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Saturday, June 29, 2019

GOP Strategist Mike Murphy Explains Why Trump Is Beyond Saving

Just found this snippet of an interview that Hollywood Producer, Screenwriter and longtime GOP strategist Mike Murphy did with Bill Kristol back in 2017. The whole interview is well worth watching in its own right on YouTube. Also we recommend Murphy’s weekly “Hacks On Tap” podcast where he discusses politics with Democratic Strategist David Axelrod. Enjoy the clip:


Wednesday, June 26, 2019

IBM Ordered to Pay $78 Million to the State Ending Decade Long Lawsuit

Good afternoon friends! Well it appears that the decade long shit show IBM-FSSA lawsuit has come to an end. IBM has been ordered by the Indiana Supreme Court to pay $78 Million to the state over the bungled welfare privatization performed during Mitch Daniels “reign of error” as Governor. Olivia Covington over at The Indiana Lawyer gives the lowdown on this case:

In its second opinion issued in the years-long dispute between Indiana and IBM Corp. over the failed contract to create a new Hoosier welfare system, the Indiana Supreme Court has allowed IBM to collect post-judgment interest on its $49.5 million damages award. However, that interest will date back only to a 2017 judgment on remand, not the original judgment entered in the company’s favor in 2012, and only serves as an offset to the greater sum IBM owes the state.

Justice Steven David wrote for the court in the Wednesday opinion in International Business Machines Corporation v. State of Indiana, acting on behalf of the Indiana Family & Social Services Administration19S-PL-19. The justices, excluding Justice Mark Massa, heard their second round of arguments in the case in February.

At issue in the litigation is a contract between IBM and the state requiring IBM to develop a new welfare system that utilized a centralized call center to handle customer requests. The new system, colloquially known as “modernization,” was meant to be a shift away from the prior welfare system that emphasized face-to-face contact with customers.

But the state terminated the IBM contract in 2009 after modernization began experiencing problems. Instead, the state created its own welfare system, known as “hybrid,” that combined the call center with the former face-to-face model.

Both parties filed breach complaints, and the Marion Superior Court initially determined modernization’s failure was not a breach of IBM’s contract. Instead, the state was ordered in 2012 to pay IBM $49.5 million for the costs of equipment and assignment fees.

Barnes & Thornburg attorneys John Maley and Peter Rusthoven, counsel for the state in the IBM litigation, released a statement Wednesday afternoon saying they are pleased with the court’s ruling.

“Hoosiers will finally benefit from IBM’s multi-million-dollar payment of this judgment,” the statement said, referring to the $78 million owed to the state.

The article does mention the ruiling was 3-1 in favor of the state. Justice Mark Massa did not participate in the ruling since he worked as General Counsel for Governor Mitch Daniels who had ordered the IBM contract canceled. We have blogged previously on this issue once or twice before. Personally we feel that IBM was royally shafted by the state and should have not been forced to pay the state anything. On the other hand though IBM should have realized that doing business with the state was a bad idea. Especially since after IBM was given the heave ho, Affiliated Computer Systems (ACS) was put in to do the work. This was a big problem because then FSSA Secretary Mitch Roob had previously worked for ACS. Why this matter was never investigated by the US Attorneys Office in Indianapolis is a mystery to this day. Barnes and Thornburg’s role in representing the state is particularly troubling because as Paul Ogden pointed out back in 2012 that Barnes and Thornburg had lobbied the state to get ACS put in charge of the states welfare privatization project. Paul Ogden said at the time:

According to Judge Dreyer, the services provided by ACS were the major source of the complaints, Nonetheless, IBM ended up being discharged from the while ACS remained on as part of a "hybrid system."  Conveniently for ACS, a former executive theirs, Mitch Roob, headed FSSA, when IBM-ACS won the original privatization contract and yet another ACS executive, Mike Gargano, headed FSSA during the litigation over IBM's discharge.

The State, i.e. FSSA, ended up suing IBM to recover under the contract.  IBM countersued, claiming that the State breached the contact through its termination.  But who does the Daniels' administration insist the State hire to represent the State?  None other than Barnes & Thornburg the very law firm that represented ACS in lobbying to get the contract and still represents ACS to this day.  

Let me summarize what appears to have happened. ACS lobbies state officials to oust IBM so ACS can have the lucrative Medicaid privatization contract to itself.  ACS eventually succeeds.  The State sues IBM, perhaps to counter the inevitable breach of suit IBM was about to file.  After, IBM sues, the State hires Barnes & Thornburg, ACS's attorney to represent the state.

The State appears to be nothing more than a proxy for ACS. This case is essentially ACS v. IBM, yet we taxpayers are on the hook to pay Barnes & Thornburg, ACS' attorneys, $9.6 million.  That is uttterly outrageous.

Given that federal money here is involved, I too wonder why there has not been a federal investigation opened up by the FBI into this matter.  There certainly should be now that the facts here expose troubling, if not illegal, conduct by government officials and private lobbyists.

Between attorneys fees and the cost of the original contract with IBM. We estimate that the state has easily put us taxpayers on the hook for well over $500 Million. This whole mess could have been avoided if the Daniels administration had just listened to what some of his own people told him and given FSSA caseworkers new computers. Instead “Little Man” Mitch was determined to privatize food stamp delivery no matter what. Daniels and his bagman Governor “High Tax” Holcomb seem content knowing they slit the wrists of us taxpayers to feed the vampire looters and moochers who have helped through their demonic means to advance their political careers. 

