Indiana’s Department of Child Services is one of the hardest systems to talk about honestly.

Some people see DCS as the agency that removes children. Others see it as the last line of defense for kids who are not safe at home. The truth is more complicated.

In this special episode of Hold ’em Accountable, Derrick Holder sits down with Kristie Holder, Kacey Blundell, and Kirsten Root for a raw conversation about Indiana DCS, foster care, child welfare, family case managers, and what needs to change.

Derrick, Kacey, and Kirsten all worked for DCS. Derrick and Kristie are also former foster parents. That means this conversation comes from multiple sides of the system: legal, case management, assessment, permanency, foster care, and lived experience inside the process.

This episode looks at the uncomfortable reality behind Indiana’s child welfare system:

DCS is necessary.

Children do need protection.

Caseworkers do save lives.

But the system is also overburdened, under-resourced, inconsistent, and too often reactionary instead of preventative.

We talk about:

• Why DCS responds after families are already in crisis
• Foster parents not being listened to
• Overworked family case managers
• Child welfare worker burnout
• Poverty, addiction, mental health, and family instability
• Why prevention matters
• Inconsistent policies between counties, judges, and supervisors
• The challenges of emergency placements
• Why families need support before removal
• How Indiana can better protect children and support families

This is not an anti-DCS conversation. It is not an attack on caseworkers. It is not pretending every removal is wrong or every family is safe.

It is a serious conversation about a system that Indiana still needs, but cannot keep running on exhausted workers, unsupported foster parents, under-resourced families, and crisis responses that arrive too late.

If we care about children, we have to care about the systems surrounding them.

No spin. No talking points. Just receipts.

You can also ask Alexa to play Hold ’em Accountable with Derrick Holder.

#IndianaDCS #FosterCare #ChildWelfare #IndianaPolitics #HoldEmAccountable

Most healthcare debates focus on insurance.

Premiums. Deductibles. Copays. Coverage.

But what happens when there isn't a doctor available to see you? What happens when the nearest emergency room is an hour away? What happens when the maternity ward closes, the mental health provider retires, or the local hospital shuts its doors?

In this episode of Hold 'em Accountable, Derrick Holder examines the growing crisis of healthcare deserts across America and why access to care may be just as important as the ability to pay for it.

Healthcare doesn't usually disappear all at once. It disappears one doctor, one department, one clinic, and one hospital at a time. The result is a growing number of communities where people have insurance but struggle to find actual care.

In this episode:

• Why hospitals are closing across America
• Rural and urban healthcare deserts
• Physician and nursing shortages
• Maternity care deserts and OB shortages
• Mental health provider shortages
• Hospital consolidation and corporate healthcare
• Why healthcare access is infrastructure
• How distance affects patient outcomes
• Emergency care, specialist shortages, and wait times
• Why your zip code increasingly affects your health

Healthcare is not just a policy issue.

It's an access issue.

Because insurance doesn't deliver babies.

Insurance doesn't perform surgery.

Insurance doesn't respond to emergencies.

People do.

And when those people and facilities disappear, entire communities become more vulnerable.

Watch now and join the conversation.

Do you think healthcare should be treated as critical infrastructure?

Hosted by Derrick Holder, retired Marine, Managing Editor of Progressive Indiana Network, and host of Hold 'em Accountable.

No spin.

No talking points.

Just receipts.

You can also ask Alexa to play Hold 'em Accountable with Derrick Holder.

#HealthcareDeserts #HealthcareAccess #RuralHealthcare #HospitalClosures #MentalHealth #HealthcareCrisis #PublicHealth #HealthcarePolicy #IndianaPolitics #HoldEmAccountable

Being poor is difficult.

But in America, it is often expensive too.

In this episode of Hold 'em Accountable, we break down the poverty premium: the hidden surcharge attached to financial instability.

The basic idea is simple.

People with more money often get better terms, lower interest rates, better financing, stronger rewards, lower fees, and more flexibility.

People with less money often pay more.

More in interest.

More in fees.

More in deposits.

More in penalties.

More for emergencies.

More for the same products and services.

That is the poverty premium.

And once you start seeing it, you see it everywhere.

A person with savings can handle a flat tire. A person without savings may need a credit card, payday loan, or delayed repair that creates more problems later.

