Indiana

A dent in Democratic efforts to flip the Senate.

The Senate races that could shock you on election night.

The casual political observer in Indiana would be confused.

It started with Larry Bird, the hick from French Lick. And now Brad Stevens has the team on the cusp of greatness once again.

Quality candidates made it through the Republican primaries this time.

Both Republicans and Democrats avoided elevating bad candidates in marquee races.

Hosted by Charlie Sykes.

Mike Braun, Luke Messer, Todd Rokita are all running for a chance at a rare GOP pickup in the upper chamber.

Three answers to one question Tuesday night summed up the Republican primary in the Indiana Senate race. During the campaign’s opening debate, the moderator asked the trio of candidates running to replace incumbent Democrat Joe Donnelly to name two spending cuts they would vote to make right away.…

CNN reports:

Before there was Nate Silver's FiveThirtyEight, Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball, and Bill Mitchell's Yard Signs, there was Vigo County, Indiana. The half-urban, half-rural area about 80 miles southwest of Indianapolis has voted for the winner of the presidential race in 30 of the last 32 elections, and…

A new poll of likely voters in Indiana finds Republican Senate candidate Todd Young leading his Democratic rival, former senator Evan Bayh, by five points. The new survey from WTHR and Howey Politics Indiana found Young, a three-term congressman, with 46 percent support, while Bayh has 41 percent…

Evan Bayh's true address might be the swamp Donald Trump wants to "drain." The former Democratic senator, running in Indiana to reclaim his old seat, has faced an onslaught of negative news about his years of residency outside the Hoosier state, his post congressional-work, and his vote for…

The 2010 midterm elections were the initial referendum on lawmakers who voted for Obamacare: Democrats took a thumping. But two years later President Barack Obama proclaimed the debate over the law “settled" after he won a second term, treating his reelection as a judgment on his signature…

In this election we have a candidate who has said some incredibly ignorant things that run counter to the long established principles of the party that he represents. Huge numbers of people that might otherwise be inclined to vote for him are baffled by the fact he's going out of his way to…

Cleveland

Republican governor Mike Pence still has not filed the necessary paperwork to withdraw himself from the governor's race that would allow him to run for vice-president, two sources inside the Indiana secretary of state's office tell THE WEEKLY STANDARD.

Donald Trump has reportedly picked Indiana governor Mike Pence as his vice presidential running mate (though it's not quite official yet). On the surface, Pence comes off as a traditional conservative Republican, and his experience both in Congress and as a governor will round out Trump's relative…

Donald Trump has selected Indiana governor Mike Pence as his running mate, according to two independent reports. Both Roll Call and the Indianapolis Star are reporting the first-term Republican governor and former congressman will be Trump's pick for the vice presidency. Here's the Star:

Reports indicate Indiana governor Mike Pence is well positioned to be Donald Trump's vice-presidential selection. But a Pence spokesman says the Republican remains "focused" on his reelection campaign.

The news that Democrat Evan Bayh was entering the Indiana Senate race prompted election watchers to label the once-safe contest for Republicans a toss up.

The WEEKLY STANDARD Podcast with deputy online editor Chris Deaton reporting from the campaign trail in Indiana.

The president of Purdue University has sent a campus-wide email reminding students and faculty of the school's commitment to its "shared values" of being a "welcoming, inclusive, and discrimination-free community" while also remaining "steadfast in preserving academic freedom and individual…

The idea of writing a book about a presidential campaign that never happened had not occurred to Don Cogman. He had spent two years trying to get Mitch Daniels, then governor of Indiana, to run for president in 2012. His effort—and it was no small effort—had failed. Daniels had moved on, right out…

Former Indiana governor Mitch Daniels was on Conversations With Bill Kristol recently, and the clips aired this weekend.

Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal talked about religious liberty on NBC's Meet the Press this morning:

Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research Council, said Indiana governor Mike Pence was “unprepared” for the backlash to the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act but defended the law as a necessary safeguard for religious liberty.

