This and that: A Friday edition
SK hynix signals a spring start for site work. Sen. Young votes to pull in the reins on military action in Venezuela. And more.
A few notes for a Friday morning …
SK GROUNDBREAKING UPDATE: ‘SPRING’: South Korean semiconductor firm SK hynix plans to start grading work in the spring on a 133-acre site in West Lafayette, company officials said Thursday.
Company officials said that work would follow “necessary precautionary steps for safety, environment and health” on the property targeted for a $3.87 billion R&D and manufacturing facility where SK hynix expects to assemble high-bandwidth memory chips for use in a growing AI market.
The company did not offer specifics beyond that on the timing or about what the other steps remained before construction could start.
But the general timing for a groundbreaking came a day after the Tippecanoe County Drainage Board on Wednesday approved final site and paving plans, a key permitting step before construction.
A hearing Wednesday came with a first public look at site plans for the project, including the layout, building heights, access points and other features of SK hynix’s facility north of Kalberer Road, between Yeager Road and County Road 50 West/Salisbury Street.
Here’s more on that:
The company’s website lists construction slated to start in early 2026, with the facility expected to be running in late 2028, with up to 1,000 jobs and thousands more from suppliers. How or whether that timetable could be affected by ongoing pushback by residents of neighboring subdivisions and a pair of resident-driven lawsuits challenging the city’s zoning decision, now winding through Tippecanoe Circuit Court, isn’t clear. The next court hearing in those cases is scheduled in March. (For the latest: “Confidentiality agreements, site selection memos, more requested in SK hynix lawsuits.”)
OTHER READS …
SEN. YOUNG CROSSES TRUMP, VOTES FOR CAUTION IN VENEZUELA: Sen. Todd Young, an Indiana Republican, joined four other Republicans to advance a measure Thursday that, if given final approval, would block the Trump administration from conducting further military action in Venezuela after the recent raid to apprehend Nicolás Maduro, that country’s president. From the Washington Post: “The measure would mark the first time during the second Trump administration that Congress has voted to constrain President Donald Trump’s expansive use of the military to conduct foreign policy. Republicans have mostly cheered the attack to oust Maduro, but the party is increasingly divided over how to respond to Trump’s escalating threats to use force around the world, including against U.S. allies such as Denmark.” For more from that Washington Post report: “Senate advances bill to block further military action in Venezuela. Though largely symbolic, the measure would be a rare assertion of Congress’s role in using lethal force after the stunning raid to capture Nicolás Maduro.”
Following the vote, Young issued this statement with his rationale:
“I support President Trump’s decision to bring Nicolás Maduro to justice for his many crimes, and I am grateful that, after years of oppression, the Venezuelan people now have a new hope. I also commend the bravery and professionalism of U.S. personnel who carried out the successful law enforcement mission in Venezuela last week.
“Today’s Senate vote is about potential future military action, not completed successful operations. The President and members of his team have stated that the United States now ‘runs’ Venezuela. It is unclear if that means that an American military presence will be required to stabilize the country. I – along with what I believe to be the vast majority of Hoosiers – am not prepared to commit American troops to that mission. Although I remain open to persuasion, any future commitment of U.S. forces in Venezuela must be subject to debate and authorization in Congress.
“President Trump campaigned against forever wars, and I strongly support him in that position. A drawn-out campaign in Venezuela involving the American military, even if unintended, would be the opposite of President Trump’s goal of ending foreign entanglements. The Constitution requires that Congress first authorize operations involving American boots on the ground, and my vote today reaffirms that longstanding congressional role.”
In a post on Truth Social, Trump called out Young and the other Republicans for “their ‘stupidity’” and that they “should never be elected to office again. … Nevertheless, a more important Senate Vote will be taking place next week on this very subject.”
Building from there, this is what Trump told New York Times reporters in an interview this week: “President Trump declared on Wednesday evening that his power as commander in chief is constrained only by his ‘own morality,’ brushing aside international law and other checks on his ability to use military might to strike, invade or coerce nations around the world. Asked in a wide-ranging interview with The New York Times if there were any limits on his global powers, Mr. Trump said: ‘Yeah, there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.’” Read the full thing here: “Trump Lays Out a Vision of Power Restrained Only by ‘My Own Morality.’”
OUT OF THE STATEHOUSE: Here are a few things moving through the General Assembly early this session …
Syringe exchange programs – including Tippecanoe County’s Gateway to Hope – are on the line after a decade in Indiana, as the legislature consider re-upping authority for counties to establish and maintain them for the next 10 years. WFYI report Ben Thorp had a look at an Indiana Senate committee hearing Wednesday where a bill advanced to the full Senate. (If the bill fails, needle exchange programs will sunset on July 1, 2026.) Part of his report included this local tie: “… Sen. Spencer Deery, R-West Lafayette, voted the bill out of committee but expressed discomfort with needle exchange programs, reserving the right to change his vote in front of the full Senate.” Here’s the rest: “Bill to extend needle exchange programs for another decade passes out of committee.”
Tighter restrictions proposed on use of cellphones in classrooms advanced from an Indiana Senate committee Wednesday. From Indiana Capital Chronicle reporter Casey Smith: “The measure would require all public schools to adopt a ban that prohibits students from using or possessing a wireless communication device during the school day and requires that any teacher-directed use of a device ‘for educational purposes’ occur only on school-supplied devices. It also mandates that each district choose between two enforcement models: a ‘no device policy,’ in which students may not bring phones to school at all; or a ‘secure storage policy,’ in which students may bring phones but must store them so they are ‘inaccessible throughout the school day.’” For more on the proposal and where it stands: “Bipartisan vote moves cellphone limits for Indiana students to full Senate.”
In a move that could pay off for research at Purdue, the Trump administration on Thursday announced Indiana as one of two new national drone test sites — a designation that could attract jobs and spending from the industry. Indiana Capital Chronicle editor Niki Kelly had report that include this: “The December letter of support (for the designation from Indiana’s congressional delegation) pointed to Purdue University, which lawmakers noted has ‘the first university-owned airport in the country, the largest indoor motion capture facility in the world, and a faculty dedicated to addressing the challenges of safely integrating UAS into the national airspace.’” The Indiana Capital Chronicle had more here: “Indiana wins national drone test site designation.”
One more try for the breaded tenderloin to be named Indiana’s official state sandwich. IndyStar had the details about Senate Bill 21 from a Senate committee hearing touting the Hoosier standard: “Pork tenderloin bill is ‘labor of love’ for resigning Indiana state senator.” Question is: Where can you get the best breaded tenderloin in Greater Lafayette? We’re taking nominations here:
ICYMI, TIM’S PICKS: You can still rock … in case you missed it.
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Tips, story ideas? I’m at davebangert1@gmail.com.
I am glad that Senator Young has voted for the constitutional use of our amazing military. I fear that another after-the-fact vote is coming soon, before Venezuela demonstrates the obvious wisdom of the Powell Doctrine.
I must be a bad Hoosier. I don't like breaded breaded tenderloins.