A person with cash can buy in bulk and lower their cost per item. A person living paycheck to paycheck often has to buy smaller quantities and pay more over time.

A person with strong credit gets lower interest rates. A person with damaged credit may face higher borrowing costs, larger deposits, fewer options, and more barriers.

This episode explores how America quietly charges people extra for having less and why financial instability often becomes a cycle that's harder to escape than most people realize.

We discuss:

• What the poverty premium is
• Why being broke is expensive
• Payday loans and high-interest emergency borrowing
• Overdraft fees and banking penalties
• Rent-to-own contracts and hidden costs
• Credit scores and higher borrowing costs
• Housing barriers and larger deposits
• Food deserts and limited grocery access
• Transportation costs and unreliable vehicles
• Why poverty is about access, not just income
• The difference between personal responsibility and systemic barriers
• Why hard work matters, but margin matters too
• How financial vulnerability becomes profitable
• What reforms could help people recover instead of trapping them

This conversation is not about eliminating personal responsibility.

Choices matter.

Work ethic matters.

Discipline matters.

But systems matter too.

And if someone gets knocked down financially, the system should not respond by attaching more weights to their ankles.

The goal is not to make poverty comfortable.

The goal is not to guarantee outcomes.

The goal is not to remove responsibility.

The goal is simple:

Stop making poverty more expensive.

Because if hard work is supposed to help people get ahead, America should stop charging people extra for trying to climb the ladder.

Watch now and join the conversation.

Do you think America gives struggling people a fair shot to recover, or does the system make recovery harder than failure?

Hosted by Derrick Holder, retired Marine, Managing Editor of Progressive Indiana Network, and host of Hold 'em Accountable.

No spin.

No talking points.

Just receipts.

You can also ask Alexa to play Hold 'em Accountable with Derrick Holder.

#PovertyPremium #CostOfLiving #EconomicInequality #WorkingClass #HoldEmAccountable 0qp1RkqPbWCeZwiiuswT

Every June, America has the same conversation.

Why do we still have Pride Month?

Haven't we already achieved equality?

Why is it still necessary?

In this special mini-sode of Hold 'em Accountable, Derrick Holder steps away from politics, utility monopolies, healthcare systems, and economic policy to explore a different question:

Why does Pride Month still matter in 2026?

The answer isn't about politics.

It's about history.

For many younger Americans, it's easy to assume the rights and freedoms enjoyed today have always existed. But there are millions of people still living who remember when being openly LGBTQIA+ could cost someone a job, housing, family relationships, social standing, or personal safety.

That history isn't ancient.

It's living memory.

This episode examines the origins of Pride, the meaning behind the word itself, and why remembering the struggles that came before us matters regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum.

Pride was never simply about celebration.

For many people, it was about rejecting shame.

It was about the belief that no one should have to apologize for existing.

In this mini-sode, we discuss:

• Why Pride Month began
• The history many Americans never learned
• The difference between pride and arrogance
• Why dignity and visibility matter
• The importance of remembering civil rights struggles
• How democracy requires recognizing each other's humanity
• Why disagreement and respect can coexist
• The role of LGBTQIA+ Americans in modern society
• Why history matters regardless of political affiliation
• A personal reflection from Derrick on being intersex

This episode isn't a loyalty test.

You don't have to agree with every activist, organization, or political position to recognize a simple truth:

Every American deserves to live free from discrimination, violence, harassment, and fear.

That shouldn't be controversial.

That should be the floor.

At its core, this conversation is about something bigger than politics.

It's about dignity.

It's about remembering that the people affected by these debates are often our neighbors, coworkers, friends, family members, veterans, teachers, healthcare workers, and fellow citizens.

And it's about understanding that progress rarely happens because society magically changes. Progress happens because ordinary people decide that exclusion and fear are not acceptable ways to treat one another.

Whether you're celebrating Pride Month, questioning it, or simply trying to understand it better, this episode offers a thoughtful conversation about history, visibility, citizenship, and the importance of recognizing each other's humanity.

Watch now and join the conversation.

What do you think Pride Month represents in 2026?

Hosted by Derrick Holder, retired Marine, Managing Editor of Progressive Indiana Network, and host of Hold 'em Accountable.

No spin.

No talking points.

