Indiana Voting Zine: https://drive.proton.me/urls/BN5XAMQH78#CVDCdnPAOSk4
SUMMARY:
This week, Scott is joined by first-time guest William Hunt of Jeffersonville and returning guest Chuck Gill, pinch-hitting for a sick Kacey Blundell. The show opens on Mitch McConnell’s frail return to the Senate after his three-month absence, sparking a debate over age limits versus term limits. From there the conversation turns to the Middle East, covering the Houthi seizure of Red Sea shipping routes and attacks on Saudi Arabia, the ballooning cost of the Iran war, undercounted US casualties, and Congress dodging accountability with Massie’s Hegseth impeachment push and Meeks’s hold on arms sales to Israel — before pivoting to the Ed Sheeran-Macklemore tour controversy and its unexpected Indiana angle. The conversation then turns to the domestic economy: spiking gas prices, the Fed’s rate hike, Canada’s pivot toward the EU amid Trump’s trade war, and the US-Denmark Greenland deal. The back half of the show opens with Trump’s attacks on institutions — banning CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House, and his threats to demolish the Kennedy Center — before a rundown of voting-rights news nationally (the Supreme Court blocking Trump’s mail-ballot plan, Working Families Party primary wins in Delaware, early voting kicking off) and in Indiana specifically (the Deery-Copenhaver recount certification and the first GOP attack ads against Greg Ballard and Beau Bayh). The show then settles into Indiana utility and development stories — the Duke Energy standing case, coal-plant rulings, AES’s rate hike, the Ratepayer Protection Act, and Indianapolis’s $240 million Sabey data-center tax break, tied to Mayor Hogsett’s unenforced lobbyist-disclosure rules — before closing out with Indiana’s storm disaster relief, ICE’s “Operation Safe Community” arrests, and IU and Purdue landing at opposite ends of the national free speech rankings.
Guest info:
William Hunt: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61591381596430
Chuck Gill: https://hancockindems.com/
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
00:00:00 - Intro
00:04:41 - Mitch McConnell’s Return: Age Limits vs. Term Limits
00:11:28 - Middle East: The Houthi-Saudi Conflict and the Red Sea Oil Route
00:18:32 - The Financial and Human Cost of the Iran War
00:24:58 - Congress, Hegseth, and the War Powers Resolutions
00:31:14 - Ed Sheeran, Macklemore, and the Pressure Campaign Over Israel
00:36:18 - Gas Prices, Inflation, and the Fed’s Rate Hike
00:43:44 - Canada’s Pivot Toward the EU Amid Trump’s Trade War
00:51:38 - The US-Denmark Deal on Greenland
00:56:29 - Trump Bans CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House
01:02:32 - Trump Threatens to Demolish the Kennedy Center
01:07:41 - Voting: SCOTUS Blocks Mail-In Restrictions, Delaware Primary Results, Early Voting Begins
01:15:58 - Indiana Elections: Deery-Copenhaver Certified, GOP Attacks Ballard and Bayh
01:23:17 - Indiana Utilities: Duke Energy, Coal Plants, and AES Rate Hikes
01:34:32 - AI Data Centers: House Bill and the Indianapolis Sabey Tax Break
01:41:29 - Mayor Hogsett’s Lobbying Disclosure Problem
01:45:53 - Indiana’s Storm Disaster Relief Funds
01:48:33 - ICE’s “Operation Safe Community – Indiana” and 426 Arrests
01:51:25 - Indiana Higher Education and Free Speech Rankings
01:56:31 - Wrap-Up and Sign-Off
NOTES:
Welcome Back
Frail Mitch McConnell appears to need assist from fellow Republicans after he nearly votes wrong way in Senate (Independent)
Sen. Mitch McConnell, 84, returned to the Senate Monday for the first time since his June hospitalization, having spent weeks in a rehabilitation facility after reportedly suffering a fall and then developing pneumonia.
Two days later, at a Wednesday Agriculture Committee hearing, McConnell needed a nudge from Sen. John Boozman to vote “aye,” appearing to nearly vote incorrectly.
McConnell was quickly wheeled away by aides afterward without taking reporter questions.
In his own statement, McConnell said: “My recovery has been a long and often frustrating process, and the lingering effects of childhood polio haven’t made it any easier. I’m still not quite back to 100%.”
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear had previously pushed McConnell’s office to release video of him discussing his recovery but was rebuffed; McConnell hasn’t given an extended on-camera statement since his hospitalization.
Iran War
Yemen-Saudi Front
Houthis seize 2 strategic Red Sea islands, and other Mideast developments (AP)
Yemen’s Houthi rebels seized the strategic Greater and Lesser Hanish islands in the southern Red Sea, expanding their control near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a key oil shipping alternative to the Strait of Hormuz.
Fighting between Houthi and government forces has escalated sharply, killing hundreds and displacing nearly 94,000 people this month, with the WHO reporting over 500 deaths in a single week — raising fears Yemen could return to full civil war after its 2022 ceasefire.
Repairs to Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline, struck in a September 10 attack, could take three to five weeks and may only partially restore capacity in the meantime; China called the Houthi attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure “unacceptable.”
Saudi Arabia reportedly pushed to postpone a planned Oman-hosted meeting on Strait of Hormuz security, submitting amendments over concerns about lasting effects on the strait and other Gulf states; Iran said a separate Iran-Oman agreement on the strait has been finalized and will be announced later.
The US-Saudi nuclear accord signed in July includes what Energy Secretary Chris Wright called “absolutely rigorous” anti-proliferation safeguards, and could allow the kingdom to enrich uranium for civilian use — notably, unlike Iran, Saudi Arabia wasn’t required to sign the IAEA’s Additional Protocol for expanded inspection access.
