Indiana News/Around the Corn
(quotes from linked articles in italics)
Around the Corn (quick headlines)
Nancy Leonard, the wife of former Indiana Pacers coach and general manager Bobby “Slick” Leonard who was considered the matriarch of the team, has died at the age of 93.
Maternal mortality rates improved, but…
Over a dozen people spoke to the state’s Interim Study Committee on Public Health, Behavioral Health and Human Services Thursday, speaking about the need to improve access to mental health services for new mothers and ways to reduce mortality rates.
Hoosiers have long had one of the worst mortality rates in the wealthy world for all new mothers, but especially for Black moms. Similar racial disparities exist for newborn children.
The state has made strides when it comes to infant health — reporting the lowest mortality rate since the state started gathering data 100 hundred years ago.
But the state has deeply cut funding for programs with local public health departments that were working to improve infant and maternal health outcomes. Using $225 million under Health First Indiana, counties reported more than 352,000 services to moms and infants — the second-most common use for funding following school-based health programming.
Facing a budget crunch, Republicans chose to cut funding for the program after just two years, disrupting the biggest investment in public health in decades.
Panel hears warnings on rising Indiana prison population, local corrections funding shortfalls
Indiana Department of Correction on Thursday told the state’s Interim Study Committee on Corrections that the agency’s incarcerated population dipped during the pandemic but is now back on the rise.
She said DOC recorded 22,000 inmates at its low but that the state now has more than 25,000 individuals in custody, with facilities operating at more than 95% capacity.
Nippon Steel to invest in Gary
Now, Nippon has announced plans to spend about $300 million to revamp the largest of four blast furnaces that still operate at the Gary Works steel mill in 2026.
Nippon has promised to spend $3.1 billion on the plant in Gary as part of an $11 billion dollar investment promise on all U.S Steel plants still operating in the United States.
The pushback is on the choice of investment in Gary. The furnace Nippon is renovating is a coal-fueled furnace.
Indiana Parole Board rejects death row inmate’s clemency bid
The Indiana Parole Board on Wednesday recommended against granting clemency to death row prisoner Roy Ward, setting up a final decision by Gov. Mike Braun about two weeks before Ward’s scheduled Oct. 10 execution.
State pension obligation nearing funded status
The Indiana Public Retirement System oversees nearly $55 billion in assets for 551,000 members across 16 accounts. The overall funding status of the system increased from 81% to 83.2% in the last year.
The state’s largest unfunded liability continues to be the Teachers’ Pre-1996 Defined Benefit Account, which has $3.1 billion in unfunded liabilities. The state budget dedicates $1 billion annually to pay down that account — which is on-track to reach funded status by 2028 or 2029, depending on market conditions.
Continued attack on educators/education
GOP leaders threaten teacher free speech
Rokita advocates the removal of teachers who said mean things about Charlie Kirk
Rokita sent a letter offering legal guidance to school superintendents and public university administrators throughout the Hoosier State on Tuesday… claiming that schools assume “substantial authority” to remove or discipline teachers who make “divisive or controversial speech.”
Previously, Rokita asked people to report teachers who “celebrate or rationalize” Kirk’s Sept. 10 killing so they can be included in his office’s government dashboard. The platform has been used to list and condemn instances of “objectionable” political ideology entering the classroom.
“As a matter of good government and sound public policy, schools would be wise to remove from the classroom teachers who express support for or attempt to excuse political violence,” Rokita said. “And as a matter of morality, this moment demands decisive action from public officials to address noxious speech from government employees that undermines public confidence in our schools and corrodes public discourse.”
Rokita added that educators can exercise First Amendment rights, but those rights are not “unlimited” when it comes to government employment. He added that public employers assume the power to regulate the speech made by government employees when it reportedly “disrupts government operations.”
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun has also expressed his thoughts, stating that the Secretary of Education can suspend or revoke a teacher’s license for misconduct.
Indiana public workers lost jobs over comments made after Charlie Kirk’s death.
IndyStar confirmed as of Sept. 17 three school districts parted ways with teachers following their comments about Kirk’s death.
IndyStar reported on Sept. 15 that an Indiana Department of Child Services staff attorney was no longer employed by the state after a comment made in “poor taste” was shared on social media about his killing.
The president of the Muncie Human Rights Commission resigned Sept. 11, a day after he posted comments on Facebook that appeared to celebrate Kirk’s assassination.
ACLU sues Ball State for alleged First Amendment violation following staff firing over Kirk post
A Ball State University employee who lost her job after she posted about the late Charlie Kirk will use Indiana’s courts to litigate the case. Suzanne Swierc [...] worked as the director of health promotion and advocacy under Ball State’s student affairs division.
“Let me be clear: if you think Charlie Kirk was a wonderful person, we can’t be friends. His death is a tragedy, and I can and do feel for his wife and children,” Swierc posted that day, according to a screenshot included in her legal complaint. “I believe in the Resurrection, and while it’s difficult, I can and do pray for his soul. Charlie Kirk’s death is a reflection of the violence, fear, and hatred he sowed. It does not excuse his death, AND it’s a sad truth. The shooting is a tragedy, and I can and do feel for a college campus experiencing an active shooter situation. The deaths of Melissa and Mark Hortman, the children shot and killed in Minneapolis last month, and the children shot in Colorado today are all tragedies that also deserve your attention. Charlie Kirk excused the deaths of children in the name of the second amendment.”
In the filing, Sweirc said she’d restricted her Facebook privacy settings to “close friends” prior to making the post, but it was screenshotted and shared publicly. It went viral in conservative circles.
Swierc will be represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana. The organization argued that Sweirc didn’t forfeit her rights when Ball State — a public university — hired her in 2023.
