Hypocritic oath: knock stimulus, take credit for the check
Gov. Bobby Jindal apparently needs to get his story straight. He opposed the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act — the Obama administration’s “stimulus plan” — from the get-go, assuming the posture of fiscal responsibility with several other GOP governors this spring, and he’s been touring the state of late telling communities small and large that we don’t do things in Louisiana like they do in Washington. All while the governor has been passing out stimulus money to municipalities in photo ops featuring humongous cardboard checks.
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development,
Louisiana received more than $176 million dollars in stimulus money in
February, 10 days after President Obama signed the act into law. Of
that, Lafayette alone received $440,016 in community development block
grants, $672,893 in emergency shelter and homeless prevention funding,
and $1,012,585 for the Housing Authority of Lafayette, for a total —
from HUD — of more than $2.1 million dollars.
In an op-ed this week in Politico, Jindal panned the ARRA as “a nearly trillion-dollar stimulus that has not stimulated.” Yet as Think Progress, Bayou Buzz and other on-line sources were quick to point out, a sizable portion of the money the governor is doling out during his “Louisiana Working” tour is federal stimulus money. You’d never know it. The photo-op checks are emblazoned with “State of Louisiana - Office of the Governor.” No mention of the source of the funding. “Despite the fact that the checks contain millions of dollars of Recovery Act funds for job training programs, housing assistance programs, homelessness prevention programs, police training, criminal justice technology upgrades, and community development block grants,” TP reports, “Jindal has been printing his own name on the checks and taking credit for the money.”
(Editor's note: The check Jindal presented in Lafayette Tuesday, shown above in a photo by Independent contributor Ooti Billeaud, did not represent federal stimulus money.)
Thanks for this story. I wonder if any fox fanatics who get a job because of this money will have the guts to stand up and say so.
The concept of fiscal responsibility was gone long long ago, in fact when we gave up the gold standard we turned our currency into what was destined to be worthless paper. Jindal, like the rest of kooks left in the republican party, is a fool to pretend that this money can ever be recovered. If the republican party want's to change our debt they need to look within because they have consistently added the most to our national debt. Don't believe me? Google "debt chart" compiled from information from our own bureau of public debt.
I'd much prefer to see the government do what it can to keep this facade going. I mean what is the alternative? Steer our country into a deep depression because some republicans don't understand that taxpayers are never going to pay back 11 Trillion dollars? Yea that would be really useful.
... written by cajundad , July 23, 2009 - 02:33 pm
"(Editor's note: The check Jindal presented in Lafayette Tuesday, shown above in a photo by Independent contributor Ooti Billeaud, did not represent federal stimulus money.)"
Then show us one that does. If he's actually doing what you're saying, this should be easy for you. This has nothing to do with taking sides - just better integrity. And not using a misleading photo to attract attention to your story.
... written by Walter Pierce, Managing Editor , July 23, 2009 - 02:39 pm
We're not an Associated Press-member newspaper, cajundad; we can't just grab AP photos off Web sites and use them as our own. But many if not most of the checks identical to the one Jindal handed out in Lafayette DID contain stimulus money.
... written by C Yager , July 23, 2009 - 03:23 pm
Citizen,
I googled "debt chart" and nothing came up. Could you perhaps give us a link to that info I would love to see it.
... written by BarfGagWheeze , July 26, 2009 - 10:54 am
Simple charts for simple minds. Notice your chart doesn't mention which party controlled Congress, the body with the real power to lay taxes and run up debt. Jimmy Peanut didn't raise the debt, but if you remember, interest rates were killing us. Of course, we were paying for Vietnam, started by your heroes Kennedy and Uncle Lyndon. When Reagan got to work, he finished off the Cold War by outspending the Soviets (see Starwars), and giving stingers to the Afgans to shoot down Soviet Hind helicopters. (little thank you present for the evil empire's help in Nam) The Cold War over, we got the peace dividend, just in time for Clinton to take credit. Remember, of course, it was a Republican congress. Under Bush II, it was 9-11, and a Democrat Congress. Now we have a D Congress and a D president. According to your simplistic interpretation, our debt should be zero next year. Not.
... written by buceamos , August 05, 2009 - 11:08 pm
Excuse me? Bush II had an overwhelming majority Republican Congress (both House and Senate) AND a stacked to the right, Conservative Supreme Court. When are the morons going to get up on the present and stop living in the past. JESUS!!!!!!!!!!!!111
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Gov. Bobby Jindal apparently needs to get his story straight. He opposed the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act — the Obama administration’s “stimulus plan” — from the get-go, assuming the posture of fiscal responsibility with several other GOP governors this spring, and he’s been touring the state of late telling communities small and large that we don’t do things in Louisiana like they do in Washington. All while the governor has been passing out stimulus money to municipalities in photo ops featuring humongous cardboard checks.
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The concept of fiscal responsibility was gone long long ago, in fact when we gave up the gold standard we turned our currency into what was destined to be worthless paper. Jindal, like the rest of kooks left in the republican party, is a fool to pretend that this money can ever be recovered. If the republican party want's to change our debt they need to look within because they have consistently added the most to our national debt. Don't believe me? Google "debt chart" compiled from information from our own bureau of public debt.
I'd much prefer to see the government do what it can to keep this facade going. I mean what is the alternative? Steer our country into a deep depression because some republicans don't understand that taxpayers are never going to pay back 11 Trillion dollars? Yea that would be really useful.