Blue 812 News Issue 87 - September 27

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This week, Mainers take their turn to be concerned about their senator, Susan Collins, after ProPublica released the first in what they’re saying is a series of reports about widespread corruption that the FBI was apparently investigating before the Trump administration essentially dismantled the whole anti-corruption squad. The details are as follows: in 2019, Scott Reed, a top fundraiser for Sen. Collins, who was in the middle of a tough re-election fight, met with three executives from Navatek, a Hawaiian defense contractor, where Reed asked for a $500,000 donation to Collins’ PAC. In exchange, Collins would help Navatek secure millions of dollars in contracts from the Department of Defense. The donations would be funneled through a shell company called the Society of Young Women Scientists and Engineers. The FBI caught notice of the scheme when they saw a $150,000 check from the newly created LLC with a typo, “the Society of Young Women Scientist and Engineers,” (missing an S at the end of “Scientist”), which made them start digging. Behold! The power of proofreading!

Eventually, Navatek’s CEO, Martin Kao started talking and he backed up his claims with pages and pages of receipts. Kao was sentenced to 87 months in prison last year, getting no leniency for his cooperation in the sprawling FBI investigation, which was abruptly halted when Donald Trump took office and purged the FBI. The cherry on top of this alleged pay-to-play scheme is that Navatek never actually produced anything for the Pentagon. As ProPublica put it, “While some projects involved potentially meaningful research, Navatek’s bread and butter was R&D that went nowhere. As a slideshow prepared by an executive explained, ‘We thrive in the valley of death,’ the term for the bureaucratic gap where research languishes without being developed into a product. The slideshow noted that none of the technology had ever actually been deployed.” My personal favorite part of the story is that at some point, executives at Navatek decided it would look good for the “Society of Young Women Scientist and Engineers” to actually help women in STEM fields, with Kao writing over email, “Whatever… just a pack of bitches getting free $.”

Susan Collins has denied any wrongdoing, with her staff calling the claims in the ProPublica report “categorically false,” even as the New York Times confirmed all of ProPublica’s reporting. Oops! In case you forgot, Collins is up for re-election right now, and her opponent, Troy Jackson, accused Collins of “corruption of the highest order,” saying in a statement, “Susan Collins doesn’t care that we’re losing our health care, that ICE is killing people on the streets, and that we’ve been dragged into a pointless war—as long as her donors get their contracts and her coffers get filled. We deserve answers about every contract and every conversation that Collins and her team facilitated on the backs of taxpayers.”

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If you haven’t been following South Florida’s latest political fan fiction, allow me to introduce the “grand conspiracy” investigation — Trump’s effort to prove that federal officials secretly plotted against him. The probe has been running for more than a year, operating on the assumption that if you shake enough unrelated investigations (from Russian election interference to the Mar‑a‑Lago classified documents case) together, eventually a crime will fall out. Prior attempts to “investigate the investigators” have turned up exactly none of the criminal misconduct this probe is supposed to reveal, but hope springs eternal.

This week, the investigation lurched forward again when DOJ subpoenaed a group of current and former FBI agents who worked on the Mar‑a‑Lago documents case. Their lawyers responded with a filing aimed squarely at U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon: are the agents even allowed to testify about Volume II of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report? Cannon has kept that volume sealed for years and barred DOJ from discussing it with anyone outside DOJ, including grand jurors, the agents’ own lawyers, and, technically, the agents themselves. The filing looks straightforward: protect the agents from being trapped between Cannon’s gag order and a grand jury subpoena, but it also exposes a major contradiction. DOJ previously insisted that even Jack Smith couldn’t testify about Volume II, yet Trump’s “investigate the investigators” crusade now requires these agents to do exactly that. According to the agents’ lawyers — Abbe Lowell, Mark Zaid, and Margaret Donovan — DOJ has already reversed course and said the agents can testify. Now the spotlight swings to Cannon, who must figure out how to wriggle out of the trap she set for herself. Cannon, meanwhile, must figure out how to unwind her own restrictions without admitting she was hoisted by her own petard. It’s like a funhouse mirror of corruption!