Kevin Williamson writes at National Review Online about a society where it is no longer "safe to be popular," in the words of Adlai Stevenson. Here's Williamson:

Several of the likely Republican candidates for president have spoken out in defense of Indiana governor Mike Pence and his decision to sign the state's Religious Freedom Restoration Act. CNN reports that several White House hopefuls, including Jeb Bush, Ben Carson, Marco Rubio, Bobby Jindal, and…

THE WEEKLY STANDARD podcast with senior writer John McCormack on the recently-passed Religious Freedom Restoration Act in Indiana, and what the media gets wrong.

John McCormack joined MSNBC's Morning Joe this morning to discuss the Indiana religious freedom law:

WRTV reports that around 30,000 are going to lose their health care plans due to Obamacare in Indiana:

WRTV in Indiana reports that a man has tried for 6 weeks to sign up for Obamacare, but is still unable to:

Obamacare is costing one Indiana school district $6 million, WTHI reports:

Eyebrows at campuses around the country furrowed with concern last week over an Associated Press report involving former Indiana governor and current Purdue University president Mitch Daniels. Indeed, “AP Exclusive: Daniels looked to censor opponents,” is one heck of a headline to hang on four…

Obamacare will be costly for Hoosiers who already have health insurance, according to a report from Indystar.com.

Purdue University in Indiana faces a $2.8 million Obamacare bill due to Obamacare, a local affiliate reports:

WTHI reports that local Indiana schools will be able to keep employees because of the employer mandate delay:

Obamacare regulations are forcing employers to cut employee hours at Indiana schools, according to the Courier-Journal.

Fiscally conservative governors in Ohio, Wisconsin, and Florida have rejected billions of dollars in subsidies for the growth of high-speed rail and new public transportation projects in their states in recent years. Indiana’s new Republican governor, Mike Pence, may have the opportunity to make a…

Democrat Joe Donnelly of Indiana has defeated Republican Richard Mourdock for that state's Senate seat, Fox News reports.

Vigo County, Indiana, has correctly reflected the winner of the presidency in every election since 1956, as in 2008 when Barack Obama won the county with 57 percent support and in 2004 when George W. Bush won the county with 53 percent support.

The last several weeks have not been good for Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock of Indiana. The two-term state treasurer, who beat six-term incumbent Senator Dick Lugar in the GOP primary in May, has fallen back in the polls against his Democratic opponent, Congressman Joe Donnelly. A…

Mitt Romney is far ahead of Barack Obama in Indiana, a state Obama won in 2008. The last poll of the Hoosier State showed Romney up 13 points. But down the ballot in the U.S. Senate race, the Republican candidate Richard Mourdock, the state treasurer, isn't as far ahead. That may explain why Romney…

There’s a collision brewing between Indiana and Washington over health care: whether our system will be a top-down affair of central planning, or whether it will leave any room for bottom-up arrangements that rely on dispersed, individual decision-making and resource-allocation by self-correcting…

Three-term Indiana Democrat Rep. Joe Donnelly voted for Obamacare. He voted for Obama’s waste-filled $787 billion stimulus package. He is a down-the-line supporter of card check, the measure that would allow union organizers to bypass secret ballot elections.

U.S. Senate candidate Richard Mourdock, the Indiana Republican, has a new 30-second advertisement contrasting himself with his Democratic opponent, Congressman Joe Donnelly. Mourdock ties Donnelly with Barack Obama and encourages Hoosier voters to "follow the Indiana principles that Richard…

At the Washington Post, Chris Cilizza and Aaron Blake explain why Dick Lugar lost yesterday's Republican primary in Indiana:

The Washington Post reports:

The Washington Post reports:

In Carmel, Indiana over the weekend, a supporter of congressional candidate Susan Brooks was caught on video tape stealing campaign signs of opponent David McIntosh:

One day before the Indiana primary, Dick Lugar has released a new ad accusing his opponent, Richard Mourdock, of wanting to "cut every single senior's Social Security." (Update: The ad was apparently released late last week.) The ad portrays an elderly woman talking about Mourdock's Social Security…

Big Government reports that the Young Guns Network, a group tied to House Republican leader Eric Cantor, has purchased another direct mail item supporting Dick Lugar over Richard Mourdock in the GOP Senate primary in Indiana. The item focuses on Lugar's support for ethanol subsidies and…

Ahead of Tuesday's Republican Senate primary in Indiana, six-term incumbent Dick Lugar has a message for Hoosier voters: "At this point, help."

