tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-127037822024-03-13T14:53:28.422-05:00Advance Indiana™Dedicated to the advancement of the State of Indiana by re-affirming our state's constitutional principles that: all people are created equal; no religious test shall be imposed on our public officials and offices of trust; and no special privileges or immunities shall be granted to any class of citizens which are not granted on the same terms to all citizens.
Advance Indiana, LLC. Copyright 2005-16. All rights reserved.Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.comBlogger9715125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-74263792252423412782016-04-29T12:21:00.001-05:002016-04-29T17:54:09.012-05:00New Poll Shows Trump Up In Indiana By Nine PointsEvery poll taken in Indiana shows Donald Trump <a href="http://americanresearchgroup.com/pres2016/primary/rep/inrep.html">leading his Republican primary opponents</a> in next week's primary election. The latest poll released by ARG gives Trump a 9-point advantage over his nearest competitor, Ted Cruz. Trump leads Cruz by a 41-32% margin. Kasich is far behind with just 21% of the vote. Trump is leading in almost every category, including likely Republican voters, young and older voters, male and even female voters. <br />
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A second poll released by a Republican pollster, Clout Research, <a href="http://cloutpolitical.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/31/2016/04/IN-GOP-PRIMARY-POLL-TOPLINE-REPORT-4-28-2016.pdf">shows the race much closer</a>. Trump is ahead by only two percentage points in that poll over Cruz, 37-35%. Kasich trails with only 16% of the vote.<br />
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If I'm not around to see the vote results, my prediction is that Trump wins Indiana with just shy of 50% of the vote, but he will carry every single congressional district and sweep the delegate race--assuming the party-chosen delegates honor their rules-bound commitment to support the winner on the first ballot. Most of those delegates favored John Kasich at the time they were chosen. Only two of the delegates named by state party officials publicly declared their support for Trump, although some have indicated they would feel obligated to support the voters' wishes.<br />
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Cruz has made Indiana his last stand. He threw a hail mary pass earlier in the week by naming Carly Fiorina as his running mate in hopes of attracting female voters in next week's primary election. He snagged Gov. Pence's endorsement today, although his favorability numbers aren't so hot right now and that endorsement is likely to further infuriate already alienated Republican and independent voters. Cruz has also taken up residence in the state this past week, criss-crossing the state with multiple appearances. His crowds have been small compared to Trump's rallies.<br />
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Trump has had fewer appearances in Indiana, but his rallies have drawn far larger and more enthusiastic crowds. He returns this weekend for rallies in Fort Wayne on Sunday at Memorial Coliseum, and he will close out his campaigning in Indiana at the Century Center in South Bend Monday evening. Click <a href="https://www.donaldjtrump.com/schedule/">here</a> for information on those events.<br />
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Early voting, which started off very slow, has surged and appears to be well above average for presidential primary elections in Indiana in many counties now. Those new voters will favor Trump, not Cruz. The Democratic primary will draw far fewer voters. Clinton should handily defeat Bernie Sanders by a 58-42% margin, helped by those who might have otherwise voted in the Democratic primary choosing to take a Republican ballot instead.<br />
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UPDATE: There's a real outlier poll added to the mix late today. IPFW/Downs Center in Fort Wayne released a poll showing Cruz with a double-digit lead of 45 to 29% over Trump. Adding that lopsided poll into the mix makes the RealClearPolitics average show a very tight race, with Trump up about 2%, 37.5-35.2%.
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We are now at 1001 delegates. We will win on the first ballot and are not wasting time and effort on other ballots because system is rigged!</div>
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/726115856053211136">April 29, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-57215152997516463852016-04-29T10:00:00.003-05:002016-04-29T10:00:57.560-05:00Pence Determined To Lose Re-Election Campaign, Will Endorse Ted CruzGov. Mike Pence will upset many Republican primary voters today by endorsing Ted Cruz's presidential campaign. It will have no impact on the race, which Donald Trump is poised to win, and Pence gains absolutely nothing from the endorsement. The people who support Cruz already make up the backbone of his narrow, electoral support. What it can only do is further alienate him from already disaffected Republicans and aid in the election of John Gregg. Support for Cruz's candidacy has been collapsing for weeks now. He cannot win in open primary elections, only in closed-door, party caucus elections. He has no viable path to winning the nomination. This is another totally bone-headed move by Pence.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-37212074732461601322016-04-28T07:48:00.002-05:002016-04-28T07:51:55.501-05:00John Kass On Hastert: "Thief Of Innocence" And "Face Of Evil"<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Dennis Hastert leaves court" src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-5720fa67/turbine/ct-dennis-hastert-sentenced-photos-20160427-016/750/750x422" height="225" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dennis Hastert at sentencing hearing in Chicago (Armando Sanchez/Tribune Photo)</td></tr>
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Unfortunately for the American public, what should have been the most newsworthy story in the nation yesterday got lost amidst all of the hoopla surrounding the circus known as the 2016 presidential nominating process. That was the sentencing of one of the highest-ranking federal government officials in our nation's history that arose from crimes he committed to cover up his existence as "serial child molester" in the words of the federal judge who handed down the sentence of former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert.<br />
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The Chicago Tribune's political columnist John Kass, who is probably privately worrying that his newspaper may be acquired by the evil face of Gannett, <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/kass/ct-dennis-hastert-kass-0428-20160427-column.html">sat in that courtroom yesterday </a>watching the "face of evil" as he faced his fate for structuring cash payments intended as hush money to one of his victims to avoid federal authorities and an unsuspecting public from learning about his dirty little secret. Kass focuses in a column today on what he describes as "equally bloodless and calculating" to Hastert's sins as a serial child molester--the "letters of mercy" sent to the judge by Hastert's allies. In particular, he focused on the letter Hastert had sought but failed to get.<br />
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Hastert called his political protege Tom Cross, the Oswego Republican and former state House minority leader, to ask that Cross write a letter of mercy to Judge Durkin.
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It was one of the most galling things I've ever heard of in politics.
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Because one of Hastert's victims was Cross' brother.
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Scott Cross testified courageously in court and he became emotional.
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"I looked up to Coach Hastert," Scott Cross said. "He was a key figure in my life. And Coach Hastert sexually abused me."
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Scott Cross testified about how he revered Hastert, how Hastert offered to massage him so Cross could lose weight, how Hastert pulled his shorts down, began massaging his genitals until shame and shock forced Cross to jump up and get away.