OFF-CAMPUS LESSONS: Debate Over LifeWise Bible Classes Deepens Across Southern Indiana
The Ohio-based nonprofit provides “released-time” religious instruction that takes children off campus during the school day—a practice permitted under a 1952 U.S. Supreme Court decision and a 2024 Indiana law. The state statute requires schools to approve parental requests for up to 120 minutes of weekly off-site religious education.
The organization’s reach has accelerated. Last year, IndyStar reported that LifeWise planned to operate in 52 Indiana counties during the 2024–25 school year. By this fall, The Indiana Citizen confirmed, the group has at least one participating school in all 92 counties, with ambitions to add more sites in each.
Rokita BS, cont
Exodus Refugee sues AG Rokita over civil investigative demand
The lawsuit recently filed by Exodus Refugee Immigration Inc. appears to be the first to challenge the civil investigative demands that Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita has been using to access internal documents and communications of law enforcement agencies, nonprofits, businesses and universities across the state.
Exodus, a nonprofit that provides services and support to refugees and other displaced immigrants resettling in Indiana, filed a complaint against Rokita in U.S. District Court for Southern Indiana just over 10 days after receiving a civil investigative demand from the attorney general’s office. The complaint asserts the CID violates the First Amendment’s protection of expression and association, because the investigative demand is directed toward Exodus’ advocacy for and association with immigrant and refugee clients.
“The CID is part of a continuing pattern by the Attorney General of sending unreasonable and unlawful requests to immigrant service organizations and other entities across Indiana,” the Exodus complaint said. “These appear to be designed to advance a personal political agenda and to punish and deter organizations that assist, advocate for, and associate with immigrants and refugees. The investigation is without cause and is in bad faith.”
Rokita announced on Sept. 8 that his office had served Exodus with a civil investigation demand. In the press release, Rokita described Exodus as offering services to “illegal aliens” through its offices in Indianapolis and Bloomington and said he was seeking information about “possible interference with federal immigration enforcement activities” in Monroe County earlier this year.
the CID ordered Exodus to respond to 39 separate interrogatories and 28 separate requests for production of documents, which was required to be turned over by Sept. 29. However, the lawsuit notes the attorney general does not provide an explanation or information regarding the allegations but rather is focused on Exodus’s advocacy efforts and work with refugees and immigrants. The information being sought includes documents and records related to services and programs for the migrants, an account of the funding provided for resettling the migrants, and all policies and practices regarding interacting with ICE, along with all communications concerning ICE operations.
In addition, the lawsuit said, the attorney general is seeking an “overwhelming array” of other information, which Exodus claimed would be injurious to its operations and its clients. The CID is requiring the production of documents protected by attorney-client privilege, records concerning mental-health counseling Exodus clients have received, materials that contain information which can only be released with the client’s written permission, communications with community partners, and documents on landlords and employers who work with Exodus and its clients.
Pattern of weaponizing these CIDs by Rokita
In 2024, the Indiana General Assembly amended a state statute to give the attorney general the ability to enforce the provisions in Indiana law regarding citizenship and immigration status and compliance with federal immigration laws. Even before the new law took effect on July 1, 2024, Rokita sent warning letters to the common councils of East Chicago and Gary and law enforcement agencies in West Lafayette and Monroe County, demanding they rescind what he called their “sanctuary cities” policies.
A little more than two weeks later, Rokita announced he was investigating “potential labor trafficking” networks in certain communities as well as what he called a “largescale (sic.) influx of illegal aliens” in Evansville, Logansport and Seymour. He also said he had served CIDs to the Cass County Health Department, Logansport Community School Corp., Berry Global Group Inc., Tent Partnership for Refugees, God is Good and Jackson County Industrial Development Corp.
This year, Rokita has used CIDs to push back on diversity, equity and inclusion programs and policies. He announced in May and June that he was launching inquiries into the University of Notre Dame, Butler University and DePauw University to determine whether their DEI policies were violating federal and state civil rights laws.
Already, Rokita has taken legal action against Berry Global, an Evansville-based maker of plastic food-storage packaging products, for noncompliance with the CID.
Power/Utilities
State explores multiyear rate setting, performance incentives for utilities
Members of the General Assembly heard from consultants Wednesday about the potential benefits of setting utility rates over multiple years — rather than approving them annually.
Additional considerations include establishing performance incentives for utilities to accomplish certain goals, such as reliability.
Indiana’s current investor-owned utility climate follows a “cost of service” regulation model, Crowley said, meaning that utilities file their total service costs annually and submit that information to commissioners alongside rate requests.
Though this can take several forms, the one his firm recommended to Indiana was known as forecasted revenue, under which the utility would project its future costs and revenue needs. Though the utility runs the risk of potentially underselling their need, it can provide stable rates for them and for their customers while reducing administrative costs.
Performance-incentive mechanisms, on the other hand, allow commissioners to “ding” or reward utilities based on their results. For example, Crowley shared, utilities could be tasked with reducing their average service interruption times and could be fined if they fall below the benchmark.
Braun appoints new members to IURC hiring committee
Those appointees are: Secretary of Energy and Natural Resources Suzie Jaworowski, former Indiana State Representative Dollyne Sherman and Cory Cochran, a business executive from Floyd County.
They’ll be part of a seven-member committee that will choose the IURC’s new members
Right now, there are three openings on the five-member commission.
The governor said he wants those vacancies to be filled by people with an entrepreneurial approach to utility rates.
Next spring, the IURC, including its new commission members will make a decision on whether [a requested AES] rate increase should go through.
Hoosiers have spoken out against the proposed rate increases.
Some of the most vocal were Hoosiers from Franklin Township, concerned about how a proposed Google data center could impact their electricity bills.
