What Indiana Journalists Want You To Know About Mike Pence
Most of his support problems stem from a handful of unpopular policies, the first being an attempt to create what amounted to a
government-run news service in 2013 in which the state would have sought to collect and filter news for reporters.
“The state tried to create this misnamed statewide news service called Just In that would essentially consolidate a lot of the state news services and give the governor an opportunity to put his spin on the kind of stories that should be covered,” recalled Ed Feigenbaum, who writes the popular Indiana Legislative Insight newsletter.
“Unfortunately, the media got a hold of the memo and the content before he was able to define it. His people were poorly equipped to respond to that, it was really the first misstep of his governorship.”
After that idea was dropped, Pence found himself at the center of a nationwide controversy for signing legislation that was widely viewed as an opportunity to “make it easier for religious conservatives to refuse service to gay couples.”
The anti-LGBT law, known as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, or RFRA, was enacted more than a year ago, but was quickly amended to mitigate the law's impact after it caused a firestorm. But reporters say the anger it sparked from residents and business leaders still has not subsided. Many were upset when it sparked boycotts of local events and caused some major companies to rethink expansion plans in Indiana.
“It’s something that has cost him support, has cost him campaign contributions,” said Jim Shella, a political reporter at WISH-TV in Indianapolis. “RFRA was seen as a threat to the business community here. It’s caused him to lose support from Republicans, from donors and certainly made him a divisive character here from the perspective of Democrats and a lot of independents.”
More recently, he championed an abortion bill that was seen as among the strictest in the country and even drew complaints from some Republicans in the state legislature, according to reporters.
The law, which was recently blocked by a federal judge following a legal challenge by the ACLU and Planned Parenthood, includes provisions that would bar abortions sought due to genetic abnormalities and require that all fetal remains from abortions or miscarriages at any stage of pregnancy be buried or cremated.
“With the RFRA debate here and the latest abortion bill, it definitely has solidified his support on the conservative side,” said Niki Kelly, a 17-year statehouse reporter for the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette. “But it also abandoned some of the moderates and independents and made it tough for him here.”
Shella agreed: “Even some of the people who voted for the bill predicted it was unconstitutional. There were a number of pro-life Republican women who got up to speak against the bill in the Indiana state House of Representatives."
Did Trump even vet this guy?
Most of his support problems stem from a handful of unpopular policies, the first being an attempt to create what amounted to a
government-run news service in 2013 in which the state would have sought to collect and filter news for reporters.
“The state tried to create this misnamed statewide news service called Just In that would essentially consolidate a lot of the state news services and give the governor an opportunity to put his spin on the kind of stories that should be covered,” recalled Ed Feigenbaum, who writes the popular Indiana Legislative Insight newsletter.
“Unfortunately, the media got a hold of the memo and the content before he was able to define it. His people were poorly equipped to respond to that, it was really the first misstep of his governorship.”
After that idea was dropped, Pence found himself at the center of a nationwide controversy for signing legislation that was widely viewed as an opportunity to “make it easier for religious conservatives to refuse service to gay couples.”
The anti-LGBT law, known as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, or RFRA, was enacted more than a year ago, but was quickly amended to mitigate the law's impact after it caused a firestorm. But reporters say the anger it sparked from residents and business leaders still has not subsided. Many were upset when it sparked boycotts of local events and caused some major companies to rethink expansion plans in Indiana.
“It’s something that has cost him support, has cost him campaign contributions,” said Jim Shella, a political reporter at WISH-TV in Indianapolis. “RFRA was seen as a threat to the business community here. It’s caused him to lose support from Republicans, from donors and certainly made him a divisive character here from the perspective of Democrats and a lot of independents.”
More recently, he championed an abortion bill that was seen as among the strictest in the country and even drew complaints from some Republicans in the state legislature, according to reporters.
The law, which was recently blocked by a federal judge following a legal challenge by the ACLU and Planned Parenthood, includes provisions that would bar abortions sought due to genetic abnormalities and require that all fetal remains from abortions or miscarriages at any stage of pregnancy be buried or cremated.
“With the RFRA debate here and the latest abortion bill, it definitely has solidified his support on the conservative side,” said Niki Kelly, a 17-year statehouse reporter for the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette. “But it also abandoned some of the moderates and independents and made it tough for him here.”
Shella agreed: “Even some of the people who voted for the bill predicted it was unconstitutional. There were a number of pro-life Republican women who got up to speak against the bill in the Indiana state House of Representatives."
Did Trump even vet this guy?
