In the latest iteration of The Fix, The Washington Post’s political analysis column by Chris Cillizza, Louisiana’s congressional redistricting squabbles are laid out from a national perspective. Cillizza notes that despite Republican control of the Legislature, a redistricting plan forwarded by Democratic Sen. Lydia Jackson has actually has the support of U.S. Rep. Charles Boustany, R-Lafayette, because he sees it as more favorable to his political fortunes in southwest Louisiana. In fact, according to Cillizza, Boustany helped sink a redistricting plan supported by Gov. Bobby Jindal for the same reason.
Much of the acrimony in the Legislature centers around competing plans for north Louisiana, which at this point, in spite of stagnant to negative growth over the last decade, will apparently maintain two districts. The question is whether those districts run east-west or north-south.
According to The Advocate, Jindal on Wednesday threatened to veto a Senate-backed bill for redistricting north Louisiana — a bill the House later shot down.
... written by RCajunrunner , April 07, 2011 - 04:58 pm
Come on, Walter. You can do better reporting than simply stating Boustany is going with the Democrat plan to keep his district together.
According to this Roll Call report that has been readily distributed amongst LA politicos and news people, the GOP delegation is not bad at Rep. Boustany for merely supporting a plan keeping his district together. They are upset because he apparently agreed to "their plan" (Bob Kostelka's) two months ago.
Now he's going back on his word, probably because people in Acadia Parish and Jeff Davis Parish were not happy he was agreeing to send them off to the Shreveport district.
"It wasn’t so much that Boustany backed a Democratic bill, but that until a few days ago, he led other Republicans to believe that he was behind the “original” plan. According to one GOP strategist, Boustany “got support for the whole map and then walked away.”"
... written by Tom Hough , April 07, 2011 - 10:35 pm
Economic dominance is shifting north with the deveolpment of the Haynesville Shale. What we shalers need are districts running east and west so that we have one representative in the north half of the play and one represetative in the south half. Two representatives will then be protecting our interest in Congress.
... written by Gaius Cilnius Maecenas , April 09, 2011 - 08:10 pm
"We shalers" furthering devisive acrimony in our political culture. Gerrymandering to protect "energy" interests. The poor environment of Louisiana! What's new about Louisiana? Same crap!
... written by Stephen F. , April 10, 2011 - 06:34 am
Boustany and Jindal, raping Louisiana's citizens for their own political gain...
... written by Gaius Cilnius Maecenas , April 11, 2011 - 10:32 pm
I am fearful Stephen you are correct. I regret I voted for both of them! "Raping" the State's Treasury so donors fill your coffers! Our whole political culture is disfunctional. The illogic is the role that electronic television media plays in furthering this downward spin in our civic management.
As a society we are sitting on the most brilliant scientific information ever amassed by any society within the last 50 centuries, so we could be running a first-class society! No! We turn over the most important functions in our decision-making rulership to a collection of knaves pandering to base instincts of the criminal, the greedy and the insane!
... written by HARDHAT , April 12, 2011 - 03:31 am
Maecan't, I imagine you can now use the calling card you were given by jindal's lackey to Ugh....." Wipe. Ha Ha, for all the good its done you.
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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.
David Calhoun and Elizabeth “EB” Brooks are the first two employees of Lafayette Central Park Inc., the nonprofit charged with turning Lafayette Consolidated Government’s 100-acre Johnston Street Horse Farm property into a passive public park. Calhoun was named executive director, and Brooks is director of planning and design.
There will soon be a whole lot of shakin’ going on at Benny’s Sportshack Supplement Depot, a new concept by Opelousas native Benny Nele. Located at 2002 Johnston St., the supplement shop, smoothie bar and café, featuring hot off the press paninis and wraps, plans to open in late May.
This year’s Cool Town issue is all about people who are not native to South Louisiana but made a conscious decision to be here, to be among us, to participate in our culture and contribute to it.
A shelved ordinance transferring $200,000 from a northside drainage project to a south Lafayette development may not break any laws, but it stinks to high heaven.
An effort to restore a shuttered dancehall and document other vacant or razed honky-tonks could serve as a model for saving an endangered species of entertainment.
Lafayette’s gene pool has been host to a long line of eccentric characters who have blurred the lines between crazy, genius, disturbed and curiously entertaining.
According to this Roll Call report that has been readily distributed amongst LA politicos and news people, the GOP delegation is not bad at Rep. Boustany for merely supporting a plan keeping his district together. They are upset because he apparently agreed to "their plan" (Bob Kostelka's) two months ago.
Now he's going back on his word, probably because people in Acadia Parish and Jeff Davis Parish were not happy he was agreeing to send them off to the Shreveport district.
"It wasn’t so much that Boustany backed a Democratic bill, but that until a few days ago, he led other Republicans to believe that he was behind the “original” plan. According to one GOP strategist, Boustany “got support for the whole map and then walked away.”"
http://www.rollcall.com/news/Louisiana-redistricting-Fleming-landry-204702-1.html