Just receipts.

You can also ask Alexa to play Hold 'em Accountable with Derrick Holder.

#PrideMonth #LGBTQIA #Equality #CivilRights #HoldEmAccountable

For generations, Americans were promised a simple bargain:

Work hard. Get an education. Stay out of trouble. Show up every day.

In return, you could build a stable life.

Not a mansion.

Not a yacht.

Just stability.

A home. Reliable transportation. Food on the table. A retirement you could count on. The confidence that one unexpected expense wouldn't destroy everything you've worked for.

So what happened?

In this episode of Hold 'em Accountable, we examine one of the defining economic questions of modern America:

Why are so many people working harder than ever while feeling less secure than previous generations?

This isn't a story about laziness.

It isn't a story about people refusing to work.

Americans are working.

Many are working multiple jobs, driving rideshare services after hours, delivering food on weekends, and picking up overtime whenever possible.

Yet millions still find themselves living paycheck to paycheck.

The real story is something deeper.

Over the last several decades, economic risk has quietly shifted from large institutions onto individual workers and families.

Pensions became 401(k)s.

Healthcare costs rose.

Housing costs surged.

College tuition exploded.

Childcare became increasingly unaffordable.

Meanwhile, wages often failed to keep pace with the rising cost of simply existing.

The economy continued growing.

Productivity continued rising.

Corporate profits expanded.

Yet many Americans increasingly felt disconnected from that growth.

In this deep dive, we explore:

✔️ Why a job once provided greater economic security
✔️ The decline of pensions and rise of individual financial risk
✔️ Why housing, healthcare, and childcare costs matter together
✔️ The growing gap between productivity and worker compensation
✔️ Why economic insecurity fuels political anger
✔️ How financial fragility affects families across the country
✔️ The difference between poverty and instability
✔️ What it means when work no longer guarantees stability
✔️ Why millions of Americans feel the system isn't working for them

This episode isn't about nostalgia.

It's about understanding how the relationship between work and stability changed and why that change is shaping American politics, public policy, and everyday life.

Because the most important economic story in America isn't that people stopped working.

It's that people kept working while the connection between work and security became harder to find.

And when enough people stop believing that effort leads to stability, trust in institutions begins to erode.

That affects everything.

Housing.

Healthcare.

Politics.

Retirement.

The future itself.

🎥 Watch now and decide for yourself:

Has the American Dream become harder to reach, or has the math simply stopped working?

🎙️ About Hold 'em Accountable

Hosted by retired Marine Derrick Holder, Hold 'em Accountable takes a deep dive into politics, economics, public policy, and the issues affecting everyday Americans.

No spin.

No talking points.

Just receipts.

You can also ask Alexa to play Hold 'em Accountable with Derrick Holder.

#AmericanDream #CostOfLiving #MiddleClass #EconomicInequality #HoldEmAccountable

You can vote for President.

You can vote for Governor.

You can vote for Congress.

You can even vote for the person deciding whether your county installs another stop sign nobody asked for.

But the company deciding whether your electric bill jumps another $40 this summer?

That decision was largely made long before you moved in.

In this episode of Hold ’em Accountable, we take a deep dive into one of the most powerful systems most Americans rarely think about until the bill arrives: utility monopolies.

Most Hoosiers believe electricity works like a market. Choice. Competition. Capitalism. The best company wins.

The reality is very different.

For most people, electricity is a regulated monopoly. Your provider is determined by where you live. You don't shop for electricity. You inherit it.

And that changes everything.

Electricity is no longer a luxury. It's not even a convenience. It is survival infrastructure.

Heat in the winter.

Air conditioning in the summer.

Medical devices.

Refrigeration.

Internet access.

Remote work.

Modern life itself.

That is why utility monopolies were allowed to exist in the first place. The original bargain was simple: utility companies would receive exclusive service territories, and in exchange, government regulators would ensure public accountability, reliable service, and reasonable rates.

But what happens when the monopoly remains and accountability becomes harder to see?

