Bobby Jindal Saves Louisiana

Jolie Rouge

NYT Rains on Jindal Win, Ignores Democrat Slam on His Catholic FaithBy Ken Shepherd
October 21, 2007 - 23:36 ET

Congratulations, Bobby Jindal, on winning the governorship of Louisiana. Now if only you stood any chance of your constituents liking you, much less you getting anything done as governor. At least that's the highly pessimistic message readers of the October 21 New York Times received courtesy of reporter Adam Nossiter.

It's safe to say Nossiter, reporting from New Orleans, didn't exactly spend his "Louisiana Saturday Night" by dancing "in the kitchen 'til the morning light" over Jindal's victory :

You're getting this right? On the one hand, Nossiter portrayed Jindal as lacking the trust of black voters (read black victims of Bush/Republicans post-Katrina), and conservative white voters, who are portrayed as closet racists. Wow, isn't it crazy how he managed to eke out a meager 53 percent of the votes?!

Of course, nowhere in his article does Nossiter mention that the Louisiana Democratic Party cynically attempted to sour enthusiasm for Jindal among conservative Protestant voters by twisting out of context a column by Jindal about his conversion to Roman Catholicism into a slam of Protestant Christians, when in fact it was anything but disrespectful to Christians outside communion with Rome.

The rest of Nossiter's article sought to portray Louisiana as a state with nearly intractable problems, problems outside the scope of solution given Jindal's fiscal conservative prescriptions :


Make no mistake, that closing note about Louisiana's tax code is a not-so-subtle hint that Nossiter disdains Jindal's anti-tax, fiscal conservative policy stances.

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/ken-she...catholic-faith

I would like to further point out that Duke ran against Edwin "The Gambler" Edwards, now serving a 50+ prison term ( along with his son and other members of his administration ) on Federal Racketeering charges which caused a dominance of political billboards and bumperstickers which read "ABE : Anyone But Edwards". It was not a certainty that the voters in that parish "supported Duke" as much as they resisted Edwards.


Jindal captured 53% of the vote in a field of 11 candidates. The next highest vote-getter had 1/3 the number of votes. Do you see that in the Nossiter story?

If this had been a Democrat victory, it would have been portrayed as a victory of epic proportions.

I am just sick to death of the NYT and other MSM outlets insisting that the only implying that the only minorities Republicans vote for are the "house slave" variety, which makes them, in essence, non-minorities, and the victory insignificant.

So if a white candidate has widespread black support (e.g. HRC) it's because s/he "gets 'black' issues", but if a non-white candidate gets support from whites, it's because s/he is acts more white than "black." (And make no mistake, in this context "black" is a philosophy, not a skin color.)

It's certainly not his fault or his party's fault that the state is so poor, uneducated, and unhealthy. Maybe some blame can be laid at the feet of the current administration ( Democrat ) or the previous ( Democrat ) administrations or even the ( Democrat controlled ) legistlature. [/i]

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Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

Jolie Rouge

Indian immigrants' son new La. governor
By MELINDA DESLATTE, Associated Press Writer
Sun Oct 21, 10:14 AM ET

BATON ROUGE, La. - U.S. Rep. Bobby Jindal easily defeated 11 opponents and became the state's first nonwhite governor since Reconstruction, decades after his parents moved to the state from India to pursue the American dream.

Jindal, a 36-year-old Republican, will be the nation's youngest governor. He had 53 percent with 625,036 votes with about 92 percent of the vote tallied. It was more than enough to win Saturday's election outright and avoid a Nov. 17 runoff.

"My mom and dad came to this country in pursuit of the American dream. And guess what happened. They found the American dream to be alive and well right here in Louisiana," he said to cheers and applause at his victory party.

His nearest competitors: Democrat Walter Boasso with 208,690 votes or 18 percent; Independent John Georges had 167,477 votes or 14 percent; Democrat Foster Campbell had 151,101 or 13 percent. Eight candidates divided the rest. "I'm asking all of our supporters to get behind our new governor," Georges said in a concession speech.

The Oxford-educated Jindal had lost the governor's race four years ago to Gov. Kathleen Blanco. He won a congressional seat in conservative suburban New Orleans a year later but was widely believed to have his eye on the governor's mansion.

Blanco opted not to run for re-election after she was widely blamed for the state's slow response to hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. "My administration has begun readying for this change and we look forward to helping with a smooth transition," she said in a prepared statement. "I want to thank the people of Louisiana for the past four years, though there is still much work to do in my last few months as your governor."

Jindal, who takes office in January, pledged to fight corruption and rid the state of those "feeding at the public trough," revisiting a campaign theme.

"They can either go quietly or they can go loudly, but either way, they will go," he said, adding that he would call the Legislature into special session to address ethics reform.

Political analysts said Jindal built up support as a sort of "buyer's remorse" from people who voted for Blanco last time and had second thoughts about that decision. Blanco was widely criticized for the state's response to Hurricane Katrina and she announced months ago that she would not seek re-election. "I think the Jindal camp, almost explicitly, (wanted) to cast it this way: If you were able to revote, who would you vote for?" said Pearson Cross, a University of Louisiana at Lafayette political scientist.

