U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan updates constituents, tackles questions from U.S. Steel to marijuana legalization

Some well-informed constituents interacted with U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan, D-Highland, at his annual Town Hall Meeting in the Valparaiso City Council Chamber Friday afternoon.

They asked him to weigh in on everything from the pending Nippon Steel acquisition of U.S. Steel to his willingness to support limitations to Title IX regarding transgender girls in high school sports, while one woman challenged him to be more aggressive in advocating for veterans.

Before Northwest Indiana residents got to their questions, Mrvan, in his first term and seeking reelection in November, gave a rundown of the efforts keeping him busy in Washington on behalf of Indiana’s First Congressional District. He expressed frustration over the failure of Congress to pass a spending package.

He said he’s working every day to find like-minded colleagues to support emergency supplemental aid to Ukraine and funding for border security. Regarding the $14 billion sale of U.S. Steel to the largest steel producer in Japan, Mrvan said it’s essential collective bargaining agreements between U.S. Steel and United Steelworkers are honored.

He also has concern over the role U.S. Steel plays in the manufacture of steel plates for tanks and other protections for U.S. troops. “To me, that is a national security item,” Mrvan said.

Advances for the region in transportation, from UPS using the Gary International Airport for cargo distribution — “It is creating a transportation hub that is bringing in jobs” — to the double-tracking of the South Shore, were highlighted by Mrvan.

“It shortens travel time, which allows for a better quality of life,” he said of the South Shore project. “It increases property values because people want to live here.”

Mrvan told the crowd during the forum, one of several scheduled throughout the region, that the hydrogen hub planned for in the infrastructure bill passed by the 117th Congress will create 16,000 construction jobs at the BP Refinery in Whiting. “It has a carbon capture component for cleaner air and cleaner water,” he added.

Environmentally, he spoke of the cleanup and remediation of the 13-mile Grand Calumet River. “I remember a time when oil was visibly bubbling up in the Grand Calumet River,” Mrvan said.

Then he took questions people had written on cards before the meeting started. One person wanted to know what Mrvan thought of “the massive influx of illegal migration.” “Why don’t you support securing our border?” the card read.

“I absolutely, positively want to make sure that our border is secure and it is humane,” Mrvan replied. He said he supports the E-Verify hiring system to ensure employees are on the correct track to citizenship or are already citizens, bypassing the dark economy. He also supports the hiring of 1,300 more border security agents.

When asked about his stance on legalizing marijuana Mrvan said he has supported medical marijuana for veterans, but will leave the issue of the legalization of recreational marijuana to the governor and state legislature.

He similarly deferred to the decision-making capabilities of the Indiana High School Athletic Association when Chesterton resident Stacy Hallas asked about his stance on supporting Title IX restrictions regarding transgender girls playing girls high school sports. “I’m of the belief that the associations that monitor those sports should make those decisions,” Mrvan said.

He did not defer, however, when asked about women’s reproductive rights. “I have consistently been for women’s choice,” he said, bringing up the case of the 10-year-old Ohio rape victim who came to Indiana for an abortion after she was the victim of rape. “The attorney general is still trying to make a position on that.

“I have two daughters. I have a wife and I think they should have those rights preserved.”

Leslie Dallner, of Hobart, called on Mrvan to explain why he did not vote to censure his colleague U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., when a vote was called in November over remarks she made regarding Israel that have been deemed by some to be antisemitic. “It’s not my job to monitor that,” Mrvan said of Tlaib’s remarks.

“You did condemn that, just not her,” piped up another woman from the audience.

Vallarie Pickens of Valparaiso called on Mrvan to be more vocal about the efforts he takes on in his role as a member of the Veterans Affairs Committee.

“I want your voice louder,” she said. “We send you there as a representative. I just think that yelling and screaming a little louder would help.”