As unseen as Gov. Bobby Jindal has been around the State Capitol during the month of May, his name has been run up the flagpole quite a bit as the possible running mate for likely Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Haley Barbour, the former governor of Mississippi, praised Jindal on Tuesday during an appearance on … Continue reading →

So far this legislative session, a majority of the Louisiana House of Representatives looked to Gov. Bobby Jindal’s aides for advice on how to view any leaf that floated onto their desks. Last week’s insurrection over “one-time” money by a group of usual lock-step GOP supporters of Republican Jindal was entertaining on many levels. … Continue reading →

A lot of people have dismissed the “legacy lawsuit” issue in the Louisiana Legislature as a debate between 1-percenters: big landowners versus Big Oil. Lewis Hubbard, who manages a glass shop in Monroe, disagrees. Hubbard was brought into the issue when his elderly parents’ health began failing and he was pressed to help … Continue reading →

State Rep. H. Bernard LeBas says his odyssey, which began with his daughter, probably will end Tuesday when the legislative allies of big business crush his legislation. There, on page 13 of LeBas’s January phone bill, his daughter had asked about a couple of hard-to-fathom lines with charges that added up to $86.60, the … Continue reading →

One of the few agreements across ideological lines last week in the Louisiana Legislature was that the “tone” of discourse had become mean and partisan. Democratic state Sen. Karen Peterson, of New Orleans, took the Senate floor to complain that “strong-arm tactics” — such as derogatory mailers sent to constituents, and personal attacks on … Continue reading →

Similar to the villain in Harry Potter, homosexuality hung over a state Senate committee hearing last week as the concept that “Must Not Be Named.” “No ma’am,” state Sen. A.J. Crowe said, correcting a witness, “this is not about sexual orientation.” His Senate Bill 217, the Slidell Republican said, is but a simple … Continue reading →

Donald T. Carmouche thumbs through a stack of documents until he finds an internal Shell Oil Co. memo from May 26, 1931. The memo discusses seepage from a pit in White Castle used to store tainted water brought up while drilling for oil. He points to the passage that says water is “spreading over … Continue reading →

State Sen. Conrad Appel, R-Metairie, last week wrote a letter later distributed by the Louisiana Republican Party to its members. He asked readers to call their legislators and insist that Gov. Bobby Jindal’s plan to revamp public schools — the bills had not been filed at the time — be approved intact. Appel is … Continue reading →

Gov. Bobby Jindal successfully has replaced the “politics spicy as their gumbo” clichés favored by national media back in the day when they wrote about Louisiana’s quaint ways. Instead of quoting New Orleans cabbies and staffers at French Quarter hotels, giants of conservative journalism — Cal Thomas, Fred Barnes, for instance — appea to … Continue reading →

Constitutional limits are leading to creativity designed to grant tax breaks in a year that restricts them. Legislators agreed to a number of tax breaks last year and flirted with eliminating the state income tax. For the most part, the Louisiana Constitution is standing in the way of renewing those discussions this year. … Continue reading →

Gov. Bobby Jindal says this state needs solutions unique to Louisiana to successfully revamp the way public schools teach 700,000 or so students. “Equal opportunity in education is a core underlying value we all share.” Jindal said in his inaugural speech. He told the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry: “We have a … Continue reading →

Internet blogger C.B. Forgotston spent several minutes of his appearance on “The Jim Engster Show” Thursday complaining about a Jindal deputy criticizing Michael Walker-Jones, of the Louisiana Association of Educators. Trying to explain how parents might go about choosing a school for their children, which is the narrative Gov. Bobby Jindal has chosen to … Continue reading →

What is one sentiment that Abraham Lincoln and Adolph Hitler shared? Both leaders complained that much of their time was taken in dealing with people seeking work in their governments. Supporters seeking offices have long vexed the lives of government officials. And opponents of those officials usually criticize those selections. E.L. … Continue reading →

They’re rolling in from across the state Monday to begin what U.S. Sen. David Vitter, R-La., has called a “brave new world” of a Louisiana run by Republicans. Gov. Bobby Jindal and the other six state government officials elected statewide are GOP. Twenty-four of the state’s 39 senators and 58 of the Louisiana House’s … Continue reading →

State Sen. Yvonne Dorsey last week told Gov. Bobby Jindal that as a child she could see the State Capitol every morning as she rolled out of her house in the Easy Town neighborhood and headed off to school. As the Democratic state senator representing much of inner city Baton Rouge, Dorsey had visited the Governor’s … Continue reading →

Prior to a recent hearing, Commissioner of Administration Paul Rainwater stood in the hallway talking with other Jindal administration aides. Predictably enough, as when wherever bureaucrats congregate, their overheard conversation turned to how the news media picked on them. In this, the Jindal administration is not unique. It’s the old tension between reporters, who want … Continue reading →

Gov. Bobby Jindal signed the last of the bills from the 2011 regular legislative session last week, marking the official end of the season. It’s like the day after Thanksgiving, when all that Pilgrim stuff can be dumped so that halls can be decked for the upcoming Christmas season. In the world of Louisiana politics, ’tis … Continue reading →

Though he faces no well-known challenger, gubernatorial candidate Bobby Jindal has already deployed troops to distribute door hangers throughout several Baton Rouge neighborhoods. All the politicians do it and all their political handouts are similar: Virtues extolled. Successes trumpeted. Gov. Jindal’s campaign flier is no different. The governor is shown smiling. There’s no eye contact, … Continue reading →

This time last year, elected officials were predicting the raft of state was rapidly approaching a fiscal waterfall. That doom was somewhat averted for Fiscal Year 2012, which began Friday and will continue until June 30, 2012. Now, the state’s financial guardians are looking at the next budget — for Fiscal Year 2013 — and their … Continue reading →

Remember the old saw about it’s best not to see how sausages and laws are made? Like car wrecks on the interstate and Hollywood ingénues in court, averting the eyes sometimes is just not an option. One of those moments happened last week when the Louisiana House revived the 4-cent tax renewal on cigarettes that a majority … Continue reading →