Jindal has held a strong lead in the polls since the field of candidates became settled nearly two months ago. But the two multimillionaires in the race — Boasso, a state senator from St. Bernard Parish, and Georges, a New Orleans-area businessman — poured millions of their own dollars into their campaigns to try to prevent Jindal's victory.

Campbell, a public service commissioner from Bossier Parish, had less money but ran on a singular plan: scrapping the state income tax on businesses and individuals and levying a new tax on oil and gas processed in Louisiana.

The race was one of the highest-spending in Louisiana history. Jindal alone raised $11 million, and Georges poured about $10 million of his personal wealth into his campaign war chest while Boasso plugged in nearly $5 million of his own cash.

In India, Jindal's family members were proud, and were going to celebrate with the traditional Punjabi folk dance called bhangra. "We're very proud that he has reached such a high position in the United States," said Subhash Jindal, a cousin who runs a pharmacy in the Jindal family's hometown in Maler Kotla in northern Punjab state.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071021/...I8sc.wKs0N UE

__________________
Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

renaissanceman

WOW!!! Congratulations to Gov. Jindal, AND the people of Louisiana!!!

Many may not realize it there in La, but they have won a powerful and effective leader.

I hope that with his leadership La. gets tough on ANYONE who would deprive his states law abiding citizens of their firearms in the future.

He and his people should also push for REMOVAL of Mayor Nagin, and any and ALL law enforcement officers who violated their oaths of office by removing guns from lawful gun owners in opposition to said oaths to defend/support the US Constitution.

Those people should be tried in civil and criminal courts and treated as traitors to Louisiana and The United States.

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WORD WARS II The DP Strikes Back

PrincessArky

sure will be interesting to see what he can do with the state now that he is governor.....I hope he does well

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Ya can't hide redneck might as well be proud-Tracy Lawrence

Jolie Rouge

For the record - after watching all the major MSM outlets get it wrong - the Governor-Elect's name is Jindal ( rhymes with "spindle" ) not Jin-Daal'; not Jin- Dali. And the current Governor is Blanco ( Blank-o) not the French "blanc`o"

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Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

PrincessArky

Its funny how they always seem to screw things up isn't it? I get the news out of Shreveport so it has never been a problem here

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Ya can't hide redneck might as well be proud-Tracy Lawrence

Jolie Rouge

Uncle Bob Jindal: Man of No Color
By: Emil Guillermo, Oct 26, 2007
http://www.asianweek.com/2007/10/26/...n-of-no-color/

The politics of color is changing in America. For people of color, the best path to success may be to become a “person of no color.”

I caution people in evaluating the apparent success of Bobby Jindal.

Jindal, the first Indian American in U.S. history to be elected governor last Saturday — in Louisiana of all places — is what I call a “man without color.”Normally, you’d describe a person “without color” as white, but even white is a color. Jindal’s a guy who seems to aspire to being totally colorless (that’s not to say bloodless, though we are talking about a professional politician here).

In the past, this sort of character might have been labeled a chameleon, but even that’s not quite Jindal.

He doesn’t change skin tone. His skin is still as dark and constant given his immigrant Hindu parents from Punjab.

But the changes are they’re on the inside, which makes the constancy of his skin tone a tool of deception.

When you see a person of color, you expect someone with similar values, views, beliefs — someone in touch with the emerging new majority. With Jindal, you get someone who very deliberately and proudly downplays his race in order to seek his own individual path. That kind of independence under certain circumstances may be commendable. But only if you happen to agree with his ideas that range from free-market health care, intelligent design instead of evolution, anti-choice and a fenced-in America.

When did Newt Gingrich die and reincarnate?

Whites, of course, regard Jindal as their Asian American Republican Catholic with impeccable Ivy League and Rhodes Scholar credentials.

And boy, are they happy to see a little friendly pigment float into their universe.
But for those in the South Asian community, the joy for Jindal has been mixed. Where’s the breakthrough for Asian Americans when the celebrant hardly acknowledges his ethnicity or doesn’t represent us?

Vijay Prashad, a professor of South Asian history at Trinity College in Hartford, described how Jindal has been portrayed in the Indian American ethnic press.

“The fact that he’s of Indian ancestry is a subject of jubilation,” said Prashad in the New York Times. “But there’s a very shallow appreciation of who he really is. Once you scratch the surface, it’s really unpleasant.” In other words, can you praise him and still hold your nose at the same time?

We have seen this before. South Asians have already had Dinesh D’Souza. Filipinos have current Fox darling Michelle Malkin. But they’re mere right-wing commentators, not elected officials.

Jindal may be the political empowerment version of the Pogo line, “We have seen the enemy, and it is us.” It’s negative diversity — where the group is abandoned for individual glory.

When Jindal won, even the New York Times saw it fitting to remark how the first words from his mouth weren’t about his historic ethnic victory. It was about LSU’s defeat of Auburn earlier that day. It’s an old trick, a la “We’re all part of the same team. Just us honky-tonk footballers here!”