In this episode, we explore:

⚡ The history of utility monopolies in America
⚡ Why electricity became essential infrastructure
⚡ How monopoly utility territories actually work
⚡ The role of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC)
⚡ Why electric bills seem more confusing every year
⚡ Utility lobbying and political influence
⚡ Rate increases, riders, fees, and cost recovery mechanisms
⚡ Data centers, artificial intelligence, and growing energy demand
⚡ Why consumers often feel powerless inside the system
⚡ What reforms could restore accountability and public trust

We also examine one of the most important questions facing Indiana and the country:

When consumers cannot realistically leave, who protects the public from the monopoly?

Because unlike most industries, utility companies don't compete for customers the traditional way.

Most already have them.

That means accountability depends on regulators, lawmakers, public oversight, and transparency.

And when those systems become too complicated for ordinary people to follow, trust starts to erode.

This isn't an anti-utility episode.

Electric workers matter.

Linemen matter.

Engineers matter.

Reliable infrastructure matters.

The question isn't whether utilities should exist.

The question is whether the public still has a meaningful voice in the systems they depend on every day.

Because this story isn't really about electricity.

It's about power.

Who has it.

Who profits from it.

And who gets left out of the conversation.

🎥 Watch now and decide for yourself:

Has the original bargain between utilities and the public been broken?

🎙️ About Hold 'em Accountable

Hosted by retired Marine Derrick Holder, Hold 'em Accountable takes a deep dive into politics, public policy, history, and the issues affecting everyday Americans.

No spin.

No talking points.

Just receipts.

You can also ask Alexa to play Hold 'em Accountable with Derrick Holder.

#UtilityMonopoly #ElectricBills #IndianaPolitics #EnergyPolicy #HoldEmAccountable

Indiana trusts you to choose the President of the United States.

Governor.
Congress.
State House.
State Senate.

But apparently, you are too fragile to choose your own Attorney General.

In this episode of Hold ’em Accountable, we break down one of the least understood systems in Indiana politics:

The convention delegate system.

For some of Indiana’s most important statewide offices—including Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer, Comptroller, and Lieutenant Governor—primary voters do not directly choose the party nominee.

Delegates do.

That raises a serious question:

Why are Hoosiers trusted to choose the President, but not trusted to choose the Attorney General?

This episode dives into how Indiana’s convention system actually works, who delegates are, why the system still exists, and why it deserves far more scrutiny than it gets.

📍 We break down:

✔️ Which statewide offices are chosen at convention instead of direct primary
✔️ How Indiana delegates are actually selected
✔️ Why most voters do not understand delegate races
✔️ The difference between representation and political gatekeeping
✔️ Why party insiders defend the current system
✔️ How smaller political rooms create institutional comfort
✔️ Why transparency matters in democracy
✔️ Why statewide offices should be chosen directly by voters

This is not an attack on delegates themselves.

In fact, Derrick Holder openly discusses being a delegate at the Democratic State Convention while still criticizing the structure of the system.

Because the issue is not legitimacy.

It is opacity.

Most voters have no idea that delegate races can determine who becomes Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer, Comptroller, or Lieutenant Governor.

That matters.

Especially when offices overseeing elections and public money are being decided through processes most voters could not explain without a whiteboard and a migraine.

This episode also tackles a bigger philosophical question:

America is a constitutional republic built on representation—but does every office really require a political middleman?

Congress? Sure.

Attorney General?

That is a very different argument.

🎯 The core argument is simple:

If an office affects every Hoosier, every voter should have a direct say in who gets on the ballot.

No back rooms.

No insider flowcharts.

No democracy requiring advanced placement coursework just to understand how nominations happen.

Because once the process becomes harder to understand than the office itself, the system stops serving voters and starts serving itself.

And that is where trust dies.

🎥 Watch now and decide for yourself:
Does Indiana’s delegate system protect democracy—or protect insiders?

🎙️ Hold ’em Accountable
Real conversations. No spin. No scripts. Just the questions voters actually care about.

You can also ask Alexa to play Hold ’em Accountable with Derrick Holder.

The votes are in. The signs are coming down. The consultants are sending invoices. And somewhere in Indiana right now, a candidate who spent six straight months posting pancake breakfast selfies is asking the most painful question in politics:

How did I lose?

In this episode of Hold ’em Accountable, we break down the May 5 Indiana primary elections and what they actually mean heading into November.

No spin. No campaign brochure language. No “we’re excited about the path forward,” which is usually political code for “we are absolutely panicking.”

Just reality.

