Blue 812 News Issue 60 - March 15

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It has been two weeks since President Donald Trump launched his ill-considered, disastrous war against Iran, and he isn’t trying very hard to explain why the U.S. is even in this war. Reporting has shown that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu played an outsized role along with his ally, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) in convincing Trump to drop bombs. America First, baby.

Trump recently boasted that the “war is won” and told world leaders that Iran is “about to surrender.” Shortly after, in his first public statement, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei vowed revenge. “We will not forgo avenging the blood of the martyrs. Every citizen killed by the enemy is a case for vengeance in itself,” he said in a statement read by a presenter on Iranian television. Americans should brace for oil prices to double to $200 per barrel, Iran’s military warned, as it lays mines in the Strait of Hormuz, prompting Trump to post a statement saying that actually, higher oil prices are good for America because we sell oil, too. Now, the Pentagon is considering sending more warships to guide tankers through the Strait of Hormuz.

Top Trump officials acknowledged to lawmakers during recent classified briefings that they did not plan for the possibility of Iran closing the strait in response to strikes, according to three sources familiar with the closed-door session according to CNN. Administration officials “believed closing the strait would hurt Iran more than the US” which colored their view of the risks to world oil supplies. Currently, Iran is exporting more oil than it was before the war began, allowing the regime to rake in extra money as crude prices soar.

In a move rich in historic irony, President Trump has temporarily lifted sanctions on Russian oil in a desperate effort to ease global oil prices sent skyrocketing by his poorly planned attack on Iran and said he’ll tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to bring down U.S. gas prices. “We’ll do that, and then we’ll fill it up,” Trump told a local broadcaster while on his so-called affordability tour. “I filled it up once, and I’ll fill it up again, but right now, we’ll reduce it a little bit, and that brings the prices down.” Oil prices continue to rise anyway.

Now, the U.S. plans to send up to 5000 Marines and more warships to the region. Trump said that he’ll end the war “when I feel it in my bones.” A majority of Americans oppose this war. If you’re thinking, “duh,” we’re on the same page, but this is unusual because it’s so early; typically, wars have more support at the beginning, but also typically, the government makes even the tiniest effort to sell us on it.

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GOP lawmakers are making incredibly racist posts online against the backdrop of Trump’s war in Iran. I swear every time I searched for sources on this, I learned about a new example.

According to a recent analysis by The Washington Post, close to 100 Republican members of Congress — that’s more than 45% — have made social media posts about Islam or Muslims, and nearly all of them are negative.

When asked about the lawmakers’ conduct, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said “the language that people use is different language than I would use,” adding that he spoke to party members about the overall tone and message of their remarks. Let’s call Speaker Mike Johnson at ‭(202) 225-4000‬ and Senate Majority Leader John Thune at (202) 224-2321. We can say something like:

This week we had not one but two announcements of state offices “partnering” with Turning Point USA, the brainchild of assassinated conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

Secretary of State Diego Morales beat the governor’s office to the punch with his announcement of partnering with TPUSA’s Club America to sponsor voter registration drives in high schools. Julia Vaughn, executive director of voting-rights group Common Cause Indiana, said she welcomed Morales’ effort to increase voter registration, but questioned whether the partnership with Turning Point was appropriate, specifying concerns about Club America registering teens to vote and then providing information to Turning Point’s political organization for campaign purposes. “Morales should either offer partnerships to all groups that do voter registration in Indiana — both conservative and progressive — or steer clear of any association and do the work independently,” Vaughn told the Capital Chronicle. “His teaming up with Turning Point USA looks more like a political partnership than one that is based on public service.”

Two days later, Gov. Braun announced a “partnership” with TPUSA to promote student chapters in high schools... maybe. It’s unclear what the partnership means or does, and Braun did not clear up the matter in a press conference Thursday. The governor, appearing with Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith and members of Turning Point, pitched the partnership as a way to bring political balance to schools.

Opponents are crying foul, saying it’s inappropriate for the state to be giving “special treatment” to “one favored political brand,” as Senate Minority Leader Shelli Yoder put it. At this point, the separation of church and state is a gossamer-thin veil. The state’s largest teachers union released a statement noting that students already have the right to form clubs and engage in civic discussion. It’s not clear whether any Indiana K-12 public schools have blocked Turning Point USA chapters from forming in the past or exactly how Braun’s proclamation will ultimately change their formation. More at Indiana Public Media.