About that data center: Google pulls project amid opposition
The Indianapolis City-County Council was expected to vote on a rezoning request that would have paved the way for the 468-acre project Monday night, but Google representatives announced at the meeting they were withdrawing the proposal.
Hundreds attended the council meeting Monday night, many to protest the data center, requiring two overflow rooms for meeting-goers at the City-County Building.
Google’s announcement that it was pulling the project was met with loud cheers from the crowd in the council room, many of whom were holding signs in opposition to the project.
Reality check: The project could come back.
If it’s not actually withdrawn, another hearing could be held as early as next month.
Since the rezoning request wasn’t rejected, Google could refile the request sooner than the one-year waiting period it otherwise would have faced.
IEDC Self-Dealing & Corruption
IEDC board votes to release results of forensic analysis — after legal review
The Indiana Economic Development Corp. will release the results of a forensic examination into the agency and its partners once a legal review for redactions is completed late next week. There are no criminal findings, per Gov. Mike Braun’s office.
He promised an “audit” in April, after Indiana Legislative Insight reported allegations of self-dealing and more among IEDC and its partners. In May, Washington D.C.-based FTI Consulting began work. The contract is worth up to $800,000 and extended for a year.
“As you’ll see once it’s released, the audit into past IEDC operations prior to this administration confirmed the need for increased transparency and accountability for Hoosier taxpayer money is spent,” Braun told attendees.
Changes include, according to a news release:
All votes must be taken by the IEDC’s full board of directors instead of in small committees.
The agency’s nonprofit arm — the Indiana Economic Development Foundation — will “wind down.” The shadowy foundation was placed on a spending freeze in April. It was created to raise private funds in support of the IEDC’s mission, but often declined to provide information on its donors and expenses. Also in April, Braun forced the foundation to release six years worth of audited financial reports required by the State Budget Committee.
Investment activity must “sta(y) in Indiana.”
IEDC’s board voted to allow Elevate Ventures to resume investment operations with the capital already loaned to the funds it manages on Indiana’s behalf. Those accounts include the Indiana Angel Network Fund and the Pre-Seed Fund.
The approval is “contingent upon terms and conditions satisfactory to the IEDC staff,” said Richard Waterfield, an IEDC board member and leader of various financial management companies.
Similar terms apply to a loan of up to $5 million, also approved Wednesday, to Elevate Ventures’ angel investment program. The State Budget Agency must also give approval, Waterfield said.
Just last month, however, the IEDC deemed Elevate Ventures “in breach of” lending language in all of its active loan agreements after defaulting on the angel investment program. The agency gave the troubled company 30 days to cure the breaches before it neared default on those agreements.
What to know about IndyStar’s investigation of $180M in IEDC awards to ‘The Three Kings’
Who are The Three Kings?
Former IEDC executive Dave Roberts
Purdue Research Foundation President Chad Pittman
Paul Mitchell, a former economic development policy guru for Gov. Mitch Daniels
The moniker was given to the men from startup founders who said they believed the men’s influence had the power to make or break some startups’ chances to access state economic development contracts and grants.
Three companies told IndyStar they believed they were squeezed out of state initiatives intended to help Indiana startups when their activities were interpreted as being at odds with or in competition with the men.
Entities controlled at least in part by the Three Kings received more than $180 million over less than six years in taxpayer-funded grants and no-bid professional service contracts.
Sometimes, former IEDC executive Dave Roberts himself was involved in the IEDC’s decision to dedicate millions of dollars worth of taxpayer dollars to the organizations.
An IndyStar analysis found that more than $100 million worth of awards were doled out to those organizations while Roberts played an instrumental role in choosing funding recipients at the IEDC. But the awards to the entities kept coming after Roberts left the IEDC, too.
IndyStar reporting tracked funds from the IEDC, which is funded by taxpayers, to more than a handful of entities controlled at least in part by at least one or sometimes all of the three men.
Those entities include: Next Level Manufacturing Institute, Applied Research Institute, Battery Innovation Center, NineTwelve, Indy Autonomous Challenge, The SportsTech HQ and the Semiconductor Innovation Center.
Some of the awards were essentially pass-through grants, with money going from the IEDC to an entity controlled by one of the men, which would later distribute a portion of it to other companies.
Perhaps the most obvious example of Roberts’ overlapping roles was laid out in a 2022 request for more IEDC funding from the Battery Innovation Center, where federal nonprofit filings show Roberts was serving as board chair.
The letter — from Roberts’ organization — was addressed to Roberts in his capacity as IEDC’s chief innovation officer.
US/World News
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In an unhinged rant yesterday at the United Nations, Trump disparaged most of the world’s nations as dismal failures. Meanwhile, his Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, was pledging to use bottomless U.S. financial resources to prop up one of the world’s chronic economic failures, Argentina, which has lurched into its latest debt and currency crisis.
Why bail out Argentina? Because the current president, Javier Milei, is a far-right libertarian sycophant of Donald Trump. And the two are twins when it comes to perverse economic policies.
Milei, who was elected in October 2023, has used extreme austerity, ravaging social spending, to balance the budget, restore international confidence in the peso, reduce inflation, and attract foreign capital. However, the strategy has backfired in every respect.
This year, everything about Milei’s program unraveled. Little foreign investment materialized. Inflation crept back up. The overly strong peso depressed exports. Argentina has had to dip into scarce dollar reserves to defend the peso’s value against the dollar and is almost out of hard currency. The austerity crushed both consumer demand and Milei’s approval ratings. His political credibility, at home and globally, sank with the peso.
On Tuesday, Bessent elaborated on his pledge to bail out Milei. He vowed to purchase dollar-denominated Argentine government debt “as conditions warrant,” and offer immediate credit through the Exchange Stabilization Fund, as well as a $20 billion swap line with the Argentine central bank. It’s a strange form of libertarianism that gets a lifeline from a foreign government. And of course, this really bails out the global investors (including companies with eyes on Argentina’s large stocks of lithium) who stand to lose money if Argentina defaults.
