It is time to remind our politicians that the people of Louisiana are not stupid. Voters in this state may make poor political decisions and elect the wrong people to office, but they are very politically savvy. The people of Louisiana understand when politicians are not telling the truth. For example, despite what is said by Senator McCain or Governor Jindal, people know exactly what is going on this weekend in Arizona.
According to Governor Jindal, he is going to tout recovery issues with the Arizona Senator. The McCain campaign claims that the visit is purely “social” in nature. All of this is pure and unadulterated malarkey.
Although there will be socializing and the issue of the recovery may be discussed, there is only one reason for the trip to Arizona this weekend, to determine who John McCain wants to pick as his running mate. The Arizona Senator is looking for the best match and he is using the weekend to “interview” Jindal, Florida Governor Charlie Crist and former presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
Could it be just a coincidence that this social includes three men who are top vice presidential contenders? Of course not, the vice presidency is the only reason why these candidates have been invited by McCain to the Arizona compound. Even former Louisiana Governor and McCain confidante Buddy Roemer admits that Jindal is on the “short list” to be selected as the GOP vice presidential nominee.
I just wish that Governor Jindal would level with the voters of Louisiana. He is obviously interested in pursuing the vice presidency. Otherwise, he would not be granting so many national interviews to improve his national profile. If uninterested in the position, he would not be spending the weekend with John McCain.
There are many problems that need to be addressed in Louisiana, demanding the full time attention of Governor Jindal. He is a talented, capable and ambitious leader who should put all of his considerable talents to use to benefit our state. Pursuing the vice presidency is strictly a personal quest for political advancement. Although most politicians would do the same thing, many people thought that Jindal was somehow different and would put the people of Louisiana first on his priority list.
In my view, at age 36 and after only four months as Governor of Louisiana, it is way too soon for Jindal to be considered for a position that is only a heartbeat away from the most important job in the world. Being considered is quite flattering and this courtship has obviously interested the Governor, but while this process unfolds the unfinished business of Louisiana remains. There is much work to be done to make this state a better place to live, work and raise a family. The Governor should focus his full attention on the important matters of the home front. It is more challenging than anything he will face as Vice President of the United States.
Jeff Crouere is a native of New Orleans, LA and he is the host of a Louisiana based program, “Ringside Politics,” which airs at 7:30 p.m. Fri. and 10:00 p.m. Sun. on WLAE-TV 32, a PBS station, and 7 till 11 a.m. weekdays on WGSO 990 AM in New Orleans and the Northshore. For more information, visit his web site at www.ringsidepolitics.com. E-mail him at jeff@ringsidepolitics.com.
Strongconcrete, looks like an excellent product! The Army Corp of Engineers should be all over this. A lot of people don't stop to think that if the west side of the 17th St. Canal levee breaks Jefferson Parish gets destroyed. WE need to hold the Corp accountable for not meeting the standards of the National Flood Act of 1968. Band-aids don't work on the long term. Most of us are here for the long term! Looking back like I said before I learned alot. One of the biggest lessons is that the average Joe forgets easily. Life has become very complicated. The ones in power love this. They hope to keep it that way. Governemnt is a large conglomeration if beureacracy (sp) with people picking not only our pockets but each others! The average Joe doesn't even want to deal with it. We'll complain, in the end nothing gets done, nothing changes. As much as I want to continue in my effort to bring about positive change I will be hindered by the lack of funds. I spent a lot of personal funds this time and not being rich I cannot expect my family to continue to sacrifice. They would but it's not fair to them. I'll bide my time watching and learning. Meeting people and listening. No one knows what the future holds but we can rest assure it will get here soon enough! Written by Tony G
on 5/28/2008
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Well Tony it breaks down to one thing….M – O – N – E – Y……………… No dough, no show, and no go…… Campaign reform is what is needed…. And there is a starting point…..for that to occur….. Right now it is basically a two party system. Or, either U izz or U izzn’t….. I believe that all money spent on campaigning, newspaper, billboards, television, etc., etc., etc. should be split evenly between all candidates. In other words, if the dems raise $100, and the repubs raise $95 and independents raise $22 each, all the money is gathered together, and split evenly for distribution to the individual campaigns… Secondly, word for word, line by line media coverage,,, EQUAL airtime, EQUAL coverage period….. Understand the Media is simply on big corporate hype anymore…… The failure of the press is the failure of the people……. Fail to get past this, and we won’t get past 2nd base…. We will simply be stuck with primped and preened ‘cultivated’ politicians…. I would hope that I am wrong, but Piyush seems to be a perfect example of this kind of phenomena. I am sure he is simply a swell guy, I am sure his wife luvs him, his children luvs him, his momma and dada luvs him…. And on and on and on….. Me, unless I was wanting to make a commercial, I wouldn’t have any use for him in any of my endeavors, because there are at least 500 other people out there who are, if not more qualified just as qualified as he is to handle what ever job I would need done, and they are every bit as qualified as he to be Guv as well……….. So the question has to be asked, who qualified him? The voters? Obviously not…… So the vote isn’t at issue…. Experience? Obviously not, he really doesn’t have any so to speak of in retrospect. Surely no ironclad results to speak of…. So in reality it is exposure yes, and for experience, well not really…… Ahhhh,,,, so what qualified him? Money and media exposure…. It has been mentioned, but not really pursued but a real litmus test for Piyush would have been and still is www.strongconcrete.com........ There, on that website are hundreds of millions of dollars worth of provisions of aid for the state of Louisiana….. If he can’t make that happen, then what good is he as a steward to his constituency, and their tax dollars???? Even more important, why put additional powers and responsibilities under his charge? And as long as the media doesn’t put this question out, then it never has an opportunity to qualify as a valid point…. I would suppose where the media is concerned, death and destruction on a constant basis generates more interest and advertisement dollars than sleepy, sound, prudent approaches that enhance the safety and prosperity of the citizens that would utilize those types of effects……. So there you go… Media exposure, a lack of money…… God Bless U Tony G. Keep on trying…….. Hopefully things will change.. But my question for you at this point in time Tony G. would be this………. What have you done where the subject of strongconcrete could be concerned?????? Perhaps therein is a possible partial answer to one of your perceived problems….. Or perhaps it would merely exacerbate them even farther… My opinion is that it is more important to have the right answers than be liked by the right people… And the right people? Well they only display or are a product of opinion…. Plain and simple as that. And opinions, much like the weather can change without notice…… Written by
on 5/28/2008
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I think it would be wise to look for Strongconcrete solutions and advocate Strongconcrete answers... But that is me... Always focused on my own self interests instead of trying to do what I can do for my neighbors and Louisiana in general to the extent that my abilities can or will allow.... Written by
on 5/28/2008
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I think you're right on mortimer. Written by Tony G
on 5/27/2008
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I admit that I am going off the thread on what I am going to mention, bit I must. I see signs popping up for Leone to run for some office against Appel. In my opinion Leone had a perfect opportunity to attack Broussard, however to quote the Times Picayune "Leone hardly attacked Brousard" in their contest. Now we hear bits of Broussard's deposition that he says he knew nothing about evacuating the pump operators, when he previously and numerous times said that he would do it again. That lack of aggressiveness by Leone will not get my vote for anything after he ran what I would consider such a lack luster campaign. In my opinion he showed no willingness to fight or to bring up relevan issues. I would not want someone that I would consider a paper tiger in any office. Written by Anonymous
on 5/27/2008
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Tony, I admire what you've done and what you stand for. But I think we recognize the fact that nothing short of a revolution can fix Louisiana. Generations of corruption and populist politics have made us incapable of self-government. Our expectations are ridiculously low or entirely self-serving. Our citizens are thrilled to shake hands with politicians that I consider the worst kind of criminals. The press provides photo ops and exposure to the pols for their insulting, sophomoric and arrogant antics. And there is no remotely viable movement or effort in the state to address these problems. The game is over for Louisiana. Naive cheerleaders can attack me for that sentiment, and try to fool themselves into thinking we have a chance. But success stories in this state are in spite of our "leaders", and are facing higher and higher obstacles every day. Written by mortimer
on 5/27/2008
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Well mortimer, I like that name. I can agree with almost everything you said. There's no arguement here. I'm a competitive person, I don't like giving up, however I feel we're staring at the perverbial GAME OVER. It's like bailing water out of a sinking boat. At some point you realize it's leaking faster than you can bail, you know it's over. I never thought of myself as the one who could save the system, only as one who could make the first step. If it meant fighting everyday so be it. I believe there are some good people in government but nobody wants to step out first. It may be a naive view but if we don't try it will certainly be over and these days we view as bad will be the good old days. Not that bad at all.
