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HPI EXCLUSIVE: DONNELLY ENDORSES OBAMA: U.S. Rep. Joe Donnelly endorsed Barack Obama’s presidential campaign today (Brian A. Howey, Howey Politics Indiana). "At a time when too many Americans have lost faith in their government, Senator Obama can move us beyond the politics of stalemate and gridlock that has kept us from meeting the monumental challenges of our time: our dependence on foreign oil, a health care gap that leaves tens of millions uninsured, the steady deterioration of our manufacturing base, and an economy that is not working for working people," Donnelly announced in a statement. .jpg)
"I am looking for a president who can bring this nation together, build bipartisan majorities in Congress, and energize the American people to tackle the tough issues. Senator Clinton is a tenacious fighter for the American people, and particularly for working families, but I believe Barack Obama is the president that we need at this moment in history. He has helped engage over 3 million new voters, tapped into the American people’s powerful desire for change, and pointed the way toward a more hopeful future for our country. We don’t agree on 100 percent of the issues, just as I’m sure that my constituents don’t agree with me on 100 percent of the issues. But we share a commitment to working people—to trade that is fair, job growth at home, and health care that is affordable. And we share a determination to keep our military the strongest in the world, while also giving our veterans the care, support, and respect they have earned. The Democratic Party’s strength comes from its core commitment to the American Dream and from a coalition that is ideologically, economically, geographically, and ethnically diverse. Barack Obama will stand with working families while building that coalition so that we can change this country, and that’s why he’s the best choice for America." He wanted to see how his district voted but he didn’t want to be seen as influencing the vote," said former Indiana Congressman Tim Roemer. Obama carried St. Joseph and Elkhart counties but lost Donnelly’s 2nd CD by a couple of percent. "He just gave this some thought and likes then both but I think he believes Obama can win," said 2nd CD Chairman Butch Morgan. Roemer added, "We’re delighted to get him. Obama is picking up more and more support." Roemer said he was up until 10 p.m. last night making calls to super delegates. He said he had talked with Donnelly several times since January. He also reported ‘very positive" conversations with Indiana’s other two super delegates: U.S. Reps. Pete Visclosky and Brad Ellsworth. Donnelly told HPI on May 4 that his wife and children were backing Obama. He was invigorated to see the demonstrators on the street and said that the youthful support was "inspiring."
HPI EXCLUSIVE: MEEKS EXPECTED TO ANNOUNCE RETIREMENT: Sen. Robert Meeks is expected to announce his retirement at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Indiana Senate Chambers, informed and reliable Republican sources tell Howey Politics Indiana. Other sources expect Meeks to finish out his term which ends this year (Howey Politics Indiana). Meeks reportedly suffered a stroke this spring. He has been influential on the budget process. Earlier this spring, Senate President Pro Tempore David Long began moving people into place signalling a possible change in fiscal leadership. State Sen. Ronnie Alting was moved to an adviser on the Indiana Budget Committee. Meeks had not scheduled his annual golf outing and had been donating chunks of his campaign warchest to other candidates. Meeks was first elected to the Senate in 1988 and chairs the powerful appropriations committee. Expected to seek the Senate District 13 seat are State Reps. Marlin Stutzman and Matt Bell. Meeks is shown here at a 2006 Major Moves rally with Gov. Mitch Daniels, and, at the far left, State Sen. Glenn Howard, who missed the entire 2008 legislative session with health problems.
HPI EXCLUSIVE: DANIELS ENDORSES COSTAS, BENNETT: Gov. Mitch Daniels has endorsed Valparaiso Mayor Jon Costas for the Republican mominatin for attorney general and Greater Clark Schools Supt. Tony Bennett for superintendent of public instruction, the Howey Politics Indiana website reported Monday morning. In a letter to state committeemen and women, Daniels said, "We are fortunate to have an excellent candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction in Dr. Tony Bennett, who has served the students and families of Indiana for two decades as a teacher, coach, principal, and superintendent. Tony, with a strong background in curriculum, instruction, and strategic planning, has a record of success in improving the performance of school districts. I am convinced his enthusiasm, record of accomplishment, and commitment to taxpayers will make him an excellent partner at the State House." Current Supt. Suellen Reed announced last month she would not seek a fifth term. On the attorney general race where incumbent Steve Carter is not seeking re-election, Daniels wrote, "We also have two outstanding men running for Attorney General. I have known both Valparaiso Mayor Jon Costas and Greg Zoeller for years. I like and admire them both very much. I have heard from a large number of party and civic leaders making the point that three-quarters of our 2008 ticket should not come from one geographical area, and I find I must agree. Fairness, balance, and political common sense all argue for supporting Mayor Jon Costas. I ask you to join me in doing so." Daniels endorsement of Costas is considered a crucial development for the nomination which will take place at the Indiana Republican Convention on June 2.