This primary was not subtle.

Republicans held a loyalty test, and Donald Trump graded it personally. Five Trump-backed challengers defeated incumbent Republican state senators who opposed his redistricting push. Seven GOP Senate incumbents lost overall—the highest number since Ballotpedia began tracking in 2010.

That’s not disagreement.

That’s enforcement.

Meanwhile, Democrats told a more complicated story.

In Indiana’s congressional races:

📍 IN-04 – Drew Cox defeated three former congressional candidates, signaling Democratic voters chose the progressive over the familiar name.

📍 IN-05 – State Senator J.D. Ford defeated progressive favorite Jackson Franklin, showing voters prioritized electability against Victoria Spartz over ideological momentum.

📍 IN-06 – Dr. Cinde Wirth stayed the Democratic standard-bearer, proving voters chose conviction over caution.

📍 IN-09 – Brad Meyer defeated former nominee Tim Peck and a competitive field, another progressive win and a rejection of political reruns.

That leaves us with the real Democratic story:

Three progressive wins.
One moderate win.

Not confusion.

Strategy.

In redder districts, voters said:
“If we’re climbing uphill anyway, send someone who actually believes in the climb.”

In battleground districts, they said:
“Winning comes first.”

That debate didn’t end on primary night.

It got louder.

We also break down why your State House and State Senate races matter more than Congress for your actual life:

🏠 Property taxes
🏥 Healthcare access
🏫 School funding
⚡ Utility regulation
⚖️ Reproductive rights
🚔 County offices that can ruin your Tuesday faster than Congress ever will

Because while everyone watches Washington…

your life gets decided in Indianapolis.

This episode covers:

✔️ Trump’s continued control of Indiana Republican primaries
✔️ Democratic turnout and momentum heading into November
✔️ Why moderate Republicans had a very bad night
✔️ Why Democrats still have a messaging problem
✔️ Why local races matter more than most people realize
✔️ What November now looks like for both parties
✔️ Why primaries—not general elections—often decide your future

From now until the end of August, we’re going weekly deep dive mode:

Utility monopolies
Healthcare deserts
Why working full-time still feels like financial parkour
Why childcare costs more than rent
Why poverty somehow comes with a premium subscription fee

And then…Interview-Palooza 2: Electric Boogaloo

Yes, that is still the official title. No, I will not be taking feedback. That means candidate interviews, congressional races, statehouse races, and local offices that actually affect your daily life. No softballs. No campaign brochure questions. Real conversations. Because democracy does not improve when politicians talk at voters. It improves when voters get loud enough that politicians have to answer.

That is the job. That has always been the job.

#IndianaPolitics #IndianaPrimary #Election2026 #HoldEmAccountable #PoliticalAnalysis

Most people see politics on election day.

The signs.
The speeches.
The victory parties.
The concession speeches.

But the real work?

That happens long before the cameras show up.

It happens in donor spreadsheets.
In field plans.
In fundraising call time.
In the quiet panic of first-time candidates wondering if they’re about to lose everything.

In this episode of Hold ’em Accountable, we sit down with Eva Posner, founder and CEO of Evinco Strategies, a fully remote, women-led political consulting firm helping progressive candidates, campaigns, and organizations win.

She’s worked everything from no-budget school board races to million-dollar campaigns with national attention—and she’s here to pull back the curtain on how campaigns actually work.

📍 This is not a candidate interview.

This is the beginning of our transition into advocate interviews and our upcoming special series on Sci-Fi and Politics.

Candidate interviews will return in August—but before we get there, we’re talking to the people behind the machinery of democracy.

And few people understand that machinery better than Eva.

🔎 In this interview, we break down:

🔥 Why politics has a burnout problem
📞 Why candidates hate fundraising and why it matters anyway
🏛️ Why local races matter more than Congress for daily life
💰 Consultant culture and the political industrial complex
🧠 The myth that campaigns are about charisma instead of discipline
📊 Why candidates need infrastructure, not just inspiration
🌾 Why rural voters often feel abandoned by Democrats
🏫 Why school boards, county councils, and state legislatures matter most
⚖️ How movements are built after losing—not just after winning
🗳️ Why democracy depends on organizers, not just elected officials

Eva makes one thing clear:

Politics rewards exhaustion.