Beyond the procedural tangle, the filing does serve a broader strategic purpose. It publicly updates the status of the “grand conspiracy” probe, gives the agents a platform to defend the legitimacy of the Mar‑a‑Lago investigation, and quietly lays groundwork for a future claim of vindictive prosecution if charges ever materialize. It also plants a counter‑narrative for the judges who will eventually inherit this mess — especially the 11th Circuit. Speaking of the 11th Circuit: the long‑running effort to force the release of Volume II remains stuck there, with oral arguments scheduled and rescheduled so many times it’s starting to resemble a bureaucratic endurance sport. The latest tentative date is January. Maybe.

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department is embroiled in what may be the nation’s largest string of charges for police misuse of Flock Safety cameras (at least, so far). On Wednesday, Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears announced that he has charged five IMPD officers with misusing the technology. “This is definitely just the beginning,” Prosecutor Mears said. Michael Rogers, Jonathan Schultz, Cassandra Crawley, Matthew Binford and Abigail Cramer were all charged after the police department identified potential misuse of the technology and referred the investigation to county prosecutors. IMPD Chief Tanya Terry explained one officer self-reported he used the Flock system inappropriately, which prompted IMPD to review ALPR technology use over several years and refer cases to the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office.

The charges against Officer Binford involve an ex-wife, alleging he used his superior officer’s laptop to access ALPR technology to track her movements. Officer Cramer’s allegations involve searching at least six separate license plates, almost all of which connected to a woman identified as the ex-wife of Cramer’s current wife. One victim in Cramer’s case told investigators that she had begun receiving anonymous hate letters and was starting to feel harassed by Cramer, who has since resigned.

While the other four officers are accused of just fraud and official misconduct, Officer Schultz is also being charged with stalking. It is alleged that Schultz would use ALPRs to track at least 11 different women and then use their whereabouts to create “chance encounters.” Court documents say Schultz allegedly made 1,396 searches, including former and current romantic interests. One victim said he followed her for months. Astute readers are asking themselves: are these five officers inclusive of, or in addition to the one suspended in August for using the cameras for “personal reasons”? or the one suspended just 10 days ago? Those officers were not publicly named at the time, so it’s unclear!

Indiana has no laws regulating the cameras, though it’s likely they will be discussed in the upcoming General Assembly. Walker Lasbury, president of Eyes Off Indiana, said he supports the cities and counties that have ended contracts with Flock, but argued state lawmakers need to take action to protect every person. “When you’re traveling from county to county, your privacy protections shouldn’t change,” he said. “For that reason, it’s the job of the state to enact regulation that protects Hoosiers, no matter what county or city you’re in.”

Could our local law enforcement be misusing this extremely powerful tool? Vigo County and Terre Haute continue to use Flock Safety cameras, with Mayor Brandon Sakbun clarifying that the city does not use Flock’s audio feature or any facial recognition software, storing its own data and wiping it after 30 days. On Tuesday, Sakbun said, "We are actually having conversations about reducing the amount of days that data is stored by the city from 30 to 15." The mayor also has said a limited number of detectives have access to the footage and every use is documented. In a letter to state lawmakers, Sakbun proposed a statewide policy be drafted during the 2027 legislative session to create standards for use, safeguards and repercussions for those who abuse the system. Should the Indiana Legislature not be able to pass guardrails for the technology, Sakbun said, "There will have to be some tough conversations about continuing use of the system in the summer of 2027." Vigo County Sherriff Derek Fell told the Tribune Star, “We are implementing further measures where the system automatically notifies command staff for numerous or multiple entries on the same vehicle or license plate, for review to ensure it is of legitimate investigative action.”

The Vigo County Council is ready to begin its deep dive into the County Oversight Board’s recommendation for county financial participation in schools consolidation, but from the timeline announced so far, it’s unlikely there will be full County Council consideration of the funding question in October or before the Nov. 3 midterm elections. Well, good thing there’s not $90 million riding on the decision!

