The other week, I saw the most unusual cloud formation. It was like a sideways funnel cloud. (See photo I captured in above header image.) I don’t recall ever seeing clouds quite like that before. Mesmerizing, yet I knew a storm was coming. And from past experience, some of the most alluring cloud formations ended up delivering the worst storms.
It is a curious thing to see everyone celebrate a holiday weekend that honors the labor movement while living in a state that actively exploits and distances itself from labor. And by distancing, I mean, actively working to dismantle the labor movement. The idea of a “right to work” state with the slogan Indiana - A State That Works just feels…off.
This past weekend I had the privilege to travel the rural roads of Indiana with a group of fellow Hoosiers from southern Indiana in an act of solidarity to decry the cuts to Medicaid and the further risk to our rural hospitals. We called ourselves the Motorcade for Medicaid, a small but mighty brigade committed to the simple truth that all Hoosiers, regardless of zip code or bank account, deserve quality healthcare.
Images and videos from across the country are still coming through after Saturday’s record-breaking turnout in solidarity for the No Kings protest. Like millions of others, I woke up that morning not quite certain what to expect. Escalations in Los Angeles, a place I called home for over 25 years, weighed heavily on my mind and in my heart. How has our country found itself again at this threshold?
A river begins with a single drop of melted snow on a mountain, just a silver thread trickling downhill. That one drop is joined by others, each one adding weight and motion, carving a deeper path as they go. Bit by bit, their gentle flow becomes a stream, then a river, shaped by every rock they move and every turn they take. No single drop makes the river alone—it forms through a chain of small causes building on one another. The river, like all great things, is the result of many moments adding up over time.
I don’t know about you, but I found the end of this year’s legislative “budget year” session a bit like those amusement park rides that launch you immediately into multiple directions at a very fast speed only to apply the brakes suddenly. While your body tries to figure out what just happened to it, you are shuffled off to find the exit. If a legislative session could be “Gish Galloped”, this one was. [The term “Gish Gallop” became famous after the Biden/Trump debate.
In 2024, I founded the Indiana Rural Summit, a coalition organizing Indiana House candidates, connecting 30 counties, to give rural and small-town Hoosiers a voice. There was a reason I wanted to use “E Pluribus Unum” for the Indiana Rural Summit slogan—it is the core truth that is coming to full bloom amidst the weeds trying to choke it out. “Out of Many, One!”
I don’t know about you, but this past week was harder than expected. Coming to the end of a campaign feels a lot like being on a treadmill that suddenly comes to a stop. Everything inside you is still moving at a brisk pace but the outside world has slowed to a crawl. Added to the feelings of loss are the very real concerns around what will come. To be clear, fascism has reared its ugly head but for too many, it remains, as they say, “Cloaked in a flag, carrying a Bible.”
Well folks, this is it. Tomorrow is the BIG DAY, and the final day for us to turnout voters for Election 2024. We have knocked doors, attended events, talked with voters, posted photos, encouraged volunteers, and created lasting friendships throughout this campaign. In the midst of complex emotions and fighting back feelings of fear and powerlessness, we have shown up. There is a determination in our fight for freedom. And what I want to make completely clear is that IT CANNOT AND MUST NOT END HERE.
Because of my compassion, the sun wanted to be near me all night,
and the earth deeded her fields to me, and all in heaven said,
“We have voted you our governor; tell us your divine mandate.”
And I did, and God will never revoke it:
‘Nothing in existence is turned away.’
- St. Thomas Aquinas
