State of Indiana Archives: on Budget & Economy


Eric Holcomb: Infrastructure a priority, complete interstate project

I made infrastructure a priority four years ago because of the need to have strong connections with each other and the world. That means we'll complete I-69, the longest new interstate project in the country, from Evansville to Indy, three years ahead of schedule and paid for, and we'll move toward the construction of a new I-69 bridge over the Ohio River, as well as pursue plans for future upgrades to US 30 and 31 up north, as an example.
Source: 2021 State of the State Address to the Indiana legislature Jan 19, 2021

Eric Holcomb: Building "One Indiana" border to border

A booming economy requires a strong infrastructure and our growth has enabled us to make unprecedented investments into building "One Indiana," border to border. We're completing I-69 from Evansville to Indy three years ahead of schedule, and we're making US 31 stoplight-free all the way up to South Bend.
Source: 2020 Indiana State of the State address Jan 14, 2020

Eddie Melton: Gaming licenses issued to support new jobs & revenue

By providing gaming licenses to the communities that would yield the best use for the state as well as laying the groundwork for thousands of new jobs, tax revenue and infrastructure improvement, Senator Melton has proven to represent the kind of comprehensive vision needed to take Indiana to the forefront of a new global economy.
Source: 2020 Indiana Gubernatorial campaign website EddieMelton.com Dec 5, 2019

Joe Donnelly: Supported anti-recession stimulus

Economy: Support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?

Braun: No. Government isn't the driver of new job creation or economic prosperity.

Donnelly: Yes. Supported anti-recession stimulus & supports infrastructure investment.

Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Indiana Senate race Nov 1, 2018

Mike Braun: Government isn't the driver of economic prosperity

Economy: Support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?

Braun: No. Government isn't the driver of new job creation or economic prosperity.

Donnelly: Yes. Supported anti-recession stimulus & supports infrastructure investment.

Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Indiana Senate race Nov 1, 2018

Mike Braun: Don't pay politicians if they can't pass a budget

Washington's out of control spending must be stopped. The big spending politicians from both parties are mortgaging our future. Due to their failures to get serious about budget deficits, the national debt stands at more than $20 trillion. It's time to force Washington politicians to get their fiscal house in order by reining in spending and balancing the budget. To ensure Congress gets this done, there should be no pay for politicians if Washington does not pass a budget.
Source: 2018 Indiana Senate campaign website MikeBraunForIndiana.com May 3, 2018

Andrew Straw: Stimulus plus market-led recovery

Q: Do you agree or disagree with the statement, "Stimulus better than market-led recovery"?

A: Both are important, but when the economy has a greater money supply through fiscal (deficit spending) and monetary (lower interest rates) policies, it has always led out of recession.

Source: OnTheIssues interview of 2018 Indiana Senate candidate Feb 28, 2018

Eric Holcomb: $250-million Next Level Indiana Trust Fund

For all Hoosiers to be successful, we must continue to cultivate our strong and diverse economy--modernizing traditional sectors like manufacturing and agriculture, strengthening those where we've built a competitive advantage--like aerospace and life sciences--and nourishing emerging ones, like tech. That's exactly why we established the new $250-million Next Level Indiana Trust Fund, and in the first quarter of this year we'll begin to make strategic investments to build and support more innovation and entrepreneurship in our state.
Source: 2018 Indiana State of the State address Jan 9, 2018

Todd Young: $19 trillion of debt is greatest threat to nation's future

The single greatest threat to our nation's future: to the future we owe to our children--is Washington's failure to adopt a specific, credible plan to address our rapidly growing national debt. The plain truth is that we spend more than we take in and borrow more than 40 cents for every dollar spent.

The U.S. is mired in over $19 trillion of debt--roughly the same size as our annual national economy. Five trillion dollars of that has been added since 2008 under the Obama administration. There is no way to spin it, no matter how hard Democrats try: our current path is unsustainable.

Source: Vote-USA.org on 2016 Indiana Senate incumbents Aug 10, 2016

Eric Holcomb: Tax-and-borrower math will bust us, not lead to prosperity

A robust American economy is vital not only to our national security, but to the preservation of the upward mobility characteristic of the American Dream. At the same time our national debt is out of control & our safety net programs are going bankrupt. The promises we've made from one generation to the next are all under serious threat. The fact is, we are going to run out of money. It's as simple as that. The math will bust us and the "tax-and-borrowers" aren't being honest about it. We simply can't afford more credit downgrades, more debt, or more economic instability. There's just no formula to tax and borrow or redistribute our way to prosperity. We have an obligation to hand over to future generations that to which they have been promised; namely, a country that honors the commitments it has made to our seniors, our children, and our most vulnerable. Policies that ignite private sector economic growth, not higher taxes and more borrowing, are the only way to see those promises through.
Source: 2016 Senate campaign website, HolcombForIndiana.com Oct 1, 2015

Mike Pence: Amend state constitution to require a balanced budget

Fiscal discipline has been the hallmark of the past decade of Indiana governance. Our balanced budgets have led to economic growth, lower tax rates and job creation.

Remarkably, Indiana is one of the few states in the country that does not have a balanced budget requirement in its constitution. It is a tribute to the public servants in this room that Indiana has adhered to that practice in recent years even though it is not required.

A balanced budget requirement in the Constitution will assure Hoosiers that today and tomorrow Indiana will spend wisely, protect our state from an economic downturn, and unlike Washington, D.C., we won't bury our children and grandchildren under mountains of debt.

