judge granted a second preliminary injunction against the ban, this […]
Hupfer loses RNC co-chair bid
Indiana Republican Party Chairman Kyle Hupfer lost his bid for Republican National Committee co-chair Friday in a third-round vote. Drew McKissick of South Carolina received 90 votes compared to Hupfer’s 76. On the first two ballots, Hupfer received 52 votes. A third candidate, Mike Whatley of North Carolina, withdrew his name after the second round […]
School choice cost can’t be ignored
Lawmakers need to be honest and upfront about the long-term cost of expanding education scholarship accounts to all children between the age of 5 and 22 with no limitations based on family income, also known as universal school choice. The program could easily eclipse $300 million a year (or half a billion if you include […]
Voting rights stripped from some Hoosiers in bill
Hoosiers convicted of felony vote fraud offenses wouldn’t be able to cast a ballot for 10 years under a bill passed 6-4 by the House Elections Committee Wednesday. The legislation was amended so that misdemeanor offenses wouldn’t count — only felonies. But Democrats tried to remove the suffrage language altogether, with Republicans defending it. “Once […]
IEDC is spending more and more Hoosier dollars to bring jobs here
I was sitting at home watching a basketball game over the holiday break when my head perked up: I heard Roger Penske’s voice on the television. What was first idle curiosity grew when I realized he was narrating a minute-long ad for the IEDC on national television. Called “The Winners,” the glitzy ad is full […]
Banks makes U.S. Senate run official
Northeast Indiana Congressman Jim Banks jumped into the 2024 race for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday — becoming the first candidate in what is expected to be a crowded Republican field. The conservative rabble-rouser is known for his fiery tweets and has served the Third District in the U.S. House since 2017. He just began […]
Child abuse and neglect deaths deserve more light, attention
At 4:30 p.m. on Friday Dec. 30 — days after a Christmas holiday and days before New Year’s — the Indiana Department of Child Services dropped its annual report of child abuse and neglect fatalities. Sixty Hoosier children died at the hands of their mother, father, parents’ significant other or caregiver in 2021. That was […]
Kudos to *most* of Gov. Eric Holcomb’s budget priorities
Some of Gov. Eric Holcomb’s budget priorities will no doubt be controversial — especially to conservatives who focus solely on tax cuts and never see a reason to increase government spending. But he should get credit for recognizing some long-known needs, as well as acknowledging the state is at a tipping point for other necessary […]
Lawmakers need to do more listening in 2023
My Christmas wish is pretty simple: I would like lawmakers to listen to what Hoosiers want. ALL Hoosiers, not just the loudest slice of their Republican constituents. Poll after poll and survey after survey shows what Indiana residents are worried about, and what they aren’t. Bellwether Research’s latest poll in early December surveyed 1,100 Hoosiers […]
From Amboy to the Statehouse: Kenworthy added to Indiana Court of Appeals
Gov. Eric Holcomb on Wednesday named Grant County Superior Court Judge Dana Kenworthy to the Indiana Court of Appeals, marking the first time the majority of the 15 members are women. She recently was a finalist for an Indiana Supreme Court opening but Holcomb chose Derek Molter instead. Now Kenworthy will fill Molter’s spot on the […]
Hupfer eyes co-chairman of Republican National Committee
INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana Republican Party Chairman Kyle Hupfer is looking to move up — by running for the number two spot at the Republican National Committee. “I just think that we are at a unique crossroads for the party. 2024 is going to be a critical election,” he told the Indiana Capital Chronicle in an […]
Pence book provides window into tenure as governor
Covering four years of Mike Pence when he was governor was often an act of futility. As the world now knows, he refuses to answer questions in any meaningful way and his administration caught onto that trait fast. He had big ideas but didn’t sweat the details. In his new book, So Help Me God, […]