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It was difficult to watch him, a brave father who wants his children to understand their obligations as citizens. And it was difficult to look at Tom Cross and the family sitting there in the courtroom, watching. </blockquote>
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Judge Durkin, a former federal prosecutor himself, made it clear in his own questioning that Hastert asked Tom Cross for a letter. </blockquote>
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"It is my understanding that Mr. Hastert called Tom Cross," Judge Durkin said. "Is that correct?" </blockquote>
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It was correct, prosecutors said. </blockquote>
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Hastert said he didn't remember abusing Scott Cross. I don't believe him. But at that moment you knew he wasn't getting probation. </blockquote>
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Durkin pressed him and Hastert said that he'd "respect" Scott Cross' recollection.
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He'd respect it? Like he respected his brother Tom? </blockquote>
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Like he respected the other high school wrestlers he would molest? Or the other boys he'd watch as they showered, as he sat in the lounge chair he put near the shower stalls in the locker room? </blockquote>
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The abuse is monstrous, yes, but even monsters have blood. What Hastert did in asking Tom Cross for the letter is bloodless. Only a supreme narcissist could ask such a thing of a brother; only a congenital user and manipulator could ever conceive of asking. </blockquote>
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Only the damned could ask for something like that. But Hastert asked it of Tom Cross.
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If you've been following this story, you know that Judge Durkin sentenced Hastert to 15 months in federal prison. Hastert is ill now, but aren't politicians always ill and pitiful at sentencing? </blockquote>
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There is no fixing a child abuser, and though we're told of five victims, I wonder how many more are out there . . . </blockquote>
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As Durkin spoke, you could see Hastert's chin stretch and become longer, as if the jawbones themselves were unhinged, the weight of the meat pulling it all toward the floor.
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The former speaker's hands were folded tightly in front of him, and that public face stretched and fell away, revealing what was underneath:
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The predator, a thief of innocence, a breaker of trust and a devourer of children's lives, a user of friends, a Combine boss.</blockquote>
As poignant as Kass' words are, they are too little too late for him and his brethren in the mainstream media who have ignored for decades the sinister pedophile ring that has existed at the highest levels of society and government in this country. Back in the 1980s, there was hope that the dark veil of this satanic underworld would be lifted as some brave reporters began exposing what was known as the Franklin Scandal originating out of Nebraska's Boys Town, which revealed a network of elites trafficking in children for the sexual pleasure of those at the pinnacle of power. Unfortunately, those pushing to bring the powerful elites to justice were soon marginalized and caricatured as tin-foil hat conspiracists, the same fate met by every brave American who attempts to expose the evil forces who've robbed us of our Republic.<br />
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The "thief of innocence" described by Kass is the only member of the evil political caste system we have in this country that ensures that only the most flawed and controllable of men and women can rise to positions of power in this country who will face any music for his crimes--fifteen months in prison, a mere slap on the hand for a man who rose to the third highest office in the nation and amassed a multi-million dollar fortune after his humble beginnings as a high school wrestling coach. As Hastert rode away with his two sons in a Cadillac Escalade from the federal courthouse, I can imagine his first words, "Well, that wasn't so bad." We'll have to take a solace in the fact that he's the highest ranking government official in our government history required to serve time in a prison for his crimes since the punishment clearly doesn't match the crime.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-81465556559559457762016-04-28T06:56:00.001-05:002016-04-28T06:56:25.655-05:00Gannett Backs Young For SenateThis endorsement comes with little surprise. The Gannett-owned Indianapolis Star has <a href="http://www.indystar.com/story/opinion/2016/04/27/editorial-todd-young-right-choice-senate-primary/83622748/">endorsed Todd Young</a> in the Republican Senate primary race over Marlin Stutzman. Young is a Dan Quayle relative by marriage, and he's been employed by the military/industrial complex in the intelligence apparatus most of his adult life so it stands to reason he would be preferred by the Langely-run newspaper chain.<br />
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According to The Star, there isn't really any difference between the two candidates on issues. The difference is in how they "approach the job." Young puts his efforts towards "ideas that have contributed to constructive debates," while Stutzman prefers an "all-or nothing, gridlock-inducing role of the ideological purist." Thus, The Star reasons Young is more likely to contribute as as senator to "a healthy debate."<br />
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It's hard to get excited about this race. Young took the race for granted in the beginning by skipping past the simple process of gathering enough signatures to make the ballot and had to rely on big favors from the establishment types to rescue his campaign through creative legal interpretations. Both play fast and loose with campaign finance laws. Both candidates' campaigns are predominantly funded by out-of-state interests, which calls in to question just how committed either of them will be to real Hoosiers in the Senate. And they've both found themselves more comfortable living inside the Beltway as opposed to Indiana after short tenures in the House.<br />
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It probably makes little difference which one of them wins the nomination with one big exception. Establishment Republican types have made waves that they might work to do in Stutzman like they did Richard Mourdock if he defeats their preferred candidate. To that extent, Democrat Baron Hill probably hopes Stutzman wins the primary.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-46405979296842680872016-04-27T20:11:00.000-05:002016-04-27T20:12:51.613-05:00Bobby Knight Endorsing Trump At Indianapolis Rally Today<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2XHcXDMYqI0" width="500"></iframe><br />
Former IU basketball coach Bobby Knight speaking at Donald Trump's packed rally at the state fair coliseum in Indianapolis this evening. Trump told his supporters today that Knight contacted him last year before he made his decision to run for president, urging him to run and telling him that he would endorse him if he ran. Trump called in the favor. Knight declared that Trump was the "most prepared man in history" to be president.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-59351492696179131802016-04-27T19:43:00.004-05:002016-04-27T19:44:35.646-05:00Mt. Vernon Middle School Principal Charged For Failing To Report Child Abuse<br />
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<img alt="Scott Shipley" src="https://media.licdn.com/media/p/2/000/122/18b/2459d44.jpg" /></div>
The Hancock County prosecutor has decided that a Mount Vernon middle school principal <a href="http://www.theindychannel.com/news/local-news/principal-charged-with-failure-to-report-child-abuse-allegations">should be criminally charged</a> for failing to report suspected child abuse when he first learned of allegations that a former teacher's aide had been engaged in sexual misconduct with students. Scott Shipley faces one misdemeanor count of failing to report.<br />
