Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Former President Donald Trump’s war of words with Nikki Haley, as both seek the Republican presidential nomination, has included threats toward her donors and accusing the former U.N. ambassador and South Carolina governor of being an “establishment candidate.”
Haley has responded in kind, challenging him to face her directly in debate and citing occasions during which Trump has made “confused” comments.
In a new attempt to embarrass his opponent, Trump told followers on Truth Social this week that Haley had not even managed to get her name in one of the upcoming state GOP primary contests.
L-R: Joe Raedle/Getty Images; David Becker/Getty Images
The Claim
A post on Truth Social by Donald Trump, on January 31, 2024, said: “Nikki Haley is not on the Ballot in Indiana because she didn’t get enough Petition Signatures—She missed the deadline! If she’s not on in Indiana, she’s not a serious Candidate. ‘You can’t miss Indiana, and say you’re running for President,’ said future Senator of Indiana, Jim Banks.”
The Facts
Haley has not missed the deadline for the Indiana Republican presidential primary.
According to the Indiana Election Division, the deadline for submitting petition signatures to county voter registration officials for certifications was on Wednesday, with a further deadline of February 9 to submit declaration of candidacy.
“In Indiana, the deadline for May 2024 presidential primary election candidates to submit nomination petition [signature] forms to county clerk and voter registration offices was January 30th at noon, a spokesperson for the Indiana Secretary of State told Newsweek.
“On submission of petition forms, clerks and voter registration offices proceed to verify the voter registration status of petitioners and certify the forms for submission to the Indiana Election Division with a candidate’s formal declaration of candidacy by the filing deadline, which is Friday, February 9th at noon, Eastern Standard time.”
A spokesperson for Haley’s campaign referred to the post on X and told Newsweek that the petitions had been submitted.
“We’ll be on the ballot,” Haley’s spokesperson said. “We turned in more than double all the signatures required and they are being verified now as part of the process before the filing deadline on February 9.”
Haley appeared to address Trump’s claim on X, formerly Twitter, where she wrote: “Looks like Donald Trump is confused again… Another reason why he’s too afraid to debate me.”
Newsweek has contacted media representatives for Donald Trump via email for comment.
Haley, the last remaining major primary challenger to the ex-president, told Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum this week that Republicans would lose November’s election to President Joe Biden “if Donald Trump is the nominee” while insisting that she only has “to be competitive” to remain a candidate.
After MacCallum pointed out that “Trump is leading by a lot” in primary polls of key swing states, Haley argued that the former president “can’t win” independent voters, suburban women and “a lot of other Republicans.”
The Ruling
False.
Haley has not missed the deadline for the Indiana primary as Trump claimed. While there was a deadline to submit petitions for the Republican presidential primary on January 30, Haley’s campaign confirmed it had been met. Haley responded to Trump on social media, saying he was “confused.”
FACT CHECK BY Newsweek’s Fact Check team
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Indiana state senators are expected to take a final, high-stakes vote on redistricting Thursday after months of pressure from President Donald Trump, and the outcome is still uncertain.
Even in the face of one-on-one pressure from the White House and violent threats against state lawmakers, many Indiana Republicans have been reluctant to back a new congressional map that would favor their party’s candidates in the 2026 elections.
Trump is asking Republican-led states to redistrict in the middle of the decade, an uncommon practice, in order to make more winnable seats for the GOP ahead of next year’s elections. Midterms tend to favor the party opposite the one in power, and Democrats are increasingly liking their odds at flipping control of the U.S. House after the results of recent high-profile elections.
In Indiana, Trump supports passage of a new map drawn up by the National Republican Redistricting Trust designed to deliver all nine of the state’s congressional districts to the GOP. Republicans currently hold seven of the nine seats.
On Wednesday night, he sharply criticized party members who didn’t want to go along with the plan, and he repeated his threat to back primary challenges for anyone who voted against it.
“If Republicans will not do what is necessary to save our Country, they will eventually lose everything to the Democrats,” Trump wrote on social media.
The new map would split the city of Indianapolis into four districts, each included with large portions of rural Indiana — three of which would stretch from the central city to the borders of nearby states. Indianapolis now makes up one congressional district long held by Democratic U.S. Rep. André Carson.
The proposed map is also designed to eliminate the district of U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan, who represents an urban district near Chicago.
A dozen lawmakers of the 50-member state Senate have not publicly declared a stance on the new maps.
If at least four of that group side with the chamber’s 10 Democrats and 12 other Republicans who are expected to vote no, the vote would fail in a remarkable rebuke to Trump’s demand.
Supporters of the proposed map need at least 25 yes votes; a tie would be broken with Republican Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith’s vote, who is in favor of redistricting.
In a Senate committee Monday, the redistricting legislation took its first step toward passage in a 6-3 vote, with one Republican joining the committee’s two Democrats in voting against it. However, a few of the Republican senators indicated they may vote against the bill in a final vote.
