Indiana Governor Rewards Private Prison Lobby with Draconian Marijuana Punishments

I have a new and self-imposed policy that I follow when I see a news report of some bull-headed politician proposing some law to put low-level drug possessors in prison. That rule? Follow the money, of course.

Because something hideous is festering under the surface of these laws. It's the private prison lobby, which makes campaign contributions to secure harsher penalties. You see, these prison companies are in need of warm bodies, since they can put those people to work inside the walls of those prisons. The companies double-dip, too, pulling in a guaranteed sum from the state in addition to whatever they can make with their legalized slave labor. Weed offenders are just the sorts of people these prison profiteers are looking for. They're mostly non-violent people who will comply. They can be put to work without much worry.

This week, Indiana got into the mix, as its governor Mike Pence pushed for changes to legislation on drug crime. Among his suggested changes:

Tougher marijuana possession and dealing penalties could be added to a proposed overhaul of Indiana's criminal sentencing laws by legislators after Gov. Mike Pence questioned whether the plan was strict enough on low-level drug offenders. READ MORE

CNN’s Chris Cuomo Grills Anti-LGBT Indiana Law Defender

This hasn't been a good week for the so-called "Christian" anti-LGBT bigots out there. Mike Pence has been a train wreck in one television appearance after another and his defenders aren't doing a whole lot better: Cuomo Confrontation with IN Conservative Gets Personal: ‘Own Who and What You Are’:

New Day host Chris Cuomo, who’s become a one-man wrecking ball over Indiana’s just-passed “religious liberty” bill, confronted Ryan McCann, Policy Director of the Indiana Family Institute, Tuesday morning for his third contentious interview on the subject in the past 24 hours.

McCann argued that the bill only ensures protections for religious minorities, something Cuomo said was belied by the presence of anti-LGBT figures at the bill’s signing. McCann said that the statements Cuomo was alluding to had been passed around the internet “by the left.”

Things got personal when Cuomo demanded McCann account for the real motives behind the bill, which was supported by “groups like yours, that are Christian-based, with an animus toward the LGBT community. Own who and what you are. There’s nothing wrong with that you’re allowed to believe it but you’re not about native Americans or people who want liver transplants, right?” READ MORE

The Big Lie The Media Tells About Indiana’s New ‘Religious Freedom’ Law

On Friday, the Washington Post published an article titled “19 states that have ‘religious freedom’ laws like Indiana’s that no one is boycotting.” The article snarks about organizations like the NCAA that have protested Indiana’s law, noting “the NCAA didn’t say it was concerned over how athletes and employees would be affected by Kentucky’s RFRA when games were played there last week.” The piece concludes “Indiana might be treated as if it’s the only state with a bill like this, but it’s not.” The piece has been shared over 75,000 times on Facebook.

The Washington Post article largely mirrors the argument advanced by Indiana Governor Mike Pence. Appearing on ABC’s This Week, Pence claimed “Then state-Sen. Barack Obama voted for [the Religious Freedom Restoration Act]. The very same language.”
The same argument is parroted on Fox News and elsewhere.

It’s not true. READ MORE

Mike Pence Spends 20 Minutes Lying To ABC News About His Anti-Gay Discrimination Law

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) on Sunday insisted that people on the Internet had conspired to create a "misunderstanding" that a so-called "religious freedom" law was about denying services to LGBT people. But at the same time, he repeatedly refused to answer if it effectively gave Christians a legal defense for discriminating against same-sex couples.

"I understand that there's been a tremendous amount of misinformation and misunderstanding around this bill, and I'm just determined -- and I appreciate the time on your program -- I'm just determined to clarify this," Pence told ABC's George Stephanopolous.

"So this is a yes or no question," the ABC host noted. "Is Advance America right when they say a florist in Indiana can now refuse to serve a gay couple without fear of punishment?"

Pence, however said that the purpose of the bill that he signed was to "empower" religious people.
And this was a pattern that would be repeated over the next 20 minutes: Stephanopolous asking if the bill allowed anti-LGBT discrimination, followed by Pence dodging the question.

"And so yes or no, if a florist in Indiana refuses to serve a gay couple at their wedding, is that legal now in Indiana?" Stephanopolous asked. "Yes or no?" READ MORE

Mike Pence... Job Creator

Credit: DonkeyHotey

Republish Reprint

If Indiana Gov. Mike Pence decides to throw his hat into the 2016 GOP clown car, he'll definitely be able to claim that he was a "job creator." Just not in his state. As we already discussed here, the leaders of the Disciples of Christ church sent a letter to Pence telling him they would be forced to reconsider holding their 2017 convention in Indianapolis if he signed the so-called Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law. Now that he's signed it, the hits just keep on coming.

Thousands turned out to protest the law in Indiana over the weekend.

The popular local business review and search site Angie's List is canceling its expansion plans in response to Indiana's "religious freedom" law.

Seattle Mayor Ed Murray is banning city-funded travel to Indiana. He plans to sign an executive order next week.

And former NBA star Charles Barkley released a statement saying wants the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to yank its March Madness Final Four tournament out of Indiana.
READ MORE

Indiana's Union-Busting 'Right-to-Work' Bill Becomes Law, Thousands Take to Streets in Protest

Indiana State Capital

 The Indiana Senate voted 28-22 Wednesday to pass the so-called 'right-to-work' bill that forces unions to represent workers who do not pay dues. The bill is widely seen as an attack on the ability of private sector unions to organize and to carry out political activity. Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels (R) signed the bill into law shortly after.

Advocates for labor rights stress that unions negotiate for better working conditions for everybody, not just union members, and that barring these payments is a blow to labor organizing. Indiana is the first state in the manufacturing belt to pass such a bill, though it is the twenty-third 'right-to-work' state in the country. The bill created such controversy in Indiana that Democrats in Senate repeatedly walked out over what they described as Republicans' unwillingness to hear debate.   READ MORE