Flames, smoke seen near Riyadh airport; Houthis claim attacks on Saudi capital (NBC)
Houthis claimed missile and drone attacks on “sensitive” sites in Riyadh Saturday, coinciding with flames and heavy smoke seen near a fuel depot by King Khalid International Airport; they also claimed a strike on Aramco’s Yanbu facility. Saudi Arabia hasn’t confirmed either claim.
Saudi civil defense issued overnight alerts warning of aerial attack danger in Riyadh and nearby Al-Kharj before an all-clear Saturday morning — the first such Riyadh alerts since the Houthi escalation began in July, despite earlier alerts tied to the separate US-Iran war.
The Houthis framed the strikes as retaliation for what they called foiled “criminal attempts” in Sanaa, which they blame on Saudi Arabia; Saudi Arabia has reportedly conducted hundreds of airstrikes against the Houthis in recent days, per Houthi claims.
The UN Security Council condemned “in the strongest terms” continued Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, citing civilian and energy infrastructure damage and injuries including to women and children, while also condemning “Houthi military escalation in Yemen” generally.
Iran’s Mohsen Rezaei said Tehran wants the Saudi-Houthi conflict to end and that Iran has relayed conditions to Qatari and Pakistani mediators for resuming stalled talks with the US, including “ending the war on all fronts” — with Tehran now awaiting a response from Trump.
Saudis seek allies’ help as missile defenses run low in fight with Houthis, officials say (AP)
Saudi Arabia is running low on missile interceptors and has asked France, Britain, Pakistan, and Egypt for air-defense support, since its main supplier, the US, has also depleted its own interceptor stock during the six-month Iran war.
Saudi Arabia accused Houthis of trying to attack Mecca with a drone, calling the city a “red line” and saying it intercepted the drone; the Houthis denied targeting the holy city.
Despite a new defense pact linking Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, officials from both allied countries said Saudi Arabia has not yet formally requested military support under the agreement — with one Saudi-aligned official saying “the decision now is to give diplomacy a chance,” pointing to Oman- and Egypt-led de-escalation efforts.
The US has stayed largely on the sidelines militarily; VP Vance said Washington is in “constant contact” with both the Saudis and the Houthis, and CENTCOM has only offered intelligence-sharing and planning support rather than direct intervention.
Houthis claimed to have shot down a Saudi-coalition F-15 over Yemen’s Marib province (unverified by AP); oil flows through Hormuz have partially recovered to 5-7 million barrels/day via a route near Oman, still less than half of pre-war levels.
Damage Done
Iran war has cost $38 billion, depleted two-thirds of US missile interceptors, CBO says (Military Times)
The Iran war has cost the US $38 billion through August 1, according to a new CBO analysis, primarily driven by munitions expenditure and increased operational costs.
The conflict has depleted between one-half and two-thirds of US inventory of key missile-defense interceptors (Patriot, THAAD, SM-3, SM-6), which CBO says could take at least five years to rebuild even with increased production.
Interceptors alone account for $13.1 billion of the estimated $21.7 billion needed to replace expended munitions; individual unit costs range from about $4 million (Patriot/SM-6) to $28 million (SM-3).
Beyond munitions, the largest costs were $10.4 billion in increased flying hours, $2.7 billion in fuel, and $1.9 billion to replace battle-lost equipment, including a THAAD radar destroyed by Iran.
CBO warns depleted interceptor stocks could pose a “particular problem” in any future conflict with China, given Beijing’s large ballistic and cruise missile arsenal; the Pentagon did not respond to CBO’s requests for information, so the estimate carries “considerable uncertainty.”
Even Higher: Iran war’s cost grows to $43.6 billion in new US military estimate (AP)
CENTCOM’s new estimate puts the Iran war’s cost at $43.6 billion as of September 3, up from CBO’s $38 billion figure through August 1 — munitions costs alone jumped over $6 billion (from $21.7B to $28.1B) in just over a month.
Pentagon casualty figures now stand at 18 dead and more than 830 wounded; a separate inspector general report found Iranian strikes have damaged or destroyed hundreds of structures at US bases across Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan — none of which is included in the cost estimate.
Democratic senators sent a letter demanding Hegseth provide a full accounting of war costs, accusing the Pentagon of withholding basic budget information from Congress and the public even as casualties and costs rise.
The estimate comes as the Trump administration pushes a $1.5 trillion military budget and a separate $95 billion supplemental package partly tied to war funding; Hegseth defended the spending push Friday in Austin, saying “We will deliver on this generational investment.”
New photos show widespread damage at U.S. positions caused by Iranian missile, drone attacks (CBS)
CBS News obtained exclusive photos from anonymous active-duty service members showing extensive, previously undisclosed damage at US bases in the Middle East, including Prince Sultan Air Force Base (Saudi Arabia) and Camp Buehring and Camp Arifjan (Kuwait).
One photo shows a direct hit severing the tail off a Boeing E-3 Sentry surveillance aircraft; concrete “T-wall” fortifications, designed for grenade/mortar defense, proved ineffective against the aerial strikes.
A service member told CBS: “This is major damage to our bases that hasn’t been communicated to the American public. We’re standing there with our eyes closed getting punched in the face,” and pushed back on Hegseth’s earlier “squirters” framing, saying, “We’re not defending these bases. We’re just watching them get destroyed.”
The Pentagon inspector general’s new mandatory report to Congress found equipment losses up to $3.7 billion, including nearly 60 destroyed aircraft, and confirmed Iranian strikes hit bases across Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan; the Pentagon did not respond to CBS’s request for comment.