Trump’s Argentina bailout is latest blow for Indiana soybean farmers
A pledge to stabilize Argentina’s economy has ricocheted into America’s heartland, squeezing soybean farmers already wrestling with the impact of U.S. trade policy.
To shore up its own economy, Argentina suspended its 26% export tax on soybeans, immediately luring China (historically the top importer of U.S. soybeans) as a buyer.
The purchase undercuts U.S. farmers, whose product remains weighed down by a 20% retaliatory tariff imposed by China amid the trade dispute with Washington.
“China probably booked the rest of their November supplies last night,” Jacquie Holland, an economist at the American Soybean Association, tells Axios.
Indiana’s economy faces broader implications. Corn, soybeans and pork account for more than $6.4 billion in agricultural exports in Indiana and an estimated one-third of the state’s farm income is exported, but we’ve been essentially locked out of China — one of our largest markets — this year.
UN General Assembly Underway
Lula leads off first day of speeches
Lula’s position “reflects that of many of the world’s other leaders. He drew a link between the crisis facing multilateralism — that is, the inability of governments to productively work together at places like the United Nations — with the erosion of democracy in various societies. In the face of great power competition and bullying, most countries in the world, especially in the so-called Global South, want the United Nations to work as it’s intended,” writes Ishaan Tharoor in the Washington Post.
First Syrian president in 60 years speaks at UN General Assembly
Ahmed al-Sharaa became the first Syrian president in almost 60 years to deliver a speech at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday.
The last speech by a Syrian head of state to the UN plenary was delivered by then-Syrian president Nureddin al-Atassi in 1967.
In Iraq, al-Sharaa, formerly known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, had once joined the terrorist network al-Qaeda and spent several years held captive by the US military there.
While he later renounced al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, there are still some doubts as to whether he has completely abandoned his extremist ideology.
Since al-Sharaa’s appointment, observers have wondered whether he will establish a government for all Syrians, including minorities, as announced, or whether he could become a new authoritarian ruler.
Thousands of people have been killed in sectarian violence in Syria in recent months. There have also been accusations against the government security forces.
Trump claims ‘triple sabotage’
In a post on social media, the US president referred to an escalator abruptly stopping as he and First Lady Melania Trump stepped on, a teleprompter malfunctioning during his speech, and an audio issue in the auditorium.
A UN official said the sound system was designed to allow people to hear translated speeches through earpieces.
The UN previously said a safety mechanism might have been triggered by Trump’s videographer who had been travelling backwards up the escalator
while the teleprompter belonged to the US delegation.
He rambled on for 57 minutes, 42 minutes more than he was allocated, telling the leaders that their countries were going to hell, that the climate crisis was a “con job” and that the UN was “funding an assault on western countries and their borders”.
Trump’s wandering speech had no shortage of false claims and contradictions. He touted peace while telling drug cartels he would blow them “out of existence.” He questioned the purpose of the U.N.’s existence, but later in the morning told the U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres that the U.S. “is behind the United Nations 100%.”
Trump claimed he has “ended seven wars,” while the U.N. offered empty words
But Trump’s repeated claims of being a peacemaker are complicated. Some of the conflicts he has cited in the past have not been wars or have yet to end.
This week alone, Britain, Canada, Australia, Portugal and France all formally recognized a Palestinian state, despite opposition from the U.S. and Israel. Trump said this upswell of support for Palestine would “encourage continued conflict” and would be a “reward” for Hamas
Trump said if Russia does not end its invasion of Ukraine, he is prepared to impose “a strong round of powerful tariffs.” He then told European nations to “step it up” and stop importing Russian oil.
Trump scolded representatives for their countries’ immigration policies, while upholding his mass deportation agenda in the U.S. as the best way to address the “crisis of uncontrolled migration.” This led the president to say, “I’m really good at this stuff. Your countries are going to hell.”
Trump described climate change as “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world”
Weeks of Russian incursions into NATO skies have pushed the U.S.-led alliance to the brink of an explosive choice: strike back or stand down.
President Trump, long reluctant to confront Moscow, stunned allies this week by saying he supports shooting down Russian aircraft if the incursions continue.
The Kremlin’s response was a blunt one: shoot down a Russian jet, and war will follow.
NATO officials believe Russia is deliberately testing the alliance’s defenses — and its political will — with a wave of escalating provocations.
Sept. 9-10: Nearly two dozen Russian drones entered Polish airspace, forcing NATO to scramble fighter jets and engage enemy targets in allied airspace for the first time in its history.
Sept. 13: A Russian drone lingered nearly an hour over Romanian territory.
Sept. 19: Three Russian fighter jets flew 12 minutes into Estonian airspace with their transponders off — the most brazen violation yet.
On Thursday, U.S. fighter jets intercepted Russian warplanes near Alaska’s air defense identification zone for the ninth time this year.
Norway reported three separate Russian airspace violations this year — the first incursions in over a decade.
Drone swarms forced multiple airports in Denmark to shut down this week. While the culprit has not yet been named, Denmark’s prime minister declared that a “hybrid war” was underway on European soil.
In an extraordinary shift, Trump said Ukraine could win back all of its lost territory and even “go further” by seizing Russian land — a red line that has previously triggered furious reactions from Moscow.
NATO allies are preparing for the unthinkable.
Estonia is building miles of anti-tank trenches on the frontline, while France and Germany have ordered contingency plans to treat thousands of wounded soldiers per day.
Both parties have an interest in averting the cataclysmic conflict. But as tensions soared this week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov declared at the UN that NATO and Moscow are already “at war.”