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A school counselor first heard a rumor Kisha Nuckols was having sex with students on March 12 and informed Shipley. Because spring break was just beginning, Shipley saw no urgency in pursuing the matter. Instead, he waited until March 29 to advise the high school's assistant principal, Derek Shelton, of the allegations. Shelton immediately contacted Fortville Police, who later arrested Nuckols for child seduction.<br />
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According to the probable cause affidavit, Shipley told police he initially didn't find the information credible because it was based on third and fourth-hand information. Shipley told police that once he learned the information was credible, he had Shelton contact Fortville Police to investigate. The school counselor, Bronwyn Kotarski, who told Shipley about the allegations, is not being charged.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-51488220254916961092016-04-27T17:15:00.000-05:002016-04-28T08:23:37.359-05:00Marion County Republicans Send Out Hit Piece Against Sandlin On Behalf Of Shreve<img height="300" src="https://us-mg6.mail.yahoo.com/ya/download?mid=2%5f0%5f0%5f1%5f246503%5fAIati2IABekdVyErfwhU0CEoa4E&m=YaDownload&pid=2.2&fid=Inbox&inline=1&appid=yahoomail" width="400" /><br />
Per their standard operating procedure, the Marion County Republican Party reserves its harshest and nastiest attacks for life-long Republicans who refuse to be led around like blind mice by their corrupt leadership. The party sent out the first negative direct mail piece to Republican voters in the District 36 state senate race against life-long Republican and City-County Council member Jack Sandlin, who is running in the primary against the party's anointed candidate, Jefferson Shreve, a liberal Democrat and major Democratic Party donor who moved up to Indianapolis from Bloomington a few years ago and bought a seat on the council from the Marion County Republican Party.<br />
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The negative mail piece accuses Sandlin of being a "career politician" with "a history of nepotism and conflicts of interest." "I'm outraged at how far the Downtown Republican establishment will go to protect their power and preserve their ability to continue spending taxpayer money," Sandlin said in a press release in response to the attack. "The recent mailer against my campaign was a blatant attempt to create false impressions among the voting public - and it was especially mean-spirited in attacking my wife."<br />
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A retired Indianapolis police officer with decades of service as a public safety worker, Sandlin took strong exception to being called a "career politician." "Nothing could be further from the truth," Sandlin states. "I've been a career law enforcement officer, having spent more than 20 years with the Indianapolis Police Department and another 14 years as a part-time officer in the Southport Police Department. In addition, I've spent the past 21 years running my own business, which provides fraud examination, private investigation and security consulting. "When you contrast my decades spent in law enforcement and security with my part-time positions as Perry Township Trustee and Indianapolis City-County Councillor, it becomes very clear that calling me a 'career politician' is just a flat-out lie," Sandlin adds.<br />
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Sandlin was equally as offended at accusations he engaged in a conflict of interest. The ad accused him of using his influence as elected official to help his wife win a contract. "That's just offensive to me," he says. "In my law-enforcement career, as well as my elected positions, I've always been a true public servant. I work hard for the people I represent in their best interests, oftentimes in opposition of the political insiders and their personal self interests."<br />
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Sandlin pulled no punches in his denouncing leaders of the Marion County Republican Party. "I always vote my conscience. I always speak my mind. From my experience, Republican Party Chairman Jennifer Ping and Vice-Chairman Mike McQuillen don't like to be challenged, even when the best interests of the community are at stake. They prefer to handpick their candidates, as they did with my opponent in this race. Negative attacks are the only way they can hope to control our elections and our government," Sandlin adds.
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Advance Indiana readers will recall how the party last year sent out numerous mailers prior to the municipal primary election attacking incumbent City-County Councilor Christine Scales in an effort to defeat her and elect a challenger it anointed to run against her, Tim Craft, who worked for a real estate brokerage firm with a crony relationship with former Mayor Greg Ballard's administration. Nobody has engaged in more acts of public corruption and dishonesty than the leadership of the local party, which has been nothing more than a racketeering operation selling public contracts awarded by city-county government. The county's current party chairman, Jennifer Ping, is actually controlled by the same law firm that invested heavily in putting one of its own attorneys, Democrat Joe Hogsett, in the mayor's office last year.<br />
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<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-89408630147939352672016-04-27T13:11:00.002-05:002016-04-27T20:44:23.177-05:00Cruz Throws Hail Mary Pass: Naming Carly Fiorina As His Running MateApparently Ted Cruz' big announcement in Indianapolis this afternoon is about <a href="http://www.redstate.com/brandon_morse/2016/04/27/looks-like-cruz-fiorina-ticket-go/">naming Carly Fiorina as his vice presidential running mate </a>should lightning strike and he becomes the Republican nominee for president this year. Fiorina endorsed Cruz after her own presidential campaign fizzled before the race barely got underway this year. She has accompanied him frequently on the campaign trail over the past couple of months.<br />
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Waiting for Cruz and Carly at Pan Am Plaza. Small crowd here to hear the big announcement. <a href="https://t.co/PGB7oxy9Wz">pic.twitter.com/PGB7oxy9Wz</a></div>
— Tim Swarens (@tswarens) <a href="https://twitter.com/tswarens/status/725408236610965504">April 27, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-88445822454957930522016-04-27T12:54:00.002-05:002016-04-27T20:55:27.268-05:00Judgment Day For Dennis Hastert: Admits He Sexually Abused Boys<b>SENTENCED TO 15 MONTHS IN PRISON
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hastert arriving for his sentencing heaering (Tribune Photo)</td></tr>
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Courtroom viewers at the sentencing hearing of former House Speaker Dennis Hastert were shocked to learn that one of his alleged victims was the brother of a prominent Republican politician. Scott Cross, brother of former Illinois House Republican Leader Tom Cross and unsuccessful candidate for State Treasurer, identified himself to Judge Thomas Durkin as Individual D, a 17-year old wrestler at Yorkville High School who says Hastert once sexually groped him while massaging him. "As a 17-year old boy, I was devastated," Cross testified. "I tried to figure out why Coach Hastert had singled me out." "I felt intense pain, shame and guilt." Following Cross' stunning appearance, Judge Durkin <a href="http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/hastert-arrives-at-federal-courthouse-for-sentencing/">sentenced Hastert to 15 months</a> in prison and fined him $250,000.<br />