In these last two elections I have done things I never thought I ever would have done in my lifetime. Debated people much smarter than I. I held my own and earned their respect. Talked to groups of people from 20 to 500. Been on radio and TV. I realized that these politicans are no better than me. I could hang with them and in many cases provide better answers to the questions, no spin or rhetoric. We can only hope that someone will come along and start the reformation before it's to late. Personally I feel it's almost to late. We (the American people) have only ourselves to blame. Written by Tony G
on 5/26/2008
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There I gave you a name. Now I'm so much more official than a blank was. I hope that makes all of you feel better. I have first hand experience with the sleaze machine that is democratic party politics in Louisiana. I was forced to watch one of the godfathers of that vile system operate on a daily basis. And anyone who thinks that politicians are all alike is ignorant of the realities of democratic party politics in this state. I'm not praising Jindal as some great savior. Even if he was a savior, he'd have to start with a purge not seen since Stalin to clean up the system. I'm not content with the status quo, but I really don't think Louisiana can be saved. We've been screwed so bad for so long, the recovery process is gigantic. And the politicians who should lead the recovery not only dug the hole, but they will not change things, because the status quo gives them power. They will not educate the ignorant citizens or they'll lose their voter base. They will not end corruption, because they and their friends have gotten incredibly wealthy from it. They will not fight crime, because the criminals are their people. Yeah, a guy like Tony G is the kind of politican we need. But face the fact that a guy like him has a snowball's chance of hell of getting elected to anything when he's fighting the corrupt system. And if he miraculously won an election, his efforts would be so crushed by the system that he'd be less than invisible. Unions and blacks and teachers will pick a democrat who promises them the most and vote for them regardless of anything else. Religious conservatives will do the same, but on the opposite end of the spectrum. Millions more won't vote at all. So our elections will always be determined by self-serving greedy people who won't even get what they were promised, but will do it again the next time and the next. Written by mortimer
on 5/26/2008
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Well unnamed penman, if I thought Louisiana wasn't worth fighting for I would have remained anonymous like you stayed home and watched American Idol. Whether I get elected or not is irrelevant. With the crop of politicos out there Louisiana will not changed. One group paints from the floor up and the other from the ceiling down. Bottom line we (you, me, amd the rest of Louisiana) continue to be the losers. Somehow I get the feeling that's okay with you. I'll tell you chief it's not okay with me. If you don't like somebody expressing their views and opinions on your hero I suggest you find a site that is mesmorized and dazzled by his fast talking rhetoric. There are far too many people here that can see through it. Written by Tony G
on 5/26/2008
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As to the Good Ol' Boys, Jindal is just another ONE OF THEM. Mike Foster, good ol' boy himself, sponsored him in long ago as a member of the club. He's just packaged a little differently and he's more on the young and ambitious side. The ethics reform was just a sham. It was for people who don't know better and won't ask questions to blindly consume and be impressed with. None of it applied to the governor's office and the secrecy of this administration is the wrong way to go if what you're really trying to prove and demonstrate is accountability and transparency. If La. wanted someone who was not one of the good ol' boy network, well, they had exactly such a leader in Blanco. Her difficulty was that she was too honest to not take the fall in an overwhelming situation and when many were never going to give her much of a chance and much benefit of the doubt anyway. No, the people would rather have an ex-consultant whose ties to the Foster administration are clear to see. What's even more troubling, moreover, is how much less than competent are many of the people Jindal has chosen to have working for him. Is he more concerned about spin and packaging himself than anything else? It sure seems that way. Written by Richard P.
on 5/26/2008
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All of you Jindal critics are missing one critically important point. Without Jindal, the good old boys of Louisiana would be running rampant with billions of dollars. Nothing is more wasteful, corrupt, counterproductive, or just plain pi$$es me off as that thought. Put Landrieu or Boasso, or Georges or any democrat in the governor's mansion and we're full speed ahead toward finding the new bottom of the barrel. Alario and his a$$hole buddies have driven us down to third world status for decades. Losing Jindal now will put us back into that death spiral.
And anyone who thinks a Tony G can ever get elected in this state (including himself) should buy lots and lots of lottery tickets, because their belief in fantasies is delusional. I showed an out-of-state guest a bumper sticker in a gift shop that said "Louisiana - third world and proud of it." She's a federal employee who said the proper term is "developing nation." I don't think we qualify to use the politically correct term yet, and if we replace Jindal with a democrat, I know we won't. Written by
on 5/26/2008
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The driving fact that nails this square in the head is that Jindal keeps telling people this is just a social event. The man is not a straight shooter. He never has been. Look at what he campaigned on and what he is doing. Gee, I think I wrote an editorial reply on this early last year. Soembody was trying to cannonize Jindal. I had enough of it. I looked at him objectively and saw exactly what people are seeing now. I was chastized for it by Republicans. That's okay, I learned from a smart fellow that used to come here, study your opponnets. LKearn their strengths and weaknesses. I did. I just didn't have the money to point out his weaknesses on a statewide effort. Over the decades we have become insulant to crooked politicans, half truths, and broken campaign promises. Just a fact of life.
I'm tired of it and refuse to standy by quietly.
