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CLARK SEES WATERMAN ‘IMPULSIVE’ CANDIDACY: In a published report, State Sen. John Waterman said he is a better choice than Republican incumbent Gov. Mitch Daniels or Democratic nominee Jill Long Thompson (Corbin, Evansville Courier & Press)..jpg)
It is a story that Howey Politics Indiana broke a week ago and is just now beginning to catch notice of other media. "There’s a lot of disgruntled people all across the state, not just Southern Indiana," he said. "I’m more in touch with common people. I struggle like everybody else does, living check to check, and I know the pain and suffering people are going through." The notion that Waterman would challenge a governor of his own party left political observers scratching their heads. "I get the sense that this was a very late decision, maybe an impulsive decision," state Republican Party Chairman Murray Clark said. Although Clark, a former lawmaker, considers Waterman an old friend, he doesn’t know what led Waterman to such a step. "I wish he would have called me first." Meanwhile, the possibility of a Republican senator diluting the Republican vote comes as a potential boost to Long Thompson. Her press secretary, Jeff Harris, said an independent candidacy "speaks volumes about the vulnerabilities of Mitch Daniels." For independent candidates, the first obstacle is ballot access. Waterman would need to send 32,742 signatures of registered voters to the Secretary of State’s office by a June 30 deadline. That works out to gathering 862 signatures each day in the 38 days remaining in order to qualify. "This is a formidible task, to say the least," Clark said. "Until you get into it, you don’t realize how difficult it is. Having a month to do it is not much time." "John’s an independent thinker," Clark said, describing the senator as "strong-willed" and "a unique political character." Clark said he has heard Waterman express concern both about the elimination of township assessors contained in Daniels’ property-tax relief package that the Legislature passed in March, as well as the larger elimination of township government proposed in the Kernan-Shepard Commission recommendations, which could be heard in 2009. Despite any misgivings, Waterman this year voted for the final version of the property-tax relief, records show. In 2006, Waterman also voted for the Major Moves bill that leased the northern Indiana toll road to a foreign consortium to generate funds to build Interstate 69 in Southwestern Indiana. The Indiana Election Division office said that as of Thursday afternoon, it had not received any fund-raising paperwork from Waterman for his exploratory candidacy.
PRICE REACTS: John Price, a conservative attorney who has run for statewide office as a Republican and now leads the Indiana Property Tax Repeal Alliance, said Waterman is highly respected among "real people, real voters" for his ability to remedy constituents’ problems (Evansville Courier & Press).
HPI DAILY WIRE RETURNS ON MAY 27: Howey Politics Indiana will not publisher the HPI Daily Wire on Memorial Day. We will return on Tuesday, May 27. Have a safe holiday.
BUYER BLAMES CONGRESS FOR GAS CRISIS: Indiana Congressman Steve Buyer (R-04) says Congress is responsible for the soaring cost of gasoline. Our partners at Network Indiana/WIBC report Buyer says Congress repeatedly prevents the building of new refineries and discourages any bill that calls for deep sea drilling (Inside Edge). Gas prices in many Indiana communities are hovering at the $4-per-gallon mark or have already surpassed that amount.Buyer says it is a "world supply and demand issue."
PENCE ASKS ‘WHAT’S IT GOING TO TAKE?’: U.S. Rep. Mike Pence gave the following speech today on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, urging Congress to take action to lessen dependence on foreign oil and to give the American people greater access to more domestic sources of oil (Howey Politics Indiana). This morning in my hometown of Columbus, Indiana, gasoline hit $3.99 a gallon, just shy of $4.00. So I rise this morning to ask my colleagues: ‘What’s it gonna to take? What’s it gonna to take to get this Congress to take action to lessen our dependence on foreign oil?’ Democrats think we can tax our way to lower gas prices, or this week, sue our way to lower gas prices. But the American people know the only way to lessen our dependence on foreign oil is to lessen our dependence on foreign oil. Only by drilling in an environmentally responsible way on American soil and off American shores can the American people increase global supply and reduce the price of oil. As Memorial Day weekend approaches, and as Hoosiers headed to the lake see gasoline prices blow past $4.00 a gallon, I urge my fellow Americans, after $4.00 a gallon, after years of inaction, ask this Congress: ‘What’s it gonna to take to give the American people more access to American oil?’”
