“Lawmakers need to remind themselves why they voted to repeal ISTEP in the first place. One reason was the chronic computer glitches that occurred during its administration, which had nothing to do with the content of the test. The other was to reduce testing time. The legislature should seize the moment and deliver a shorter yet rigorous program that holds students accountable for their learning.” by Andrea Neal In 2016, the Indiana legislature voted to…

by Craig Ladwig Some Indiana mayors got together last week to congratulate themselves on thinking big, that is, thinking globally. The takeaway from an Indiana University panel discussion was that if municipal government could turn its attention away from the small-mindedness of Main Street, progress would come, that property free of government encumbrance is an outdated notion, and so forth. The panel, made up of the mayors of South Bend, Bloomington and La Porte, speaking…

by Cmdr. John Pickerill Well, our Indiana Republicans broke another promise. This time it’s their support for repeal and replacement of Obamacare with a free-market solution. The Indiana Republican platform promises, “We believe healthcare decisions should be made by patients, in consultation with their personal physician — not government bureaucrats. We support our Congressional delegation’s continued efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.” Despite that, if you can believe Howey Politics, the top…

by T. Norman Van Cott When immigrants, legal or illegal, earn money by working in the United States, what happens to the dollars? One possibility is that they spend them on goods and services sold in the United States, not necessarily on the things that they are producing, but on the wide variety of items necessary to living. Another possibility is that they send the dollars back to their families and friends in their home…

by Craig Ladwig One of my favorite lines was delivered by the provost at my daughter’s college: “The only thing in life that is exactly as it seems is professional wrestling.” The search for a new Indiana University basketball coach will fall well outside that definition. It is not a search for a winning coach, please know, but a nice winning coach, that unicorn of collegiate athletics. Since Bobby Knight was kicked out of town,…

by Fred McCarthy The headline on a recent article out of Indianapolis says, “Council Panel OKs $148K to Fund ‘Economic Recovery Coordinator.’” The text tells us that the city council’s Metropolitan and Economic Development Corp. there approved $147,916 (for “salary and some basic administrative costs”) to fund the first year of the three-year contract position. This is to be an individual to help workers laid off to “move on to new employment.” It specifically refers…

by David Thomas, Ph.D. The political tumult surrounding the proposed replacement of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) with a Republican alternative (Trumpcare), underpins a greater concern felt by many households: Will another inside-the-beltway proposal, imposed by the majority du jour, be an improvement over the previous effort, foisted on the minority? Or does another painful transition of even more rules, red tape and regulation with even higher costs await us in the next few years?…

For the use of the membership only. IF YOU HANG AROUND LONG ENOUGH you begin to recognize historic moments. So it was when several officers of the Indiana Policy Review Foundation sat down for afternoon coffee in Indianapolis almost 20 years ago with two bright young stars of the conservative movement. Stephen Moore, a friend of the foundation, conducted fiscal seminars for us in both Indianapolis and Fort Wayne. Moore, who had founded the Club…

by Cmdr. John Pickerill Power corrupts. And absolute power corrupts absolutely. That is why the America tradition has always been separation of powers between the executive, legislative and judicial. By separating powers we citizens are better protected against government corruption or tyrannical behavior. One branch of government can hold the other in check. But somewhere along the line Indiana got away from this tradition when it comes to city government, specifically the chief executive of…

Not for publication, quotation or distribution. For the use of the membership only. “This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man’s laws, not God’s. And if you cut them down, and you’re just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I’d give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety’s sake.” — Sir Thomas More challenging…