This directly fills in the gap flagged in the earlier CENTCOM cost estimate, which explicitly excluded base damage from its $43.6 billion tally.
More U.S. troops have died amid Iran war than Pentagon has disclosed publicly (WaPo)
At least 22-23 US troops have died amid the Iran war, according to six officials — four to five more than the 18 listed in the Pentagon’s public Defense Casualty Analysis System database; three US contractors in the region have also died.
Two additional deaths (Sgt. Devin Seibel and Maj. Sorffly Davius) occurred at bases that have come under Iranian attack but were attributed to a training accident and unspecified medical emergency respectively — neither appears by name in the public database’s Iran-related tallies.
The accounting discrepancy follows a broader pattern: this summer, four combat deaths were briefly excluded from the database entirely, and the administration later reclassified renewed hostilities as “Overseas Operations” rather than tying them to “Operation Epic Fury,” even as Iran continued striking US forces and shipping.
Proper casualty classification has real consequences beyond transparency — line-of-duty investigations determine survivor benefits for military families.
Political fallout is mounting: only 28% of Americans support Trump’s Iran approach per a September Reuters-Ipsos poll; seven House Republicans joined Democrats this week on a symbolic measure to end the war, and Rep. Thomas Massie moved to force a vote on impeaching Hegseth over alleged War Powers Resolution violations.
House to adjourn early, stave off Hegseth impeachment vote (CNN)
Speaker Mike Johnson sent House members home a day early for their seven-week midterm campaign recess, effectively delaying a forced floor vote on Rep. Thomas Massie’s impeachment resolution against Hegseth until after the November elections.
Massie’s 34-page resolution argues Hegseth “has demonstrated that he will remain a threat to the Constitution if allowed to remain in office,” citing unlawful orders and continued troop deployment in Iran without congressional authorization; Massie read the full resolution aloud on the House floor.
Johnson denied the early adjournment was tied to protecting members from the vote, but dismissed Massie’s push as “a publicity stunt by someone who wants attention,” adding “It will immediately be tabled of course... we probably won’t do that today, we will do it when we come back.”
The resolution also accuses Hegseth of orchestrating the “kidnapping of a sovereign foreign leader” in the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, alleging the operation was actually aimed at securing US control over Venezuela’s oil reserves under the pretext of narcotics enforcement.
AG Todd Blanche defended Hegseth publicly, saying “Secretary Hegseth is doing a phenomenal job... he follows the law,” adding that DOJ plays an active role ensuring legal compliance.
Israel Front
Key House Democrat refuses to clear Trump’s $2.8bn arms sale to Israel (Guardian)
Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on House Foreign Affairs, put an informal hold on a $2.8 billion sale of 40,000 heavy bombs (MK-84s, BLU-117s, and I-2000 penetrator warheads) to Israel, saying the administration hasn’t given “sufficient assurances” the weapons will be used lawfully with adequate civilian protections.
Meeks’s hold relies on the informal “tiered review” custom rather than a formal veto — killing the sale outright would require a veto-proof joint resolution of disapproval, a bar a similar Bernie Sanders-led effort failed to clear in April along party lines.
This is part of a broader pattern Meeks has criticized: the administration has now cleared or expedited over $12 billion in arms to Israel since Trump took office, including a 2025 move by Secretary of State Rubio to declare a national security emergency to bypass congressional review entirely for a nearly $3 billion package.
The hold comes amid documented legal concerns — Leahy laws already bar assistance to foreign units linked to extrajudicial killings (the State Department flagged at least five Israeli units on these grounds before the Gaza war even began), and a UN commission of inquiry found Israel’s Gaza campaign met the threshold for genocide, a finding tied to Geneva Convention obligations against arming parties at clear risk of committing war crimes.
Meeks, a longtime pro-Israel Democrat, emphasized the move isn’t a break with Israel itself: “This decision does not diminish congressional support for Israel’s legitimate defense needs... It reflects Congress’s responsibility to ensure that US-funded weapons are used lawfully, responsibly and with meaningful safeguards for human life.”
Ed Sheeran’s tour in trouble after opening acts drop out in solidarity with rapper Macklemore (AP)
Macklemore was dropped as an opening act on Ed Sheeran’s tour after shouting “Free Palestine!” during a September 5 New Jersey show while introducing his protest song “Hind’s Hall”; several venues reportedly threatened to bar him, rallied by Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
Four other acts — Aaron Rowe, Beoga, Lukas Graham, and Finneas (Billie Eilish’s brother) — quit the tour in solidarity, with Finneas writing: “Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed... I stand with Palestine and its people.”
Irish acts Rowe and Beoga invoked their own country’s history, with Beoga stating, “We are Irish people who understand colonialism,” while Lukas Graham criticized Kraft’s involvement without naming him directly: “Money doesn’t give you the right to own the conversation.”
Kraft said Macklemore’s removal was due to his comments “and a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery” he called offensive to the Jewish community.
Sheeran said the removal was the promoter’s decision, not his, insisting he stays apolitical because fans “do not expect a political forum” at his shows, while adding, “I am not complicit” and expressing respect for Macklemore’s stance; his tour resumes Saturday in Philadelphia, with stops including Indianapolis’s Lucas Oil Stadium.
Indiana Angle: Lucas Oil responds as artists exit Ed Sheeran tour after controversy (IndyStar via Yahoo!)
Two acts scheduled to open for Sheeran’s October 10 Indianapolis show — Lukas Graham and Aaron Rowe — both withdrew from the tour this week, leaving that date without a confirmed opener.
