Red state Republicans can't pass Trump's scheme — but want to look like they can: reporter

Indiana Republicans are convening at the end of the year to consider a mid-decade gerrymander, but there's no indication anything has changed from the past few weeks when Senate President Pro Tempore Roderic Bray said the votes weren't there to move ahead, a Politico reporter said Friday.

The meeting comes after months of President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Gov. Mike Braun, and the whole GOP congressional delegation demanding they do so, Politico reporter Adam Wren told MS NOW's Richard Lui on Friday. Trump has publicly turned his fury on Indiana lawmakers for defying his orders to rig congressional maps for him, and as multiple state senators face threats and swatting attempts — even as polling shows a strong majority of Indiana voters oppose redrawing their maps to give Republicans extra seats.

"Just last week, you had other reporting that there was no sign that Bray would back down," said Lui. "What's happened in that gap?"

"Essentially, what I believe is happening here, and they haven't said it publicly, but I believe that they feel like they have a duty to consider whatever the House passes out in terms of a new map," said Wren. "And essentially, you know, I think that they could consider a new map and assign it to a rules committee or an elections committee that never actually passes it out. So, I don't actually think that the Senate in Indiana has new votes here to pass something substantively, but I think that they just feel that they have a duty to at least show that they're considering it and that they're listening, and that's what they're going to do. The actual political standing here in terms of the votes hasn't really changed over the last week, I'm told."

"Do you think, though, based on your reporting, that this may change?" asked Lui. "You're saying you don't believe they're going to be able to garner enough support for this?"

"It's possible," said Wren. "The White House has always planned on this going to the floor and being able to twist arms when they have people actually considering this. And I think at this point, the pressure campaign is possible, but they could withstand it. Again, look, a lot of these senators who are on the fence are not up for primaries until 2028. They feel safe here. They think that they can withstand the pressure; they already have up until this point. I mean, this has been a three-month process."

"And so, you know, my sense from talking with Republican senators and people close to the process, is that the Indiana Senate isn't moving on this issue," he added. "And, they are going to, you know, consider the maps when they come out of the House, as we imagine they will on December 8th. And at that point, they'll decide. But, but again, my sense is that they're going to continue to resist White House pressure here."

"Why are they resisting where, in other states, they may not?" asked Lui. "What is the common thread between these Republican senators as to why they're saying we are not going to change outside of the typical decennial reconsideration of maps?"

"Well, Indiana is a red state, it's a Trump state, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a MAGA state," said Wren. "There's a sense in Indiana of common fairness. It's a basketball state. You know, they believe it's important to enforce fairness whenever possible and abide by a rules system. And so, they look at this order coming out of Washington, essentially from President Donald Trump, and they don't like it, just as they wouldn't like a federal order coming out of, you know, what was the then Biden White House. They don't believe that Washington has the best answers for what's happening in Indiana, and so they're sort of nationally resistant to that."

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