Joe Donnelly: Why Indiana residents should vote for me

The shocking events we’ve seen over the past several weeks are a reminder that many of us feel our country is more divided today than it has been in recent memory. The headlines I’ve seen from Pittsburgh and across the country have been disheartening, not just for the news they bring, but because I know it doesn’t have to be that way. We can still accomplish so much when we work with both parties to bring Hoosiers together and move our country forward. 

Serving as your senator has been one of the great honors of my life, and for the past six years, I’ve worked with both Republicans and Democrats to make life better for Hoosiers. I’ve traveled to all 92 counties each of the past four years so I can listen to Hoosiers’ concerns. And I’ve delivered solutions for our state in Washington: 50 of my bipartisan legislative proposals have been signed into law, including 28 during the Trump administration. The Richard Lugar Center found me to be the most bipartisan senator still serving in the last 25 years. 

I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished because it’s what I said I would do when you sent me to the Senate six years ago. I’ve expanded Hoosiers’ access to affordable health care, establishing the HIP 2.0 Medicaid expansion in Indiana with then-Gov. Mike Pence and defending health care coverage for the 1.1 million Hoosiers under 65 with pre-existing conditions like asthma, diabetes, or a history of cancer. The system isn’t perfect, but we must work together to improve it instead of dismantling it for political gain. That’s why I stood up to partisan efforts to dismantle our health care system, and I worked with a bipartisan group of senators to improve health care and bring costs down. 

I’ve also prioritized the scourge of opioid abuse that has ravaged far too many families across Indiana, securing more than $20 million in funding for our state to help with treatment and recovery programs. Thanks to laws I’ve written, we’re providing new incentives to increase the number of substance abuse and treatment providers and improving telemedicine resources to help rural communities. President Trump recently enacted my proposals that will encourage the development of non-addictive medications and treatments and move them through the FDA approval process quickly.

I’ve stood up for hardworking Hoosiers who go to work in the dark and come home in the dark to provide for their families. I’ve fought against bad trade deals and worked to keep good-paying jobs back here in Indiana. I stood shoulder-to-shoulder with many of the people here, whose jobs at Carrier and Rexnord were outsourced, to say to the heads of these corporations that outsourcing the jobs of hardworking Hoosiers is wrong. I introduced the End Outsourcing Act that would help to prevent future Carriers and slow the flow of jobs overseas.

I know that there is more work to do, and I’m ready to continue delivering commonsense solutions for the people of Indiana. I will keep the promises we’ve made to our seniors, and I won’t let Mitch McConnell cut Medicare and Social Security. I will work non-stop to protect health care, improve coverage, and make it more affordable for all Hoosiers. 

I will not rest until we end the opioid crisis that has gripped communities in every corner of our state. I will continue to make sure our service members and veterans can access their care close to home, retire with dignity, and get the recognition for the sacrifices they’ve made to keep us safe. And I’ll help Hoosiers learn the professional skills they need so that every one of us who wants a good-paying job and is willing to work for it can find one. 

There is so much we can accomplish when we put the politics of division aside and work together, and I am certain our best days are ahead of us. As your senator, I've worked hard to be the hired help for Hoosiers, and I ask for your vote on Tuesday so I can continue to make sure Indiana comes first in Washington for another six years.

Joe Donnelly is a U.S. senator.