Louisiana Politics: New Orleans Mayor Polls, Turf Wars; Jindal And The Superdome Suite

New Orleans Election:

There is an ongoing debate whether the recent WWL poll which has Mitch Landrieu ahead by 31 points over the second place choice was fair. The focus

of that debate has been on the relationship between the President of Clarus and Mary Landrieu. The President of Clarus is Ron Faucheaux who is the former Louisiana State Representative and who has national credentials in the area of politics. He also happened to be the chief of staff for Mary Landrieu a few years ago and according to the Times Picayune, was the manager of Mary Landrieu’s US Senate campaign last year. In my column yesterday, to be fair to everyone, I also mentioned the past relationship between Faucheaux and Mary Landrieu.

Yesterday, I received many phone calls and emails from various people criticizing the choice by WWL in selecting Clarus because of the past relationship of Mr. Faucheaux and Mary Landrieu.

So, I ask--wasthe poll biased?

I believe: No. Yes, there is a perception of bias simply due to the former relationship. But, I personally have found WWL to be extremely fair and one of the leading stations in the nation. I feel many viewers will agree with me as they have been the most popular television station for years.

Also, I have known Mr. Faucheaux and his reputation for years. I believe he is a consummate professional and is highly regarded in many political circles.

There is a second related question, was the poll accurate? I have no doubt that if you ask some of the candidates or even some of their supporters, it was very accurate. However, if you were to ask some of the candidates (or their supporters) whose campaigns were hurt by the poll, they would have a different opinion.

I would assume that one of those individuals who would question the poll’s accuracy is John Georges. Yesterday, he produced an internal poll that was taken during the period of January 13-14 which showed he was in second place. The Clarus poll was taken January 13 through Janurary 17.

I have heard people discount the accuracy of internal polls. Without doubt, if a poll is produced to create distortions or if it merely a push poll, then it is totally fair to reject the poll. However, polls are very expensive and often candidates will take polls for their own internal reasons to see how their campaigns are doing in any given point of time. It does not help the candidate at all to get bogus or inaccurate numbers from their own internal polls if they are trying to accurately judge their own campaigns.

Often, a poll will ask questions to see how people would respond if they were educated about certain facts. I call those poll “educational” as long as they are not push polls—meant to convince a constituency in favor of a candidate or issues and/or to convince a constituency against a candidate or issue.

Normally the candidate uses the “educational” polls to educate themselves to see how various samples would respond if they were aware of certain assumptions or facts.

Today, I asked Georges whether the poll which he released contained any other questions that could be considered “push” or “educational” He told me that the poll he released contained none of those questions and that he just wants to know how he is doing compared to the other candidates and just wants to understand the demography and their candidate preferences. He also said that generally, the differences in polls that are meant to be accurate can differ if they are taken in different time frames or if the sample is different.

Yes, it would be difficult to claim that Georges’s poll is as recent as that by Clarus. Georges will have this week’s findings next week. I am sure we will all be interested in discovering how his polls and other polls differ with that of Clarus or with each other’s polls as this election moves forward down the stretch.

Below is what John Georges has told me is the findings of the poll which Georges disclosed yesterday:

In an election for Mayor held today, which of the following would you favor? (ROTATE ORDER) The Democrats are (RANDOM ORDER) John Georges, Troy Henry, Mitchell “Mitch” Landrieu, James Perry, and Nadine Ramsey. The Republicans are (ROTATE ORDER) Robert “Rob” Couhig and Thomas A. Lambert. Those with no party affiliation are (RANDOM ORDER) Jonah Bascle, “Manny” Chevrolet-Bruno, “Jerry” Jacobs and Robert P. Rome.