The Marion County Capital Improvement Board, which manages Lucas Oil Stadium, confirmed the Indianapolis show will proceed despite Macklemore’s departure, calling the publicly owned venue “content neutral.”
The board’s statement read: “Our role is to provide a venue for large scale concerts and events that help make downtown Indy a vibrant place to live, work and visit... We look forward to welcoming the Loop Tour to Indianapolis.”
Tour promoter Messina Touring Group told Rolling Stone it faced pressure from venues threatening not to allow the show to proceed with Macklemore on the lineup, prompting his removal.
Economy
Gas prices are about to take a big jump, analysts say, with the worst still to come (WaPo)
Analysts predict much larger gas and diesel price spikes are coming, contradicting the administration’s claims that Saudi Arabia’s damaged East-West pipeline would be quickly repaired; consultant Andrew Lipow said satellite imagery shows damage requiring specialized parts that could take “a month or two” to fix.
National average gas hit $4.37/gallon (up to $6.04 in California, as low as $3.75 in Indiana), while diesel hit a record $6.31 national average; Midwest battleground states saw especially sharp single-day jumps, compounded by an unrelated ExxonMobil Joliet refinery outage near Chicago.
Americans have already paid an estimated $107 billion in extra fuel costs since the war began February 28; SoFi’s Liz Thomas noted diesel forecasts have worsened, already surpassing earlier election-day price projections.
The pipeline was one leg of a “three-legged stool” (per analyst Bob McNally) that had kept prices from rising further — alongside China cutting oil imports and countries tapping emergency reserves — but reserves are now largely depleted and China’s import demand has rebounded, removing those buffers simultaneously.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he’s open to considering a diesel export ban to ease domestic prices, but economists like NinjaTrader’s Tracy Shuchart warned this would worsen the crunch: “The diesel problem is a refining capacity and crude quality problem layered on a war. An export ban addresses neither and makes both worse.”
Fed raises interest rates for first time since 2023, defying Trump as inflation mounts (NBC)
The Fed raised its benchmark rate 0.25% to 3.75%-4.00% Wednesday, its first hike since 2023, in a unanimous vote directly defying Trump’s demands for lower rates, with policymakers signaling one more hike could come before year’s end.
Fed Chair Kevin Warsh said, “The plain fact is that inflation is too high and has been for too long,” attributing the surge partly to the Iran war, which has driven gas prices up more than 45% since it began and pushed inflation to 3.4% — above the 3.1% average wage growth.
Trump responded on social media demanding rates be cut to “1% or less,” falsely claiming the US has the “Best Credit in the World” (several countries, including Canada, Australia, and Germany, are rated higher by S&P); Warsh declined to comment on any conversation with the president.
Markets reacted negatively as Warsh spoke — the Dow fell 630 points and the S&P 500 closed down 0.4%, while Treasury yields remained near multi-year highs, which Warsh attributed to economic strength, global conflict zones (Iran and Ukraine), and AI-industry competition for capital.
Warsh emphasized the Fed’s limits: “We cannot affect any individual price, whether it be oil prices, whether it be foodstuffs at the grocery store... what we can do... is ensure that any change in relative prices don’t broaden out.”
Great White North
EU offers Canada ‘associate member’ role; Trump calls it ‘laughable’ (NPR)
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed making Canada the EU’s first-ever “associate member” — a status that doesn’t currently exist — during her State of the Union address, with Canadian PM Mark Carney seated as her special guest.
Trump called the idea “laughable” and threatened retaliation, saying: “If they do that, if I think it’s at all a hostile act, I will put very serious tariffs or stop trading with Europe on many things.”
The move follows Carney’s broader push for cooperation among “middle powers,” after warning in January that “great powers have begun using economic integration as weapons, tariffs as leverage” — a message analysts say has resonated widely across Europe amid Canada’s own trade tensions with Washington.
Canada and the EU already have a free-trade agreement and expanding security ties, including Canada’s unique status as the only non-European country in the EU’s €150 billion joint defense-purchasing fund; Carney has said Canada doesn’t want full single-market integration, leaving “associate membership” undefined in practice.
The proposal wasn’t preceded by public negotiation, reportedly angering some EU governments left out of the loop, and it’s already becoming politically contested in Canada, with opposition figures demanding clarity on what powers Ottawa might cede to Brussels in return.
US and Denmark Reach Deal on Greenland, Trump Says (Reuters via USNWR)
The US, Denmark, and Greenland reached an agreement expanding US military presence on the island while barring “adversaries” from building bases there; Trump called it a “dream come true,” posting the deal has no expiry date and gives the US permanent ability to “secure and defend” Greenland.
Secretary of State Rubio said the deal “permanently and completely” addresses US security concerns, with Greenland becoming a permanent part of North America’s “strategic defense area” — a State Department official said the agreement would remain in effect even if Greenland becomes independent.
Key details remain unclear, including whether new US bases will actually be built; the US already had near-total overflight and basing rights under a 1951 treaty, leading Atlantic Council’s Imran Bayoumi to note most objectives “could have [been] achieved... through diplomacy and dialogue” without straining NATO relations.
Danish and Greenlandic leaders offered cautious support — Greenland’s PM Jens-Frederik Nielsen said the deal “recognized Greenland’s interests,” though the piece notes Greenlanders broadly aspire to independence and have previously resisted US assertions of control.
MAGA hails Trump’s deal with Greenland – but is it any different from what the US already had? (Independent)
Foreign policy critics argue the Greenland deal changes little from the existing 1951 US-Denmark treaty, which already gave the US basing rights while barring adversaries — CFR’s Max Boot noted that arrangement “has been in place... since the 1951 US-Denmark treaty.”
