Trump saved Indiana in 2016

His election interference a decade ago kept the state safely in Republican hands

On Tuesday, voters in Indiana primary-ed at least 5 of the 7 idiot Republican state senators who voted against a redistricting plan that would have made it easier to elect Republicans to fill all 9 of the state’s congressional seats.

Naturally, Karl Rove the architect of Dubya’s 2000 and 2004 elections, and the Wall Street Journal hated it because both are Establishment Republicans who want to do as little as possible. Most of the Republicans (and Democrats) in Congress seem to be going through the motions until they die or collect their pensions, which by the way are unconstitutional.

Rove wrote, “The GOP Defeats Itself in Indiana.”

He began, “Hand it to President Trump. He got the Indiana scalps he wanted. He and his allies targeted seven incumbent Republican state senators up for re-election this year. At least five lost their primaries on Tuesday. A sixth leads by three votes.”

Fact-check: Trump did not do this. Voters did.

The joke in all this was the subheadline, “The entire effort cost $13.5 million, which could have gone to beating Democrats.”

Get out of here. Republicans control the Indiana State Senate 40 to 10 and its lower house 70 to 30.

A decade ago, the control was 40-10 and 71-29. Oh no! They lost a lower house seat. Run for your lives! We are doomed, Will Robinson. Doomed.

The message from voters to Republicans was clear—you have a supermajority, use it. Maybe Rove and WSJ think redistricting was trivial but Republican voters wanted it bigly. They want Congress to be flooded with Republicans. 9 is more than 7. The RINOs voted for 7.

Ten years ago, the message was the same—you have a supermajority, use it.

Then-Governor Mike Pence didn’t and he was in trouble. The issue than was the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which Pence signed into law on March 26, 2015. The law allowed the religious freedom to be used as a defense in lawsuits—a very popular notion.

Democrats used LGBT as a tomahawk to attack the law, which shows whom Democrats worship.

The new state law protected race, color, ancestry, age, national origin, disability, sex, U.S. military service and religion.

Democrats used the NCAA (which later sanctioned the Will Thomas-Lia Thomas swimming ruse) and the oddball Angie’s List—an Indianapolis-based company that never posted a profit in its more than 20 years of existence.

The company planned a $40 million expansion in Indiana—lobbying hard for taxpayers to put up $18.5 million for the project.

In the wake of the RFRA becoming law, the money pit company threatened to cancel the project and move to Columbus. Pence panicked and had lawmakers pass a watered down version of the law and added sexual orientation and gender identity to the list.

Voters rebelled. Pence began 2016 in a virtual tie in the polls for re-election against John Gregg, whom he beat by 3% four years earlier. The race for the Senate to replace Republican Dan Coats was even worse. Polls showed Democrat Evan Bayh 7 points ahead of the Republican.

Enter The Donald.

In the presidential primary in Indiana on May 3, 2016, he defeated Ted Cruz by 16 points and sealed the nomination.

Then Trump picked Pence as his running mate and saved Indiana for Republicans in November.

Trump carried the state by 19 points—and turned around other races. Republicans won the Senate race by 10 points and the gubernatorial race by 6 points.

Pence paid Trump back by siding with the deep state and Nancy Pelosi in the January 6 charade.

Now for the punchline: Angie’s List moved its headquarters to Denver in 2019. The RFRA cave-in was for naught.

Trump’s election interference helped save the Republican Party even if Rove refuses to acknowledge the feat.

By GOP, Rove refers not to Republican voters but to the Grand Old Party of insiders. Small donors send them money and they party.

Consider Ronna McDaniel, whose familial connections to 2016 loser Mitt Romney got her the job as chairwoman of the Republican National Committee. She oversaw the 2018, 2020 and 2022 elections, which Republicans lost, lost, lost. Her salary nearly tripled in that time.

From Rove’s standpoint as a political insider, you can see why he is so upset with President Trump because he gets things done.

Be they Democrat or be they Republican, political insiders slow walk issues because a problem solved is one less issue to raise money from donors.

Why do you think Congress has not changed immigration law in 40 years despite their repeated cries for reform?

In Indiana, more than half the Republican state senators—most of them up for re-election in 2028 rather than this year—voted against Trump, a man Hoosiers supported for president by 19 points in 2016, 16 points in 2020, and 19 points again in 2024.

Do you really think the Trump-backed state senate candidates can lose in November?