The Vigo County Council is now second-guessing its second thoughts about funding local warming centers. In late December 2025, the council approved $15,000 for providing the warming center service in partnership with the City of Terre Haute, but the money was not spent before year’s end, so it reverted back to the county’s general fund. At Tuesday’s meeting, the council voted 4-3 against allocating the same $15,000 to help pay for costs of opening the Lotus Center’s warming center during particularly frigid days this winter. County Council members Randy Gentry, David Thompson, Brenda Wilson and Brad Anderson voted against releasing the money at Tuesday’s meeting, despite everyone but Gentry voting in favor of the allocation in December.

At Wednesday night’s candidate forum Commissioner Mark Clinkenbeard said the Board of Commissioners is still behind the warming centers. Also on Wednesday, County Council President Steve ‘Top Guns’ Ellis, posted a video on his Holding Vigo County Accountable Facebook page attempting to make sense of the vote, saying “I cannot tell you why some of the people who voted no on that voted no.”

Then on Thursday afternoon, presumably after reading the room, David Thompson, Brad Anderson and Brenda Wilson (*ahem* currently running for Indiana Senate) issued a joint statement, essentially saying they misunderstood the Tuesday request. In light of the council members’ reversal, Clinkenbeard wrote on Facebook, “It appears that there are now the votes to approve the appropriation. It is my opinion that this should be brought back to the Council by the City in April and be approved.” We’ll see! On Friday, incumbent Indiana Senator (why would that be relevant?) Greg Goode pledged to fund half of the city’s request personally. Read more from the TribStar.

More than a dozen speakers shared a wide range of opinions about a proposed school facilities plan during a listening session conducted by the Vigo County Oversight Board Thursday evening, including students, community members and elected officials. Some advocated for certain schools, while others spoke both for and against the facilities plan endorsed by the Vigo County School Board. The Vigo County Oversight Board is reviewing the Vigo County School Corp.’s proposed facility plan and assessing county finances to determine whether the county has the capacity to assist with a new high school.

The oversight board will conduct another night meeting at 5:15 p.m. March 26, also in the Vigo County Security Annex council chambers.

Mayor Sakbun may be on paternity leave, but you can still hear his thoughts in this week’s installment of Ask The Mayor. Sakbun discusses forever wars, schools, tolls and more at City Hall. Listen to the full conversation with Indiana Newsdesk anchor Joe Hren by visiting Indiana Public Media, or just read some of the questions and answers. A portion of this segment airs 6:45 and 8:45 a.m. Wednesdays on WFIU.

The League of Women Voters of Vigo County is hosting a series of candidate forums ahead of the May primary. Wednesday’s session included candidates for Vigo County Sheriff and County Commissioner.

Democratic incumbent Sheriff Derek Fell was joined by Democratic challenger David Ewing, a Vigo County sheriff’s deputy, during the forum. Neither of the Republican candidates deigned to come (though ‘Top Guns’ Ellis did at least reply that he was unavailable, and Democratic candidate Larry Cheeks also did not attend. A lot of the questions centered around the proposed Community Corrections facility, it’s ballooning budget, and jail over-crowding. Ewing pointed out some questions involved details beyond his pay grade, but answered honestly from his own point of view and experiences. Fell touted the RISE program, and hiring of a social worker, similar to what Terre Haute police have done.

Candidates for county commissioner include Republican incumbent Mark Clinkenbeard and Republican challenger Jodie Akinbo, and Democrats Lynn Morales, Michael Mareena (did not attend) and Danny Whitesell. Questions to this group centered on the Oversight Board, the Community Corrections facility, and infrastructure needs. As an attendee hoping to hear from the candidates on the issues, I was disappointed by how many times the candidates admitted they did not know about the high-profile issues in the community. Data centers and carbon sequestration were both brought up by community members during the forum, and almost all candidates were completely surprised by the topics and could not form coherent answers. I would advise all the candidates read the local newspaper and attend the meetings of the position they wish to be elected to, so they can understand what they’ll be expected to vote for should they prevail. Incumbent commissioner Mark Clinkenbeard expressed support for data centers, noting that ‘Vigo Co. has many good locations for one’ and they ‘give millions to communities where they are located.’ Maybe he reads the news and saw that Braun just signed a law incentivizing local communities to approve data centers.

The TribStar has a pretty thorough breakdown of the commissioner part of the forum, and you can watch the livestreamed video here. The next candidate forum, for Vigo County council candidates, will be Tuesday from 6 to 7:45 p.m., or watch live streamed on the library’s YouTube page.