SHINE, 3 CD CHAIRS ENDORSE ZOELLER: Greg Zoeller, Carter’s chief deputy, traveled to Fort Wayne on Monday to speak to a conservative breakfast club. He told the Journal Gazette he sees northeast Indiana as the key to his chances to get the nomination, which is why he has been collecting endorsements from local Republicans. “If I’m the nominee, I can thank the folks in Allen County for being the key part in the north,” he said. Zoeller on Monday touted the endorsements of three congressional district chairs, including Barb Krisher, chairwoman of the 3rd District. He said he is also soliciting endorsements from county party chairs in part so those people can appoint his supporters to vacant delegate spots. He said he has secured the support of Allen County GOP Chairman Steve Shine. Shine said he is supporting Zoeller in part because he has known him for 25 years, and also because he thinks Zoeller will best continue the consumer advocacy programs of Carter. But Shine added his endorsement is merely his personal preference and doesn’t reflect the entire county party.
Presidential
OBAMA CAMPAIGN RAN INTO HOOSIER RACISM: Danielle Ross was alone in an empty room at the Obama campaign headquarters in Kokomo, Ind., a cellphone in one hand, a voter call list in the other. She was stretched out on the carpeted floor wearing laceless sky-blue Converses, stories from the trail on her mind. It was the day before Indiana’s primary, and she had just been chased by dogs while canvassing in a Kokomo suburb. But that was not the worst thing to occur since she postponed her sophomore year at Middle Tennessee State University, in part to hopscotch America stumping for Barack Obama (Washington Post). Here’s the worst: In Muncie, a factory town in the east-central part of Indiana, Ross and her cohorts were soliciting support for Obama at malls, on street corners and in a Wal-Mart parking lot, and they ran into "a horrible response," as Ross put it, a level of anti-black sentiment that none of them had anticipated. "The first person I encountered was like, ‘I’ll never vote for a black person,’ " recalled Ross, who is white and just turned 20. "People just weren’t receptive." For all the hope and excitement Obama’s candidacy is generating, some of his field workers, phone-bank volunteers and campaign surrogates are encountering a raw racism and hostility that have gone largely unnoticed — and unreported — this election season. Doors have been slammed in their faces. They’ve been called racially derogatory names (including the white volunteers). And they’ve endured malicious rants and ugly stereotyping from people who can’t fathom that the senator from Illinois could become the first African American president.
The contrast between the large, adoring crowds Obama draws at public events and the gritty street-level work to win votes is stark. The candidate is largely insulated from the mean-spiritedness that some of his foot soldiers deal with away from the media spotlight.
HILLARY HINTS SHE’LL WITHDRAW: Barack Obama yesterday turned his sights on winning the White House in November, as Hillary Rodham Clinton hinted she might wrap up her campaign as early as next week (New York Post). "Thank you for caring so much about our country," Clinton said in a video sent yesterday to supporters. "And now it’s on to West Virginia and Kentucky and Oregon, and we’ll stay in touch." Not mentioned in her apparent video swan song are the final three primaries, in Puerto Rico, Montana and South Dakota, to be held after next week - leading to speculation that she might pull the plug on her campaign after what are expected to be strong wins in West Virginia and Kentucky. But a new poll says 64 percent of Democrats nationwide, want her to stay in the race. Even 42 percent of Obama’s supporters in the ABC News/ Washington Post poll, said they don’t want Clinton to throw in the towel. Obama still leads Clinton by 12 points nationwide.
OBAMA CARRIED ALLEN COUNTY ON HEAVY MINORITY VOTE: Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama won Allen County in Tuesday’s primary with a decisive showing in southeast and south-central Fort Wayne (Fort Wayne Journal Gazette). The Illinois senator, who lost the Indiana Democratic presidential primary, took more than half of all voting precincts countywide. In precincts that his opponent, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, won, she won by small margins, according to precinct-by-precinct breakdowns provided by the Allen County Election Board. Of the 29 precincts where Obama won by more than 100 votes, all but one of those precincts lie within the 5th and 6th Fort Wayne City Council districts. He won by almost 500 votes in one 6th District precinct. Both the 5th and 6th districts cover south-central and southeast Fort Wayne – home to a large segment of the city’s minority population. Voters living in those areas typically don’t go to the polls in high numbers, said Andy Downs, director of the Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne. Although turnout countywide was 34 percent, based on unofficial election results, turnout in 5th and 6th districts was somewhat heavier compared with the 1st and 4th council districts, which have consistent voter turnout. The Clinton campaign didn’t do as good a job of spurring turnout, Downs said. “Obama’s team did a lot of work in the 6th District,” said Fort Wayne Councilman Glynn Hines, D-6th. “I’m not surprised by the numbers at all.”