Kimmel Gets Last Laugh With Record Ratings in Fiery TV Return
Jimmy Kimmel Live! hit 6.3 million viewers during its fiery comeback episode on Tuesday, despite not airing in 23 percent of U.S. households due to boycotts by Nexstar and Sinclair, according to preliminary data from Nielsen
Sinclair, Nexstar cave, bring Kimmel back
Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group brought Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show back to their local TV stations on Friday night, ending a dayslong TV blackout for dozens of cities across the U.S.
The companies suspended the program on Sept. 17 over remarks the comedian made in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s killing. Disney-owned ABC suspended Kimmel the same day, following threats of potential repercussions from the Trump-appointed head of the Federal Communications Commission.
The companies’ dual moves Friday mean “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” will return to local TV on Nexstar’s 28 ABC affiliates, from Topeka, Kansas, to New Orleans, along with Sinclair’s 38 local markets, from Seattle to Washington D.C.
Kimmel’s suspension lasted less than a week, while the affiliate blackout stood for just over a week.
This Week in Epstein
House Democrats release partial records referencing Musk, Bannon, Thiel
The documents, which were delivered to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and published Friday by the panel’s Democrats, come in response to the committee probe into the Epstein case. In what appears to be a copy of Epstein’s itinerary, Musk had a tentative trip to Epstein’s island on Dec. 6, 2014. A note appended to that plan reads, “is this still happening?” At the time, Epstein owned a private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Another schedule notes a planned lunch with tech billionaire Peter Thiel on Nov. 27, 2017, and a breakfast with conservative political strategist Steve Bannon on Feb. 16, 2019 — just months before Epstein was charged with sex trafficking of minors. Bannon was Trump’s chief strategist, and Thiel is a prominent Republican megadonor.
Also according to the newly released files, Microsoft founder Bill Gates had a tentative breakfast party in 2014 with Epstein.
These new files are notable in that they suggest all three powerful men had a relationship with Epstein after his controversial plea deal that forced him to register as a sex offender.
Mike Johnson Delays Swearing In Adelita Grijalva to Block Final Signature On Epstein Petition
House Speaker Mike Johnson is refusing to swear in Representative-Elect Adelita Grijalva who won her race for the Arizona 7th Congressional District this week. Grijalva will be the 218th and final signature needed on a discharge petition to force a floor vote in the House on releasing the Epstein files.
Johnson is claiming he wants to wait until her election results are official, despite Grijalva’s dominant 40-point win and Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes certifying her victory. Johnson’s new standard of waiting for all the votes to be counted was not in place two weeks ago when he swore in Democrat James Walkinshaw of Virginia with unofficial results immediately after his victory. Johnson has also routinely sworn in Republicans the day after their race is called.
Fascism Watch
Daily Caller wants “Blood in the Streets”
An opinion article titled “Enough Is Enough … I Choose VIOLENCE” on the conservative website The Daily Caller, which was co-founded by Tucker Carlson and Neil Patel 15 years ago, has sparked backlash online.
Screenshots of the piece, written by editor-at-large Geoffrey Ingersoll, have circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism for his outward commentary, such as: “We need to reinstitute a public debt for anti-social and subversive behavior. In my opinion, some of this cost needs to be summary and ultra-violent.”
Ingersoll wrote that there should be a “cost,” a violent one, “for the lies, for taking the American people for granted, for selling them out at every end. For bullying them nonstop. Let’s reinstitute the cost.” He continued, “Moving past the legal ‘violence,’ let’s get to the actual violence, shall we?”
FBI fires agents who ‘took a knee’ in 2020
At least 15 FBI agents were fired Friday in connection with their actions during the protests that followed the death of George Floyd, a source familiar with the terminations told NBC News.
The agents had been assigned to help secure federal buildings during the demonstrations, when a tense standoff developed between a large crowd of protesters and a limited number of FBI personnel. Some agents were photographed kneeling, which the source described as a tactic meant to de-escalate the conflict.
The FBI Agents Association said in a statement that it “strongly condemn[s]” the firings as “unlawful” and that they violated “the due process rights of those who risk their lives to protect our country.”
Former FBI Director James Comey Indicted
The indictment of former FBI Director James Comey is only two pages and alleges he falsely testified to Congress in 2020 about authorizing someone to be an anonymous source in news stories.
The indictment alleges that Comey made a false statement in testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The single quote from the indictment appears to be from an interaction with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.
Cruz’s question was complicated, but it boiled down to pitting Comey against McCabe. The senator noted that Comey told Congress in 2017 that he had not authorized anyone to speak to reporters. But Cruz asserted that McCabe had “publicly and repeatedly said he leaked information to The Wall Street Journal and that you were directly aware of it and that you directly authorized it.”
ICE
The shooter was identified by federal law enforcement as 29-year-old Joshua Jahn of Fairview, Texas.
The shooting occurred at about 6:40 a.m. local time, according to police. Jahn, who opened fire from the roof of an adjacent building, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
In a search of his residence, Larson said that investigators found a collection of notes in which Jahn stated that he intended to inflict “maximum lethality against ICE personnel.” In one note, she said, he expressed hope that the shooting would “give ICE agents real terror.”
“He hoped to minimize collateral damage against detainees and other innocent people,” she said. “It seems that he did not intend to kill detainees or harm them.”
FBI Director Kash Patel posted a photo to social media showing one of the casings with the phrase “ANTI-ICE” written on it.
President Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other high-ranking members of his administration have blamed the attack on anti-police rhetoric from the left. “If your political rhetoric encourages violence against our law enforcement, you can go straight to hell,” Vance said.
Intense confrontations continued this weekend between federal agents and protesters outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility in Broadview, Illinois.
Several people were detained as agents and protesters clashed when the gates opened, and demonstrators would attempt to block the road.
