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DSCC Statement on Indiana Senate Primary Results

Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesman David Bergstein issued the following statement on the results of tonight’s Indiana Republican Senate primary:

“Representative Mike Braun emerges tonight badly damaged from one of the most divisive primaries in the country, where the candidates focused more on petty political attacks than on Hoosiers. With no more childish primary antics to hide behind, Rep. Braun will be forced to run on his record of self-dealing and using the power of the Statehouse to enrich himself – like when he carved out a tax break for himself while repeatedly raising taxes on Hoosiers – and voters will hold him accountable in November.”

What The Damaging Primary Exposed About Representative Braun:

  • IndyStar: Senate candidate Braun pushed legislation benefiting his industry as a state lawmaker. [IndyStar, 4/6/18]
    • “During his short tenure as a state lawmaker, Braun worked to reduce taxes and regulations on an industry in which he holds a significant personal financial interest — a connection that raises ethical concerns, critics say.” [IndyStar, 4/6/18]
    • Braun “successfully pushed legislation at the Statehouse that provided millions of dollars in tax breaks for the timber industry and cut regulatory costs for hauling logs. He also tried unsuccessfully to put new limits on logging in state forests, potentially forcing more logging onto private timber lands like his.” [IndyStar,4/6/18]
  • Fort Wayne Journal Gazette: Braun companies faced suits, discipline on pay. [Journal Gazette, 4/20/18]
  • Associated Press: Braun’s rhetoric, business record don’t line up.” [AP, 5/1/18]
    • “Lawsuits filed against his companies — backed up by federal trucking and labor records — present a picture of a boss who has overworked and underpaid employees.” [AP, 5/1/18]
    • “Over the past decade, workers have sued in West Virginia, Oklahoma and California, alleging they were forced to work long hours in unsafe conditions and denied overtime pay, meal times and breaks.” [AP, 5/1/18]
  • Headline: “Vote to raise Indiana’s gas tax could haunt GOP lawmakers.” [IndyStar, 6/30/17]
    • Braun voted for a package of tax and fee hikes, including a 10-cent hike in Indiana’s per-gallon fuel tax, estimated to increase state revenue by $1.2 billion a year. [Associated Press, 2/27/18]

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