JANUARY 13-14 TRIAL HEAT
	Total Voters	African-American	Caucasian & Other
Mitchell "Mitch" Landrieu	37%	32%	44%
John Georges	12%	10%	14%
Troy Henry	6%	10%	1%
James Perry	4%	5%	3%
Robert "Rob" Couhig	3%	1%	5%
Thomas A. Lambert	2%	0%	5%
Nadine Ramsey	2%	2%	1%
Jonah Bascle	0%	0%	1%
"Manny" Chevrolet-Bruno	0%	0%	1%
"Jerry" Jacobs	0%	0%	1%

Uncertain	33%	39%	25%

VOTER AGE
	Total Voters	African-American	Caucasian & Other
18-29 Years	10%	10%	10%
30-44 Years	19%	17%	23%
45-59 Years	36%	37%	36%
60 & Over	34%	36%	30%

ETHNIC BACKGROUND
	Total Voters	African-American	Caucasian & Other
African-American	60%	100%	0%
White	38%	0%	93%
Hispanic	1%	0%	2%
Other	2%	0%	5%

COUNCIL DISTRICT
	Total Voters	African-American	Caucasian & Other
District A	24%	17%	34%
District B	19%	18%	21%
District C	23%	24%	23%
District D	18%	21%	13%
District E	16%	20%	10%

Turf Wars

Based upon information I am obtaining from the various campaigns, one of the developments in this election are the liklihood of political "turf wars" occurring between various political groups loyal to different neighborhoods, philosophies, politicians and opportunities. The galactic change in power in the New Orleans elections involves major city contracts. There is a tremendous amount at stake for individuals, businesses, and even political organizations of all types, races and ethnicities. So, how does any of this affect the average voter? In my view, we should consider turf wars especially involving government contracts when we read about endorsements by individuals and by organizations. Often, I believe there is much more behind some of these endorsements that meet the eye and that includes some of those organizations that many of us hold out as being above reproach.

Jindal and the Saints Game

The Louisiana Democratic Party released the following late this morning:

The Suite Life of Bobby Jindal

Ahead of Sunday’s NFC Championship, Louisiana Democrats call on governor to release guest list for taxpayer-funded Superdome luxury suite

“(Baton Rouge) Today, the Louisiana Democratic Party called on Governor Bobby Jindal to disclose a list of guests invited to watch Sunday’s NFC Championship game in Jindal’s taxpayer-funded luxury suite at the Superdome in New Orleans.

Jindal, who said he prefers to watch games at home to be close to the bathroom, will watch the Saints take on the Minnesota Vikings for a chance to play in the Super Bowl from his private luxury suite on Sunday. Jindal said he hopes it will be a “magical experience,” the Baton Rouge Advocate reported this week.

The taxpayer-funded luxury suite, located next to Saint’s owner Tom Benson’s box, seats 30 people. Jindal told the Advocate he plans to take his children, but he and his official spokesman declined to identify any other guests.

“This should be a no-brainer for a Governor who ran for office on a commitment to bring transparency to Louisiana government,” said Louisiana Democratic Party Chair Michael McHale. “Louisianans have the right to know if the luxury Suite we pay for is being used to entertain fat cat corporate lobbyists or to wine and dine Jindal’s campaign contributors.”

McHale called on Governor Jindal to release a full list of guests invited to the taxpayer-funded luxury suite and to disclose any public expenses associated with Sunday’s football game.

“Who dat gonna be in the governor’s taxpayer-funded suite?” McHale asked.

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Background: "Jindal mum on guests for Saint's game," The Advocate, 1/20/10.

Upon receipt, I sent the criticism to Governor Jindal’s office for a response and explained that I would be publishing the information after one-half hour. “

I believe that in this case the Democrats have a valid point. We all remember the controversy associated with his staff using tickets to the Hannah Montana concert. We also recall the debate over government officials using tickets to games, concerts and other events and the restrictions the legislature placed upon the use of those rights of passage.

My personal belief is the Governor and high members of his staff should have a right to use an event if it is for economic development purposes in trying to attract business or if the major reason the Governor or staff is using tickets or a tax-payer funded suite is to primarily advance the state’s cause and not one’s personal agenda.

Also, if other government officials such as the mayor of a competing team’s city or that state’s governor is attending a game, it would certainly be appropriate for Louisiana’s own Governor to be host those political dignitaries. It is also “fair game” for the public to know who would be invited to the event so we can determine if the game is being used for political or governmental purposes.

Governor JIndal’ss media staff did not respond with the time restraints, nor have they responded after my email. In fairness, normally, they do respond timely and it would be unfair to assume they are not willing to disclose this information.

So, I hope that Governor Jindal’s office does reveal this information to the public. Governor Jindal has always preached transparency in government. This is a good opportunity for him to live up to his worthy goals.

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