The Republican supermajority in the state House passed the proposed map last week. Twelve Republicans voted with the chamber’s 30 Democrats against the bill.
Nationally, mid-cycle redistricting so far has resulted in nine more congressional seats that Republicans believe they can win and six more congressional seats that Democrats think they can win. However, redistricting is being litigated in several states.
Texas, Missouri, Ohio and North Carolina quickly enacted new GOP-favorable maps. California voters recently approved a new map in response to Texas’ that would favor Democratic candidates, and a judge in Utah imposed new districts that could allow Democrats to win a seat, after ruling that Republican lawmakers circumvented voter-approved anti-gerrymandering standards.
Multiple Republican groups are threatening to support primary opponents of Indiana state senators who vote against redistricting. Turning Point Action pledged “congressional level spending” in state Legislature races if the redistricting measure does not pass. Trump has also vowed to endorse primary challengers of members who vote against the new map.
Caught red (pepper) handed.
A DoorDash driver has been banned from the app after being accused of dousing an order with pepper spray and causing an unsuspecting customer to fall ill after eating the tainted food.
The sick act was caught on a doorbell camera outside an Evansville, Indiana, home just after midnight on Sunday.
The driver, who hasn’t been charged with any crime, was dropping off an Arby’s delivery to Mark Cardin and his wife, Mandy, when she snapped a confirmation photo before suddenly producing an object from her pocket and spraying the order.
The blue-haired worker placed the spray back into her jacket pocket before walking away, all in front of the camera.
The couple brought the order inside, unaware that something was wrong with it and began chowing down.
Moments later, Mandy began struggling to breathe.
“I noticed my wife had starting eating and she started choking and gasping, and after she had a couple bites of her food she actually threw up,” he told WFIE.
The horrified customer began investigating the cause of his wife’s sudden illness when he examined the order.
“I had a look at the bag and seen that there was some kind of spray or something,” Cardin said. “The bag had been tampered with. So I pulled up my doorbell camera and seen that the lady who dropped the food off had actually tampered with it on purpose for some reason.”
Cardin shared the photos and videos of the driver to Facebook asking for help in identifying the driver.
He attempted to contact her but found she already blocked him on the app.
Cardin reported the food runner’s stunt to DoorDash and the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office is looking to get the driver fired and charged.
“I definitely want to see her prosecuted,” Cardin told WFIE, adding that they had never met her before and had left a tip before the incident.
The driver has been banned from the app after footage surfaced of the late-night delivery.
“We have zero tolerance for this type of appalling behavior. The Dasher in question has been permanently removed from the platform, and our team is standing by to support law enforcement with any investigation,” a DoorDash spokesperson told The Post.
Cardin doesn’t know exactly what was sprayed on the food, fearing it could’ve been worse than it was.
“It’s horrific,” Cardin said. “We assume it’s pepper spray, that’s more than likely what it is, but now in this day and age it could’ve been anything. It could’ve been rat poison, it could’ve been fentanyl. I mean, my wife could’ve been dead.”
The Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office has opened an investigation into the driver and could charge her with consumer product tampering, a level 6 felony, according to WFIE.
If the foreign spray resulted in harm the charge could be increased to a level 5 felony.
“We live in a terrible world right now,” Mark said. “Horrific. People are mean for no reason. There was no reason to do what she done,” Cardin said, encouraging other food delivery app users to be cautious with their future orders.
“I would say to anybody, if you order food on any kind of delivery service, make sure you have a doorbell,” Mark said.
“This is making me second guess ever ordering food from anywhere ever again,” he said.
NORTHEAST INDIANA (WPTA) – The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) has announced the list of cities and counties selected to receive funds through its Community Crossings Matching Grant Program.
The Community Crossings program, created in 2016, gives funding to towns, cities, and counties in the Hoosier State that are used for infrastructure improvement projects.
Projects eligible for funding through the program include road and bridge preservation projects that comply with Americans with Disabilities Act standards, along with chip sealing and crack-filling operations.
On Tuesday, the following recipients were announced:
Allen County, Bluffton, DeKalb County, and LaGrange County were among those that received the largest grants, at $1 million.
You can view the full list of recipients here.
INDOT says the next call for project submissions will open in July. For more information about the program, visit INDOT’s website.
Copyright 2025 WPTA. All rights reserved.
Howling Mat-Su winds leave thousands without power
Trump rips Somali community as federal agents reportedly eye Minnesota enforcement sweep
Who do the Ohio State Buckeyes hire as the next offensive coordinator?
Trump threatens strikes on any country he claims makes drugs for US
Honduras election council member accuses colleague of ‘intimidation’
Texas Tech football vs BYU live updates, start time, TV channel for Big 12 title
Matt Campbell reportedly bringing longtime Iowa State staffer to Penn State as 1st hire
Urban Meyer, Brady Quinn get in heated exchange during Alabama, Notre Dame, Miami CFP discussion