Earlier this month, Indiana became the latest state to effectively criminalize being homeless, with Gov. Braun signing to law a ban on sleeping or camping on public land. In Utah, lawmakers are rallying support behind building a “campus” for “drug and mental health treatment” northwest of Salt Lake City, in what looks an awful lot like a proposal for a homeless detention camp. This is America in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s ruling in Johnson v. Grants Pass upholding the criminalization of the unhoused and Trump’s executive order demanding punitive solutions and civil committal over housing first and harm reduction. This administration is widely adopting policies pushed by a right-wing think tank founded by Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, who has significant investments in private prisons.

We can use this email tool from the National Homelessness Law Center to demand Congress and HUD block federal money from being used for detention camps for unhoused people, and use the language for call scripts.

Terre Haute officials are asking residents for input on where a new railroad overpass or underpass should be built between Maple Avenue and Hulman Street. The city wants to understand how train delays affect daily routines, such as commuting to work, dropping children off at school, or walking and biking around town. A public survey is collecting feedback on possible locations and ways to make travel safer and faster. Read more here.

visit the Blue812News Local Events calendar to see all upcoming events

Monday, March 16th at 5pm: Sign Making for No Kings, hosted by Indivisible Wabash Valley. 5-7pm at the Vigo County Public Library, meeting rooms B & C. More information & register here.

Tuesday, March 17th at 5:00pm: Vigo Dems ‘event’ at 1111 Veteran’s Square.

Tuesday, March 17th at 6pm: Vigo County Council Candidate forum hosted by the League of Women Voters. at the Vigo County Public Library, 6-7:45pm.

Saturday, March 21st at 12pm: Canvassing for Mary Allen at Vigo Dems headquarters (2629 S 3rd street). Register & more info here.

Sunday, March 22nd at 4pm: ICE OUT with Indivisible Wabash Valley Clay County Detention Center 611 E. Jackson St, Brazil, IN Every Sunday 4–5PM

Wednesday, March 25th at 3pm: Public Open House! Join TH Parks as they continue enhancing the city’s bicycle and pedestrian network. This open house is your chance to review recommendations for the new Bike & Pedestrian Plan and share your ideas for making our community more walkable and bikeable. 3-5pm at The Hub – 2nd Floor Conference Room 900 Wabash Ave., Terre Haute, IN 47807. More info here.

Wednesday, March 25th at 6pm: Vigo County Council Candidate forum hosted by the League of Women Voters. at the Vigo County Public Library, 6-7:45pm.

Thursday, March 26th at 5pm: Meet & Greet with Blythe Potter (Secretary or State candidate) at the Vigo County Public Library 5-7:30pm

Thursday, March 26th at 5:15pm: Vigo County Oversight Board meeting. 5:15-6:16 in the Vigo County Security Annex council chambers.

Saturday, March 28th at 12pm: Canvassing & Phone Banking for Mary Allen (US Rep candidate) 12-3pm at Vigo Dems Headquarters (2629 S 3rd Street).

Saturday, March 28th at 1pm: No Kings Rally at the Vigo County Courthouse 1-4pm. More info & register here. Interested in volunteering? Volunteer interest form here.

March 28th at 6pm: Activist & author Robert Arnold with guests. An opportunity to hear from all four 8th district candidates at once, plus Secretary of State candidate Blythe Potter. at Red Skelton Performing Arts Center in Vincennes. The event is free to the public. More info here.

A judge blocked Trump’s Department of Justice from subpoenaing records from the Federal Reserve, in yet another embarrassing legal defeat for MAGA prosecutors.

The Senate passed a sweeping bipartisan housing bill that would make it easier to build and finance housing projects, while also expanding federal aid. The bill faces an uncertain future in the House, however, as Republicans grumble that they weren’t involved in crafting the bill.

There’s a new statue depicting Trump and deceased child sex predator Jeffrey Epstein in the iconic boat-prow pose from the film “Titanic” at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The statue was made by the same anonymous group that created the “Best Friends Forever” statue of the duo last year.

A key vaccine advisory panel, filled with anti-vaxxers handpicked by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is abandoning its mission to stop recommending COVID-19 mRNA vaccines.

Bobbi Boudman (D) flipped a Republican-held seat in the New Hampshire state House in a special election on Tuesday night. This was a seat the GOP had previously won by 13 points.

Andy Thomson, Democratic candidate for mayor of Boca Raton, Florida, defeated two Republican opponents, flipping a seat that has not been held by Democrats for more than 30 years. He won by only five votes - every vote matters!

Bettors at Polymarket now think Democrats are slightly favored to win control of the Senate in the 2026 midterm elections.

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