Former Navy War College professor Tom Nichols was blunt: the deal is “no different from the situation we’ve always had, except our allies now think we’re led by a lunatic.”
Historian Anne Applebaum agreed, saying “any new nuances could have been added without the threats, drama, clumsy covert campaigns and overt attempts to buy influence” — referencing Trump’s monthslong threats to annex the island by force if necessary.
Dismantling Institutions
The Free Press
CNN, MS NOW, Politico reporters denied access to White House following Trump ban (NPR)
Reporters from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico were denied White House access Saturday after Trump announced a ban on the three outlets Friday, accusing them of reporting “FICTION and LIES” and warning other outlets could follow.
MS NOW’s Akayla Gardner said an officer told her her badge was “disabled” and couldn’t explain why beyond saying “it was above him”; CNN’s Betsy Klein, who’s covered the White House since the Obama administration, had her badge confiscated with no explanation given.
Trump told a Bloomberg reporter he wasn’t trying to intimidate the press, saying: “I dislike dishonest press, like you. I think you’re terrible,” and claimed outlets “purposely write negative news... because they want to try and diminish the Republicans.”
All three outlets vowed to keep reporting and defend their First Amendment rights; CNN said it has “a right under the U.S. Constitution” to report without government interference, and won’t be “deflected from our duty to hold the government... to account.”
First Amendment attorney Theodore Boutrous called the ban unconstitutional on its face; Trump has done this before — barring an AP reporter last year over “Gulf of America” phrasing and a CNN reporter during his first term — with courts ruling against him both times (the AP case remains under appeal).
Fox News contributors denounce Trump’s ban on CNN, MS NOW, Politico (The Hill)
Fox News contributor Ari Fleischer criticized the ban despite agreeing coverage from those outlets is “biased and unfair,” writing: “Banning them from the WH is not the solution... Don’t ban them. Or one day they’ll ban us.”
Fox News chief political analyst Brit Hume endorsed law professor Jonathan Turley’s characterization of the move as “terrible precedent and practice” that “would raise serious constitutional questions,” adding that if Trump “thinks this will lead to more favorable coverage, I think he’s dreaming.”
Fox News anchor Jacqui Heinrich, in her capacity as White House Correspondents’ Association president, said press freedom protections don’t “depend on whether the president likes a news organization’s coverage,” and that the WHCA “stands in defense of our colleagues” at the banned outlets.
Trump defended the ban in the Oval Office, saying simply, “because they’re fake news. You get so tired of reading and seeing fake news... But our country has to have honest news.”
This follows a pattern of Trump legal action against media, including a defamation suit against CNN over 2020 election coverage and a lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal last year over its reporting on his alleged ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
The Arts
Trump threatens to tear down the Kennedy Center, as legal battle continues (NPR)
Federal Judge Christopher Cooper ruled Trump can’t demolish the Kennedy Center without 30 days’ notice, hours after Trump renewed threats to “rip down” the building if his name isn’t added to it, claiming without evidence that it’s lost “hundreds of millions” of dollars.
The Kennedy Center’s board voted to close Tuesday, citing physical condition and finances, shortly after the same judge ruled the board couldn’t add Trump’s name to the building’s facade.
Rep. Joyce Beatty, an Ohio Democrat and board member suing over the naming dispute, submitted Trump’s “ripped down” comments and unverified social media photos showing him examining a placard reading “Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED” as court evidence; a law firm staffer also swore she witnessed a forklift repeatedly hit the building’s pillars during gate construction.
Eight architecture and preservation groups, including the American Institute of Architects, asked the judge to appoint an independent receiver or monitor, arguing Trump and the board are failing fiduciary duties: “A trustee cannot sit still while the institution fails. Nor can a trustee withhold the exercise of fiduciary responsibilities to obtain a personal honor.”
The judge ordered the board to file a detailed status report by the following Wednesday and to notify the court of any reversal on its demolition stance.
Protesters form human chain at Kennedy Center amid Trump’s threats to demolish it (ABC)
Hundreds of protesters formed a human chain outside the Kennedy Center Friday night, organized by the Hands Off the Arts coalition, demanding Trump be removed as chairman — a role he installed himself in last year after replacing prior board leadership.
Mallory Miller, a former Kennedy Center dance programming staffer laid off in 2025 restructuring, told ABC: “This is a building that belongs to the American people, not one person and it’s our Kennedy Center. We are the Kennedy Center.”
Trump defended his stance by describing the building as unsafe, saying: “It’s in very, very bad shape, very dangerous shape... You see steel falling down. You see plaster falling off ceilings.”
Voting
Supreme Court blocks Trump mail-in ballot plan (Politico)
The Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration’s bid to enforce new mail-ballot delivery rules before the midterms, leaving a lower-court block in place; most of the majority offered no detailed rationale on the emergency docket, saying the administration’s position was unlikely to succeed.
Justice Kavanaugh concurred separately, writing that “state and local election officials do not have sufficient time to reasonably implement the rule before the election”; Justices Alito and Thomas dissented, with Alito calling the litigation a “Hail Mary pass” three times in an 8-page dissent.
This follows a tangled legal path: the Court had voted 6-3 last month to lift Judge Talwani’s original injunction as premature, but USPS’s subsequent final rule (issued one business day before that ruling) triggered fresh litigation and a new injunction — the one the Court just declined to disturb.
