Did he run for public office as a Democrat or was he just another one of those guys trying to climb through the chairs until it was his turn?
BTW, with a real RINO in the mix, you can take a look at him and compare him to the Leftwingtards so many here mistakenly call RINO.
We really have to get this term under control ~ if the politician was NEVER A DEMOCRAT (or other major third party member) he or she CANNOT EVER BE A RINO.
That way we separate concern over party politics from concern over ideological difference.
Lugar is a Leftwingtard according to present Republican and Conservative positions. At the same time he has always been a Republican and has never run for office as a Democrat.
When it comes to highway right of way scandals, that's traditional partisan, bipartisan, nonpartisan ~ and conducted more in the open that most people realize.
The day they say "BYPASS" means you are about 2 years too late to get in on the deal ~ but that doesn't mean a bypass is bad. They are usually good.
BTW, classically bypasses were opposed mostly by folks with businesses in the old downtown centers ~ so they'd put up the hue and cry and claim the highway project was corrupt just so they could keep all those cars driving past their store where they'd maybe stop and buy something.