Congress
SENATE PASSES WAR BILL; BUSH VOWS VETO: The Senate on Thursday ignored President Bush’s veto threat and added tens of billions of dollars for veterans and the unemployed to his Iraq war spending bill (Associated Press). A majority of Republicans broke ranks with Bush on a veto-proof 75-22 vote while adding more than $10 billion for various other domestic programs, including heating subsidies for the poor, wildfire fighting, road and bridge repair and health research. Democrats crowed about their victory. But the developments meant more confusion about when the must-pass measure might actually become law and what the final version will contain.
JUDGE NOMINEE PROGRESSES: The nomination of William T. Lawrence to serve as U.S. District Court judge for Indiana’s Southern District was approved Thursday by the Senate Judiciary Committee (Indianapolis Star). Sen. Richard Lugar hopes the full Senate will consider the nomination next month, said Lugar spokesman Andy Fisher. Lawrence, a magistrate judge, has the support of Lugar, a Republican, and Indiana’s other senator, Democrat Evan Bayh. "This selection was the product of a bipartisan process and reflective of the importance of finding highly qualified federal judges to carry forward the tradition of fair, principled and collegial leadership," Lugar said at Lawrence’s May 1 confirmation hearing.
SOUDER VOTES FOR DEFENSE: U.S. Rep. Mark Souder voted today for H.R. 5658, the Department of Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009. The authorization bill passed the House by a bipartisan majority of 384-23 (Howey Politics Indiana). “It is imperative that we provide our troops with the best equipment and protection available,” Souder said. “This bill will help ensure that our soldiers have every technological advantage in battle.” “Hoosier employers in our area are working daily on designing and manufacturing the tools our soldiers need, and we should be proud of their contribution,” Souder added. “This legislation is important to them, too. And I’m very pleased that the bill includes more than $112 million for sonobuoys, and at least $9 million for Multi-Band Multi-Mission radios. The bill also authorizes $5 million in funding for the 122 Fighter Wing of the Indiana Air National Guard to expand the base’s aircraft bay parking.”
ELLSWORTH BACKS DEFENSE REAUTHORIZATION: Continuing his strong track record of supporting U.S. troops, Rep. Brad Ellsworth today voted to restore military readiness and strengthen national defense (Howey Politics Indiana). The House Armed Services Committee passed the 2009 National Defense Authorization bill unanimously last week, and the House passed the bill today with overwhelming bipartisan support. “As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I am focused on ensuring our armed forces remain the strongest, most technologically advanced force in the world,” said Ellsworth. “Our men and women in uniform must be well-equipped to complete their missions today and meet the inevitable threats of tomorrow. The bill provides $8.6 billion to the Army and $1.8 billion to the Marine Corps to enable the two services to address critical equipment shortfalls. It also provides $2 billion toward readiness initiatives like expanding training opportunities, filling current shortages in the country’s pre-positioned stockpiles of weapons and supplies, and equipment maintenance. In addition, it provides $800 million to address severe equipment shortfalls for National Guard and Reserve forces. There is no question the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have had a crippling effect on our military readiness. It will be a long road back to restoring readiness levels, but we took another important step today.”
GOLDSTAR MOTHERS HONOR BUYER: The Gold Star Wives of America today honored Congressman Steve Buyer (IN-04) with the organization’s Appreciation Award for the Congressman’s vigilant work (Howey Politics Indiana). The Appreciation Ceremony expressed the Gold Star Wives’ heartfelt gratitude for Congressman Buyer’s service in assuring that the widows of service members are not forgotten. “It’s important that, as a country, we take care of the spouses and families of our brave soldiers who have and continue to protect our homeland,” said Buyer. “The loved ones of our service members also make great sacrifices when the call of duty must be answered. It’s our responsibility to take care of the widows whose spouses fought for America’s freedom.” The Gold Star Wives of America, Inc. is an organization of widows/widowers whose spouse passed away while on active duty or from service related disabilities. Gold Star Wives is a military survivor’s organization who has served war widows from all conflicts since its founding in 1945. A federal charter from Congress was granted to the organization in 1980.