Some of INDY REPUBLICANS allies in the cultural war against President Trump. Have tried to assuage our concerns about Holcomb by saying he is not on the side of Trumpian tribalism and authoritarianism. Don’t be fooled. Former Governor Mitch Daniels his boss whose legacy Holcomb carries out. Mitch Daniels created the tribalism, authoritarianism, and waste and theft of taxpayers money that would have been an embarrassment even in Tsarist Russia. We the men and women of truth, the guardians of freedom and justice for all will continue to fight until the Daniels-Holcomb Syndicate is a distant memory. 

Thursday, June 13, 2019

The Resurgent’s Erick Erickson’s Political Schizophrenia

As Never Trump conservative republicans INDY REPUBLICAN was somewhat comforted by the stand made by Erick Erickson against the RINO Donald Trump’s 2016 Presidential Campaign. And like our brother-in-arms fellow gadfly Republican Paul Ogden. We share Paul’s distaste at the transformation of Erickson’s former well regarded website Redstate from being a truly conservative website to being another Trumpist rag. Just like the transformation of the late Andrew Brietbart’s site Brietbart News into a propaganda mill of the new Trumpservative GOP establishment. 

Before we delve any further into our critique of Erickson. In the interest of fairness Erickson did hire and has retained several former Redstate writers who were forced out last year during that sites purging of Trump skeptics like the incomparable Susan Wright. That being said it has been a source of great frustration for all of us that earlier this year, in an act of ultimate political cowardice and sycophancy Erickson did a complete turn around and endorsed the Trump ticket for 2020.

Erickson said that the Trump-Pence ticket had “earned his vote” and that despite Trumps many flaws of which Erickson has continued to write about that Trump is better for religion than the anti-religious secular democrats. Erickson being a seminary student should no better. Although all of us at IR are devoted Christians and we cannot stand the Democratic Party’s hostility towards people of faith. The mad dash towards joining in with the Fellowship of the Pharisees, that so many of our brothers and sisters have done and who defend everything Trump does, have done more damage to the body of Christ than most anti religious bigots ever could. Martin Luther who started the Protestant Reformation said he would rather hear the honest shouts of an angry atheist than insincere flattery from his followers. Or as Christ himself said in Matthew 15:8: “"'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”

Reports that Erickson decided to if half heartedly give Trump his endorsement suggest that he did so after being lobbied to do so by President Trump. Apparently dear Erick would rather have praise from temporal rulers rather than the God that he claims to serve and worship.

Some have suggested that we are being to hard on Erick. That he has legitimately changed his mind on Trump. Well if it were not for today’s shenanigans that Erickson pulled by saying he endorses Congressman Justin Amash R-MI and Donald Trump for re-election in 2020, there might have been some argument if albeit a weak one that Erickson had changed his mind on Trump. Here is his statement on Twitter:


An endorsement of both campaigns and the donating of money to them is not reconcilable with reality. Congressman Amash has been on Trump’s enemy’s list for several years now. And even more so since Amash an attorney read the Mueller report and concluded after reading it that President Trump should be impeached. Whether knowingly or not by saying that “We need people like Amash in the House of Representatives who are willing to stand up for smaller government and principle.” Than either Erickson is saying that Amash’s argument for the impeachment of Trump is a principled one. In which case Erickson approves of it and makes his support of Trump suspect. Or he doesn’t support impeaching Trump in which case it is impossible for Erickson to honestly back Amash for re-election. After all as any candid observer must admit Amash’s stand is only harming Trump. Especially in Amash’s crucial must win home state of Michigan. So if he wants Trump re-elected in 2020 wouldn’t the wise move be to attack Amash? Or is Erick just trying to cover his ever widening ass in case Trump tanks Bigly next year?

Fortunately not everyone at Erickson’s The Resurgent is a useless hack like him. Susan Wright formerly of Redstate, now a writer for The Resurgent and on her blog Susan Wright On the Right has continually backed Amash and opposed Trump. You can read some of her articles and other fine conservatives and libertarians articles on Amash here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

As for Susan Wright and the other Pro-Amash voices at The Resurgent Bravo! A word of warning though. Since Erick Erickson has already sold out his principles there is no guarantee that he won’t stab Wright and other anti trump writers and activists in the back as well if his master Donald Trump tells him to. Especially in light of this tweet sent out by Donald Trump, Jr (no doubt on his fathers orders) to Amash this morning bragging about how Amash is now down by 16 points in the most recent primary poll. The ever clever Congressman Amash has this to say to Donnie, Jr:


President Trump To Meet with Whales and Dolphins

This edition of Thursday Funnies is brought to us once again by President Trump. As he is prone to doing the Twitterer-In-Chief forgot to spell check before he tweeted out a message on international diplomacy.

In bragging about his frequent visits with foreign dignitaries. The President said that he has met with the Queen of England and the Prince of Whales recently. Of course he should have said Prince of Wales. That is unless the president did indeed meet with an undersea monarch and just decided to reveal that aquatic life has adopted a feudal system of governance.

To break down for us in his own inimitable way here is Bill Kristol:


This is one instance in which we wish that President Trump had actually made some earth shattering discovery about other intelligent life on this planet. But alas we have to accept that Trump is just blowing off his mouth again.