You may recall, Council President Steve Ellis created the School Funding Committee (members are Ellis, Randy Gentry and Nancy Allsup) at the Sept. 1 council meeting, before hearing a presentation from the Oversight Committee. Then, during the Sept. 8 meeting, a motion proposed by Council member David Thompson to eliminate the School Funding Committee was voted down 4-3. The first meeting of this shadow school funding committee will be the 29th, with the agenda simply reading: “Council members may ask questions of Superintendent, CFO, and Vigo County School Board, if they choose.” “[Ellis] didn’t even invite the oversight board to the meeting next week,” Oversight Board President Mark Elliott said of this coming Tuesday’s 10 a.m. meeting at the annex. “We’re going to be there, anyway.” Ellis has scheduled two more meetings for the special committee, Oct. 15 and 26.

Although Ellis has said there were many questions that had not yet been answered, Elliott said, outside of Gentry, his board had not received any questions from any council members, and Gentry’s query could be answered at Tuesday’s meeting. Commissioner Chris Switzer said he, likewise, has invited County Council members to reach out with questions, but they have not contacted him. Ellis replied he sent a list of questions to the school board’s attorney, Joe Etling.

At the Sept. 1 meeting, commissioners offered to make oversight committee members available to the council at any time. They had hoped for a School Funding Committee meeting much sooner than Sept. 29, so a vote on matter could be taken in October. Commissioner Mike Morris, a former member of the County Council, said he considered the School Funding Committee not convening sooner to be a clear delay tactic. Some involved in the process say it almost seems the council’s special committee wants to disregard the work done by the Oversight Board and simply start over. “Any council member could’ve attended those meetings and educated themselves,” Morris said. “I want to give the Council all the respect I can, but they should have been doing their job for the last eight months.” Elliot said, “I assume they just don’t trust the work that we’ve done and want to do it themselves, which was not the intent of that piece of legislation” that allowed establishment of the Oversight Board.

IndyStar’s latest "Meet the Candidates" video interview is with secretary of state candidate Greg Ballard. Beau Bayh’s interview is scheduled to drop on the 29th.

Speaking of the SoS race, the latest kerfuffle (and annoying campaign ad) is over the age old question: who is a Hoosier? Whose blood bleeds corn? Republican nominee Max Engling touts his “Hoosier roots” in his campaign advertising despite only living in Indiana during his college years and returning after more than a decade in Washington for an unsuccessful 2024 congressional race. Beau Bayh is the target of from political attacks over his Hoosier ties with Republicans swiping at his years of voting in Indiana while living elsewhere. Even Lincoln Party candidate Greg Ballard has been questioned over his short-lived retirement to South Carolina following his time as Indianapolis mayor. Libertarian Lauri Shillings grew up near Lafayette and has lived in the state the majority of her life, so she seems to have escaped the scrutiny.

This is a race that is drawing more interest as we wait to see where the blue wave will crest. Hoosier roots could end up being a deciding factor in the 18th ‘stickiest’ state in the nation, where more than two-thirds of native-born Hoosiers remain in the state, and almost 90% stay in the same county year-to-year.

Last week was the second of three candidate forums hosted by the League of Women Voters at the Vigo County Public Library, featuring County Council and Commissioner candidates. The majority of candidates attended to answer questions about school funding (of course), data centers, tax abatements, alternatives to incarceration and their long-term priorities for the county. Tim Fears and Mark Clinkenbeard were the absentees.

The first question (and I’m sure the one audience members were most interested in) asked whether the candidates support county funding for Option 6.2, and why. If not, they were asked to provide what they see as an alternative. Moderator Carly Schmitt did not allow any mealy-mouthed answers and pressed for a clear yes or no. I know that’s what you’re here for, so here’s the chart!

A lot of questions centered around data centers: if candidates support a 1-year moratorium, what kinds of benefits a data center would have to offer the county for them to agree with it, and if they supported NDAs as part of the planning process. Mostly the candidates agreed with the moratoriums, disagreed with NDAs, and would invest money into schools, public safety, and infrastructure.

Next week we get to hear from the school board candidates. As usual, paid subscribers will receive my comprehensive and snarky recap.

Common Cause Indiana needs your help. They are working to place thousands of volunteers on the ground for the mid-term elections as part of the Election Protection Project.

They want every voter to know they can get help from the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline. The Election Protection Project is a crucial line of defense for voters against suppression tactics, confusing laws, outdated infrastructure, and other hurdles to casting a ballot. Above all, they are working to inform voters of their rights, help elections officials handle problems in real time, and notify their teams of attorneys when legal intervention is needed.

