HOUSE GOP REJECTS HATFIELD’S PROPOSAL TO PROVIDE INDEPENDENT, NONPARTISAN REDISTRICTING

INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana House Republicans today prevented a vote on a proposal from State Rep. Ryan Hatfield (D-Evansville) that would have given an independent, nonpartisan commission the power to draw districts for the Indiana General Assembly and our state’s congressional delegation.

House Republicans voted down Hatfield’s attempt to place the independent commission in Senate Bill 417. If the measure had been approved, the nonpartisan commission would have been in place to draw new legislative and congressional districts after the 2020 census.

“The people of Indiana want election reform,” Hatfield said. “There is an increasing belief that elections for the Indiana House and Senate and the U.S. Congress are non-competitive, and the result is voter turnout numbers that are among the worst in the nation. Hoosiers feel that the system is rigged, and there’s no reason to keep taking part.”

A bipartisan study committee that has examined redistricting reform the past two years recommended creation of an independent commission to take over the task, but legislation outlining that change died in the House Elections and Apportionment Committee when the committee chairman (State Rep. Milo Smith, R-Columbus) refused Hatfield’s call to take a vote on the bill, despite the measure drawing resounding public support at a committee meeting.

“Right now, there is no vehicle for the type of election reform that has been demanded by the people of this state,” Hatfield said. “The study committee went out of existence earlier this year, and there is no way to implement its ideas unless we amend the idea into an existing bill. My amendment would have enabled the House to make a clear statement that this body believes an independent redistricting is needed, and it would have given lawmakers another two years to figure out the make-up of that commission.

“Now we have nothing, and the people of this state have a right to feel cynical about these actions,” he noted. “Do the people in charge of the Indiana House really want election reform through independent redistricting, or are they simply willing to pay only lip service to the idea? Folks deserve action, not just more political talk. I hope we have many more opportunities to continue this debate before the 2017 session ends next month.”

SEAN SELBY CHARGES THAT COMMISSIONER SHOULDERS LACKS TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY

“Like everyone else in Vanderburgh County, I was especially caught off-guard by the news of this week’s vote at the county commissioner meeting by Ben Shoulders to place his campaign chairman as the new director of Burdette Park. Numerous residents and media outlets who were also surprised with the news have asked for a public comment, however none of us expected so quickly for the vindication of our campaign’s consistent clarion call regarding concerns over numerous conflicts of interest surrounding Shoulders.

In fact, the Courier&Press sounded like it borrowed a line from the Selby for Commissioner campaign in Thursday’s editorial when they stated “Shoulders should have recused himself from the vote”. It remains to be seen whether this will be enough for the Courier&Press to retract their endorsement of Mr. Shoulders, but it may cause them to reconsider whether he qualifies as the “positive influence on the community and as the best choice for District One” when they endorsed him on October 26 of last year. It also might make a good portion of the Vanderburgh County residents who helped Shoulders achieve the slim 51% win in the election wary of their choice.

This is especially the case when considering transparency and accountability do not seem to be a high priority to Mr. Shoulders, as the Courier&Press even pointed out that there was no opportunity for public comment, let alone was the replacement director even on the agenda. My experience with Burdette Director Murphy was always very positive on the campaign trail and with Vanderburgh Council President Montrastelle’s recent praise that he saved taxpayers 11% last year alone, many are further confused.

At a minimum I continue to applaud Commissioner President Bruce Ungethiem, while out of town for this particular vote, has taken a sensible approach to county government and unlike other recent commissioners has avoided making hyper-political decisions. Hopefully, this revelation will result in county residents keeping a closer watch on our commissioners and better assessing candidates in the future.”

EDITORS NOTE; Sean Selby ran an extremely competitive race against Mr. Shoulders in the most recent Countywide election.  Mr. Selby Letter To The Editor was posted without opinion, bias or without editing.

STATEHOUSE (March 20, 2017) — The Indiana House of Representatives last week passed a bill sponsored by State Rep. Holli Sullivan (R-Evansville) that would make it easier for a teenager under the care of the Department of Child Services to obtain a driver’s license.

“The state of Indiana is the guardian of about 55 youth between the ages of 16 and 18 who are currently unable to receive their driver’s licenses without facing a great number of hurdles,” Sullivan said. “Making the process easier for these teenagers to receive their driver’s licenses will help them to be engaged and connect with their community, participate in school and extracurricular activities and seek out job opportunities.”

According to Sullivan, teens in foster care find it difficult to obtain a driver’s license because they often do not know an adult who is able to sign the BMV application forms and provide liability insurance. They also do not have the means to pay for the process. This bill would enable foster children to apply for and receive learner’s permits and driver’s licenses free of charge, obtain liability insurance coverage, and complete driving practice with individuals approved by DCS.