A separate judge, Trump appointee Carl Nichols, issued his own injunction Sunday, ruling USPS lacked congressional authorization for the plan: “Nothing in the Postal Reorganization Act authorizes the Postal Service to impose new election procedures on state election officials.”
Trump has defended the measures as necessary to fight what he’s long claimed, without evidence, is widespread mail-voting fraud, saying at the original executive order signing: “The cheating on mail-in voting is legendary.”
Progressives mark big wins in Democratic statehouse primaries (Spotlight Delaware)
The Working Families Party had its most successful primary cycle yet in Delaware, winning 8 of 13 endorsed statehouse and county races Tuesday, unseating five incumbent Democrats and capturing an open seat, with a diverse slate of winners (7 people of color, 7 women).
Established statewide Democrats (Sen. Chris Coons, AG Kathy Jennings, treasurer candidate Ted Lauzen) won easily and face only token Republican opposition in a state that hasn’t elected a Republican statewide in 12 years.
The most notable upset was Army veteran and progressive activist Tye Grier defeating a nearly 20-year incumbent while spending under $2,000, compared to her opponent’s $100,000+ war chest — part of a broader pattern where over $1 million in outside spending from law firms, developers, and business interests largely failed to save WFP-targeted incumbents.
WFP’s state political director summarized the strategy as “They have the money, we have the people,” framing the wins around affordability — housing, utility costs, and childcare — as the core message driving grassroots victories over corporate-backed campaigns.
Not every WFP-backed challenge succeeded: an incumbent state senator survived a WFP challenger by fewer than 200 votes in the closest race of the night, and several other establishment incumbents easily turned back progressive primary challenges elsewhere in the state.
Early voting begins in US midterm elections that could flip control of Congress (AP)
Early in-person voting began Friday in Virginia, with more states following in coming weeks, kicking off the final six-week stretch before the November 3 midterms that will determine control of Congress.
The election follows an unprecedented wave of mid-decade congressional redistricting (starting in Texas, spreading to California and others) that’s put roughly 1 in 10 Americans in a different congressional district than in 2024 — a trend expected to continue after the Supreme Court weakened Voting Rights Act protections this year.
Trump’s efforts to reshape election administration continue on multiple fronts despite the Court rejecting his mail-ballot restriction bid this week; Virginia’s Democratic AG warned Thursday that federal employees may have violated state law by misrepresenting themselves on voter lookup tools while hunting for noncitizen voters (which research shows is exceptionally rare).
Voters interviewed cited a range of motivations: a Minneapolis man voted early fearing immigration agents on Election Day after Trump’s earlier ICE surge in Minnesota; a Virginia voter framed early voting as resistance to “intimidation” around mail voting changes; other voters cited cost-of-living concerns, the Iran war, and immigration enforcement as top issues.
Election officials sought to reassure the public — Minnesota’s Secretary of State said elections remain “fundamentally free, fair, accurate, honest and secure,” and USPS Postmaster General David Steiner urged mail voters to submit ballots a week early, saying, “Everything is solved if people vote early.”
Indiana Elections
Recount Commission certifies election results for Senate District 23 to reflect Indiana Supreme Court decision (WTHR)
The Indiana Recount Commission certified Sen. Spencer Deery’s restored three-vote primary win over Paula Copenhaver, following the Indiana Supreme Court’s ruling that overturned the earlier recount decision.
The case centered on six ballots cast for Deery that had been thrown out for lacking a clerk’s seal or signature; Deery’s team argued voters shouldn’t be penalized for a poll worker’s error, while Copenhaver’s side maintained the law was clear that such ballots couldn’t count.
Deery said, “In the end, justice prevailed and the rule of law prevailed... your vote shouldn’t be invalidated simply because somebody made an error on the other end,” and called for updating what he described as outdated election procedures written before early voting existed.
University of Indianapolis political science professor Laura Merrifield Wilson said the ruling should reinforce voter confidence, calling it likely “the impetus for a lot of election law revision” going forward.
Republicans attack ex-GOP Mayor Ballard in party’s opening secretary of state ad (ICC)
Indiana Republicans launched their first ad in the secretary of state race attacking Lincoln Party candidate Greg Ballard’s record as Indianapolis’s Republican mayor (2008-2015), part of a $1 million GOP/Braun campaign media push supporting nominee Max Engling.
Ballard called the ad “built on fiction” and “a panic move,” saying “You don’t attack candidates you’re not afraid of,” and cited a 2014 statement from then-state GOP chair Tim Berry praising his mayoral legacy.
A separate GOP ad attacks Democrat Beau Bayh for voting absentee in Indiana 15 times while living in D.C., Harvard, and serving in the Marines; Bayh’s campaign chairman called it “disappointing” that Engling would attack “a veteran for voting in his home state while he was serving our country” on the 9/11 anniversary.
A third ad promotes Engling’s biography and “Hoosier roots,” pledging to “stop the meddling and ensure election integrity” — language seen as an indirect dig at current officeholder Diego Morales, whom Engling beat at the state convention, though Engling has largely avoided directly attacking him.
Utilities
Indiana Supreme Court hears Duke Energy case that could reshape your legal representation (ICC)
The Indiana Supreme Court heard arguments Thursday on whether Citizens Action Coalition and Vote Solar have legal standing to sue over Duke Energy Indiana’s IURC-approved $3.3 billion Cayuga power plant expansion, in a case that could reshape “associational standing” statewide.
Duke argues the groups lack standing since neither is itself a Duke customer and no individual ratepayer-plaintiffs are named, while opposing groups argue associational standing lets people pursue legal challenges collectively without exposing themselves individually — citing reasons like privacy, retaliation fears, or cost.
