Note: Luke was asked by the Pharos-Tribune to write a brief op-ed about why he was running for Congress. Below is what he wrote.

By: Luke Puckett

My name is Luke Puckett and I’m running for Congress in Indiana’s 2nd Congressional District. As a small businessman, father, and citizen I’m running for Congress because I believe that we need common sense solutions to the challenges facing our country. The status quo in Washington needs to change and the actions of this Congress offer us no hope that real change is imminent.

(Read the rest below the fold) (more…)

When Joe Donnelly and the House Democrats allowed important terrorist surveillance legislation to expire, they put the American people at risk and tied the hands of our national intelligence workers.  Without critical legal tools, the dedicated individuals at our national security agencies are helpless when it comes tracking and targeting new terrorist organizations.

The Puckett campaign has launched a petition drive to show Joe Donnelly that Americans want to be safe from terrorists and not susceptible to a sudden attack from a terrorist cell our government wasn’t allowed to do anything about.  Go here to read and sign the petition urging Joe Donnelly to do his job and protect the American people.

Bob Novak, a Washington based political reporter, wrote a very revealing article on the recent failure of the House Democratic Majority to permanently bring America’s intelligence gathering laws into the 21st Century.

Apparently the sticking point for some in the Democratic Majority in the House was that trial lawyers were arguing against the bi-partisan Senate passed bill that put in place a long-term fix to the terrorist loophole.  Some trial lawyers have helped bankroll Democratic candidates.  By not working for a real solution to this problem, House Democrats have effectively put the interests of trial lawyers and big donors ahead of the safety of the American people.

Luke Puckett believes that we do not need to advocate for short-term fixes that don’t deal with problems.  As our Congressman, Luke Puckett will stand up for the most important special interest group: The American people.  Often this group is overlooked and under-represented in the offices of K-Street lobbyists.  It’s time for real, common-sense solutions that keep America safe. 

The campaign released this press release today. 

-Brian

Luke Puckett, 2nd District GOP candidate, stared in awe Monday at how fast his congressman caved under pressure from Nancy Pelosi and the liberal Democratic Congress during last week’s Protect America Act debate. Donnelly voted with the Republican leadership Wednesday morning but switched his vote to side with the Democratic leadership that afternoon.

On Tuesday, the Senate passed a bipartisan bill that would permanently extend the Protect America Act by a vote of 68-29.  On Wednesday, House Republicans sought to vote on this same bill.  When House Democrat leaders objected, Republicans forced a vote on considering the bill.  All but five House Democrats voted to block the House from considering a permanent extension of the law.  Joe Donnelly was one of these 5 Democrats. Later that day, Republicans again tried to offer an amendment to pass the Senate bill, yet all but one Democrat voted to prevent the amendment from being voted on. Joe Donnelly was NOT this one Democrat. Shamefully, most the 21 Democrats who sent a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi in support of the Senate bill still sided with their liberal leadership on at least one of these two votes, proving that this letter was just a shallow grasp for political cover.

“Either Joe Donnelly’s personal idea of how to protect Hoosiers and our American homeland changed from morning to afternoon, or this is just the latest example of Donnelly telling the folks of the district one thing and doing the exact opposite when he gets to Washington” Puckett says. “Actions speak louder than words, and this particular flip-flop of Donnelly’s is even more alarming because it deals with the future safety of our Hoosier families”.

Prior to enactment of the Protect America Act, wholly international communications transmitted over a wire required a FISA court order.  This requirement has hindered our intelligence community’s ability to collect vital intelligence from terrorists communicating with other foreign intelligence targets located in a foreign country.  It is difficult to compile enough information in a short period of time on a foreign person of interest to satisfy the FISA statute, and this is where the terrorist loophole arises. The protect America Act has been credited for stopping a number of terrorist attacks before they happened.

Democrats have now headed home for a ten day recess with the Protect America Act about to expire.  Despite Democrat claims that there is no harm in that, DNI McConnell wrote in the Washington Post Friday that:

“Without the act in place, vital programs would be plunged into uncertainty and delay, and capabilities would continue to decline. Under the Protect America Act, we obtained valuable insight and understanding, leading to the disruption of planned terrorist attacks. Expiration would lead to the loss of important tools our workforce relies on to discover the locations, intentions and capabilities of terrorists and other foreign intelligence targets abroad.”

Puckett concludes, “How many more terrorist attacks will we have to prevent before Joe Donnelly and the Democratic Congress allow us to permanently extend the Protect America Act?”