The eyes of many across the country will be on Indiana on Election Night as the Senate race between Democratic incumbent Joe Donnelly, Republican Mike Braun, and Libertarian Lucy Brenton could determine control of Congress.
Indiana Public Broadcasting’s Brandon Smith talks with Braun about the issues that have defined this year’s race.
More US Senate election coverage at indianapublicmedia.org/election
Brandon Smith: I want to talk first about a charge you’ve leveled at Joe Donnelly a lot in this campaign, which is the idea that he’s says one thing here in Indiana and then does something different in D.C. But his voting record is 62 percent of the time with President Trump. Isn’t that the sort of independence that Hoosiers have come to expect from their senators?
Mike Braun: On all of the important legislation – and that would be Obamacare, originally voting for it and then he voted against its repeal, voted against tax reform and I think that was the big gamble because it’s now I think started to take hold, voted for the Iran deal – that’s what you’re judged on. And I’m going there because I’ve not been happy with, really, either side. I’ve not been enamored with what conservatives have done; I think we haven’t produced.
Smith: You did touch on some of the things I wanted to talk about. But I actually want to start with something – the idea of tariffs. On the one hand, steelworkers have been very happy about what the president has done. On the other hand, farmers have not. So, how do you balance those seemingly competing interests when it comes to tariffs.
Braun: I’m not interested in tariffs at all as a long-term thing. They ought to all be gone like most of compete here in the U.S. I think President Trump, though, actually recognized that it’s time to rectify these things. I knew he was going to use it as a stick for a short term and I was surprised that it’s now been resolved in the three most important places – the EU, Mexico, and Canada. The Chinese are different and I never did think tariffs was going to be an effective tool with them and that’s proven to be the case. Once I’m elected our next senator, when I can bend the president’s ear, if that hasn’t been resolved, that needs to quickly change.
Read More: Braun Loans Himself More Than $2M To Boost Latest Fundraising Haul
Smith: But at the same time then, all those Hoosier farmers out here hear you say, ‘Vote for me if you want to support President Trump’s agenda.’ They’re looking at, for them, one of the biggest things of President Trump’s agenda that’s hurting them is tariffs.
Braun: And I agree. And most farmers I talk to, in this case, all of them were still willing to give it a little time.
Smith: Republicans have been railing against Obamacare for a long time, pretty much since it was passed. And at least in Indiana, that’s generally been a successful strategy. But over the last couple of years, with Republicans in control completely in Washington, D.C. they haven’t been able to come up with that repeal and replace.
Braun: And I agree 100 percent. Ten years ago, when I had a raucous meeting with my current insurance providers, I said ‘I’m fed up with you telling me I’m lucky it’s only going up five to 10 percent.’ When I took them on, I said ‘I wanted to make sure you cover pre-existing conditions and no cap on coverage.’ And that’s the difference between somebody like me that’s trying to actually lower costs and provide good coverage and somebody like the senator who signed on to Obamacare without having the foresight that it was doomed to fail.
Read More: Senate Candidates Spar Over Health Care, Taxes, Trump In First Debate
Smith: I want to ask about the issue of tax reform. How can you say on the one hand ‘I’m really concerned about the deficit’ and on the other hand say you would’ve supported a bill that adds billions to the deficit?
Braun: When you cut taxes, you’re going to generate to generate more economic activity. It gave businesses and especially small ones, the job creators – it gave us, if you were successful in paying taxes, more jingo in your pocket. We need to share it with our employees; you don’t hear many conservatives saying it.
Smith: The realities of that bill are that the biggest and most sustained benefits go to those who are in the much higher income brackets. So, do you think that the average Hoosier is feeling like they got a good enough deal out of that?
Braun: Nancy Pelosi referred to it as crumbs. And now, incrementally, just through lower withholding that’s approaching the $1,200 to $1,500 for the average middle-income taxpayer. They are now saying, ‘Yes, I can feel it, it’s been there, it’s real.’