Indiana General Assembly
IMMIGRATION STUDY SET: State lawmakers created a special committee Thursday to spend the next five months examining the politically charged issue of illegal immigration (Howey Politics Indiana). Efforts to create a three-tiered punishment system for Indiana companies that knowingly hire illegal immigrants fizzled in the final days of this year’s legislative session, which ended in March. Senate President Pro Tem David Long, R-Fort Wayne, said the new Interim Study Committee on Immigration Issues will bring fresh facts to a debate sure to resume when lawmakers reconvene in January. "I think it’s real important that we get to understand some of the basic costs associated with this issue," Long said. The 12-member study committee is charged with charting the financial impact illegal immigrants have on health care, law enforcement, schools and welfare programs. The Indiana Legislative Council, an oversight panel led by Long and House Speaker Pat Bauer, D-South Bend, also authorized nearly two dozen other summer study committees on Thursday.
State
SUPPORT FOR LAKE MANITOU ECOZONE: A public hearing will be held next week to determine whether to restore and make permanent a state rule protecting an area of Lake Manitou in northern Indiana (Associated Press). The state rule designating the so-called prairie as an "ecozone" expired April 30, opening the shallow, vegetated area to motorized boat traffic. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources restricted motorized boat traffic in the 47-acre area three years ago. Citizens who spoke at a Feb. 28 public hearing supported continuing the ecozone, the DNR said. Next week’s meeting is intended to address those concerns enough for the DNR to pursue a rule re-establishing the protection for a year while restarting the process to create a permanent rule, the agency said.
ISP TO PATROL IN MUSTANGS: State police say they’ll soon be patrolling Indiana highways in unmarked Ford Mustangs (Associated Press). The agency recently acquired 18 of the cars. They’ll be assigned to veteran state troopers with good driving records. State Police Superintendent Paul Whitesell says the aim of the patrol is to reduce highway deaths and crashes. The Mustangs will primarily patrol two-lane rural roads that are considered “high risk” and will also target the unsafe operation of motorcycles.
ROKITA RETURNS FROM TAIWAN: Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita returned today from leading a delegation of fellow secretaries of state to the Taiwanese Presidential Inauguration of Ma Ying-jeou in Taipei this week. (Howey Politics Indiana) Leading the delegation of his peers was among Secretary Rokita’s latest duties as president for the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS). Prior to the election, the United States House of Representatives passed a resolution praising Taiwan’s democracy and urged other countries to dispatch delegations to witness the election. "It is important that we recognize and applaud the smooth transition of power to the new president in Taiwan," said Rokita. "As a cornerstone of freedom in Asia, Taiwan is successfully demonstrating that democracy works. I was honored to represent not only NASS and chief state elections officials across the nation, but also 6.2 million Hoosiers to our friends in Taiwan."
Economy
OHIO COMPANY COMING TO FRANKLIN: Precision Cutoff LLC, an Ohio-based provider of metal cutting and finishing services to the industrial, automotive and lawn and garden markets, announced today it will locate a new machining operation here, creating 47 new jobs by 2012 (Howey Politics Indiana). The metal cutting company will invest $2 million to locate its new facility in an existing 110,000 square-foot facility in the Hurricane Industrial Complex in the central Indiana city located 25 miles south of Indianapolis. "We continue to outrun all of our Midwestern competitors in attracting new job-creating investment from companies like Precision Cutoff, but we can’t let up for a minute. We can never take a rest, we have to get on to the next success and the next," said Governor Mitch Daniels.
Cities
HOBART LEARNS TAX REFORM IMPACT: An Indiana Cities and Towns Association official who spoke at a workshop session Wednesday had at least some good news in regard to the new property tax reforms (Times of Northwest Indiana). "You’re not going to be hit as hard as other communities," said Ann Cottongim, association executive director. The city, because of the new property tax reforms, faces a reduction in property taxes of about $6,000 this year; $32,716 in 2009 and $333,000 in 2010.
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