“IS IT TRUE” NOVEMBER 20, 2018

18

We hope that today’s “IS IT TRUE” will provoke honest and open dialogue concerning issues that we, as responsible citizens of this community, need to address in a rational and responsible way? 

IS IT TRUE that a story was overlooked by the mainstream media at last Friday’s Vanderburgh County Election Board meeting?  …that the Election Board made a unanimous referral (3-0) that an illegal campaign flyer is referred to Vanderburgh County Prosecutor Nick Hermann for criminal investigation and prosecution?  …the campaign flyers are illegal because they do not have the required disclaimer under Indiana Code Sec. 3-9-3-2.5 which identifies who paid for the political material and whether any candidate approves of the material if paid by someone other than the candidate?  …these illegal campaign flyers were mailed from Milwaukee, WI throughout the State of Indiana including Vanderburgh County just days prior to the Mid-term elections? …the criminal penalty under Indiana Code Sec. 3-14-1-3 for circulating these illegal flyers concerning Senator Braun and the Libertarian senatorial candidate without the required disclaimer is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a $5,000 fine or 1 year in jail, or both? …that the CCO hopes Prosecutor Hermann will take this election law violation referral from the Vanderburgh County Election Board very seriously?  …we hope that Mr. Hermann will devote the full resources of his office to helping ensure we have free, fair and legal election law campaigning in Vanderburgh County and all other counties in Indiana?

IS IT TRUE yesterday we were informed that Mr. Duckworth graciously announced that he will not seek a recount on the race between him and Jeff Hatfield  …we wish Mr. Duckworth the best in his future endeavors and thank him for serving the people of Vanderburgh County with distinction for the last 30 years?

IS IT TRUE that the midterm elections are finally over but a couple of people that supported Mike Duckworth for County Commissioner still can’t accept the official election results? …we are told they are blaming different groups and individuals for Mr. Duckworth’s defeat? ..the real reasons why that Mr. Hatfield won the election was that he ran a well organized and issue-based campaign? ..his finance committee did an incredible job in raising money (almost $200,000) to fund his campaign? …Mr. Hatfield proved to be an effective and aggressive campaigner?  …Mr. Hatfield’s business, organizational, and people skills also proved to be big assets to the campaign?

IS IT TRUE we are told that Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke is practicing to get ready to shoot his re-election video? …we hear that the Mayor will demonstrate his HULA HOOP skills while wearing his “Chicken Fat” suit? …we hear that he will be showing some real dance moves while spinning the Hula Hoop?  …we are told that his political handlers hope that this re-election video will show the voters what they can expect if the Mayor is re-elected to his third term?

IS IT TRUE if only the powers that be would have listened to past County Commission Dave Mosby, Vanderburgh County wouldn’t be experiencing the current jail overcrowding problem today?  …Mr. Mosby wanted an additional pod added to the jail plans that would have housed 250 more inmates about 20 plus years ago?

IS IT TRUE we have been told because of the increases in the County Income Option Tax (CIOT) and the Wheel Tax that Vanderburgh County may now have the money to fund a reasonable expansion of the county jail?

IS IT TRUE some folks living in the 4th Ward are worry that the practice of gentrification may be happening the near downtown area?

IS IT TRUE that the Vanderburgh County Public Defender’s Agency plays an important role in our social fabric by ensuring that those who can least afford legal representation in our Courts are fully protected?

IS IT TRUE that Vanderburgh County Clerk Carla Hayden and her staff did an outstanding job in conducting the recent midterm election?

IS IT TRUE last year we did a  “Readers Poll” the question asking  “Do you feel that the partnership agreement between the StatehouseFiles and the City-County Observer is really a big deal”?   …a whopping 585 people voted in this poll?  …459 people voted yes (78%), 74 voted no (13%) and 52 (9%) said that they had no idea in this non-scientific but trendy poll?  …it looks like the majority of our readers agree with our decision concerning the publishing of the StatehouseFiles articles because it the second most read section behind “IS IT TRUE” column?  …it also looks like we made the right decision in selecting former State Representative Gail Riecken as our Statehouse Community Editor?

IS IT TRUE that the “TROLLEY” of Evansville Districts (TED) project mission is to support Evansville’s blossoming entertainment and cultural districts? …we wonder if “TROLLEY” has helped in the redevelopment of our urban core, and growing tourism industry? …the “TROLLEY” project is sponsored by the non-profit Franklin Street Events Association and is also a joint venture between FSEA and GAGE. …if you would like to support this project here’s the link to do so    https://www.patronicity.com/project/trolley_of_evansville_districts_ted#!/?   

Todays“Readers Poll” question is: Who do you feel should pay the $100,000 overtime pay incurred by the Evansville Police Department for security provided during President Trump visit?

