Mar 16, 2025
NATIONAL NUTCASERY
SCHUMER SIGNS BLANK CHECK FOR TRUMP THEFTS
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer infuriated scores of Democrats after announcing that he’d back the GOP continuing resolution to keep the government open through September. Schumer’s defense is that a shutdown would give too much power to Elon and Trump, it would let Republicans “cherry-pick” which parts of the government to reopen, it would distract from the real chaos happening in the US, and it would cause financial pain for millions of Americans. All true, but has anyone told Schumer that all those things are… already happening? Trump and Elon are shutting down the government, whether Democrats help him or not. Schumer reportedly made up his mind days ago — giving Democrats false hope that they would put up a fight. Some Democrats are so furious with Chuck Schumer that they want AOC to replace him, showcasing a rift in the Democratic Party over how to combat Republicans moving forward.
President Mayor Pete?
Pete Buttigieg has ruled out a run for a Michigan Senate seat in 2026, fueling speculation that he’s planning a presidential run in 2028. He just started a Substack if you’d like to follow along:
STATEWIDE SHENANIGANS
new leadership for INDems
District chairs and vice chairs met on Saturday in Indy to elect new leadership for the state party. Former State Senator Karen Tallian bested Destiny Wells, Valerie McCray and Darren Washington. Derek Camp withdrew from the race on Friday. Read more at IndyStar
putting the ‘mess’ in Messmer
Last week, staffers for US Rep Mark Messmer were holding Mobile Office hours at the Warrick County Public Library when about a dozen, mostly senior, constituents became frustrated that they could not ask questions as a group and that the Representative has offered no answers to their problems. Messmer chief of staff Michael Curcio repeatedly asked library staff to call the police on the constituents, but the library declined as they were not breaking any library rules or being hostile or disruptive. A demonstration is planned for March 22nd outside Messmer’s Evansville office to compel him to hold an-in-person town-hall meeting. Read more at Indiana Public Media
BILLWATCH 2025
Updates on bills from last week:
Monday saw significant testimony in the House Judiciary Committee against SJR21, which would seek to institute Congressional term limits via an Article V convention. The problem with this bill is not reasonable term limits legislation, but that it uses a dangerous and unprecedented Article V convention to achieve that goal. All our constitutional rights and civil liberties would be at risk if an Article V convention is called because the lack of guardrails means it could easily stray from its original purpose. Sen. J.D. Ford explained back in January, “There is nothing that could limit the convention to a single issue, so delegates could write amendments that revoke any of our most cherished rights, like to peacefully protest, freedom of religion or right to privacy,” said Ford. Unfortunately, SJR21 passed out of committee.
The House Elections and Apportionment Committee met on Wednesday to hear SB 287. After significant testimony, the committee removed key provisions which would have required school board candidates to run in partisan primaries. Instead, the revised bill now gives candidates the option to declare a party affiliation, run as an independent or remain nonpartisan. Click here to send Rep. Pfaff an email opposing this bill.
The House Education Committee also met on Wednesday and heard SB 146. This bill would increase the minimum teacher salary to $45,000 and require schools to spend at least 65% of state funding on teacher compensation. The committee is expected to amend SB 146 next week to add a minimum of 20 days paid parental leave for full-time teachers, among other items. Can’t wait to see this on Gov Braun’s desk!
Additionally on Wednesday, dozens of other advocates and advocacy groups spent almost 3 hours in the House Elections Committee speaking out against SB10, which does several bad things but most notably, will prohibit students at Indiana’s public universities (including ISU and Ivy Tech) from using their college ID to vote. Proponents claim this change is needed, although they cannot point to a single instance where a student ID has been used illegitimately to vote. SB10 wasn’t voted on this week but it will be back before the committee next week. Use this link to sign StandUp Indiana’s petition to Speaker Huston opposing the bill.