Indiana Governor
10 DEBATE SITES ON LIST: The Star Plaza Theatre in Merrillville is among 10 sites being considered for a proposed series of fall debates between Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels and Democratic challenger Jill Long Thompson (Times of Northwest Indiana). The Indiana Debate Commission, a coalition of a dozen journalism and good government groups formed last fall, is inspecting the sites. Venues have until May 31 to apply for consideration. "Not only do the candidates for governor have a variety of quality venues for public debates, these locations are spread around the state and provide locations that are easily accessed by Indiana voters," said Dennis Ryerson, vice president of the commission and editor of The Indianapolis Star. The commission wants to host at least three regional debates. The commission principals banded together to avoid media infighting over who will host the candidates. Venues that have applied to host a fall debate include: Emens Auditorium, Ball State University, Muncie; Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis; Jasper Arts Center, Vincennes University Jasper; Rotary Club of Indianapolis, Scottish Rite Cathedral, Indianapolis; Indiana University Auditorium, Bloomington; Our Lady of Providence Junior-Senior High School, Clarksville; Star Plaza Theatre, Merrillville; Grand Wayne Center, Fort Wayne; Indiana State University, Terre Haute; Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne.
Indiana General Assembly
SEN. BOWSERS PAPERS DONATED TO HISTORICAL SOCIETY: While the legacy of the late State Sen. Anita Bowser will live on in the halls of the Indiana Statehouse and on the streets of La Porte County, it will now also live on at the Indiana Historical Society (Michigan City News-Dispatch). More than 14 cubic feet of personal scrapbooks, newspaper stories, plaques and awards were given to the society recently by Democratic Party officials who were cleaning out the former office of the late 8th District Senator. Much of the information is personal, but deals with government and Statehouse issues from the 1970s to the 1990s. Bowser died in office more than a year ago. Paul Brockman, director of manuscripts and visual collections with the society, told The News-Dispatch this week that the collection of non-governmental memories is one of only a few the society has received from state lawmakers, living or dead. Many such effects are given to major state universities. "We have a couple, but not many," Brockman said. "Legislators tend to be dramatic and they want their things on display at IU or Purdue. It’s not often we get something like this." Amy Lamb, a spokeswoman for the society, said this week that all of Bowser’s official government documents - like those of all other Indiana legislators - go directly to the Statehouse Library, where they are archived and kept.
Iraq War
HOOSIER GUARDSMAN DIES IN IRAQ: A soldier from Knox has been killed in Iraq (Associated Press). The Department of Defense says 23-year-old Spc. Joseph A. Ford died Saturday in Al Asad of injuries he suffered in a vehicle accident. The accident is under investigation. He was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 152nd Cavalry Regiment, 76th Brigade Combat Team of the Indiana National Guard, based at New Albany. The brigade is on a nearly yearlong deployment to Iraq that officials have called the largest call-up of Indiana National Guard members since World War II. About 3,400 members of the brigade left for Iraq in March, including 600 members of the Fort-Wayne based 1st Battalion, 293rd Infantry.
State
COUNTY BLAMED FOR VOTERS LEFT OFF: A state election official said Monday the county is responsible for an error that left several new and longtime voters off the lists provided to most polling places (Times of Northwest Indiana). The voters in question were allowed to cast ballots, but each required a telephone call on election day to verify the voter’s status with the county voter registration office. Kathy Kozuszek, a Democrat representative at the county voter registration office, said she does not believe her office did anything wrong. "I had no reason to believe there was something wrong with the polls books," she said. Both sides agree the problems stem from the large amount of newly registered voters for last week’s primary. Kozuszek said she and other county election officials had been busy processing about 20 new voters a day, when on the April 7 deadline, supporters of Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama dropped off the names of 800 newly registered voters. As a result of the crunch, the state allowed the county to suspend a seven-day waiting period on new or amended registrations in order to complete the poll books on time. Matt Tusing, deputy secretary of state with the Indiana Election Commission, said Monday the names in question were left off many of the polling lists because the county processed all but 15 of its polling books before the suspension was granted.
BP AIR PERMIT CONTESTED: A group of Northwest Indiana residents has filed the first appeal of BP Whiting’s air permit. Other environmental organizations are preparing separate appeals (Post-Tribune). The residents, in an appeal filed Saturday, said the permit fails to protect overburdened low-income and minority communities in Whiting, East Chicago and Hammond from increased air pollution. They also said the Indiana Department of Environmental Management limited public participation by not giving the required 30 days’ notice of the public comment period until environmental groups pressed for more time. The Calumet Project and Global Community Monitor groups said they raised their concerns in comments to IDEM, but that IDEM responded they do not have a direct impact on how the agency reviews and makes decisions on air permit applications. The groups said a 1994 executive order requires the U.S. Environmental Protection and IDEM to address environmental justice. "We wanted to go with the environmental justice issue since we thought that was completely overlooked in this permit. This permit has been broken down in different sections. This is a major expansion. You spend $3.8 billion and IDEM refers to it as a minor. If you spend that kind of money, it’s a major," said Bessie Dent, a Hammond resident and member of the Calumet Project.