If you would like to advertise on the CCO please contact us City-CountyObserver@live.com

Footnote: City-County Observer Comment Policy. Be kind to people. No personal attacks or harassment will not be tolerated and shall be removed from our site.
We understand that sometimes people don’t always agree and discussions may become a little heated.  The use of offensive language, insults against commenters will not be tolerated and will be removed from our site.
Any comments posted in this column do not represent the views or opinions of the City-County Observer or our advertisers.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

18 COMMENTS

  1. Kudos to Clerk Carla Hayden for smooth operation of the Vote Centers and Election Office on Election day. Also kudos to her election board for referring illegal campaign materials to Prosecutor Hermann. Hopefully Mr. Hermann will be able to bring these election scofflaw’s to justice.

  2. Caravan Protestors in Tijuana Shout ‘Mexico First’ in Hat Tip to Trump Slogan
    ………………………
    ““Demonstrators held signs reading ‘No illegals,’ ‘No to the invasion’ and ‘Mexico First.’ Many wore the country’s red, white and green national soccer jersey and vigorously waved Mexican flags,” according to NPR. “The crowd often slipped into chants of ‘Ti-jua-na!’ and ‘Me-xi-co!’ They sang the national anthem several times.”

    After several years of calling President Donald J. Trump a racist, and now months of calling him a “white supremacist” due to his protectionist notions and self-described nationalism, the corporate media must be shocked to learn that supporting your own country does not, in fact, make you a racist. Perhaps this small conundrum is why much of the mainstream press has failed to cover the Tijuana protests completely.

    “We want the caravan to go; they are invading us,” said Patricia Reyes, a 62-year-old protester, according to the report. “They should have come into Mexico correctly, legally, but they came in like animals.’”

    “Tijuana is a place that welcomes anyone, but you must have papers, you must identify yourself,” protestor Magdalena Baltazar reportedly said. “We work hard here. We don’t get handouts. The government shouldn’t be giving things to migrants when plenty of Mexicans are in a difficult position.”

    It turns out, people of all races and creeds genuinely care about the self-interests of their own nations. Who would have thought?

    https://bigleaguepolitics.com/caravan-protestors-in-tijuana-shout-mexico-first-in-hat-tip-to-trump-slogan/

    • Troops At US/Mexican Border Coming Home

      “The Pentagon is set to begin a drawdown of its 5,800 troops from the Southwest border as early as this week, the Army commander overseeing the mission told the news”

      “The 5,800 troops who were rushed to the southwest border amid President Donald Trump’s pre-election warnings about a refugee caravan will start coming home as early as this week, JUST AS SOME OF THOSE MIGRANTS ARE BEGINNING TO ARRIVE”

      “The general overseeing the deployment told POLITICO on Monday that the first troops will start heading home in the coming days as some are already unneeded”

      If you were foolish enough to fall for Trump’s absurd fearmongering that the caravan was an urgent threat requiring thousands of soldiers, you gotta ask yourself why he is now withdrawing the troops AFTER the election but BEFORE all of the caravan actually arrives at the border

      So why did Cheetolini pull the troops AFTER the so-called “caravan” is arriving?

      https://www.politico.com/story/2018/11/19/troops-us-mexico-border-come-home-1005510

      • Andy, the reason the troops are leaving is that they put concertina razor wire along the border making it unpassable.
        Excellent work by the Commander-in-Chief to head this off, and now Mexico is paying for the caravan stuck and unwanted in Tijuana:
        ………………………….
        “Why migrants won’t see armed US troops on the border”

        SAN DIEGO — As thousands of migrants in a caravan of Central American asylum-seekers converge on the doorstep of the United States, what they won’t find are armed American troops standing guard.

        Instead they will see cranes installing towering panels of metal bars and troops wrapping concertina wire around barriers while military helicopters fly overhead, carrying border patrol agents to and from locations along the U.S.-Mexico border.

        In Laredo, Texas, about 100 soldiers have been installing three layers of razor wire along the Rio Grande, working on the banks during the day and on the bridges at night to minimize the disruption to cross-border traffic.

        https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2018/11/18/migrants-wont-see-armed-us-troops-on-the-border/

        • You are deluded if you think this political stunt by Cheetolini means anything.

          So maybe we look at facts: The border between Mexico and the US is 1,954 miles. That equals 10,317,120 feet

          TEN MILLION FEET of concertina wire was NOT placed. Not even REMOTELY close

          The Military Is ‘Securing’ a 1,900-Mile Border with 22 Miles of Razor Wire

          Reporters on the border just reported “troops have deployed with 22 miles of the wire so far”

          (AUTHOR ANDY NOTE: That is only ONE percent of the border)

          “The wire doesn’t seem to be getting strung with any sort of strategic purpose, either. That WSJ story about the troops in Texas hanging wire from a bridge says that the “wire was placed on top of fences at least 15 feet high along each side of the bridge that sat several dozen feet above an embankment” while the bridge itself remains open to vehicle traffic from Mexico. If there is a goal, it would seem to be making the border look more prickly and dystopian while not actually creating any sort of barrier”

          Furthermore, the first question asked from a soldier to the Director of HOmeland Security was:

          “Sir, I have a question. The wire obstacles that we’ve implanted along the border. Are we going to be taking those out when we leave?”