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Judge Durkin said the sentence of probation to no more than six months recommended by federal prosecutors was inappropriate and insufficient for a man he repeatedly described as a "serial child molester." Judge Durkin noted that nothing was more stunning than uttering the words "serial child molester" and "Speaker of the House" in the same sentence. Judge Durkin was highly critical of Hastert for lying to FBI agents and falsely accusing one of his victims of extortion. "What rational person takes out $1.7 million in cash from a bank?" he rhetorically asked regarding a $3.5 million cash payment Hastert agreed to pay to silence one of his victims. Durkin reminded Hastert of his role in enacting the very law that ensnared him in these criminal proceedings. Durkin noted with disgust that Hastert had actually contacted Cross' brother, Tom, and sought support for his sentencing hearing knowing that his brother was one of his victims. Interestingly, Judge Durkin's brother, Jim Durkin, succeeded Tom Cross as Illinois House Republican Leader when Cross gave up that job to run for State Treasurer.<br />
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Hastert sat in a wheelchair and stared at Judge Durkin as he harshly criticized his conduct. "The obvious reason for your lies isn't lost on me," Durkin said. "If you didn't lie, you would have never been Speaker of the House. Durkin said he believed Cross and he believed, Jolene Burdge, whose late brother, Stephen Reinboldt, had told her about years of sexual abuse he had suffered at Hastert's hands while he worked as team manager for Hastert's high school wrestling team. Reinboldt died of AIDS in 1995. Burdge also testified at the hearing. "You took his life, Mr. Hastert," Burdge said. "Not because he died of AIDS but because you took his innocence and used it against him." "Don't be a coward, Mr. Hastert. Tell the truth." Only with prodding by the judge did Hastert admit he had sexually abused boys, including Cross and Reinboldt.<br />
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Despite his age (74) and health, Durkin thought his crime required real prison time, noting that Hastert wasn't "infirm" or "unaware of what's going on." Judge Durkin said Hastert would complete his sentence at a prison facility in Rochester where many other child abusers are imprisoned and where he would have access to adequate health care for his ongoing health issues. He will be required to undergo ongoing, supervised counseling following the completion of his sentence. Hastert will become the highest-ranking federal government official to be sent to prison in the history of this country. Former Vice President Spiro Agnew received only probation for tax evasion and bribery charges to which he pleaded guilty from the time he served as Maryland governor prior to becoming vice president.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-5720dafc/turbine/ct-scott-cross-20160427/650/650x366" height="225" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scott Cross (1980 High School Photo)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="225" src="https://images.scribblelive.com/2016/4/27/2ab6d35b-8198-4b33-8921-be8f3976a6a6_1000.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scott Cross (left) in 1999 at a Hastert campaign event (Tribune Photo)</td></tr>
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UPDATE: U.S Attorney Zach Fardon released the following statement following Hastert's sentencing:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“With this case, the Office sought to hold Mr. Hastert accountable for the crimes he committed that could still be prosecuted: illegally structuring cash withdrawals and lying to the government about his motive for engaging in that activity. All of us have been inspired by the strength and bravery of the victims and witnesses who came forward in the most challenging of circumstances. As in all cases, the Office is dedicated to doing everything we can to help victims and their families seek justice. It is our hope that the sentence imposed today will promote respect for the law.”</blockquote>
I just realized that Scott Cross was a student at Eastern Illinois University the same time I attended college there. He was one year ahead of me. <div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-69865349969955191592016-04-26T21:37:00.002-05:002016-04-26T21:37:48.388-05:00New Gubernatorial Poll Looks A Lot Like 2012 RaceA new poll released by WTHR and Howey Politics shows the race for Indiana governor almost exactly where it ended four years ago. Gov. Mike Pence <a href="http://www.wthr.com/story/31812406/exclusive-wthrhpi-poll-pence-gregg-locked-in-tight-battle-for-governor">narrowly leads</a> his Democratic opponent, John Gregg, by a 49-45% margin. In 2012, Pence defeated Gregg by a 49.6-46.4% margin. Pence is viewed favorably by 44% of the voters compared to 41% who view him unfavorably. Pence's name recognition, 94%, is double Gregg's name recognition score.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-66531598388555758662016-04-26T20:51:00.002-05:002016-04-26T21:45:53.967-05:00It's A Clean Sweep For TrumpThe grand plan by the establishment Republican Party to block Donald Trump hit another major bump in the road as he swept the five northeastern states on the ballot today by overwhelming majorities. Trump easily won primary elections in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.<br />
<br />
He captured more than 60% of the vote in Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island. In the large, diverse state of Pennsylvania he captured nearly 60% of the vote and won in every part of the state- urban, suburban and rural. Trump is winning about 54% of the vote in Maryland, including the suburban D.C. area where Washington insiders predominate. Cruz is running dead last in all of the states but Pennsylvania, and he barely cracked 20% of the vote there.<br />
<br />
It's also another big night for Hillary Clinton. She has convincingly won Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania and narrowly won in Connecticut, while Sanders won Rhode Island. There is no mathematical possibility of Sanders winning the nomination at this point. Trump, on the other hand, did everything he needed to keep his hopes alive of winning the magical 1,237 delegates he needs to win the Republican nomination on a first ballot.<br />
<br />
With his clean sweep tonight, he's getting very close to having 1,000 delegates, or close to 400 more than Cruz. Despite his overwhelming win in Pennsylvania, archaic party rules guaranteed him only 17 delegates. He'll have to wrestle with the other candidates in the field to win over the 54 unpledged delegates. Trump is the only candidate coming into next week's Indiana primary with any momentum. Cruz has pretty much made Indiana his last stand. If he is unable to beat Trump here next week, it's unlikely he will win any of the significant state races yet to be decided.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-77840213615563926402016-04-25T21:01:00.000-05:002016-04-27T19:52:26.358-05:00Bobby Knight To Join Donald Trump Rally In Indy Wednesday Evening<br />
Donald Trump will be joined by Indiana basketball coach great Bobby Knight at a second rally he has planned for Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. at the Indiana Farmer's Coliseum at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Register to get your tickets <a href="https://www.donaldjtrump.com/schedule/register/indianapolis-in1/">here</a>.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-18689604834949863162016-04-25T20:40:00.001-05:002016-04-25T21:59:24.488-05:00Poll Shows Young With Healthy Lead Over StutzmanA WTHR/Howey Politics poll shows Todd Young with <a href="http://www.wthr.com/story/31811168/exclusive-wthrhpi-poll-young-up-big-in-gop-senate-race">a healthy, 12-point lead </a>over his Republican Senate primary opponent, Marlin Stutzman. The poll of Republican voters gives Young a 43-31% edge over Stutzman with more than a quarter of the voters still undecided with a little more than a week to go before election day.<br />
<br />
I wouldn't count Stutzman out yet. I expect the final vote count will see the winning candidate prevailing by a single-digit vote margin. Stutzman polled much better on election day six years ago than he did in polls prior to the 2010 Senate primary election where he finished second behind Dan Coats. A poll taken a week before that election showed Stutzman trailing in third with only 18% of the vote, with Coats in the lead with 36% of the vote. Stutzman wound up second on election day with 29% of the vote compared to Coats' winning margin of 39%.<br />