Items of note on the schedule for next week:
SCR 24: Recognizing pregnancy care centers. While not legally binding, a resolution gives us a glimpse into potential future priorities for our lawmakers. Crisis pregnancy centers are "pro-life" propaganda centers that weaponize vulnerable women's desperation and promote disinformation about reproductive healthcare. They aren't licensed or regulated, they don't have to provide patients with scientifically-accurate information, and they are not bound by HIPAA because they are not recognized as healthcare providers. Many are simply staffed by volunteers. Unlicensed volunteers shouldn't masquerade as healthcare providers, and religious organizations shouldn't receive taxpayer funds. Here in Indiana, that's exactly what's happening with CPCs. SCR 24 is a clue for us that lawmakers may be planning on sending even more tax dollars their way, which could endanger patients and elevate dangerous, science-denying disinformation. Contact Sen. Goode, and urge him to vote NO to SCR 24.
1001: Monday afternoon will be a Senate School Funding Budget Subcommittee meeting. They will be discussing funding for K-12, summer school, and gifted and talented programs. The Indiana Coalition for Public Education published this review of the current budget. Now is the time to reach out to the subcommittee members with your feedback on the proposed budget, and ask for them to support a budget increase of no less than 3% in 2026 and 2027 for our traditional public schools: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
HB 1393: Immigration notice requires a law enforcement officer to provide the name, address, and other identifying information to ICE after arresting or issuing a summons to an individual suspected of not being lawfully present in the United States. This bill will undoubtedly lead to increased racial profiling, and will create a culture of fear towards law enforcement and discourage immigrant communities from seeking support from law enforcement. Contact Sen. Aaron Freeman's Corrections and Criminal Law Committee and urge them to vote NO to HB 1393: [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
SB2: Medicaid matters. SB 2 threatens healthcare coverage for more than 750,000 low-income Hoosiers by making extreme changes to Indiana's Medicaid programs, including massive cuts to the Healthy Indiana Plan, limiting HIP enrollment, and adding burdensome new paperwork requirements to the program. Plus, it prevents advertising the program, keeping eligible Hoosiers in the dark about their healthcare options. Contact Rep. Brad Barrett's Public Health Committee, and urge them to vote NO to SB 2: [email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected],[email protected]
State Rep. Jeff Thompson has introduced a third version of SB2, the budget bill. This one would focus on reducing long-term increases in property tax, rather than cutting it. Indiana has low property taxes already, but the drastic increase in property values in recent years has made these low rates feel unbearable to many Hoosiers. Rep. Thompson's plan may balance some tax relief while ensuring local governments don't go without critical revenue. Nothing is final, and the bill is still being considered in the House. You can direct comments regarding SB 1 to House Ways and Means chairman Rep. Jeff Thompson. More on this from the Indiana Capital Chronicle.
LOCAL FOCUS
It was Terre Haute Mayor Brandon Sakbun’s turn for an interview with Ask The Mayor last week. He addressed Lt Gov. Beckwith’s misspelling and misinformation, Entek’s pause, and the 1-year anniversary of the casino opening.
GOOD TROUBLE
Mahmoud Khalil is a legal permanent resident of the United States, an Algerian citizen of Palestinian descent married to an American citizen who is currently eight months pregnant. He has been arrested by ICE without a warrant or a charge, is now being detained and threatened with a legally dubious deportation in spite of his green card. Why? Because he organized peaceful political protests against the war in Gaza, speech now disfavored by the state. This is a classic suppression tactic of repressive governments, and as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez warns us: “if the federal government can disappear a legal U.S. permanent resident without reason or warrant, then they can disappear U.S. citizens too.” Trump is already threatening more to come. We need to speak up for free speech, and our leaders do too. Let’s join more than 1.8 million people in endorsing this call for Mahmoud’s immediate release (and members of the Jewish community can also sign this similar petition from Bend the Arc). We should also contact our members of Congress to demand they do the same – we can use scripts and language provided by Qasim Rashid, Esq. here.