NEW ISU PRESIDENT TO BE NAMED IN JUNE: The president of Indiana State University’s board of trustees said he remains optimistic that ISU can hire a new university president this summer (Terre Haute Tribune-Star). “We’ve had some outstanding candidates in the re-opened [search] process,” said Mike Alley, president of the ISU trustees and an ex-officio member of the search committee.
Cities
GOODNIGHT FINDS OPPOSITION TO ANNEXATION: Speaker after speaker indicated they liked living in the county, were happy with county services and didn’t want to be annexed into the city of Kokomo (Kokomo Tribune). The Kokomo Common Council on Monday passed through the first of three readings two ordinances to annex 14.2 square miles into the city limits, a move that could add 14,000 people to the city’s population in time for the 2010 census. The second reading of the ordinance is scheduled for July 16 with final consideration to take place on Aug. 25. A standing-room-only crowd of mostly county residents filled the council chambers and spilled into the lobby of city hall where a closed-circuit television was set up. Some residents carried signs against the annexation. During his presentation, Mayor Greg Goodnight listed a number of reasons in support of the annexation including: lost federal and state dollars which are based on population; people living in areas adjacent to the city who are impacted by government decisions but have no vote in the municipal elections; promote equity in services; the city receiving increased revenues through local option income taxes; and improving economic development for the city and region. “In 1980 Kokomo was one of the 10 largest cities in Indiana,” Goodnight said. “It will re-establish Kokomo has one of the state’s largest cities. Without annexation, the city will fall out of the top 20.”
MAYOR CLAY INJURED IN CHINA: Monday’s devastating earthquake did not hurt Mayor Rudy Clay or others from Gary’s delegation to China (Times of Northwest Indiana). Clay sent a text message to his spokeswoman, Linda Key, after the quake rocked southwestern China, killing 9,000. Clay and the delegation of city employees, educators and businesspeople were in Beijing on Monday. Clay’s message said no one from the delegation was hurt, and that the quake was tragic. "I feel sorry for the Chinese people. They have treated me superbly," he said in the message, Key said. Clay and the delegation planned to see the Great Wall of China today, Key said. Clay hopes to attract Chinese businesses to Gary. "He said he can even say ‘Thank you’ in Chinese,’" Key said.
Counties
VIGO PREPARES TO ASSUME ASSESSOR DUTIES: Vigo County Assessor Debbie Lewis said it could take as many as six new employees, whether all part time or a mix with full-time employees, to take over assessment duties in the county’s townships (Terre Haute Tribune-Star). The Indiana General Assembly, under a property tax relief and restructuring law passed earlier this year, requires the county assessor to take over responsibilities from townships starting July 1. The exception is townships with more than 15,000 property parcels. Vigo County has 12 townships. Only one township — Harrison Township —has more than 15,000 parcels and voters in a referendum in the Nov. 4 election will decide whether or not to keep those duties with current township assessor Mick Love. “I have been looking at the township budgets, the number of building permits issued, sales disclosures and the number of appeals to determine how many more people my office will have to have to do this,” Lewis said Monday. “I have always wanted one full-time person on commercial property, but it may just be several part-time or some full-time [workers]. I have not determined that yet,” Lewis said. Lewis said state law requires an assessor to have a level 2 assessment rating by 2010 and a level 3, the highest rating, by 2012. Lewis said she would consider hiring some current township assessors who are qualified. State law allows counties to hire township assessors as deputy county assessors without violating a dual officeholding prohibition in Indiana, Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter said in a legal opinion issued Friday. “I don’t see anything wrong with that, but we can’t hire all 11 township assessors back,” Lewis said.
HARRISON WANTS I-64 EXIT WEST OF CORYDON: After a string of public hearings and a consultant’s study three years ago, Harrison County leaders chose where they would like the state to build a new Interstate 64 interchange west of Corydon (Louisville Courier-Journal). The county commissioners agreed earlier this month to remind state transportation planners about their reasoning now that an Indianapolis engineering consultant has begun preliminary work on the $18 million project. The commissioners last week signed a four-page letter to Karl Browning, the Indiana Department of Transportation commissioner, summarizing the county’s case for a site 2.3 miles west of the closest interchange at Ind. 135. That location would be the best, and building it farther west" wouldn’t improve traffic flow in the area, Commissioner James Goldman said.
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