          Yeah, as expected, Trumps minions had ZERO answer

          https://reason.com/blog/2018/11/19/the-military-is-securing-a-1900-mile-bor

      • The attached photo showed a section of the border fence that featured no less than seven rows of coiled concertina wire, a nasty and razor-sharp deterrent that covered the entirety of the U.S. side of the border fence from top to bottom.

        In a bit of good news, the Examiner also noted that the show of military force at the border and hardening of the existing fencing with razor wire has reportedly had the positive result of stemming the flow of narcotics into the country by the Mexican drug cartels, who are also reportedly angry that the migrant caravan has brought so much negative attention to the areas over which they typically exert their control.

        To be sure, the deployment of concertina wire is not the be all and end all of border security efforts, and is only meant to serve as a temporary deterrence against illicit border jumpers, later to be replaced by the oft-promised construction of a more imposing border wall system.

        Congress has been less than cooperative in funding Trump’s agenda to reinforce the border with a wall, so the president has resorted to the far less expensive but still quite effective tactic of deploying row upon row of razor-sharp concertina wire to deter illegal immigration and narcotics smuggling, and a significant portion of the American people thank him for it.

        https://www.westernjournal.com/ct/no-climbers-trump-tweets-walls-brutally-efficient-upgrade/

    • Tijuana Police Arrest 34 Caravan Migrants for Drugs, Drunkenness. Through a news release, Tijuana Police revealed that under order from the mayor, they began carrying out various inspections and checkpoints, netting 34 arrests. Some migrants were reportedly in possession of methamphetamine and cocaine. This week, Tijuana’s Mayor Juan Manuel Gastelum sparked controversy claiming that any migrant who does not respect the law will be arrested and turned over to Mexican immigration authorities. “The Tijuana government reaffirms their respect to the rights of the migrant but will not tolerate rebelliousness nor social illegality of any form,” a local government statement revealed. “All migrants who do not follow the rules will be arrested.” Gastelum publicly called out the Mexican federal government for its lack of preparation for the migrant caravan, thus forcing him to deploy city resources to deal with the various needs including food, shelter, and clothing. “My message is anti-drug use, anti-drunkenness, anti-law-breaking, my message is against all that,” Gastelum said in his statement.”

  4. What was so outstanding about the job the County Clerk Carla Hayden and her staff did in conducting the recent election? Was it the long lines and wait times experienced at the early vote centers due to inadequate staffing? Was it not providing any vote count information until past 7:30 pm? Was it early voting results weren’t known until after 8 pm? Was it the delay until after 9:20 pm posting election results? Was it the unexpected “glitch” on posting the results to the internet? Or was it because somebody forgot to plug in the printer cable? Hardly outstanding.

  5. Federal Judge Blocks Trump Asylum Ban

    A federal judge is once again standing in the way of Donald Trump’s illegal orders—this time his proclamation blocking people who cross the southern border between ports of entry from applying for asylum:

    “Whatever the scope of the president’s authority, he may not rewrite the immigration laws to impose a condition that Congress has expressly forbidden,” Tigar wrote in his opinion. “Asylum seekers will be put at increased risk of violence and other harms at the border, and many will be deprived of meritorious asylum claims.”

    The immigration law in question says that migrants can apply for asylum “whether or not at a designated port of arrival.”

    This is likely another place where Trump will look to Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch to bail him out by being a lapdog and a sociopath, respectively

    https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-asylum-ban-legal-challenge_us_5bf3b32ee4b0d9e7283c8e99

  6. Ivanka Trump Used Personal Account For Emails About Government Business (#LockIvankaUp)

    “Ivanka Trump last year used a personal email account to discuss or relay official White House business, according to emails released by a nonpartisan watchdog group”

    “The Washington Post reported Monday the White House conducted an investigation into Trump’s email usage and that she used her personal email address for much of 2017”

    “According to emails released by the watchdog group, American Oversight, Trump used her personal account to email Cabinet officials, White House aides and assistants.”

    “Trump’s usage of a private email account will bring comparisons to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, whose usage of a private email server instead of a government email account during her time in office was a central part of President Donald Trump’s campaign against her in 2016. Trump’s supporters often chanted — and still do, on occasion — “Lock her up!” at the mention of Clinton, and President Donald Trump has frequently accused Clinton of receiving special treatment because she was not charged for skirting the Presidential Records Act with her email practices”

    #LockIvankaUp

    https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/19/politics/ivanka-trump-personal-email-account/index.html

  7. IS IT TRUE some folks living in the 4th Ward are worry that the practice of gentrification may be happening the near downtown area? Only the ones making money on the affordable housing boondoggle. Certainly not the real homeowners.

Comments are closed.