Back in Broadview, the village said its fire department was told agents would launch enforcement all day by deploying chemicals like tear gas and pepper spray against citizens, residents, and first responders.
“It’s scary because they are already firing non-lethal rounds at us,” said Bryan Brannon, who has been protesting outside the facility all week. “I worry that at some point they are going to get scared and start using lethal rounds or something.”
The Village of Broadview issued a news release Saturday reading in part: “In retaliation for the Village of Broadview yesterday calling on the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency to “stop making war on our community”, ICE agents this morning informed the Broadview Police Department that there will be ‘a s**t show’ in Broadview today.”
Donald Trump has ordered the deployment of troops to Portland, Oregon, authorizing use of “full force” if needed, to suppress protests targeting immigration detention centres.
The US president claimed the move would help protect “any of our ICE Facilities under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists”, characterizing the city as “War ravaged” in a Truth Social post.
“There is no national security threat in Portland. Our communities are safe and calm,” said Oregon Governor Tina Kotek.
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Portland has been targeted by protesters since early June, sometimes leading to violent clashes.
As of 8 September, the US Attorney’s Office had brought federal charges against 26 people for crimes including arson, assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest.
The DHS said on Friday that demonstrators had “repeatedly attacked and laid siege to an ICE processing centre” in Portland.
The department stated that several individuals had been arrested and charged with federal offences in a post on social media.
“Rose City Antifa, a recently designated domestic terrorist organization, illegally doxed ICE officers,” it wrote.
Shutdown looming
In a memo sent to federal agencies Sept. 24, President Donald Trump’s White House Office of Management and Budget warned of potentially yet another round of mass firings if government funding lapses next week.
Supreme Court allows Trump to cut $4B in foreign aid in ‘pocket rescission’
The Supreme Court on Friday moved to allow the Trump administration to effectively cut $4 billion of foreign aid previously enacted by Congress without formal approval from lawmakers under Nixon-era procedures meant to preserve their constitutional power of the purse.
In an unsigned order, the court stayed a lower court mandate that had required the government to pay out the funds before they expire at the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30.
Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.
If the administration can set spending without Congress, what good is any budget agreement?
One Big Thing - Autism, Tylenol, RFK, and the End of Trustworthy Federal Guidance
(quotes from linked articles in italics)
Autism isn’t a disease. This is important because healthcare providers try to “cure” diseases. With autism, the goal isn’t a cure. Instead, providers find ways to help your child make the most of their strengths while managing any challenges they face.
Autistic people are neurodivergent. This word describes people whose brains are different from what’s expected. If your child is neurodivergent, they may excel more in certain areas and need more support in others compared to their neurotypical peers.
Autism is a spectrum. Autistic kids and adults have a wide range of personality traits, strengths and challenges. This means there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to support. Providers tailor support to your child’s unique needs and preferences.
Autism is often misunderstood. Myths about autism go back decades. These have harmed autistic people. We can’t erase this history, but we’ve learned from it. Today’s therapies help autistic kids gain skills without forcing them to fit into a certain mold.
Speaking from the Roosevelt Room today, President Donald J. Trump and U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced bold new actions to confront the nation’s autism spectrum disorder (ASD) epidemic, which has surged nearly 400% since 2000 and now affects 1 in 31 American children.
“For too long, families have been left without answers or options as autism rates have soared,” Secretary Kennedy said. “Today, we are taking bold action—opening the door to the first FDA-recognized treatment pathway, informing doctors and families about potential risks, and investing in groundbreaking research. We will follow the science, restore trust, and deliver hope to millions of American families.”
First, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will act on a potential treatment for speech-related deficits associated with ASD. The FDA today is publishing a Federal Register notice outlining a label update for leucovorin for cerebral folate deficiency, which has been associated with autism. This action establishes the first FDA-recognized therapeutic for children with cerebral folate deficiency and autistic symptoms.
Second, HHS will act on acetaminophen. Today, the FDA will issue a physician notice and begin the process to initiate a safety label change for acetaminophen (Tylenol and similar products). HHS will launch a nationwide public service campaign to inform families and protect public health. The FDA is responding to prior clinical and laboratory studies that suggest a potential association between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes. FDA also recognizes that there are contrary studies showing no association and that there can be risks for untreated fever in pregnancy, both for the mother and fetus.
Revisiting RFK Jr’s earlier remarks on autism
Kennedy said “autism destroys families” and is an “individual tragedy as well.”
Kennedy said many autistic children were “fully functional” and “regressed … into autism when they were 2 years old. And these are kids who will never pay taxes, they’ll never hold a job, they’ll never play baseball, they’ll never write a poem, they’ll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted.”
He also said, “Most cases now are severe. Twenty-five percent of the kids who are diagnosed with autism are nonverbal, non-toilet-trained, and have other stereotypical features.”
A 2023 study written by CDC officials and university researchers found that one-quarter of people on the autism spectrum have severe limitations. But this is on the high end of studies, and many people in that one-quarter of the autism population do not have the limitations Kennedy mentioned.
The CDC published data in 2020 showing that 42% of people with autism had an I.Q. in the average or higher range, and another study has found that this figure could be as high as 60%.
Some of RFK Jr’s other greatest hits:
He’s said HIV isn’t the only cause of AIDS (it is)
that antidepressant drugs cause mass shootings (they don’t)
that older adults don’t have severe autism (some do)
that the measles vaccine causes brain swelling (it doesn’t)
that covid vaccines were the deadliest vaccines ever made (they aren’t)
that vaccines aren’t safety-tested (they are)
and that vaccines contribute to autism (they don’t).
Are autism rates increasing?
TRUMP: “Since 2000, autism rates have surged by much more than 400%.” He said the rate used to be 1 in 20,000, then 1 in 10,000 and now is 1 in 31, saying “there’s something artificial” to explain it.
