By Sydney Byerly
The Indiana Citizen
September 10, 2025
Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith defended himself Tuesday in the face of sharp criticism from conservatives after posting — and then deleting — remarks on social media touting a meeting with Haitian pastors and praising those living or seeking asylum in the state.
The first-term Republican argued in an interview with Fort Wayne’s WOWO that he had not “flip-flopped at all” on his previous description of Haitian immigrants as an “invasion.” But, he said, their presence is the result of former President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.
“They came through legally, so it’s not their fault,” he said. “But pastors have a job to do to care for their people.”
Pressed on why he deleted the original post, Beckwith said it was being “twisted” online.
“The internet is forever. It wasn’t to hide what I said,” he said. “I didn’t want somebody coming to my page who hadn’t followed the story to see something that could be easily taken out of context.”
The controversy began Friday, when Beckwith shared that he had met with a group of Haitian pastors in Marion County. In his post, which has since been deleted, he praised members of the community for their resilience and willingness to work hard, describing them as determined to “assimilate to the American way of life.” He highlighted struggles with natural disasters and violence in Haiti, noting that he’s been told there are more than 40,000 Haitians in the Hoosier state.
“What I saw was not a community asking for a handout, but people determined to work hard, raise their children, and contribute to the Hoosier state,” Beckwith wrote in the since-deleted post.
His post was quickly met with criticism from conservatives, with several right-wing commentators condemning Beckwith’s message. Mike Davis, a prominent Republican lawyer and Trump ally known for his strident social media rhetoric, responded bluntly: “Hell. No. Send. Them. Home.”
Conservative influencer Mike Cernovich also amplified criticism, asking his million followers, “Indiana are you ready for 40,000 Haitians?”
Prominent conservative talk show host Steve Deace went further, saying Beckwith – who Deace interviewed this summer – had misrepresented himself.
“This guy asked to come on my show for well over a year. … Had I known he advocated this, I would’ve never done so,” Deace said, adding that Beckwith’s remarks undercut the hard-line immigration stance he had long claimed to represent.
WIBC host Rob Kendall — who has previously supported Beckwith but recently sparred with him on-air — also questioned the lieutenant governor’s credibility. Referring to his deleted post, Kendall wrote: “If you’ll delete a tweet the whole world saw because it made you look bad, would you have any problem covering up a video that could sink you?”
In another post, Kendall argued that Beckwith acts out of political self-interest. “Micah doesn’t do anything he thinks won’t benefit him,” he said. “Took picture because he believed it would benefit him. Deleted it because he found out it did not.”
The full scope of Haitian migration to Indiana remains unclear. However, court records reviewed by the Indianapolis Star in April show that nearly 17,000 Haitian immigrants in the state had active immigration cases pending.
Between 2019 and 2023, Indiana saw a dramatic rise in its Haitian immigrant population — growing eightfold to around 12,465 individuals — according to an analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. This spike is among the most significant in the nation during that period, reflecting broader shifts in settlement patterns as Haitian immigrants move away from traditional hubs like Florida and New York in search of jobs and affordable housing.
One reason Indiana — and the United States more broadly — has seen an influx of Haitian immigrants is because of Temporary Protected Status, a federal program that shields people from deportation and grants them work permits if their home country is considered unsafe to return to. Haiti first received the designation in 2010 after a devastating earthquake, and it has been extended multiple times since.
In 2023, Biden’s administration expanded TPS protections to cover nationals from 17 countries, including Haiti, which meant that more than 500,000 Haitians were estimated to be eligible for TPS as of last year. Republicans, however, have criticized the program as overbroad and prone to abuse. Earlier this year, the Trump administration moved to revoke temporary protected status for hundreds of thousands of immigrants, including Haitians. A federal judge has since blocked that effort.
Critics accused Beckwith of softening his language toward Indiana’s growing Haitian community. Beckwith, however, insisted during a live interview on Fort Wayne’s Morning News Tuesday morning, that he hasn’t shifted his position.
“I say what I say, because I believe what I say. And this is no different. I haven’t flip-flopped at all,” Beckwith said, arguing that his original post had been misconstrued.
According to Beckwith, the point of his deleted post was to urge local Haitian pastors to lean on their church communities for support rather than government programs.
“They’re here legally under TPS status. And I don’t blame them, because Biden opened up the door. They came through legally, so it’s not their fault. But pastors have a job to do to care for their people,” he said.
Beckwith claimed that news organizations had not contacted his office before reporting on the controversy. The Indiana Citizen reached out to Beckwith’s office for comment Monday, but did not receive a response.
The controversy has sparked broader doubts about Beckwith’s political future. On WIBC, Indianapolis radio host Tony Katz declared that Beckwith’s political career is finished. Katz argued that the lieutenant governor has repeatedly damaged his credibility with careless statements — citing not only the Haitian controversy but also earlier remarks such as his defense of the Three-Fifths Compromise.
“Beckwith keeps thinking he’s smarter than the room, and he’s not,” Katz said. “This latest fiasco proves he can’t be trusted with higher office. His political career is over.”
Not all conservatives condemned Beckwith. Stu Ellis — husband of Beckwith’s chief of staff, Sherry Ellis — defended him online, blasting critics and the press.
“Before you post from the lying Indiana media you should probably do some simple google searches. Lt. Governor Micah Beckwith has been the only one in the state shining a light on it for a long time!” Ellis wrote, sharing a clip of Beckwith calling for the deportation of Haitian refugees in 2024.
Ken Colbert, a conservative activist and social media figure out of Evansville, said Beckwith was merely “acknowledging the problem” of Haitian immigrants in Indiana and prioritizing “Hoosiers over illegals.” However, Colbert questioned why Beckwith had turned off comments on his post and later deleted it, hinting that the move undermined his message.
Many accused Beckwith of reversing course on immigration, pointing to his past statements about Haitian refugees. During an October 2024 appearance on Fort Wayne’s WOWO radio, he described Haitian resettlement in Logansport as a burden on public services, claiming that schools, hospitals and emergency response agencies were being stretched thin by “people who should not be here.”
“This is an invasion, this is not immigration,” Beckwith said at the time. He urged local officials to work with the state to identify and remove Haitians who, in his words, “should not be in our community.”
That rhetoric came as Logansport, along with other Midwestern cities such as Springfield, Ohio, became a flashpoint in the national immigration debate heading into the 2024 election, which saw Donald Trump return to the White House.
In the Fort Wayne radio interview Tuesday, Beckwith said he blamed federal policymakers for the influx of Haitian migrants.
“The Haitian community, they’re good people … but that doesn’t mean they’re not draining our resources,” he said. “The Biden administration created an invasion into our nation. That’s where the blame lies.”
Sydney Byerly is a political reporter who grew up in New Albany, Indiana. Before joining The Citizen, Sydney reported news for TheStatehouseFile.com and most recently managed and edited The Corydon Democrat & Clarion News in southern Indiana. She earned her bachelor’s in journalism at Franklin College’s Pulliam School of Journalism (‘Sco Griz!).
The Indiana Citizen is a nonpartisan, nonprofit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed and engaged Hoosier citizens. We are operated by the Indiana Citizen Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity. For questions about the story, contact Marilyn Odendahl at marilyn.odendahl@indianacitizen.org.