The case has drawn an unusually broad coalition of allied groups across the ideological spectrum (gun rights organizations, clean energy advocates, coal interests, retirees, and rural education groups) supporting associational standing, plus a conservative brief from the ACLU of Indiana and attorney Jim Bopp.
Justice Christopher Goff, one of two justices who opposed taking the case on an emergency basis, expressed concern about rushing a decision with “constitutional implications” that could affect long-established legal precedent; justices floated a possible “middle ground” allowing an individual to serve as a nominal plaintiff while an association manages the suit.
The underlying dispute centers on Duke’s use of “construction-work-in-progress” financing, which the utility says will save customers $560 million long-term, but which opponents say forces customers to pay for the gas units before they generate any power.
EPA backs Indiana coal combustion residual program takeover (ICC)
The EPA backed Indiana’s bid to take over permitting for coal combustion residuals (toxic coal ash, boiler slag, and other byproducts containing mercury, cadmium, and arsenic), which would become the largest state-run CCR program in the country, covering an estimated 100 sites.
Gov. Braun and EPA Deputy Administrator David Fotouhi framed the move as strengthening oversight, though Braun couldn’t offer specific examples when asked how outcomes would improve given his own executive order barring state environmental rules stricter than federal standards.
The Hoosier Environmental Council supported the current rule’s protections but warned the win “is not guaranteed to last,” since Indiana law bars IDEM from exceeding federal coal ash standards — meaning any future federal rollback would force Indiana’s protections down with it.
IDEM anticipates final federal approval by February or March 2027; the program will cost an estimated $1.3 million in staffing, funded mainly by permit fees, with the state planning to lobby the EPA for a larger share of federal resources given Indiana’s outsized program size.
Michigan wins coal plant case, but Indiana’s plants still remain open under federal order (ICC)
A federal appeals court vacated the DOE’s emergency order keeping Michigan’s J.H. Campbell coal plant open, ruling the department exceeded its Federal Power Act authority and that states, not federal emergency orders, hold responsibility for regulating in-state power plants; the ruling could have implications for Indiana’s two similarly-ordered coal plants.
NIPSCO’s Schahfer and CenterPoint’s Culley coal plants remain open under the same DOE order type, originally issued in December just before both were set to retire; both utilities say they’re reviewing the Michigan ruling but will continue complying with the current DOE directive through its September 19 renewal deadline.
CenterPoint had previously described the Culley plant as “inefficient and increasingly unreliable,” accounting for under 1% of regional electric capacity, and both utilities have told regulators the costs of keeping these aging coal units running are substantial — costs they’re seeking to recover from customers via FERC-authorized tariffs.
A Sierra Club analysis estimates keeping the two Indiana plants online costs consumers a combined roughly $195,000 per day ($174,000 for Schahfer, $21,000 for Culley), and the environmental group has filed suit challenging the emergency orders directly.
Review of $71 million AES Indiana rate hike to stretch into 2027 (ICC)
Parties met Thursday to begin the reconsideration process on AES Indiana’s $71 million rate hike, with a procedural schedule now stretching into a one-day hearing in early March 2027 — despite the increase already taking effect in phases.
The IURC originally approved the hike 3-1 in June; Gov. Braun opposed it and directed the state’s Utility Consumer Counselor to seek review, and the reconstituted commission voted 3-1 to reconsider the case earlier this month.
Fired regulator Andy Zay has claimed the IURC was poised to deny the increase before his dismissal and another commissioner’s resignation reshaped the panel’s makeup.
Rate increases apply even during pending appeals unless a stay is specifically requested — which the consumer counselor’s office did not do — meaning customers already saw a sub-$1 monthly increase in July, with a second phase (about $8.50/month for average households) set to hit in January regardless of the ongoing case; refunds would only apply if the court later overturns the commission’s order.
AI-Data Centers
House overwhelmingly passes bill to shield ratepayers from data centers (Politico)
The House passed the Ratepayer Protection Act 417-3, the first major congressional bill addressing data center energy costs, requiring states to consider (not mandate) a federal standard making large power customers cover 100% of new grid infrastructure costs.
Sponsors Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.) and Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) pushed the bill as bipartisan election-year relief, with Evans saying: “Large load data centers must cover the full costs of any system updates they require, not families or small businesses.”
Only three Democrats, all progressives, voted no, arguing the bill doesn’t go far enough; Energy and Commerce ranking member Frank Pallone called it “imperfect” but said “it’s only the beginning” of congressional action on the issue.
Senate Energy and Natural Resources ranking member Martin Heinrich criticized the bill as “basically a voluntary structure” that doesn’t ensure data centers actually pay their own energy costs, even as Majority Leader Thune signaled the strong House vote could help secure quick Senate passage in the three weeks before the midterms.
The bill’s momentum reflects election-year pressure — House Republicans in competitive races pushed leadership to act amid growing public backlash against data centers, while Majority Leader Scalise still defended the industry’s benefits, saying, “Let locals make the choice, and let consumers reap the benefits.”
City approves $240 million tax break deal for data center owner (IndyStar)
Indianapolis’s Metropolitan Development Commission approved roughly $240 million in tax breaks for Seattle-based Sabey Data Center Properties’ $4.3 billion Decatur Township project — the largest incentive package offered to any company in recent Indianapolis history, voted 6-1 and 5-2.
The final figure is about $52 million higher than the $188 million previously disclosed to IndyStar in August; the city hasn’t yet explained the discrepancy.
Opponent Pat Andrews of the Decatur Township Civic Council argued the deal was unnecessary, noting Sabey officials had said they’d build the project even without the incentives; the meeting drew both opponents and union construction workers supporting the project.