<br />
The Trump factor is a big unknown. Will those who traditionally don't participate in Republican primary elections who come out to vote for Trump cast a vote for Stutzman or Young? Neither Stutzman nor Young has endorsed a presidential candidate, although Young did attend an anti-Trump gathering of wealthy GOP donors in Palm Beach, Florida last month. What will the rate of voter participation look like this year? Will the decision of Cruz and Kasich to collude in an effort to deny Trump the nomination affect voter turnout?<br />
<br />
Early voting numbers to date aren't particularly impressive. The Indiana Secretary of State's office reports that more than 110,000 people have already cast early votes in this year's primary election. More than 64,000 of those, or about 58%, are Republican voters. That's only about 10% of the total number of Republican voters who participated in Indiana's presidential primary election four years ago. Compare that to the 2008 Democratic primary election in Indiana against Clinton and Obama when nearly 1.3 million voters participated in the primary election. Also, those early votes this year were cast before Hoosiers learned that Kasich made a last-minute decision not to compete in the primary election.<br />
<br />
Obviously, those who voted early and cast a vote for Kasich are extremely angry that their votes were wasted on a candidate who doesn't even want their votes. I've said it before, and I think it bears repeating. The Indiana Republican Party has been making every effort possible to suppress voter turnout in this year's Republican presidential primary, which is the exact opposite tact taken by Democrats in 2008. The lack of enthusiasm shown by the poor, early voting numbers seems to indicate their plan is working.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-52438226636966186652016-04-25T07:19:00.002-05:002016-04-25T07:19:09.258-05:00Gannett Makes Bid To Acquire Tribune PublishingIn yet another blow to print media, Gannett is <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2016/04/25/gannett-offers-815-million-buy-tribune-publishing/83488422/">making a bid to acquire the Tribune Publishing Company</a>, which owns the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Orlando Sentinel, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Baltimore Sun and San Diego Union-Tribune. Gannett is offering $12.25 per share, a 63% premium over the company's closing stock price Friday. This continues the troubling centralization of American media under the control of a handful of corporate media giants with close ties to the military/industrial complex.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-81363594576158975502016-04-25T06:31:00.001-05:002016-04-25T06:59:53.136-05:00Cruz And Kasich Collude To Deny Trump, Kasich Dropping Out Of Indiana PrimaryThe media has been all abuzz about how Indiana's presidential primary election is relevant this year, a rare occasion. In reality, the election has been rigged by political insiders to make the choices made by Indiana primary voters next week irrelevant to the outcome of the election. Even though Indiana Republican leaders had already rigged the delegate election prior to any votes being cast, the campaigns of Ted Cruz and John Kasich have united in an effort to block even a symbolic victory for Donald Trump in Indiana in the beauty contest.<br />
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In spite of the Republican Party establishment's trashing of Trump with the full support of the established media in the state, a trio of polls all showed Trump on top and likely heading to a win next Tuesday. As Advance Indiana has already made clear, even winning the popular vote in Indiana is meaningless for Trump because the vast majority of the delegates chosen in backroom deals by state party leaders oppose his nomination. The only candidate with a clear advantage among those chosen in that corrupt process is John Kasich, but his campaign is now suspending his efforts here and urging his supporters to vote for Cruz. Theoretically, those delegates are bound to the candidate who wins the statewide vote or the individual congressional races, but there have already been rumblings that won't happen if doing so would give Trump a first ballot win.<br />
<br />
As part of this Faustian bargain, the Cruz campaign has agreed to drop efforts in New Mexico and Oregon, giving Kasich a shot at defeating Trump in those two upcoming races in a head-to-head match-up. The end game is to ensure by any means possible that Trump is unable to secure enough votes to win on a first ballot at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July. Polls show Trump with a commanding lead in Pennsylvania, but its delegate selection process ensures that he will lose the delegate race regardless of the preference of the state's Republican primary voters. Trump is also the clear favorite in other big state remaining, including California and New Jersey, but similar efforts are being made to undermine victories in those and other upcoming states where Trump is likely to win.<br />
<br />
What should now be clear for all to see is that the Republican Party has endorsed the election of Hillary Clinton for president. The Republican Party's money man, billionaire Charles Koch, signaled that over the weekend in an interview where he stated that he would prefer Hillary Clinton over any of the Republican presidential candidates. The Republican Party isn't interested in choosing any candidate who offers a clear choice this year. Both parties' nominating processes have been entirely rigged, making our popular presidential election process as meaningless as it is in the countries our nation is fond of criticizing for lacking truly freely elections. Your votes are meaningless. The Republic is dead. And while the nation awakens today with a collective yawn, President Barack Obama is sending more American troops into Syria because he's not satisfied the bloodbath already caused in that country by our nation and its allies has resulted in enough death and destruction.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-17718918718081553562016-04-24T15:46:00.002-05:002016-04-24T17:13:32.295-05:00Davey Blackburn Explains Forgiving Amanda's Killers<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QYcisB9qD4M" width="500"></iframe><br />
Pastor Davey Blackburn of Indianapolis' Resonate Church spoke at New Spring Church in Anderson, South Carolina today about the killing of his wife, Amanda, last year by three young Indianapolis men during a home invasion. He said the first time he felt anger after Amanda's senseless killing was when he saw photos of the three young men after they were arrested. He said forgiveness is not an emotion. He was never going to feel like forgiving them."It's a decision," he said. "I have to decide to forgive." "Bitterness is going to be a cancer to no one else but me." "On the other side of eternity, Jesus is going to restore and make all bad things completely untrue." "He's going to take care of vengeance."<br />
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Davey: Imagine if these three guys met Jesus, okay. Imagine the kick in the nuts it would be for the enemy.<br />
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Pastor Perry Noble: I love it. Yes. (laughter)<br />
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Davey: I'm just saying.<br />
<br />
Pastor Noble: You can tell he's from New Spring. (laughter)<br />
<br />
Davey: I don't know if I'm supposed to say that or not.<br />
<br />
Pastor Noble: No, much worse things have been said from this stage . . . by guest speakers. (laughter)<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-51056097500987836972016-04-23T16:32:00.002-05:002016-04-23T16:39:17.789-05:00Yikes! Only 100 Show Up To See Ted Cruz In Plainfield<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<div dir="ltr" lang="en">
About 100 people here for <a href="https://twitter.com/tedcruz">@tedcruz</a> in Plainfield. <a href="https://t.co/BoIDENnpP5">pic.twitter.com/BoIDENnpP5</a></div>