A new poll from Howey Politics and DePauw University shows Richard Mourdock leading Dick Lugar by 10 points in the Indiana Republican Senate primary. Among GOP primary voters, 48 percent said they would vote for Mourdock, the state treasurer, while 38 percent said they would vote for Lugar, the…

The Chamber of Commerce is sending out a new direct mail item on behalf of Indiana senator Dick Lugar, the National Journal reports. "Hoosiers are concerned about job growth...And...Dick Lugar is standing up for Indiana," the mailer reads, noting Lugar's support for building the Keystone XL…

National Journal reports on a new poll that shows incumbent Indiana senator Dick Lugar leading his primary rival, state treasurer Richard Mourdock, 44 percent to 42 percent. The group behind the poll, the Lunch Pail Republicans, is a pro-labor organization supporting Lugar.

The Eric Cantor-affiliated Young Guns Network has recently jumped into the Indiana Senate primary on behalf of Dick Lugar, paying for mailers that criticize Lugar's opponent, Richard Mourdock, for wanting to cut federal education funding. Politico's Jonathan Martin reports why this could…

In speaking about U.S. defense, Indiana Senate candidate Richard Mourdock told the Times of Northwest Indiana that “There's always going to be a lot of duplication. We look today at the historical setup of Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard. There's a lot of duplication and bureaucracy…

Indiana senator Dick Lugar is out with a new television ad, the hardest hitting in the Republican primary race, pitting Lugar against state treasurer Richard Mourdock. The ad claims that Mourdock has "bad judgment" and makes "bad decisions." Watch the ad below:

State treasurer Richard Mourdock, a 60-year-old Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, says the stakes in the Indiana primary couldn’t be higher. “This race is for the heart and soul of the Republican party in the United States Senate,” Mourdock tells THE WEEKLY STANDARD.

The Young Guns Network, a group affiliated with House Republican majority leader Eric Cantor, is encouraging Democrats in Indiana to vote in the May 8 GOP primary for incumbent senator Dick Lugar. Politico's Maggie Haberman first reported that the YG Network has been sending mailers to Indiana…

Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin has endorsed Richard Mourdock over Dick Lugar for U.S. Senate in Indiana. From her Facebook page:

Mitch Daniels, the popular two-term Republican governor of Indiana, has cut another advertisement on behalf of his political mentor, senior Republican senator Dick Lugar. "Our nation faces huge dangers," Daniels says in the 30-second spot. "And it'll take people with his big picture vision and…

A new campaign poll released to Poitico shows Republican senator Dick Lugar of Indiana five points behind his primary challenger, state treasurer Richard Mourdock. In the Wenzel Strategies poll, conducted on behalf of the Mourdock campaign, 44 percent of those Hoosier Republicans surveyed said they…

With less than two weeks to go before the May 8 Republican primary, incumbent senator Dick Lugar and Indiana state treasurer Richard Mourdock are fighting hard with television ads airing across Indiana.

Senator Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) is fighting for survival in his contentious Republican primary with state treasurer Richard Mourdock, a conservative with broad Tea Party support. Speaking with reporters in the Capitol on Tuesday afternoon, Lugar seemed to be unsure about whether or not the Tea Party…

Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock has a new 60-second radio ad airing in Indiana, which focuses on his GOP primary opponent Dick Lugar's "36 years in Washington" and his record. (Listen to the ad here.)

For the first time, Indiana state treasurer Richard Mourdock leads incumbent senator Dick Lugar in a Republican primary poll, 42 percent to 41 percent. The poll, commissioned by the Mourdock campaign, was conducted on April 16 and 17. The Indiana primary is on May 8, less than two weeks away.

Republican Senate candidates in Texas, Indiana, and Connecticut are fighting back against primary opponents with new ads.

