Washington DC (Washington Insider Magazine) — Michael Kent Braun is an American business man and politician. He is the junior United States senator from Indiana and has held the seat since 2019. Before this, he was a member of the Indiana House of Representatives from 2014-2017 for the 63rd district. In 2018 he defeated Democratic incumbent Joe Donnelly becoming the first candidate to unseat an incumbent senator in nine years. On December 12, Braun declared his candidacy for Governor of Indiana and filed election papers on November 30, 2022.
Biography
Mike Braun was born in Jasper Indiana on March 24th, 1954. Braun was a star athlete across three sports. He obtained a bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in economics from the all-male Wabash College. Mike earned an MBA degree from Harvard Business School. After finishing at Harvard he returned to Indiana and joined his father’s company producing truck bodies for farmers.
Business Ventures
In the 1980s’ tough economy, his business almost failed but Braun steered it in the direction of selling truck accessories. He focused on increasing the workforce from 15 to over 300 people. In 1986 Braun and Daryl Rauscher gained control of Meyer Body Inc. He later renamed Meyer Distributing. Braun became its CEO and President. According to Finance Disclosure records from 2018, he holds assets between $35 million and $96 million.
Political Career In The Early Years
Initially registered as a Democrat, Braun switched to the Republican Party in 2012. From 2004-2014 he was part of the Jasper School Board and later in 2014. He was elected to be part of the Indiana House of Representatives in the 63rd district. Mike resigned from the state House on November 1, 2017, to focus on his U.S. Senate campaign.
In his final year at the legislature, American Conservative Union gave him a lifetime score of 82%. In July 2018, called for the Republican state attorney Curtis Hill to resign due to allegations. He accused him of drunkenly groping four people – a law officer and three legislative staffers.
Tenure In The 2020s
In May 2020, Senator Chuck Schumer proposed a resolution to make public the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). He shared instructions on detaching safety restrictions linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. A leaked document revealed it was more thorough and exact than the White House’s presentation in April 2020.
Braun opposed Schumer’s motion, contending that the CDC’s stipulations would harm the economy. On October 26, 2020, Braun backed Judge Amy Coney Barrett to join the Supreme Court, praising her too. After Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump during the later November election, Braun repudiated his defeat.
He propagated Trump’s inaccurate claims of electoral fraud. In combination with 10 other Republican senators, he declared on January 2, 2021, that he would not recognize Biden’s victory. He invalidated the election outcome. During this joint session between Congress counting the electoral votes were overwhelmed by an angry mob of Trump supporters.
Braun Tweeted shortly after “Though I will continue to push for a thorough investigation into the election irregularities many Hoosiers are concerned with as my objection was intended, I have withdrawn that objection and will.
US Senate Elections 2018
Braun won the Republican primary in the 2018 election for the United States Senate. He gained 208,520 votes or approximately 41% of the total. During his campaign, Braun highlighted his career in business and consequently beat Democratic incumbent Joe Donnelly in the November general election. He won the seat with a majority of 51%, compared to Donnelly’s 45%.
The Libertarian candidate, Lucy Brenton, gained less than 4%. It was later reported by the Indianapolis Star that Braun’s campaign was given $2.8 million from a political action committee. This committee was associated with Lev Parnas, who is accused of money laundering.
Photographs showing Braun and Parnas embracing at a 2018 campaign event were submitted to the House of Representatives. They were submitted as a part of the Parnas’ cooperation for President Trump’s impeachment proceedings.
LGBT Rights
“I believe in traditional marriage,” Braun said when asked about legalizing same-sex marriage. In the Indiana Republican Party, he fought to keep marriage defined as “between a man and a woman.” During his time in the Indiana state legislature, he supported the Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act. He opposed the amendments that would have banned discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Police Reforms
In June 2020, Braun proposed legislation to reform qualified immunity. This was a legal doctrine protecting police officers from lawsuits over constitutional violations. His bill would have opened up avenues for suing for rights violations.
After an interview with Tucker Carlson and police unions’ criticism the next month, Braun retracted his proposal. By May 2021, he had expressed his opposition to any changes to the existing qualified immunity doctrine. He also made several federal attempts at reforming local police departments.
Interracial Marriage
In its ruling that state interracial marriage bans are unconstitutional, Braun has argued that the Supreme Court of the United States was wrong. The Constitution prohibits all forms of discrimination based on race. Braun later stated that he hadn’t been paying attention to the question.
Environmentalism Movement
Braun has declared himself a conservationist. He acknowledged Greta Thunberg as an “inspiration” in the fight against climate change. Mike also encouraged the Republican Party to be more forceful in combating it. He opposed the 2015 Paris Agreement. Braun supports initiatives such as reforestation, carbon pricing, and carbon capture to limit CO2 emissions. He was chosen as the chair of the Climate Solutions Caucus, which was established in October 2019. Additionally, Braun sponsored the Growing Climate Solutions Act, which was a bill that would facilitate farmers to sell carbon credits in California.
Personal Life
Braun is married to his childhood sweetheart Maureen. His wife was a cheerleader and cheered for him at the sports events he participated in at school. The couple got married when they grew up and have four children together. He is a Roman Catholic. Braun’s brother, Steve Braun, was also a politician in Indiana.
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Net Worth
Mike Braun net worth is $50 million. His major source of income is his political career and the business assets that he has acquired through his several business ventures.