There are three types of volunteer opportunities available:

If you would like to get involved in this work to protect Hoosier voters, please visit protectthevote.net to sign up.

In a newly published rule, the Trump regime has proposed erasing Black, brown, LGBTQ+ and new Americans from the 2030 Census, our country’s official count of the U.S. population used to determine whether and how our communities are funded and represented in Congress.

They are collecting public comments on the proposal through Oct. 13, before releasing a final rule. Public comments are effective. Earlier this summer, a proposed rule to politicize federal grants (remember that?) was paused after 500,000 public comments against it were submitted.

Submit a Public Comment here. There’s a template here if you need one.

one of my favorite follows is Emily in Your Phone. I have learned so much from this former congressional staffer/lawyer. I follow her on Instagram, read her Substack, and bought her book. She recently released a list of actions to take to bring a blue wave in November: 66 Things You Can Do to Help Win the Midterms

visit the Blue812News Local Events calendar to see all upcoming events

Tuesday, September 29th at 6pm: The League of Women Voters is hosting a candidate forum series at the Vigo County Public Library from 6-7:45pm. This one is for School Board & Township Trustees. Paid subscribers get my comprehensive notes!

Thursday, October 1st at 6pm: Terre Haute City Council Meeting at City Hall.

Thursday, October 1st at 6pm: Nasty Women of Vigo County meeting in Room A of the Vigo County Public Library from 6-7:30pm. Lynn Morales, Vigo Co. Commissioner candidate, will be a guest at the meeting.

Saturday, October 3rd at 10am: Canvassing & phone-banking for Mary Allen. Meet at VigoDems Headquarters (817 Wabash) for canvassing/phone-banking. Continues weekly. More info & register here for canvassing. More info & register here for phonebanking.

Saturday, October 3rd at 12pm: Mark Minnick Meet & Greet at Riley Lions Den (7801 IN-46, Riley, IN) from 12-3pm. This is a great opportunity to meet Mark, hear about his vision for Vigo County, ask questions, and share what matters to you and your community.

Saturday, October 3rd at 12pm: Terre Haute Pride Fest at Fairbanks park. 12-6pm. All the cool kids are volunteering, too. Sign up here.

Tuesday, October 6th at 5pm: Vigo County Council Meeting in the Council Chambers in the Vigo County Government Center, 127 Oak Street. Paid subscribers get my comprehensive notes!

Wednesday, October 7th at 7pm: Secretary of State Debate Live on WFYI Public Television, streamed on WFYI’s YouTube channel, and streamed at www.indianadebatecommission.com.

Thursday, October 9th at 6pm: Terre Haute City Council Meeting at City Hall.

FEMA has doled out more than $100 million to Hoosiers for flood relief as of Sept. 22.

A judge threw out Donald Trump’s lawsuit seeking retribution against the Des Moines Register and pollster Ann Selzer for publishing a wildly inaccurate poll that showed former Vice President Kamala Harris leading him in Iowa before the 2024 presidential election. “Erroneous statements are inevitable in free debate and must be protected if the freedoms of expression are to have the breathing space they need to survive,” Judge Scott Beattie wrote.

A sea turtle laid eggs in California, a first for the entire West Coast, then a second sea turtle laid eggs on Southern California shores days later!

On Wednesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Greg Casar unveiled legislation that would ban artificial superintelligence and create a federal agency to oversee advanced AI.

Owen County Commissioners unanimously approved a one-year data center moratorium Tuesday evening. Officials said no company has proposed building a data center in Owen County, but Commissioner Norman Warner said the county wants to establish rules before that happens.

A federal judge lifted Trump’s ban on CNN, MS NOW, and CBS. The Trump administration isn’t complying perfectly, but they have largely allowed those outlets to resume their White House coverage.

Harvey Weinstein was sentenced in Manhattan criminal court to 15 years in prison for the 2006 sexual assault of former production assistant Miriam Haley.

The Supreme Court again blocked Missouri from using a congressional map in November that was redrawn to give Republicans an edge in the midterm elections. Snip-snap, snip-snap!

This week, Trump’s disapproval rating hit 60.4%, the worst mark of his two terms in office, including the aftermath of the Jan. 6 riots.

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