The show that is called the national party conventions is now over.  And a show is just what it was.  The Democrats and the Republicans each have their candidates for President and Vice-President.  The conventions are not designed to convince the convention goers whom to vote for.  They already know how they are going to vote.  As a decision making process the conventions are a thing of the past.  The outcome is already determined.  Rather it is a huge campaign commercial designed to sway voters to their side.  In reality the conventions don’t succeed at doing that either, but they are still a show nonetheless.

Hurricane Isaac has moved on.  Many people were lulled to sleep by the media and led to believe that Isaac would be a wind and rain event, not too bad by tropical storm and Category 1 hurricane standards.  Little did anyone realize that Isaac would not only move onshore just to the west of Greater New Orleans but that he would cause deadly flooding and extensive wind damage for so many people.  Isaac liked South Louisiana a little too much and hung around far too long. 

Pending the nominating conventions, the race for the White House is all but official.  It will be Obama/Biden verses Romney/Ryan, and based on the Democratic response to the Ryan choice for Vice-President the race will continue its negative tone.

Mitt Romney has selected Paul Ryan, a Republican Congressman from Wisconsin, as his running mate.  The choice is being applauded in conservative circles and criticized by Democrats.   Surprise.  Surprise.  It gives Romney a conservative running mate who makes conservatives more comfortable with him at the top of the ticket.  It gives democrats another target to shoot at.

He said it, but did he mean it? 

“If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business, you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen.”  (President Barack Obama as quoted by the Washington Post, July 18, 2012.) 

The summer heat continues and the race for the White House drags on.

So far President Obama says vote for me because the other guy is rich; and the other guy, Mitt Romney, says vote for me because the other guy is too liberal and doesn’t understand how the economy and American businesses work.  Caught in the middle are the American people who are learning little from either candidate other than how bad each of them is.

The United States Supreme Court has spoken.  As many people thought the personal mandates contained in Obama Care which require all Americans to buy health insurance by 2014 was held unconstitutional under the Commerce Clause.  But the court, through Chief Justice John Roberts, threw everyone back on their heels declaring the mandate constitutional anyway saying the fee is really a tax; and, since the federal government has the power to tax as it sees fit, the personal mandate is constitutional.  Justice Anthony Kennedy, disagreeing with the majority opinion, spoke from the bench saying that the government structured the mandate as a penalty and not a tax.

These past few weeks have been busy for President Obama.  Between jet setting across the country to attend fundraisers with Hollywood’s wealthiest and most elite to bypassing the Constitution and making new law on immigration, Barack Obama has been one busy man.  Here are some of the highlights.

Obama Care.  The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on the constitutionality of Obama Care later this month.  The consensus is that the mandates contained in the law will be struck down as a violation of the U. S. Constitution.  A healthy number of legal scholars and court observers believe that the entire law will be held unconstitutional.  Regardless of how it rules the consequences of the court’s decision are huge.

The voters of Wisconsin have spoken.  Gov. Scott Walker becomes the first governor in the history of our nation to survive a recall.  Democrats and union leaders say it means little while Republicans hail Walker’s victory as a sign for things to come in November.

It’s a major news story in New Orleans.  The Times-Picayune will cease its daily publishing schedule for a three day a week printed newspaper.  The top staffers are leaving and staff reporters will be cut dramatically according to published accounts.  The paper will now focus on its online publication.

Last November longtime St. Tammany Assessor Patricia Core narrowly lost her bid for re-election to Abita Springs Mayor Louis Fitzmorris.  Rather than having a smooth transition from one administration to another, the media is reporting the transition isn’t going very well with each side blaming the other for a lack of cooperation.

The real problem between Core and Fitzmorris is the extended lame duck period.  The general election was held on November 19, 2011, and the date upon which the newly elected Assessor takes office is January 1, 2013. 

Why such a long time?  You may recall that prior to the early 1970’s Louisiana elections were held under a closed primary system.  Separate Democrat and Republican Party elections with run-offs were held followed by a General Election where those winners, a Democrat and a Republican, along with Independent candidates faced off against each other.  The candidate with the most votes was elected.