Lafayette Republican Congressman Charles Boustany is doing far better at hauling in the campaign cash than is his GOP colleague and opponent in the November election, U.S. Rep. Jeff Landry, according to Federal Election Commission numbers released this week. After a stellar second quarter that brought in $740,000, the Boustany campaign now has $1.91 million in cash on hand compared to Landry’s $975,000 campaign kitty. That’s a 2-1 financial advantage for the retired heart surgeon over the Tea Party-backed New Iberia lawyer/business owner.
UL Lafayette political scientist Pearson Cross tells The Advocate the advantage for Boustany, a Beltway insider with close ties to Speaker John Boehner, is likely due to his de facto incumbency in the redrawn 3rd Congressional District the two will compete to represent. “Boustany’s number is very robust for a congressional race,” Cross tells the Baton Rouge daily. “Based on the numbers he’s putting up, Landry has to do a lot better.”
When the state’s seven U.S. House districts were redrawn last year to reflect the loss of a seat due to stagnant population growth over the last decade, Boustany’s current 7th Congressional District was expanded eastward to take in Landry’s hometown, New Iberia. What remained of Landry’s current 3rd CD was absorbed into New Orleans- and Baton Rouge-area districts, leaving Landry, a first-term rep, with no district to call his own.
The new 3rd CD, which will go into effect in January and for which Landry and Boustany will compete to represent this fall, will run from eastern Acadiana all the way to the Texas state line. The majority of the new district will comprise Boustany’s current district, giving the eight-year incumbent a distinct advantage in name recognition and fundraising.
Read more here.
MAY 22 This post was written the day after the second line shooting in NOLA, by Brentin Mock. Mock is a friend of Deb "Big Red" Cotton, a blogger who was shot in the back and was seriously injured. It is a raw, emotional piece of writing, something the writer obviously felt he needed to get off his chest. But it raises questions that can't be easily dismissed, and might give some insight into where the source of these events truly is.
MAY 22 In this Baton Rouge Business Report post, Rolfe McCollister considers the privatization of bus service in Baton Rouge. After decades of under-funding, it is a mess, and although a tax (partially) passed last year, improvement hasn't happened yet. McCollister apparently feels it is time to let private business get in on the transit business.
MAY 22 This post on Bayou Buzz by Jeff Crouere urges the defeat of a bill that would grant modest pay increases over the next several years to the state's judges and clerks of court. The state is in no position to fund pay hikes, Crouere argues, with the pay increases costing a total of $9 million over several years. It sends the wrong message to the (proverbial) hard-working people of Louisiana, he says.
MAY 22 The Advocate reports here that State Treasurer John Kennedy is complaining about a meeting of the corporation that oversees the state's tobacco settlement. The Governor wanted it restructured, and he has some support, but not a lot. The corporation agreed with his plan, but Kennedy didn't, and it appears that the meeting was noticed in a manner completely different than that of all previous meetings. Kennedy's given to hyperbole, but in this case the fish don't smell too fresh.
MAY 22 In this Advocate story, Carencro Police Chief Carlos Stout says the recent federal indictment of a strip club owner is all wrong. The indictment alleges that drugs and prostitution went on with impunity because club staff made arrangements with "local" police. Stout says it never happened, and while his cops do work security in the parking lot, they're not allowed inside.
MAY 22 This amusing post in DIG Baton Rouge recounts an ad that ran on Craig's List recently; the advertiser was seeking tenants for a Beauregard Town house. He knew his market, and wrote an ad that the most ironical hipster couldn't resist. Apparently, he really did know his market, because the ad worked like a charm.
MAY 22 In this post in The Lens, Mark Moseley comments on the rhetoric Gov. Jindal employed in trying to save his tax "reform" package. One interesting point concerns Jindal's use of his brother, Nikesh, in a little story. Nikesh left Louisiana because of his inability to get a decent job, the story goes, but the story won't hold water: Nikesh lives in DC, which has an income tax level comparable to Louisiana, Moseley says. If income taxes caused the dismal situation, it should exist in DC too. Right?
MAY 22 This post by columnist John Maginnis traces the trajectory of the bill that would fund construction at community and technical colleges -- and bypass the Board of Regents and traditional higher ed funding mechanisms. Sure, it will bust the legislature's self-imposed debt limit, but some leges feel that there's more need (because there is more growth) in the community and technical college area than in the university area, he says.
Most Read
in case you missed it
Subscribe to this comment's feed