7/9/26 - Braun guts transparency, Bayh's running against Diego, Trump says Iran wants him gone

Today’s episode of The Rob Kendall Show opens with Rob arguing that Indiana’s gas tax suspension proves Hoosiers have been overtaxed for years. He says the state is now giving back money it never needed to take in the first place, with the suspension saving drivers about 61 cents per gallon. Rob argues government officials frame this as a loss for the state, but it is really taxpayers getting some of their own money back. Rob says the state is expected to give up more than half a billion dollars in gas tax revenue through October while still absorbing the cost and reimbursing local governments. To him, that proves Indiana’s government has far more money than it needs for basic operations. He argues the “surplus” is really overtaxation, and that Republicans are only suspending the tax now because high gas prices under Trump and renewed conflict with Iran are politically damaging. The discussion also criticizes Republican leaders for claiming they need yet another long-term road funding solution. Rob points out that many of the same officials supported the 2017 gas tax increase, which was sold as the long-term fix, and then passed another road funding bill last year. He says the problem is not a lack of revenue, but the government’s failure to manage and allocate the money it already takes from taxpayers. Another segment focuses on the Thomas Carl Cook scandal and the continued failure of Indianapolis officials to reform how workplace misconduct complaints are handled. Rob says Cook, a powerful figure in Mayor Joe Hogsett’s administration and campaign operation, was accused of inappropriate relationships involving people connected to his power structure. Even after outside investigators recommended complaints be handled outside the mayor’s control, the City-County Council still has not created an independent process. Rob argues Hogsett’s stated concern about protecting victims’ privacy is an excuse to keep control over sensitive complaints. He says public records experts and existing executive-session rules show there are ways to protect complainants while still creating an independent review system. Rob says the lack of action reflects a broader problem in Indianapolis politics: Republicans are ineffective, most Democrats are afraid to challenge Hogsett, and only a few voices like Jesse Brown are willing to confront the power structure. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices