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The Pecker fabrication
“A porn star, a Bible salesman and a guy named Pecker walk into a courtroom. …” That was a text I received last week from a source making an observation about Donald J. Trump’s Manhattan hush money trial involving actress Stormy Daniels and testimony from former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker. The text included an …
Without life, there is no liberty or pursuit of happiness
What can compare to the Declaration of Independence as an aspirational document? Our fundamental American belief is that all “are created equal … with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” But without life, there is no liberty or pursuit of happiness. That endowment of life is not distributed equally in this land of the free and home of the brave. At birth in 2021, males had a life expectancy of 73.5 years, …
Zipping to the Loop on our South Shore
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The train is ready to move — fast, even faster if local officials and community leaders get aboard for the next move. South Shore Line trains will move faster and leave more often, starting May 14, with the time of a trip between South Bend and Chicago cut by nearly an hour. Yep, zip right into the Loop in one hour and 49 minutes, with a reasonable fare and no tolls, no gasoline cost, no need …
You’re used to how Congress does budgets. You shouldn’t be
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — There was lots of drama at the end of March, when Congress — six months behind schedule — finally funded the federal government for the rest of the fiscal year. You may remember some of the highlights: The $1.2 trillion package funded defense, homeland security and other key agencies (others had gotten their funding a few weeks earlier), and Congress passed it mere hours before a government shutdown. Of course, it was characterized as a great success, …
The Caitlin Clark effect on the Indy economy, WNBA
MUNCIE, Ind. — It’s a safe bet that almost no one in Indiana knows less about basketball than I, but only a recluse could miss the hype over the Indianapolis Fever’s draft of Iowa phenom Caitlin Clark. She’s the all-time NCAA Division I-leading scorer and leading three-point scorer — for both men’s and women’s basketball. She was two-time national player of the year and holds a slew of other records and accolades. By almost any measure, she’s the most dominant …
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Self-funders and getting our money’s worth
CARMEL, Ind. — I can just imagine that moment when the parsimonious Mrs. Jill Dunn opens the local newspaper and reads, “Candidate Craig Dunn spends $8 million of his own money on primary campaign for (fill in the blank).” It wouldn’t really matter whether the primary election was for governor, senator, United States representative, mayor or dogcatcher, I would be toast. It wouldn’t be a pretty sight. No, my wife is thrifty and hates to waste money. I’m more apt …
Opinion: The ‘Victory’ metaphor eludes Hoosier GOP women
Almost 300 feet above the skyline in the center of our state stands Victory, a classic Greek-inspired sculpture envisioned to be the Hoosier version of Nike, the goddess of war. In flowing robes, standing astride a star-studded ball with her hair in a 19th century-style bun, she hoists a torch of enlightenment while gripping a sword by her side after a mythical battle triumph. Victory has been above us since 1902, some 122 years before Caitlin Clark arrived, and she …
Opinion: Embattled Congresswoman Spartz votes against her homeland
NOBLESVILLE, Ind. — When the future of war-torn Ukraine was on the line in the U.S. House this past Saturday, Rep. Victoria Spartz voted against her homeland. Or as The Wall Street Journal put it, she has moved on. “No promised border security in today’s supplemental,” Spartz posted April 20 on X. “From roughly $77B slush fund in the Ukrainian supplemental ($61 in budget outlays + $16B blank check for drawdowns & loans for any foreign country or intl organization), …
Opinion: The carnival of candidates for governor
INDIANAPOLIS — Most of the Republican candidates for Indiana governor have met for televised debates. They’ve offered “plans” for this and for that. Gov. Eric Holcomb demands they provide more details. The Indiana Capital Chronicle declares, “Time for gubernatorial candidates to get real on the real issues.” The Indianapolis Business Journal asks a specific question, “What does the state need to do to boost Indiana’s per capita income?” It’s the wrong question, but five candidates responded. Only Brad Chambers answered that question. The …
Opinion: Climate justice has begun
GARY — In a historic ruling that could change the trajectory of a rapidly heating planet, a court of law with binding jurisdiction over most of Europe has ruled that governments can be held liable for inadequate responses to climate change. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) determined that rising temperatures in Switzerland caused direct and tangible health consequences to Swiss citizens and that governments failing to take adequate steps to mitigate and reduce carbon emissions could owe damages …
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News & Analysis
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Brian Tabor stepping down as Indiana Hospital Association president
Brian Tabor, the longtime leader of the Indiana Hospital Association, will be leaving the organization after 16 years at the helm, he announced Thursday. The trade association represents more than 170 hospitals across the state and has been in the middle of persistent debates over high health care costs that have resulted in multiple legislative attempts to curtail them. Tabor will assist in recruitment efforts for his replacement and remain with the association until that person is selected, the organization …
Horse Race: Indiana House primary races
We are posting new Horse Race ratings for congressional and legislative primary matchups with less than two weeks to go before voting concludes with the May 7 primary. Below are ratings for Indiana House races. View the full list on our regularly updated spreadsheet. House Republican primaries House District 13 Rep. Sharon Negele — the highest-ranking woman in House leadership — and Warren County Councilman Matthew Commons This appears to be an intense primary showdown after Negele ran unopposed in …
Amazon plans $11B data center project near South Bend
Amazon Web Services said Thursday it had picked a South Bend-area site for construction of an $11 billion data center. That news came the day before the formal announcement of a smaller Google data center project in Fort Wayne. The Amazon data center that is planned to ultimately have at least 1,000 employees will be built near the St. Joseph County town of New Carlisle, according to the Seattle-based company’s cloud computing division. Gov. Eric Holcomb touted the project as …
Crouch laments voter disinterest as Braun skips final debate
Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch lamented voters’ apparent disinterest in the historic open-seat May 7 Republican gubernatorial primary election during a news conference following Tuesday night’s final gubernatorial debate. “When I travel the state, I’m just disappointed and discouraged by the lack of interest, the lack of enthusiasm and probably the lack of participation in the first competitive Republican race that many of us have seen in our lifetime,” she said after the 90-minute debate. Crouch said she will continue to speak to the issues …
HRCC spending to prop up Reps. Negele, Lucas
If you want to know where the primary hot-spot races are, follow the House Republican Campaign Committee and the Indiana Republican Party. By that measure, state Reps. Sharon Negele and Jim Lucas are battling for their careers. Rep. Negele received $4,200 from the HRCC and $43,000 from the GOP as she tries to ward off a challenge from Warren County Commissioner Matthew Commons. In House District 69, HRCC threw a $50,000 lifeline to Rep. Lucas, who pleaded guilty to driving …