Tippecanoe County Democrats —

Indianapolis Star political columnist Matt Tully has a profile of Brad Ellsworth in today's Star. In it Ellsworth portrays himself as a man who just wants to help resolve problems: "The problems that face this country do not have a D or an R attached to them, and neither party has a corner on the market of good ideas. Guys like me -- whatever you want to call me: a centrist, a moderate, a conservative Democrat -- we want to be those guys who reach across the aisle." Tully speculates that Ellsworth is "probably the only candidate his party could have fielded this year, other than Bayh, who had a chance of winning the election." You can read Tully's profile here.

You can see Brad Ellsworth's great first ad for the general election here.

From the White House website:

Today, the First Family will host more than 1,200 military heroes and their families for a Fourth of July celebration at the White House. Tune in for the Second Annual “Salute to the Military” USO Concert, featuring The Killers, Brandi Carlile, Cedric “The Entertainer,” and “The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band. The evening wraps up with a viewing of the fireworks on the National Mall. You can watch the whole thing live on WhiteHouse.gov/live starting at 7 PM EDT. Happy Independence Day!

You can also view a special Fourth of July video message about supporting military families from First Lady Michelle Obama here.

The case against the Indiana voter ID law (the nation's most stringent) brought by the state Democratic Party and the League of Women voters was rejected by the Indiana Supreme Court. The court said the law was "merely regulatory" and didn't pose a substantive obstacle to voting, but it left the door open for future challenges if specific voters come forward. The court noted that no specific voters who had been prevented from voting by the law had been presented in the case. "We actually do know of individuals who have been turned away from the polls on the basis of identification," said Erin Kelley, president of the League of Women Voters of Indianapolis. They weren't included because the League decided to challenge the law on its face rather than on an individual basis. (It is also notable that no instance of voter fraud has ever been brought forth by supporters of the ID law.) Secretary of State Todd Rokita implemented and supported the law; he is the Republican nominee for the Fourth Congressional District. In a statement on his website Democratic Secretary of State candidate Vop Osili says he would seek to reform the law: "If I am elected Secretary of State, I will work with the Indiana General Assembly to maintain our state’s stringent efforts to prevent voter fraud, while seeking reforms to reduce unnecessary barriers and make voting as simple as possible. . . . I hold no value greater than protecting every Hoosiers’ right to vote.” Here is coverage of the decision from the Evansville Courier Press.

We note with sorrow the passing of Sen. Robert C. Byrd, Democrat of West Virginia and the longest serving US senator. He was in his 51st year of service to his state when he died Monday at 92. A Klan member in his youth and an opponent of the 1964 civil rights act, Byrd later became a strong proponent of civil rights. Austin Carty recalls in Huffington Post the moving scene in Obama's Audacity of Hope in which the young Senator has his first meeting with the lion of the Senate:

"Obama wrote of a meeting the two had in Byrd's office just after Obama was elected to the senate. In this meeting, Byrd said he'd been very fortunate in his life and had much to be thankful for, going on to say there wasn't much he would change. Then, after a pause, Obama said Byrd looked him in his eyes, and said, "I only have one regret, you know. The foolishness of youth..."

To which, after several silent seconds, Obama responded: "We all have regrets, Senator. We just ask that, in the end, God's grace shines upon us."

A year later Sen. Byrd was endorsing a man for President who, as a young man, he would have argued should not have been allowed to eat in a restaurant with him. That President ordered flags flown at half staff for Sen. Byrd. He and Vice President Biden will attend the funeral.

Here is the J&C coverage of Sen. Byrd's passing.

At last weekend's state Democratic party convention the statewide ticket was filled out. Vop Osili will be the candidate for Secretary of State; visit his website here. Pete Buttigieg will be the nominee for Treasurer, and Sam Locke will run for Auditor. Buttigieg's website is here, and Locke's is here.