I call on this General Assembly to begin the process of adding a balanced budget amendment to the Indiana Constitution in this session and send this historic reform to the people of Indiana.

Source: State of the State address to 2015 Indiana Legislature Jan 13, 2015

Brian Bosma: Reduce government regulations; reduce unemployment benefits

Q: Do you support reducing government regulations on the private sector?

A: Yes.

Q: Do you support increased state funding for job-training programs that re-train displaced workers?

A: Yes.

Q: Do you support expanding access to unemployment benefits?

A: No.

Q: Do you support providing financial incentives to the private sector for the purpose of job creation?

A: Yes.

Q: Should Indiana prohibit union membership & dues being a condition of employment (right-to-work laws)?

A: Yes.

Source: Indiana Gubernatorial 2012 PVS Political Courage Test Nov 1, 2012

Richard Lugar: Pass the remarkable House budget plan & extend Bush tax cuts

Asked what could be done to cut the $15 trillion federal debt, Lugar, 80, urged the passage of the "remarkable" House budget plan and the extension of Bush-era tax cuts. Mourdock, 60, called for the elimination of the Energy, Education, Commerce and Housing and Urban Development departments.
Source: Fort Wayne Journal Gazette on 2012 Indiana Senate debate Apr 12, 2012

Brad Ellsworth: Stimulus legislation prevented going into a depression

Coats has criticized Ellsworth for voting in favor of the health care overhaul and stimulus programs. Ellsworth believes the stimulus legislation prevented a worse situation. "We made drastic improvements to save us from going into a depression," Ellsworth said.

Coats said voters are unhappy with federal government, and he accuses Ellsworth of being lockstep with his party leaders. "Clearly, a lot of Hoosiers are not happy with what's come out of Washington these last two years. 90% of what's come out has been supported by my opponent," Coats said. "There's a lot of enthusiasm for change in Washington."

Ellsworth said Coats' claim that he has voted in line with Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi 90% of the time is misleading He said those votes could include anything from naming a post office to honoring a sports team. "I have one of the most independent voting records in Congress, and I had a more conservative voting record than four Republicans," Ellsworth said.

Source: News & Tribune coverage of 2010 Indiana Senate debate Oct 24, 2010

Brad Ellsworth: Voted for bailout, health care law and stimulus bill

Ellsworth attacked Coats for the years he spent lobbying in Washington saying the former senator took stands on issues--including the bank bailout and stimulus funding--based on who paid his law firm the most money. "That's not right for Hoosiers," Ellsworth said. "We need people who stand up for us, for Hoosiers and base their decisions on what they hear only from the people back home."

Coats battled back, saying that it was his law firm--not him personally--who represented clients on those issues. He pointed instead at Ellsworth, saying that the Democrat's votes for the bailout, health care law and stimulus bill put the country in almost insurmountable debt. "I can understand that someone who went to Washington talking like a conservative here at home--but followed the agenda of Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama nearly 90% of the time--would not want to come home and talk about that," Coats said.

Source: Louisville Courier-Transcript on 2010 Indiana Senate debate Oct 22, 2010

Daniel Coats: Commitment to no new spending unless offset & paid for

Coats said the nation is facing serious problems with the economy as it enters the third year of the recession. "We have not seen light at the end of the tunnel," said Coats. "We have a long way to go."

President Barack Obama's "summer of recovery" has been anything but, Coats said. Coats lambasted Democrats for spending at a pace that's unsustainable and piling up debt the nation cannot pay back. "There has to be a commitment to no new spending without it being offset and paid for," said Coats. "No more swiping the credit card and pumping and using debt to finance new spending."

This election, Coats said, needs to be relative to restoring the economy for future generations.

Source: Evansville Courier Press on 2010 Indiana Senate debate Oct 13, 2010

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2020 Presidential contenders on Budget & Economy:
  Democrats running for President:
Sen.Michael Bennet (D-CO)
V.P.Joe Biden (D-DE)
Mayor Mike Bloomberg (I-NYC)
Gov.Steve Bullock (D-MT)
Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D-IN)
Sen.Cory Booker (D-NJ)
Secy.Julian Castro (D-TX)
Gov.Lincoln Chafee (L-RI)
Rep.John Delaney (D-MD)
Rep.Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI)
Sen.Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)
Gov.Deval Patrick (D-MA)
Sen.Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
CEO Tom Steyer (D-CA)
Sen.Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
Marianne Williamson (D-CA)
CEO Andrew Yang (D-NY)

2020 Third Party Candidates:
Rep.Justin Amash (L-MI)
CEO Don Blankenship (C-WV)
Gov.Lincoln Chafee (L-RI)
Howie Hawkins (G-NY)
Gov.Gary Johnson(L-NM)
Howard Schultz(I-WA)
Gov.Jesse Ventura (I-MN)
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Sen.Ted Cruz(R-TX)
Gov.Larry Hogan (R-MD)
Gov.John Kasich(R-OH)
V.P.Mike Pence(R-IN)
Gov.Mark Sanford (R-SC)
Pres.Donald Trump(R-NY)
Rep.Joe Walsh (R-IL)
Gov.Bill Weld(R-MA & L-NY)

2020 Withdrawn Democratic Candidates:
Sen.Stacey Abrams (D-GA)
Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-NYC)
Sen.Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
Sen.Mike Gravel (D-AK)
Sen.Kamala Harris (D-CA)
Gov.John Hickenlooper (D-CO)
Gov.Jay Inslee (D-WA)
Mayor Wayne Messam (D-FL)
Rep.Seth Moulton (D-MA)
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