Messer visits POET

Luke Messer’s message was clear: Joe Donnelly needs to be out of the U.S. Senate.

The candidate for the Republican nomination was critical of the Senate in general and Donnelly specifically during his visit Friday to POET Biorefining in Portland.

The visit was part of a three-day swing through the state for Messer that also included stops in Kokomo, Rochester, Goshen and South Bend, as well as Fort Wayne earlier Friday. He was headed to Muncie following his stop at in Jay County.

“I believe the U.S. Senate’s broken,” said Messer, who met with POET’s Portland plant general manager Matt Tomano and got a tour of the facility, during a brief interview. “Unfortunately, too many of the big-ticket items that the people of Indiana want to get done are failing in the U.S. Senate and Joe Donnelley is a big part of that problem.”

Messer was critical of Donnelley’s voting record, saying he most often sides with fellow Democrats Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Chuck Schumer.

He was specifically critical of the Senator’s votes against the recent tax reform bill and for both the Affordable Care Act and the Iran nuclear deal.

He also suggested a change to filibuster rules, advocating for eliminating the practice altogether.

“Whatever it used to be, and arguably it used to help with bipartisan compromise, it’s now become a tool of partisan gamesmanship that puts the minority party in charge,” he said.

Messer is looking to make the shift to the Senate from the House, where he is in his third term representing a 19-county district spanning the southern part of the state. A graduate of Greensburg High School and Wabash College, he has previously been executive director of the Indiana Republican Party, served in the Indiana House of Representatives for three-and-a-half years and worked as a lobbyist for Indianapolis firm Ice Miller.

In discussing issues specific to Jay County, he noted the need for a wide-ranging approach to dealing with drug abuse. He called for greater drug enforcement, better boarder control, expanded rehabilitation programs and more advocacy in an effort to keep young people from experimenting with drugs.

“I think it’s a big problem, and we need an all hands on deck approach,” he said. “Everywhere you go, opioids is a big problem. And it’s devastating for families.”

Messer is one of three Republicans to have filed to run for their party’s nomination, joining Mike Braun and U.S. Rep. Todd Rokita. Braun was a state representative representing District 63, including Washington, Jasper and Loogootee in southwestern Indiana, before resigning his seat in November to focus on the Senate race. Rokita represents 16 counties on the west side of the state with Lafayette at the center of the district.

Asked what sets him apart form the other candidates seeking the GOP nomination, Messer pivoted to again talking about Donnelly.

“I’m laser focused on Joe Donnelly,” he said. “That’s the change that I’ll be advocating for throughout this campaign.

“We need a conservative candidate for U.S. Senate who can unite Republicans from every corner of the state. I’ve proven that in my career and we’re proving it in this campaign.”