THE FACTS: It’s true that autism rates have ballooned but Trump’s numbers are off. The 1 in 10,000 figure dates back to the 1990s. In 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention put the rate at 1 in 150. In 2018, it was 1 in 44. The latest count, based on 2022 data, is 1 in 31.
Scientists say the explanation is that decades ago diagnosis was rare, given only to kids with severe problems. Diagnosis of “autism spectrum disorder” began jumping as scientists learned the developmental disorder encompasses a wide range of traits and symptoms. And as educational and other services grew, more parents began seeking diagnoses to help their kids.
Does maternal Tylenol use increase the baby’s chances of autism?
TRUMP: “Tylenol during pregnancy can be associated with a very increased risk of autism.”
THE FACTS: Studies don’t prove that. Even Trump’s Food and Drug Administration didn’t go nearly that far in a letter to doctors this week that instead they “should consider minimizing” acetaminophen’s use in pregnancy.
It’s clear that genetics are the biggest risk factor. Other risks include the age of a child’s father, preterm birth and whether the mother had health problems during pregnancy such as fevers, infections or diabetes.
Some studies have raised the possibility of a link between autism risk and using acetaminophen during pregnancy — but more haven’t found a connection.
These are observational studies that compare health records about prenatal acetaminophen and autism traits in children. The big problem: Those kinds of studies can’t tell if the painkiller really made any difference – or if instead it was the fever or other health problem that prompted the need for the pill.
The risks of not treating a fever
TRUMP: “There’s no downside in not taking it,” he said in urging women to not take Tylenol during pregnancy.
THE FACTS: There are huge downsides to avoiding Tylenol when a pregnant woman really needs it, according to the nation’s leading pregnancy doctors. Untreated fevers, for example, can increase the risk of birth defects, premature birth and miscarriages, according to the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine.
Both the society and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say the painkiller is a safe and needed option during pregnancy. The over-the-counter drug’s label already tells pregnant women to consult their doctor about its use.
“The conditions people use acetaminophen to treat during pregnancy are far more dangerous than any theoretical risks,” ACOG said.
Autism has been gaining in visibility in Cuba
TRUMP: ““I hear Cuba doesn’t have it because it’s very expensive and they don’t have the money to have it, or they don’t want to spend the money to have it. They don’t have Tylenol. And I hear they have essentially no autism.”
THE FACTS: In Cuba, as in many regions around the world, autism has begun to gain visibility in recent years. Awareness campaigns have been launched on state television to promote the inclusion of autistic people. And according to Ministry of Education psychologist Lisbet Rizo Suárez, Cuba has nine educational institutions to serve autistic children.
As for paracetamol, as Tylenol is known outside of the U.S., it is widely used in Cuba and doctors prescribe it without restrictions.
Autism is found in Amish communities
TRUMP, saying certain groups that don’t take vaccines or pills have no autism, “the Amish, is an example. They have essentially no autism.”
THE FACTS: This is false. While there is limited scientific data around autism in the Amish community, studies have found that there are cases. A 2010 paper from the International Society for Autism Research found autism was less prevalent in Amish communities than the U.S. overall, but it called for further study to determine how “cultural norms and customs” played a role in the numbers.
Trump overstates childhood vaccinations
TRUMP: “You have a little child, a little fragile child, and you get a vat of 80 different vaccines, I guess, 80 different blends.”
THE FACTS: The current childhood vaccination schedule recommends routine protection against 18 diseases. They’re not all given to “a little child” but at different ages.
How many shots that adds up to between birth and age 18 can vary. The number is closer to three dozen if you don’t count once-a-year flu shots or an annual COVID-19 vaccine.
Vaccines have been proven to protect children from once common deadly diseases. There is no evidence that the schedule is harmful.
“Studies have repeatedly found no credible link between life-saving childhood vaccines and autism. This research, in many countries, involving thousands of individuals, has spanned multiple decades. Any effort to misrepresent sound, strong science poses a threat to the health of children,” said Dr. Susan Kressly of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Why infants should get a hepatitis B vaccine
TRUMP: “Hepatitis B is sexually transmitted. There’s no reason to give a baby that’s almost just born Hepatitis B. So I would say wait till the baby is 12 years old and formed.”
THE FACTS: Hepatitis B can cause serious liver damage and it’s true that in adults, the virus is spread through sex or sharing needles during injection-drug use.
But for babies, it’s a different story. If a pregnant woman carries the virus, she can pass it to her baby during delivery. While mothers-to-be are supposed to be tested, not all are. The virus also can live on surfaces for more than seven days at room temperature, meaning unvaccinated infants living with anyone with a chronic infection can be at risk.
Since 2005, U.S. health officials have recommended giving the first dose of a hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth for most infants. As a result, infant infections have dropped sharply.
The issue with up MMR vaccines
TRUMP: The MMR, I think, should be taken separately. This is based on what I feel, the, mumps, measles and and the three should be taken separately. And it seems to be that when you mix them, there could be a problem. So there’s no downside in taking them separately. In fact, they think it’s better.”
THE FACTS: Trump is referring to the vaccine that combines protection against measles, mumps and rubella. And his suggestion of separating that one combination shot into three isn’t possible. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, there are no single-antigen versions – no measles-only, mumps-only, rubella-only shots – available.
Early concern about a possible link between vaccines and autism arose from falsified information about the MMR vaccine in a 1998 paper that was later retracted by the medical journal that published it.
Would it be safer for parents to break up vaccines for infants?
TRUMP: On spacing out vaccines for infants, “Break up your visits to the doctors. Break them up.”
THE FACTS: That message infuriates pediatricians.