— Abdul-Hakim Shabazz (@AttyAbdul) <a href="https://twitter.com/AttyAbdul/status/723949785821155329">April 23, 2016</a></blockquote>
Ted Cruz returned to Indiana to make stops in Plainfield and Lebanon today. His first stop at the Oasis Diner in Plainfield was sparsely attended with about 100 on hand to greet him. Early reports don't suggest the turnout at his stop at the Boone Co. Fairgrounds is drawing a large crowd either. <br />
<script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script><div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-18959058263826247322016-04-23T16:06:00.002-05:002016-04-26T16:38:31.294-05:00Latest Indianapolis Parking Meter Report Proves Privatization Is A Public Rip-OffWatching a recent meeting of the Public Works Committee of the Indianapolis City-County Council where members received a 2015 report on the revenues generated from the privatized parking meter assets, one would have gotten the impression the report was all good news. As the council members read over the report and discussed it with DPW Director Lori Miser, they were careful not to discuss the numbers out loud so the viewing public could understand what they were actually reading. The council members seemed thrilled with the report, but after obtaining a copy of it, Advance Indiana doesn't think the numbers look so great.<br />
<br />
Total parking meter revenues in 2015 came in at $9.96 million, or roughly the same as what they generated in 2014. The City's share of the total revenues was pegged at $3.7 million; however, there is the matter of waived revenue. Under the terms of the 50-year parking meter lease with ParkIndy, the City is required to reimburse the private operator when meters are taken out of use for purposes other than civic-sponsored events. That provision of the lease agreement allowed the private operator to capture $266,831.00 of the revenues otherwise payable to the City, which means the City actually netted less than $3.5 million from the parking meters compared to the nearly $6.5 million the private operator pocketed. The City netted more than $3.3 million in 2014.<br />
<br />
When the City originally privatized the parking meter assets, the private operator paid an initial $20 million concession fee to the City for the 50-year lease. As you may recall, about a third of that amount got kicked back to Ersal Ozdemir's Keystone Construction to build a new mixed use parking garage in Broad Ripple in exchange for all of the campaign contributions he showered on former Mayor Greg Ballard. The parking meter fund is supposed to be used for sidewalks and infrastructure improvements in the area where parking meters are located. So where was the more than $6 million paid out of the fund spent this past year?<br />
<br />
You'll be happy to know that the largest expenditure from the fund went to Bollore's Blue Indy, that illegal and corrupt exclusive, electric car sharing business our former mayor awarded to the French-owned company as another kickback scheme for his corrupt cronies. Blue Indy received $2.757 million from the fund of the $6 million the City committed to awarding the company. The balance came from the Rebuild Indy fund. The fund also kicked back nearly a half million dollars to cover maintenance expenses on Georgia Street, the city street-turned private venue that is operated by Downtown Indy under a lease agreement that apparently allows the nonprofit to pocket all of the revenues while the parking meter fund is tapped to cover its maintenance expenses.<br />
<br />
The City's parking meter fund also spent about $719,000 in sidewalk improvements for Milhaus Properties' private development project at the site of the old Bank One operations center. The fund also was tapped for $425,000 on improvements for three segments of the Cultural Trail along Washington Street, Alabama Street and Virginia Avenue. Over $521,000 was spent on street, curb and sidewalk improvements along Pennsylvania and Alabama Streets. Over $100,000 was spent on a study to determine appropriate timing for left turns/pedestrian crossings within the mile square. Over $110,000 was paid to attorney Robert Glennon in an unsuccessful attempt to obtain approval from the IURC in an IPL rate tariff case for LED street light conversion. Walker Research got paid $75,000 to conduct a parking study for Downtown Indy. About $30,000 was funded for streetscape improvements around the Artisty, Cummins and Flaherty & Collins 360 Market project. So I guess council members were so happy with the revenue report because their campaign contributors were being taken care of, even if the taxpaying public is not.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-90693339198261737202016-04-23T14:39:00.001-05:002016-04-23T14:39:25.278-05:00Libertarians Choose Rex Bell Over Jim Wallace For GovernorWest Point grad and successful businessman Jim Wallace of Fishers tried unsuccessfully to run for governor as a Republican in 2012 against Mike Pence. He was tossed from the ballot after the Indiana Election Commission ruled he fell short of the 500 required signatures he needed in each of the state's nine congressional districts. Wallace's hopes of becoming a candidate for governor again this year have similarly been short-circuited as the party opts for a much lower profile candidate for the state's top office.<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Spurned by the Republican Party four years ago, Wallace had set his hopes on running for governor this time as a Libertarian. With impressive credentials and the ability to self-finance his campaign, he seemed like a sure bet to be the Libertarian's choice for governor. But a self-employed construction worker from Richmond, Rex Bell, also decided to jump in the race and challenge Wallace. Supporters of Bell dragged up old domestic arrest charges filed against Wallace's ex-wife, questions about his residency (he's lived in St. Petersburg, Florida at least part of the last several years) and his commitment to the race. Delegates to this weekend's Libertarian Party Convention decided Bell was the preferable candidate for governor. </div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-35387525375030665522016-04-23T13:08:00.002-05:002016-04-23T18:40:54.121-05:00Ted Cruz Family Full Of MysteriesResearchers trying to piece together the recent genealogy of the Rafael "Ted" Cruz family have uncovered numerous twists and turns which raise questions about just who the hell this family really is. Ted's father, Rafael Cruz, first entered the United States from Cuba in 1957 on a student visa. He was born in Matazas, Cuba in 1937. His mother, Eleanor Darragh, was born in Wilmington, Delaware in 1934. Ted is supposedly the product of a second marriage for both parents, but the details and circumstances of those marriages are quite murky.<br />
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<br /></div>
<div>
Eleanor Darragh married a Fort Worth native, Alan Wilson, in 1956, the same year both graduated from Rice University in Houston. In 1958, Eleanor and Alan Wilson are said to have moved to London. Alan divorces Eleanor in London in 1962 according to British records. In 1966, while still living in London, Eleanor gives birth to her first child, Michael Wilson, who died during his first year after she put the child up for adoption and moved back to the United States where she lived with her sister, Caroline, in New Orleans. Ted Cruz mentions the child's birth as occurring in 1965, but it actually took place in 1966. Here's how Cruz described that period of his mother's life in his book, "A Time for Truth":</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“In 1956, my mom married her first husband, a mathematician named Alan Wilson,” Cruz wrote. The couple moved to London in 1960 after a few years working in the U.S., and Cruz revealed something of a bombshell: his mother had given birth to a son, Michael Wilson, in 1965, who had died a crib death later in the year.
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Cruz wrote about his mother’s devastation: “Losing Michael to crib death broke my mother’s heart, and had a profound effect on her, so much so that I never even knew that I had had a brother until I was a teenager and my mother told me the story.”
