In it, he challenged incumbent Sen. David Vitter, a Metairie Republican, to a “modern-day duel of honor,” which of course translates to three rounds in a mixed martial arts cage fight. “I’m calling him out from behind the safety of his campaign fund, from the sanctuary of the Republican Party and the sanctuary of the special interests that fund his campaign,” said Spears, adding that “this fight will symbolize the epic battle between the American people and an out of control, tyrannical federal government and the reckless politicians at the helm.”
Congressman Charlie Melancon, a Democrat from Napoleonville who’s considered to be Vitter’s main challenger, wasn’t invited to throw down in the cage fight, which Spears contends is on the bill — just in case Vitter mans up — for USA-MMA’s “Return of the Champions” event at the Cajundome that’s scheduled for Oct. 16.
That was last Wednesday, the second day in a row that Spears landed some free media for his dark horse candidacy. During a candidate’s forum hosted by the Alliance for Good Government the preceding evening in New Orleans, Spears was responsible for the only mention of Vitter’s ties to a D.C. prostitution ring — and his accusation that the senator “broke the law” yielded him at least a paragraph in news stories around the state.
After all of the bad political blood created during the past year, it must have created an interesting vibe to have Vitter and Melancon on the same stage. Vitter, in the end, won the alliance’s endorsement, but the event itself remains as much of an issue as the topics that were discussed.
That’s because Melancon has called for five televised debates. Vitter reportedly already has a few on the books, including a WWL-TV exchange and a Tea Party gathering. Melancon argues that Tea Party engagements, which would certainly have a conservative bent, shouldn’t be counted.
Last week, The Advocate weighed in with an editorial asking the Senate frontrunners to participate in another debate being hosted by Louisiana Public Broadcasting and the Council for a Better Louisiana. The Baton Rouge daily also endorsed Melancon’s stance on the debates and denounced Vitter’s reliance in the past on pre-screened questions at his own town hall gatherings. Vitter, meanwhile, has knocked Melancon’s “new appreciation” for public debates, given the congressman’s penchant for tele-conferenced town hall meetings.
In any public exchange, Vitter’s media team will surely dread the mere mention of the D.C. prostitution ring that ensnared the senator in 2007. While it’s old hat in Louisiana and not exactly the kryptonite Dems were hoping for, it’s still not a subject that voters have heard much about directly from Vitter’s mouth. Aside from admitting a “serious sin” on the issue three years ago, he’s largely been absent on the issue.
That hasn’t been missed by the Louisiana Democratic Party and is the main reason it has received so much coverage for its latest project: ForgottenCrimes.com. The site is home to a video with tens of thousands of views, done up like a cable real-life, behind-the-crime show — and just as visually jarring at times.
The party recently hit up supporters for individual $10 donations to sponsor ad buys for the video. In it’s appeal, the party tells supporters that a “recent independent poll found that an astonishing number of likely voters in Louisiana are unaware that David Vitter admitted breaking the law but was never held accountable.”
Vitter, for his part, will continue attacking Melancon as a closet liberal. He sent an email to backers over the Labor Day break that carried the same tune the candidate has been singing about his opponent since the race jumped off last year. “Charlie Melancon will be relying on the help of his liberal friends and union allies to try to hide the fact that he votes with President (Barack) Obama 84 percent of the time,” Vitter writes.
With Vitter sitting on more than $5 million in his campaign kitty to Melancon’s $2 million, Spears — who has just $4,000 — needs all the help he can get. His company, Firefly Digital, is doing a good bit of the campaign’s design work and the candidate is personally writing his own copy and serving as the chief consultant and strategist as well, according to finance reports on file with the Louisiana Board of Ethics.
But what Spears lacks in money he more than makes up for in backstory — he was a former varsity cheerleader at UL, did a tour in Operation Desert Storm with the Louisiana National Guard, was party to the technology wave that swept over Acadiana during the past decade and is currently developing an inter-district high tech school. Also, he evidently enjoys fighting in cages.
Jeremy Alford can be reached at
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JUNE 16 This story in the Advocate tells us that the state Department of Education is taking a look at the Course Choice program. They're doing that because the legislature (probably responding to reporting by Tom Aswell, who does not work for the Advocate) ordered them to make sure that these private companies aren't signing six-year-olds up for high school Latin classes without their parents' knowledge or consent.
JUNE 17 Columnist James Gill writes about the recent complaint of death row inmates at Angola: it's hot as you-know-what in their cells, with the heat index topping 120 for months. Since we're not executing people anymore (Gill opines) then we should probably officially end the practice of putting people on death row. The prisoners, by the way, are not asking for cool breezes: they only ask for clean water and a temp that doesn't top 88.
JUNE 17 Here's blogger Ian McGibboney's take on the Baton Rouge plan to give bus tickets to homeless people who have a home with family who live far away. Taken from one point of view, it could be a good solution for some people. But McGibboney raises some good points here, including this one: Why not improve opportunities for everybody in Baton Rouge so these people can find the jobs they came to BR for?
JUNE 17 Picayune columnist Jarvis DeBerry talks here about the Zimmerman trial, but the real topic is the concept of a black man being more dangerous, somehow, than a white man in a fight. It is an interesting discussion, and one that may enlighten people who think that racism doesn't exist because nobody's keeping black folks from eating at the Woolworth lunch counter.
JUNE 17 Here's an interesting column from Baton Rouge Business Report's publisher, Rolfe McCollister, about anger against the government. It's brewing because of recent revelations about the IRS and the GSA, he says. It's readable, not just for the subject, but because of McCollister's collection of sources: Huffington Post, National Review and Wikipedia. That's a combo you don't see every day.
JUNE 17 In this American Press post, Jim Beam talks about the high school diploma track that lets kids who aren't interested in university get what they want and need out of high school. The diplomas get kids ready for technical school, Beam explains, and then he goes on to give some of the numbers. Some of these numbers might really surprise people who think technical school is second best. And, Beam adds, a college diploma does not guarantee anybody a job.
JUNE 17 The Washington Post reports here that OSHA is going to investigate the explosion that occurred last week in Donaldsonville, shortly after the other fatal accident in Geismar. As soon as the site is safe, State Police will be pulling out of the Donaldsonville plant to make way for OSHA investigators, the story reports. (Hey, here's an idea: why don't they go a couple miles down the road and figure out what happened when that massive sinkhole started sucking up land.)
JUNE 17 Robert Mann writes about the LSU Board of Supervisors in this post, taking a look at the many ways board members have served Gov. Jindal and not their university or their students. The board members are esteemed members of their fields, but can't seem to do anything but say "yes" to Jindal, regardless of the cost to LSU, Mann opines.
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David VITTER (aka, BITTER VITTER)is a WOMAN HATER and a COWARD.
VITTER will not debate Melancon and he is certainly not fight a REAL MAN. Mr. Spears is partially correct when he say to BITTER VITTER {that} “I’m calling him out from behind the safety of his campaign fund, from the sanctuary of the Republican Party and the sanctuary of the special interests that fund his campaign,”
That is not where VITTER is hiding-he is hiding behind his wife's skirt.
Here is a man that espouses FAMILY VALUES, yet PICKS UP WHORES and PAY THEM FOR SEX.
When Melancon wins the election, DAVID (BITTER)VITTER can use the rest of his campaign funds to purchase himself all the PROSTITUTES that his WIFE will let him SCREW.
Remember, BITTER BITTER DAVID VITTER phones his WHORE from the SENATE FLOOR TO ARRANGE SEX.
WHIMP!