The legislation would require a juvenile court to review each teen to ensure that he or she is ready to drive before they can obtain their license. According to Sullivan, similar programs have been successful in other states such as Florida and Louisiana.

“A driver’s license is an important tool to enable these strong and resilient youth to enjoy and benefit from normal, teenage experiences and to be better prepared to become educated, capable, self-sufficient adults,” said Sharon Pierce, president and CEO of the Villages of Indiana, the state’s largest not-for-profit child and family services agency. “The Villages of Indiana, and the youth we are so privileged to serve, are grateful to each and every legislator supporting this vital bill.”

After being amended, Senate Bill 366 will be returned to the Senate. If approved, the bill could be signed by the governor. For more information, visit iga.in.gov.

Trump: Look, Obamacare is ‘Dead’ and I’m ‘100 Percent’ Behind Our Replacement Plan
Guy Benson Guy Benson 

Up first, a key nugget of news: Now that the Trump/Ryan healthcare bill narrowly cleared another hurdle in the budget committee this week (more on that in a moment), it has been sent over to the rules committee — the final stage before a full floor vote. House leadership is apparently sufficiently confident that this final committee obstacle will be overcome that they’ve slated a floor vote for late next week. As it approaches, expect a furious debate with the Democrats, and an intense whip count effort within the GOP conference to round up the requisite votes for ultimate passage. Here we go:

Will Paul Ryan have the votes? He and his team have repeatedly insisted that this “repeal and replace” roadmap has been charted with major buy-in from the House GOP rank-and-file, who’ve been kept in the loop every step of the way. But in recent weeks, the party’s right flank has blanched at the framework of the legislation (dubbing it “Obamacare-lite” and too generous), while centrists have sounded the alarm over the Congressional Budget Office’s score of the bill. Are these differences reconcilable? We’ll likely find out in a matter of days. It’s worth noting that in this week’s budget committee squeaker (19-17 passage), three members of the House Freedom Caucus joined Democrats in voting no, nearly waylaying the process. One additional lost vote, and the American Health Care Act would have been tied up in committee.

As the “repeal and replace” push began in earnest earlier this month, may political observers said that a key factors in the process would be presidential leadership. Despite the problematic (but likely overstated) CBO challenge and other intense pressure points — and despite theorizing that certain elements within the White House were setting up the House to fail — President Trump’s steadfast support for GOPCare has remained unwavering. Having recently hosted Obamacare victims at the White House, Trump made an additional statement in the Oval Office today, flanked by members who were leaning ‘no.’ He explained that the failing status quo demonstrates that the current law is “dead,” (the latest enrollment numbers are poor, a consequence of unaffordable costs) voicing “100 percent support” for the Republican alternative designed by his HHS Secretary and House leaders. This is a full-throated endorsement:

Trump again repeats the smart talking point that Obamacare is collapsing on its own, but that sitting back and allowing that to happen would be irresponsible governance because people are suffering. This framing reinforces the public’s belief that the current law is failing, a reality that even a majority of respondents in this week’s brutal Fox News poll agreed with. As for vote-gathering, according to Politico’s Tim Alberta, there’s a specific strategy afoot:

What this suggests to me is that the plan is to muscle the bill through and get it over to the Senate in its current form, at which point amendments will probably make some significant alterations. Trump’s campaign posture was vowing as much coverage for as many people as possible, so it would follow that he’d be likely to support changes that make the bill more generous (and expensive) when push comes to shove. As it stands, moderates would likely kill this iteration of the bill, so stand by for changes in the upper chamber. But it also looks like Trump is willing to do the political work of launching a private charm offensive with reluctant conservatives (adopting previously-discussed policy changes in the opposite direction, too, which led to the photo op embedded above), then taking his show on the road — with a goal of keeping the heat up on Republican members who may be tempted to torpedo his bill. I’ll leave you with a clip from Ryan chatting with National Review’s Rich Lowry about this process, as well as a surreal quote from Nancy Pelosi attacking Republicans for forcing their members to “walk the plank” in support of a harmful healthcare bill. This coming from a woman who did precisely that, without a public mandate developed over four election cycles, and who proceeded to lose 63 seats in the next election:

YESTERYEAR: Helfrich Park by Pat Sides

At the urging of the West Side Nut Club, the city purchased a large tract of land for recreational purposes from Michael Helfrich, civic leader and businessman. The park, formally opened in 1924, was designed by Tom Bendelow, a nationally renowned golf course architect. To promote public use, it featured numerous tennis courts, football and baseball fields, as well as an 18-hole golf course; a swimming pool and shelter house were added later. These young athletes gathered at Helfrich Park’s baseball diamond in April 1952 to begin practice for the new season. The street in the background is St. Joseph Avenue, just north of West Maryland Street.