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Cruz added, “And the heartbreak also ended her marriage.”
</blockquote>
When the <a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/election/article54991080.html">McClatchy News Service contacted Alan Wilson</a>, who still lives in London, he professed surprised at learning many things about the Cruz family. Incredibly, he professed ignorance to the fact that his ex-wife was the mother of Ted Cruz. He was even more surprised to learn that Eleanor had listed him on Michael's birth certificate as the father. Wilson insisted he was not the father of the child. "We were divorced and she was living on her own," said Wilson. "He said that Eleanor asked him if she could use his last name on the birth certificate. When Michael Wilson later died, he said, "I hadn’t even met the baby.'" Wilson knew Eleanor had become pregnant. He said he was startled when a nurse at a hospital where he was being treated told him his pregnant wife was at the same hospital.<br />
<br />
Rafael Cruz reportedly married his first wife, Julia Ann Garza, in 1959, although records of that marriage have not been found. They had two daughters and supposedly lived together from 1959 to 1964. Rafael apparently abandoned his first family in 1964 and moved to Canada. Julia Ann Garza went on to become a professor at California State University. One of their daughters, Miriam, died of a drug overdose in Pennsylvania in 2011. The other daughter, Roxana, is a medical doctor in Greenville, Texas. What's interesting is that Julia didn't file for divorce from Rafael until November 15, 1996, decades after Rafael abandoned them and began a second family with Eleanor Darragh. So Texas records show he was married to his first wife for 37 years, including the period he was supposedly married to Ted's mother.<br />
<br />
Rafael Cruz earned his green card in 1961 after he graduated from the University of Texas with a mathematics degree as an asylee. Rafael first lived with Julia and his daughters in Dallas before moving to New Orleans where he worked for a company tied to the oil industry. He abandoned his first wife and daughters in 1964 and moved to Calgary, Canada where he officially resided for the next eight years, during which time he acquired a Canadian citizenship. Interestingly, Rafael registered with the Selective Service System in New Orleans in 1967, listing his employer as Geophysics and Computer Services, Inc. where he worked as manager of computer applications. Cruz legally would have been required to register for the draft when he became a permanent resident in 1961. Eleanor is supposedly working at the same company when she meets and marries Rafael and the two move to Calgary, Canada together, even though he was still legally married to Julia. Researchers have been unable to find proof of their marriage in official records.<br />
<br />
Rafael Cruz acquired his Canadian citizenship in 1968 or 1973; there are conflicting accounts. He must not have wanted to worry about being drafted into the Vietnam War after registering in 1967. Ted is born in Calgary in 1970, making him a Canadian citizen at birth. Under federal law, Eleanor would have been legally required to complete a consular report of birth abroad to the State Department to make Ted a U.S. citizen, a document Cruz has never produced to establish his mother took this affirmative step to make him a citizen at birth. Both Eleanor and Rafael Cruz were listed on a 1974 Canadian voter roll as citizens eligible to vote in Canadian elections, although Cruz denies his mother ever became a Canadian citizen. Ted writes in his book that his <a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/election/article24782596.html">father abandoned him and his mother </a>and moved back to the United States in 1973, the same year he supposedly became a Canadian citizen.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Imagine a young married couple, living together in the 1970s, neither one of them has a personal relationship with Jesus. They have a little boy and they are both drinking far too much. They are living a fast life,” said Ted Cruz. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“When I was 3, my father decided to leave my mother and me. We were living in Calgary at the time, he got on a plane and he flew back to Texas, and he decided he didn’t want to be married anymore and he didn’t want to be a father to his 3-year-old son.”</blockquote>
About a year after Rafael abandoned them, Eleanor and Ted move to Houston in 1974. Rafael and Eleanor still owned a home together throughout the 1980s, however, because court records show that Wells Fargo bank foreclosed on the home they jointly-owned and ordered it sold at a sheriff's auction in 1989. Ted graduated from high school in 1988 and registered with the Selective Service System that same year while he was completing a Pell grant application for college, which is limited to students with financial need. Eleanor would not become officially divorced from Rafael until February 13, 1997 according to Texas court records. Eleanor changed her name back to Darragh at that time. Ted did not officially renounce his Canadian citizenship until May 14, 2014. It's not clear whether Ted entered the U.S. with his mother in 1974 on a U.S. passport or Canadian passport, although Cruz denies he ever possessed a Canadian passport.<br />
<br />
It's also unclear of the circumstances under which Rafael Cruz legally re-entered the U.S. Rafael did not become a U.S. citizen until 2005. If he was permanently residing for a period of eight years in Canada during which he acquired a Canadian citizenship, his permanent resident status in the U.S. should have been revoked, if not before, at the time he acquired Canadian citizenship. Suffice it to say, there are a lot of mysteries surrounding the Cruz family.<br />
<br />
The Cruz family timeline data can be viewed <a href="https://www.facebook.com/notes/anna-tomerlin/rafael-edward-ted-cruz-family-timeline/998233746879858/">here</a>.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-46341090207847773452016-04-23T08:05:00.002-05:002016-04-23T11:43:47.143-05:00Pols Line Up To Write Letters Praising HastertFormer House Speaker Dennis Hastert may have been a serial sexual abuser of teen boys he supervised as a high school teacher and wrestling coach, but there's no shortage of politicians singing his praises in<a href="http://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/wife-son-tom-delay-ex-cia-chief-write-judge-praising-hastert/"> letters to the federal district court judge</a> seeking no jail time for the once powerful politician after he pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators and structuring $1.7 million in hush money payments to one of his victims to avoid federal currency law reporting requirements.<br />
<br />
Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay described Hastert as a "man of strong faith" and "great integrity," one of 41 letters the sentencing judge received. Hastert's attorneys withdrew another 20 or so letters written to the judge after the judge made clear their letters would be made public since the authors did not want their letters to become public. "We all have our flaws, but Dennis Hastert has very few," Delay wrote to Judge Thomas Durkin. "He is a good man who loves the Lord. He gets his integrity and values from him. He doesn't deserve what he is going through."<br />
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Former CIA Director Peter Goss, former Illinois Attorney General Tyrone Fahner, several former congressmen and retired federal law enforcement officials were among those writing letters of support. Former U.S. Rep. Tom Ewing (R-IL) says he and Hastert were as "close as brothers" and he knew Hastert to be a man of "faith, integrity and honesty." Former State Sen. Doris Karpiel called him the "best kind of public official." "Further punishment will serve no real purpose," she said since he had already "lost his good name."<br />