Young staffers are expected to burn themselves out.
First-time candidates are sold fantasy instead of reality.
And too often, democracy is being held together by over-caffeinated people on laptops at midnight trying to stop the whole thing from catching fire.

She also drops one of the strongest truths of the interview:

“Democracy isn’t self-cleaning.”

It requires organizers.
Strategists.
Advocates.
People willing to learn the rules well enough to change them.

We also talk about Indiana, red states, Democratic infrastructure, local organizing, consultant failures, and why so many campaigns are built to shout at voters instead of listening to them.

🎯 Whether you’re a first-time candidate, campaign volunteer, activist, or just someone wondering why politics feels broken—this conversation matters.

Because candidates may be the face of the fight.

But the operatives, organizers, and people dragging democracy uphill with both hands?

They’re the spine.

And they deserve to be seen.

👉 Watch the full interview and decide for yourself:
Are we building campaigns… or just renting moments?

🎙️ Coming Next on Hold ’em Accountable:
We’re shifting into advocate interviews and launching a special Sci-Fi & Politics series—where we explore how fiction helps us understand power, democracy, collapse, and survival.

Candidate interviews return in August.

Until then—we go deeper.

#EvaPosner #PoliticalConsulting #CampaignStrategy #Democracy #HoldEmAccountable

Indiana’s 19th Senate District covers the kind of places that built this state.

Bluffton. Hartford City. Portland. Decatur. Southwest Fort Wayne.

Factory towns. Family farms. Friday night football. Church parking lots. Working families trying to hold the line while costs keep rising and opportunities keep shrinking.

In this episode of Hold ’em Accountable, we sit down with Timothy Murphy, Democratic candidate for Indiana State Senate District 19, to talk about jobs, healthcare, education, rural investment—and why he says democracy itself is part of the problem.

His reason for running?

Simple.

For years, no one ran.

No challenger.
No real debate.
No accountability.

And Murphy believes voters deserve better than that.

📍 He’s a pastor, advocate, and community organizer stepping into one of Indiana’s toughest races with a focus on working families, healthcare access, public schools, labor rights, and restoring real democratic participation.

🔎 In this interview, we break down the biggest issues facing District 19:

🏥 Rural hospitals closing services and long drives for emergency care
👶 Lost maternity care and disappearing local birth units
🏫 Public school funding and private/charter school transparency
🌾 Family farms vs. corporate agricultural consolidation
🏭 Manufacturing jobs, unions, and worker protections
📡 Rural broadband and infrastructure investment
🚆 Rail access and regional economic development
🧠 Mental health and addiction treatment gaps
🏠 Population decline and keeping young people in small towns
🗳️ Ballot initiatives and expanding democratic participation in Indiana

Murphy makes a strong case for:

✔️ Increasing funding for rural hospitals and emergency services
✔️ Fully funding public schools before expanding vouchers
✔️ Repealing Right-to-Work laws and strengthening unions
✔️ Protecting small family farms from corporate consolidation
✔️ Expanding mental health services statewide
✔️ Real investment in rural broadband and transportation
✔️ Creating “third places” and stronger local communities
✔️ Giving Hoosiers ballot initiative power to directly shape policy

He also says something that hits hard:

Democracy without choices isn’t much of a democracy.

That’s why he’s running.

Not because it’s easy.
Not because it’s likely.
Because someone has to.

🎯 Then we put it all on the line in Hold ’em or Fold ’em—our rapid-fire segment where candidates take direct positions:

Rural hospitals? Hold.
Public schools before vouchers? Hold.
Medical marijuana? Hold.
Protecting family farms? Hold.
Mental health funding? Absolutely hold.
Property tax relief for homeowners and seniors? Hold.

No scripts.
No dodging.
Just answers.

📍 Whether you live in Adams County, Wells County, Jay County, Blackford County, or anywhere across Indiana, this conversation asks a bigger question:

Who is actually fighting for working families now?

👉 Watch the full interview and decide for yourself:
Is Timothy Murphy the kind of leadership District 19 needs?

🎙️ About Hold ’em Accountable:
Real conversations. No spin. No scripts. Just the questions voters actually care about.

#IndianaPolitics #TimothyMurphy #District19 #WorkingFamilies #RuralHealthcare