RESOURCE CENTER
really interested in the wonky details of the Khalil Mahmoud issue? Read this issue of Deportnation, written by practicing immigration lawyer, Matt Cameron:
interested in what comes next, in a not-so-wonky way? Read this issue of Deportnation:
interested in how the law intersects with politics in general? Listen to Matt’s podcast, Opening Arguments. It comes out MWF, and is one of my faves for explaining WTF is happening right now, legally.
Other law-talkin’ pods:
Strict Scrutiny - Three female Constitutional law professors break down the latest headlines and biggest legal questions facing our country, emphasizing what it all means for our daily lives. A lot of focus on SCOTUS. https://crooked.com/podcast-series/strict-scrutiny/
Law & Chaos - Liz Dye, a legal journalist at Above the Law, Wonkette, and Aaron Rupar’s Public Notice and real-life lawyer Andrew Torrez dig into the legal stories that dominate the news and affect our politics. (NB: A. Torrez has been credibly accused of inappropriate sexual interactions, which led to him leaving the Opening Arguments podcast). https://lawandchaospod.com
Main Justice - Andrew Weissmann and Mary McCord, frequent MSNBC contributors and veteran Department of Justice lawyers, break down what’s happening inside Trump’s DOJ. https://www.msnbc.com/main-justice
UPCOMING EVENTS
March 18-20th: Republicans have proposed $230 billion in budget cuts that will largely come from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to pay for their tax cuts for billionaires. This program is a lifeline for more than 42 million low-income Americans, including one in five kids, and one of our most effective tools for fighting hunger. The average SNAP benefit is $6 a day per person. The Food Research and Action Center is issuing a SNAP Challenge to Americans for March 18th to 20th, asking folks to try to get by for three days spending only $6 a day on groceries and document their experience. Let’s read more about the challenge here and consider participating by registering here. Let’s also ask our members of Congress to take the SNAP Challenge too, to see if the folks considering cutting food benefits are willing to put their money where their mouths are.
March 19th: Todd Young ‘Empty Chair’ Town Hall Broadway United Methodist Church 609 E 29th St Indianapolis, IN 46205 6-8pm. Since Senator Young is unable to join us, we will record this event and send it to his office. Bring your questions and concerns that you would like to share with him!
March 21st: Vigo County Democrat Party meeting ‘event’. 5:30pm at VFW Post 972 (1111 Veteran’s Way)
March 22nd: Messmer’s Missing — But We’re Here! 20 NW 3rd St Evansville, IN 47708 1 – 3pm CDT. Rep Messmer isn't listening. He isn't responding to constituent concerns and won't hold a Town Hall. It is time to demand accountability for our representative. We’re showing up to hold our own Town Hall - right in front of his office!
March 24th: Vigo County School Board meeting at 6pm. Regular Meetings are usually held in the Administration Building Board Room at 501 W. Olive St., West Terre Haute, IN and are open to the public. @mrs.frazzled posted a guide for showing up to school board meetings and how to prepare.
March 27th: Nasty Women of Vigo County. 5-7pm in meeting room C, VCPL Main Branch. Pamphlet Club reading assignment is the Precinct Committee Chair Handbook
Nationwide Day of Action on Saturday April 5th in DC and in cities across the country organized by 50501, Indivisible, and other national partners.
END ON A HIGH NOTE
Bloomberg estimates that all the billionaires who attended Trump’s inauguration have lost a collective $209 billion since the start of his term. Selling out isn't cheap!!
A federal judge found that DOGE is likely subject to public disclosure laws and must promptly turn over documents to CREW, a group that had sued for access to its internal emails.
CNN came out with a brutal new poll for Trump. His job approval is 45%-54%, a 5 point drop in the last 2 weeks. Musk’s job approval is 35%-53%. Both are deeply underwater. And voters’ views on the economy are very, very poor.
Anti-vaxxer David Weldon’s nomination to run the CDC was pulled. He didn’t have the votes. This is HUGE.