Good article Jeff. Written by tony g
on 5/25/2008
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Jindal=a lot less than what meets the eye. Did he really do such a great job at DHH or with the Univ. of La. system? Was he really an outstanding congressman? How about these first four months as governor? Was the ethics reform all that meaningful or was it more just for show? What's not in question is how ambitious and career-focused Jindal is. The ethics reform package was more for public consumption and especially out-of-state consumption than for anything else. Whether it helps or does not make a difference in how things actually operate in practice and what long-term impact it has on the state probably is of little concern to Jindal. He wanted packaging for the product, that product being his career, and he got it. He toed the party line heavily in Congress and now wants his reward. Of course, all the right-wingers are praising him, however the praise he gets is way out of proportion to his actual accomplishments. The irony is when it's a Democrat being a career politician nothing could be more vile, more evil, more deserving of attack. Now that it's one of their own then it's wondrous to behold. The sad thing is that the state did not need this but rather someone who could and would place the state's interests first. Mitch has been an ambitious career politician, too, but not nearly like Jindal -- this guy is unprecedented -- and would probably not neglect the state or the actual working of government nearly so much, IF this comes about, which is doubtful anyway. The intriguing thing may be, then, if what's most likely to happen does happen, i.e. McCain chooses someone else, then Jindal will have to settle down and actually do some governor work purely for its own sake. He said that he has the job he wants. Let him prove it. Written by Richard P.
on 5/24/2008
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Yes, we are fools, including me, we voted for Jindal for Governor. What he has said that he would do is the exact opposite from what he has done thus far. If he says that he will not accept the vice presidential nomination, you can expect him to follow his pattern of behavior and accept the nomination. BOOK IT! Written by Anonymous
on 5/24/2008
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So a Louisiana Governer is in the lime light not due to impending impeachement or incarceration?
WOW......THAT'S DIFFERENT. Written by Abitofachange
on 5/24/2008
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Jindasl is an ambitious young man with a plan and he wants to be presiedent. All these other political positions are just temporary stop offs. Bad for La and good for Jindal. But I have not seen any politicians give up sometihng for the good of La. Let's be realistic. they are politicians. Sure he wants to be VP? Written by Bobby
on 5/23/2008
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Oh good lord, Wendy and Sharon on the soap box..................... Written by
on 5/23/2008
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Just remember, if, and it is a BIG if, an old man with a history of cancer is elected president, who ever is V.P. on election night will be President in less than 4 years.
Written by T. Lee Horne, III
on 5/23/2008
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Jeff,
Governor Jindal's past job "track record" is of a young, fast-rising political appointee who has spent less than two years in positions such as Secretary of DHH under Gov. Foster and less than two terms in Congress, his first elected position. The impression one gets is of someone who's very bright and gets bored easily with long-term political work. He may protest about how he has the job he wants, and really likes being Governor, but he's only four months into his first term in office. As we saw with Gov. Blanco, Gov. Foster, and others, being Louisiana's governor means tangling with Louisiana legislators who won't always buy into such strange notions as ethics reform, new school voucher plans, or other programs no one in the Legislature really likes or has heard much about.
For all we know, (given his office's penchant for secrecy and working behind closed doors) being a governor for four months may be all he can handle, before he gets tired of Louisiana "politics" and is ready for a new challenge. Written by Wendy King
on 5/23/2008
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Didn't even read your article, but the headline called for a post. Louisiana has the most stupid voters on the planet. I'm sure everyone has their own proof of that statement, but let's use Edwin Edwards, Ray Nagin, Bob Odom, as starters. I know that the political proof will run the gamut from liberal to conservative, but if you can show me a democratic entity with voters more stupid than this state, I'll kiss your a$$. Written by
on 5/23/2008
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Jindal for Vice-Pres. '08 and President 2012! Jindal is ambitious and well-financed, if Louisiana can ride his coattails, then the better for us! As I once said long ago after Lincoln's War, all power & money proceeds from Washington, "State's rights were lost at Appomattox!" Let's just hope that the boy-wonder does not forget which State gave him his platform and soapbox, from which to spring into the national spotlight. He can repay Louisiana by obtaining a small share of the Federal pork projects that Texas has been stealing since the days of LBJ. How about a Jindal International Airport in Louisiana to rival Bush's in Houston for starters? Written by R. E. Lee
on 5/23/2008
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Jeff, I think that as of now, this is much ado about nothing. It is a great thing for Louisiana Governor to be on the National Stage. Listen to the media talk about all his abilities and the positive press he is getting for himself and the State. Don't you think that businesses are paying attention too? I agree with Jindal that it would be not be polite to refuse something that has not been offered. I think Jindal is too young and still too inexperienced for the VP post for someone McCain's age. Still it is flattering to be thought of in those terms. Let's let this play out. I think Jindal knows what he can accomplish and how far it can get him if he is successful in Louisiana. My concern is that seeing how much National attention he is getting that the Democrats in Baton Rouge will do whatever they can to prevent him from being successful in turning Louisiana around. They may not be willing to risk a successful and rising star in a Republican. Let me tell you if it were Mitch Landrieu being talked about as a possible VP, you would be attacked for trying to prevent him for political success. Written by Sharon
on 5/23/2008
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It is time to remind our politicians that the people of 