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Hastert's wife and children also wrote letters of support. Jean Hastert says she has never known a "more honorable and devoted man" who "spent his life in service to others." "If one of his students or wrestlers ever needed anything of him, he would be there for them, and he was never happier than when he could watch someone he helped succeed," Jean Hastert wrote. Hasert's wife, incidentally, was a high school girls PE teacher at the same high school where her husband was a serial sexual abuser of teen-age boys. His family expressed concerns about his deteriorating health if he is imprisoned. "He now has [a] myriad [of] medical issues and he should be with his family and not in the medical division of a correctional institution," son Joshua Hastert wrote.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-7632475102455514692016-04-22T14:17:00.001-05:002016-04-22T21:21:48.978-05:00Poll Shows Trump And Clinton Leading Indiana's Presidential Primary ElectionThe first published poll of Indiana voters show Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton with small leads as we approach the state's May 3 primary election. Trump leads Ted Cruz by six percentage points while Clinton leads Bernie Sanders by just three percentage points. The poll was <a href="http://www.wthr.com/story/31792956/exclusive-wthrhpi-poll-trump-clinton-ahead-in-indiana">conducted by Public Opinion Strategies for Howey Politics and WTHR</a>.<br />
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Republican Presidential Primary<br />
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Donald Trump 37%<br />
Ted Cruz 31%<br />
John Kasich 22%<br />
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Democratic Presidential Primary<br />
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Hillary Clinton 48%<br />
Bernie Sanders 45%<br />
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UPDATE: Fox News released a poll of Indiana voters today as well. It also shows Trump and Clinton leading but by larger margins. Trump has an 8-point lead over Cruz, while Clinton has a 4-point lead over Sanders.<br />
<br />
Donald Trump 41%<br />
Ted Cruz 33%<br />
John Kasich 16%<br />
<br />
Hillary Clinton 46%<br />
Bernie Sander 42%.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-7338035644220372972016-04-22T11:50:00.000-05:002016-04-22T11:50:04.676-05:00Lobbying Firms Now Hiring Former FBI Agents<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Jim Davis, shown here helping FBI agents fingerprint Saddam Hussein after the former dictator's capture in Iraq, has served as the director of the Colorado Dept. of Public Safety since 2011." height="225" src="https://localtvkdvr.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/davissaddam.jpg?w=400&h=225&crop=1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Former FBI agent Jim Davis shown with Saddam Hussein in 2003 following his capture</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
A former FBI agent is going over to the dark side to work. The Indiana Legislative Insight reports that Jim Davis, a former special assistant in charge of the Indianapolis division of the FBI, has been hired as a<a href="http://www.bosepublicaffairs.com/professionals/james-davis/"> senior policy adviser by Bose Public Affairs Group </a>where he will advise the firm's clients on risk management, crisis communications and reputation management. Very comforting, eh?<br />
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Davis has a very<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/james-h.-davis-named-denver-sac"> interesting background</a>. He was temporarily assigned by the FBI to work in Iraq during that colossal quagmire. He was among a team of American interrogators who first questioned former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein following his capture in 2003. The 26-year FBI veteran performed undercover work for the FBI in Chicago during the 3-year Operation Silver Shovel investigation that netted two dozen convictions, including six Chicago aldermen.<br />
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Davis served as a special investigator for the independent counsel that investigated former Clinton Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt in the late 1990s. That investigation centered around whether Babbitt and Interior Department officials rejected an Indian casino proposed in Wisconsin after competing casinos lobbied the administration for the rejection of the casino project and contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Democrats. Babbitt was cleared of any wrongdoing in that investigation.<br />
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Davis came to the Indianapolis FBI office in 2003 where his responsibilities included program management of all FBI criminal investigations in Indiana. His service in Indianapolis was interrupted on several occasions for temporary duty assignments he served in Iraq and Afghanistan.<br />
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More recently, Davis<a href="http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/new-colo-safety-chief-is-former-fbi-agent"> worked as the head</a> of the Colorado Department of Public Safety for Gov. John Hickenlooper's administration after several years as special agent in charge of the Denver FBI office. He left that job to start his own private security firm. Denver's sheriff's department <a href="http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_26461797/denver-pay-80k-former-fbi-agent-helping-sheriff">paid his firm $80,000</a> over a five-month period as a consultant helping the office implement reforms.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-67945074967637452282016-04-21T07:05:00.002-05:002016-04-21T07:35:56.095-05:00Another Citizens Energy Double-Digit Rate Increase ApprovedDouble-digit increases have become the norm for Citizens Energy customers. I love how our local news media reports on these rate increases with a happy face, presumably because the utility pays a bunch of money to them for feel-good advertising. Average water rates will jump $5 a month, or 20%, to $30. The utility claims the money is needed for $100 million in infrastructure improvements. But remember, you're getting all sorts of cost savings after Citizens Energy bought the water utility from the City for an inflated price to fund Ballard's sidewalks for votes scam. And of course the City bought the utility for an inflated prices from NiSource. But, hey, it's a public benefit utility so cheer up.<br />
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That's not the half of it. There's still that gigantic rate increase for sewage fees hanging over our heads. Another 31% hike in sewer bills is looming that will hike the average monthly bills from $35 to $47 next year. Mayor Joe Hogsett plans to hold a press conference with Citizens Energy officials to announce plans for completing that big dig project that has enriched the usual cast of pay-to-play contractors who make six-figure campaign contributions to politicians like Hogsett. They'll put lipstick on that pig and the media will spew it all back to us verbatim without any critical analysis. This is what happens when you have a state utility regulator run by nothing but political hacks who don't give a damn about the public they're supposed to represent and who allow these thieves to rob us blind.<div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12703782.post-91131386397517866532016-04-20T21:17:00.002-05:002016-04-20T21:17:47.936-05:00Former City Prosecutor Fired For Doctoring Public RecordsA former Indianapolis city prosecutor who admitted doctoring public records he had provided to another attorney representing a dog kennel owner the city had charged with numerous city code violations regarding animal welfare has been <a href="http://www.theindychannel.com/news/call-6-investigators/call-6-deputy-city-prosecutor-fired-after-admitting-to-doctoring-public-records">fired from his job </a>according to WRTV, which first broke this story last night. Mark Pizur, who had earlier been demoted to deputy prosecutor, was terminated by his boss, corporation counsel Andy Mallon. See the original post <a href="http://advanceindiana.blogspot.com/2016/04/indianapolis-city-prosecutor-caught.html">here</a>.<br />
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<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">indiana politics civil rights law</div>Gary R. Welshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15185079937305083438noreply@blogger.com3