Politico reported yesterday that American Action Network, a 501c(4) group founded by former senator Norm Coleman (R-Minn.), is buying up ad time on Indianapolis television to run ads against Indiana state treasurer Richard Mourdock. Mourdock a Republican Senate candidate challenging incumbent…

Indiana state treasurer Richard Mourdock makes an appearance in a new TV ad criticizing his Republican Senate primary opponent, incumbent senator Dick Lugar. Mourdock says Lugar "left behind his conservative Hoosier values" when he went to Washington. Watch the ad below:

With a month left before Indiana's Republican primary, incumbent senator Dick Lugar is facing more negative ads from two important conservative advocacy groups.

Six-term Republican senator Dick Lugar is seeking a seventh, but he’s been facing his toughest primary challenge in decades. His opponent, state treasurer Richard Mourdock, charges that Lugar isn’t conservative enough and is  “Obama’s favorite Republican”—a play on Lugar’s early reputation as…

Last week, the Club for Growth purchased airtime in Indiana to run advertisements against Dick Lugar, the six-term Republican senator facing a tough primary election against Indiana state treasurer Richard Mourdock. The Club's latest ad, released today, targets Lugar as a big spender and tax…

Politico reports that the Club for Growth has bought television airtime in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and South Bend, Indiana to run ads against incumbent Republican senator Dick Lugar. The ad buy will be the first outside TV advertising for this race that'll help Lugar's Republican opponent,…

A pair of new polls shows Indiana state treasurer Richard Mourdock within six points of incumbent Republican senator Richard Lugar in the GOP primary race. Politico reports:

Politico reports that Indiana Senator Dick Lugar can't vote for himself in his election because he's not eligible:

After a lifetime of political good fortune in Indiana, Senator Richard Lugar can’t catch a break. He is facing what Politico calls his “toughest reelection campaign in decades,” and with the May 8 GOP primary looming, he desperately needs to repair relations with party conservatives.

At Politico, David Cantanese reports on how Indiana’s underfunded underdog, state treasurer Richard Mourdock, is getting some help in his challenge of six-term Senate incumbent Dick Lugar in that race’s Republican primary:

According to the Associated Press, Governor Mitch Daniels just signed legislation making Indiana a right-to-work state:

Although Indiana governor Mitch Daniels would like to see his New Jersey counterpart run for president, Daniels said today that he doesn't see any signs Chris Christie will change his mind. “I personally didn’t press him, so I have nothing to report,” Daniels said of his meeting last Thursday with…

Washington Post: "House Republicans delay vote on Boehner debt plan"

There are currently at 800 Medicaid providers that can provide patients with family planning services in the state of Indiana, but you wouldn't know it by this "report" by the Associated Press's Rick Callahan.

Is Paul Ryan "The GOP's Strongest Candidate"?

Indiana state supreme court justice Steven David, a recent appointee of Governor Mitch Daniels, authored a 3-2 opinion that openly admits to overturning several centuries of common law understanding. At issue was this question: If police officers attempt to unlawfully enter the home of a free…

He has been the subject of ongoing 2012 presidential speculation. His fiscal fortitude in Indiana has been widely covered, and his controversial “truce” remarks on social issues have sparked heated debate. But to date, Indiana governor Mitch Daniels has received very little national exposure for…

Well, I hope you have an air-sickness bag handy. Here we have Indiana State Representative Dave Cheatham -- one of a number of Indiana Democrats that fled to Illinois to stop legislation aimed at reining in public sector unions -- comparing his total dereliction of public responsibility in order to…

"No Country Leans on Upper-Income Households as Much as U.S."

Back when he was running for president, Barack Obama cited his relationship with Senator Richard Lugar so often that Lugar came to be known in the political press as “Obama’s favorite Republican.” Photos of Lugar even appeared in campaign ads that helped Obama (narrowly) carry Indiana.

Via Real Clear Politics, here's video from a recent speech by Rep. Paul Ryan, D-Wis. He makes a pretty powerful point about Democratic legislators fleeing their states and the lack of respepect for the rule of law:

Not again: Indiana Republicans pursue right-to-work legislation, and pro-union Dems flee the state.

With Republicans picking up a Senate seat with Dan Coats's win and two House seats so far with Todd Young winning in the Ninth and Larry Bucshon winning in the Eighth (Brad Ellsworth's old district), the Hoosier State seems to have turned back to the GOP after its flirtation with Obama and the…