“Spacing out or delaying vaccines means children will not have immunity against these diseases at times when they are most at risk,” said Kressly, the president of the AAP.
It’s also hard for parents to make repeat visits for vaccinations outside of the normal well-baby schedule.
Trump touts an unproven treatment for autism
TRUMP, discussing a possible new treatment: “And the baby can get better, and in some cases may be substantially better.”
THE FACTS: That’s not proven, at least not yet. Trump was referring to a folic acid metabolite called leucovorin – and it’s far from clear if it’s really an effective treatment and if so, for which people.
Low levels of folate, a form of vitamin B, are linked to certain birth defects so women already are told to take folic acid before conception and during pregnancy.
A small percentage of people with autism also appear to have low levels of folate in their brains, possibly because of antibodies that block it. The Autism Science Foundation cautions that their non-autistic relatives also often have those antibodies, suggesting that’s not a cause of autism.
But the theory is that giving folate to that subset of autistic people might improve certain symptoms. Only a few very small clinical trials have been done with the drug. So the foundation and other autism experts say large, rigorous studies are needed before it can be recommended as a treatment.
Oz, a heart surgeon and celebrity doctor, invested in iHerb, a California supplement retailer that sells folinic acid, the supplement found in leucovorin. This link led people on social media to claim Oz will profit from it being approved more widely and from its increased profile in the news.
However, Oz pledged to divest his shares of the company and HHS said that the approved drug was only for prescription leucovorin, not versions sold over the counter, and therefore he would not profit.
But it is unclear how much of the iHerb shares Oz still has. In February, he said he would divest his iHerb holdings within 90 days of being confirmed to his government role. However, in another disclosure he indicated that he might keep some of the stock until the company goes public or is bought.
In August, [UMass-Lowell researcher Ann] Bauer and her colleagues published an analysis of 46 previous studies on Tylenol, autism, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Many found no link between the drug and the conditions, while some suggested Tylenol might occasionally exacerbate other potential causes of autism, such as genetics.
Bauer, an epidemiologist at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell, and her team called for more judicious use of the drug until the science is settled.
A fact sheet released alongside the White House briefing cited Bauer’s analysis. But she was alarmed by Trump’s comments. If prenatal Tylenol has any association, which it may not, it would help account for only a fraction of cases, she said. Further, research has not deeply examined Tylenol risks in young children, and many rigorous studies refute a link between vaccines and autism.
Autism experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were neither consulted for the White House’s long-awaited autism announcement nor asked to review a draft of the findings and recommendations, CDC scientists told KFF Health News, which agreed not to identify them because they fear retaliation.
Systemic changes, such as regulations on air pollution, which has been linked to asthma and developmental disabilities including autism, and assistance for parents of disabled children, could improve lives for far more Americans with autism and other conditions than actions taken by the Trump administration on Sept. 22, researchers say.
Before the early 1980s, it was common for autistic children to be institutionalized; the means to offer supportive services in their homes, schools and communities did not exist. Since then, [Indiana mom Ashley Kline] says, “We have come so far with the attitudes toward autism and being more accepting.”
Many parents in the autism community say they fear that progress could unravel. Programs that many autistic people and their families depend on — through Medicaid, the Education Department and the Administration for Community Living — have been targeted for funding cuts.
This fear is especially acute among those who remember how they were treated in the past. Taylor Crisp, an autistic mom in Washington state whose 12-year-old daughter is also autistic, has never forgotten the school psychologist who called her the “r-word” when she was in kindergarten in the 1990s. Her parents were devoted advocates, she says, but the world outside their home was a different matter: “I’ve been excluded, I’ve been bullied. I’ve had barriers accessing services, because on one hand I’m disabled, but I’m also not disabled enough, so I’ve dealt with gaps in the system… There are many times where I’ve been treated like a burden, and to hear [Trump], someone who is supposed to protect the people of this nation, say these things makes me feel unsafe,” she says. “We’re not a disease, we’re people. We don’t need to ‘cure’ autism. We need to expand access to services.”
Blaming mothers for their children’s autism also echoes darker chapters of history, says Katy Neas, chief executive of the Arc of the United States: “In the ’50s and ’60s, the medical community claimed that children became autistic because mothers didn’t love their children enough — they called them ‘refrigerator mothers,’ because they were cold.”
In forcefully warning expectant mothers not to take Tylenol no less than a dozen times, Trump drew on evidence that is unsettled, disputed and that failed to pass legal scrutiny in U.S. District Court in New York.
A year ago, the maker of Tylenol lauded a federal judge’s dismissal of hundreds of lawsuits alleging the popular painkiller caused autism in children whose mothers took it during pregnancy. The company, Kenvue Inc., citing “confusion” the litigation caused, said the judge’s ruling affirmed that “science does not support causation.”
Now, as the Food and Drug Administration moves to amend Tylenol’s label with a warning about the potential link between its use during pregnancy and autism, Kenvue is bracing for another tsunami of litigation, according to a person close to the company who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive situation.
The Trump administration’s statements linking acetaminophen to autism rest heavily on a researcher with sterling academic credentials — whose 2025 published paper was a modified and expanded version of the work that was thoroughly rejected by the judge overseeing the case.
Andrea Baccarelli, a prominent epidemiologist, now serves as dean of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Before 2024 he was a professor at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and as recently as early 2020 he had taken the position that research showed no link between acetaminophen and autism.
In a 148-page opinion in December 2023, U.S. District Judge Denise Cote of the Southern District of New York took a dim view of his reliability. She sharply criticized Baccarelli’s work, citing multiple flaws: cherry-picking weak studies that found links while downplaying stronger ones that didn’t; lumping together autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder despite them being distinct conditions; and failing to account for confounding factors, like whether fever itself — rather than acetaminophen — might explain the association.