The project is projected to create just 75 jobs at $50/hour average wage — working out to roughly $3.23 million in tax breaks per job — while Sabey will pay $5 million for road improvements and $23.8 million toward a community aquatic center as part of the deal.
This comes amid ongoing tension between city leaders and residents over data centers broadly — the city imposed a moratorium on new projects through 2027, though already-approved developments like Sabey can proceed; a similar incentive vote for Metrobloks’ Martindale Brightwood project is set for October 21.
Hogsett pushed tough lobbyist penalties. Now he won’t say if he’ll enforce them. (Mirror Indy)
Mayor Hogsett’s administration is refusing to say whether it will enforce penalties against lobbyists who failed to file legally required disclosure reports, despite Hogsett’s 2015 campaign promise to establish “strict and meaningful enforcement, penalty and contract debarment provisions” for such violations.
Reporters found nearly two dozen companies and nonprofits with missing lobbyist reports, including Salesforce, which only filed years of overdue disclosures after being questioned by journalists; an attorney formerly at Barnes & Thornburg appeared to have lobbied without reporting it, which the firm denies.
Under Hogsett, publicly available records show zero lobbyist-reported gifts to city officials in 2024 and 2025, even though lobbyists must report gifts worth $25 or more; the mayor’s office wouldn’t confirm whether any enforcement actions have been taken against noncompliant lobbyists during his entire tenure since 2016.
Government ethics expert Craig Holman of Public Citizen said Indianapolis could be doing more to force compliance, noting that gifts like meals and entertainment often “create a friend” for lobbyists to leverage, even as he acknowledged debarment is a “draconian” tool.
City code carves out notable exemptions — conversations about economic development incentives don’t count as lobbying, and the city’s top lawyer can waive gift-reporting requirements if a gift is deemed in “the public interest” — loopholes that could blunt the practical impact of the rules even if enforced.
Recovering from Disaster
State disaster cash now hitting bank accounts month after storms hit Indiana (ICC)
Indiana’s Department of Homeland Security has sent out roughly $1.7 million in state disaster aid for about 260 homes, averaging around $4,000 per payment, weeks after August’s severe storms hit the state.
IDHS waived its usual 90-day review period to speed relief, cutting the timeline to about two-and-a-half to three weeks; Director Jonathan Whitham said, “We’re throwing everything out that we can” within statutory limits.
The state capped individual payments at $5,000 (rather than the $25,000 legal maximum) because the State Disaster Relief Fund — normally funded by about $1 million a year in fireworks tax revenue — can’t cover the estimated $80 million in need even at the reduced cap; state officials are moving contingency and reserve funds into the fund on a rolling basis.
Of over 40,000 applications reviewed so far, about 12,000 were deemed ineligible (non-primary residences or ineligible counties), some requests have been denied for items like TV replacements, and officials have flagged some AI-generated damage photos submitted fraudulently; roughly 15,000 applications remain pending additional documentation.
ICE arrests 426 people across Indiana, shaking Indianapolis schools and communities (WFYI)
ICE claims 426 people were arrested across Indiana in “Operation Safe Community — Indiana” (Aug. 30-Sept. 3), asserting the arrests involved criminal histories and gang affiliations (MS-13, 18th Street, Tren de Aragua) — but ICE didn’t publicly confirm the operation until Sept. 16, nearly two weeks later, and didn’t notify Mayor Hogsett or Gov. Braun in advance. Notably, ICE’s own agency data cited by NPR shows roughly 70% of people currently in ICE detention nationally have no criminal convictions, directly undercutting the agency’s “criminal aliens” framing.
Even Braun, a Republican ally of the administration, noted the operation deviated from the stated “worst first” approach: “It does vary a little bit from the approach of the worst first... whenever they’re looking for those offenders, they’re going to come across others.”
The operation had a chilling effect beyond those detained — one Indianapolis west-side school saw attendance drop from a typical 95% to as low as 40% by week’s end, with the administrator saying, “This is impacting everybody, no matter what status they have”; a Riverside neighborhood resident described witnessing a neighbor’s arrest and said the block has grown fearful, with “nobody want[ing] to cross the threshold anymore.”
The operation’s fallout led the Tippecanoe Latino Festival to cancel its September 12 event entirely, while Indianapolis’s La Plaza event proceeded despite lingering fear, with organizers emphasizing community solidarity.
Higher Education
IU and Purdue are at opposite ends of free speech rankings (Axios Indy)
Purdue ranked 7th nationally (3rd among public universities) in the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression’s (FIRE) college free speech rankings with a C+ grade, while IU ranked 256th out of 261 schools with an F grade — putting Indiana’s two flagship public universities at opposite extremes.
IU’s poor showing was driven partly by six speech controversies over three years, including canceling a Palestinian American painter’s exhibit and firing its student media director after he resisted administration limits on the student newspaper’s coverage; IU declined to comment, though Bloomington Chancellor David Reingold questioned FIRE’s data validity.
Nearly half of Purdue students and more than half of IU students reported self-censoring at least monthly; Israel-Palestine was the topic most students found hardest to discuss (50%), followed by Trump (46%) and Charlie Kirk (44%).
The national average score (61.36, still a D-) was the highest in seven years of FIRE’s rankings, though only 24 of 261 schools scored a C or better and 121 received an F.
The rankings arrive as the Trump administration pushes to restrict what universities teach and pursues funding cuts and investigations tied to campus protests it deems antisemitic; a White House spokesperson said Trump “will always protect the First Amendment rights of all Americans.”