Is he bridge-building? Or is it an example of the sickening kind of denial that can easily be attributed to ambitious, Darwinian, “every person for himself,” success stories in our minority communities?

Perhaps it shows that immigration can be the “Great American Makeover.”

Yet we know a number of successful Asian Americans, politicians among them, who don’t forget their origins and are truly in step with the struggles of their mainstream community.

In an almost calculated way, Jindal has positioned himself away from racial politics that we know, and toward something else of his making. But how does someone get elected in Louisiana without a solid plan to address post-Katrina infrastructure and build-up?

I was almost willing to give Jindal a pass during his transition and be mildly impressed by his colorless approach. But then came the negative Los Angeles Times story on the rise of Chinese immigrants who give to Hillary Clinton. Nothing illegal.

But the implication was that this strange idea of immigrants being part of the process was somehow unhealthy if only Democrats benefit. The fact is color still matters in politics.

Maybe not to the new governor of Louisiana, whose real name, by the way, is Piyush Jindal.

He adopted the name Bobby because he liked The Brady Bunch. Now he’s created a unique modern character in Asian American political history: “Uncle Bob.”

Comments

Amazing. After reading that nonsense the one who who comes off as a intolerant racist….is you.

–Bogtrotter52 on Oct 26, 2007

Sure sounds like you resent the fact that “Bobby” was successful in making it based on his hard work, intelligence, values and political savvy. The people of Lousianna have spoken, too bad you can’t accept it. You’re what’s termed a “sore loser” because he doesn’t fit the template you created about a minority candidate. Stop your whining - it’s not becoming.

–Unamazed on Oct 26, 2007

Emil writes: “When you see a person of color, you expect someone with similar values, views, beliefs …” This is the very definition of a racist. Emil, go read a copy of Dr. King’s “Dream” speech, then get back to us.

–gp on Oct 26, 2007

It’s not often one comes right out and admits their racism. Thanks for sharing, Emil.

–Gary on Oct 26, 2007

You do know that John Kerry’s grandfather was named Kohn and changed it to Kerry. Grow up.

–Tessa on Oct 26, 2007

Hooray! Indians have their very own Clarence Thomas/Alberto Gonzales. That’s awesome! About time.

–rebron on Oct 26, 2007

Unbelieveable.

A ‘journalist’ that details the fact that a politician doesn’t subscribe to or PROMOTE stereotypes or pander to his most compatible base.

And then blasts him for it.

‘Sickening… denial attributed to ambitious, Darwinian… every person for himself…’?

Is that a joke? Is it now ’sickening’ to be ambitious and self-reliant?

Emil, I think you may want to have someone proof your textual-turds before you post them. You come off as a simpleton with a keyboard.

–Brad Hinely on Oct 26, 2007

So Mr. Jindal’s crime is that he doesn’t consider the color of his skin?

Hello? Any body home in your editorial staff? Who’s the racist intolerant bigot here? Hint for you liberals, it’s not Mr. Jindal.

As for Ms. Clinton’s fundraisers, wouldn’t be the first time she’s been bought and paid for by foreigners.

–s.spang on Oct 26, 2007

__________________
Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

Jolie Rouge

Comments continued...

We learned nothing about Bobby Jindal in this piece.

We did learn quite a lot about the author.

Emil, you have revealed yourself to be racist. Concerned more about the color of one’s skin than their deeds.

You’re the sort of person that Asian Week and other minority-focused publications were started for - to counter prejudice and level the playing field. Instead, you perpetuate prejudice.

Shame on you. Shame on Asian Week for employing you.

Maybe there’s an opening at the Rainbow Coalition for you? Seems like that’d be a good match…

–Rick on Oct 26, 2007

Apparently the writer believes that only good person “of color” is one that ascriibes to the liberal victomolgy mantra. All “people of color” or victims and cannot survive or proper without the kindly white liberals. The writer also apparently believes that all “people of color” that do not make themselve a part of this victim group are stupid and dangerous.

I say, Emil, keep writing this drivel, because the more sunshine on this kind of bigotry and ignorance will eventually be the liberal mindset undoing.

–Ron O on Oct 26, 2007

Wow, you actually get paid to write this kind of racist screed? Did you ever think those who voted for Jindal don’t make every decision in their life based on race, as you apparently do, and instead see someone who actually does share their values and has been very successful in life? Of course not, because you are a racist. Go look in the mirror.

–Mike on Oct 26, 2007

Emil,

Shouldn’t you be writing for Asian Weak?

–Hokem on Oct 26, 2007

Bigots can rarely see their own bigotry. The ignorant ones never analyze their beliefs and “intellectuals” always have logical arguments for their bigotry.

Weclome to the Klan, Emil.

–29Victor on Oct 26, 2007

“Is he bridge-building? Or is it an example of the sickening kind of denial that can easily be attributed to ambitious, Darwinian, “every person for himself,” success stories in our minority communities?”

Uh, I think its called independence, self-determination, and the “pursuit of happiness”… its an American Dream thing, so how could you possibly have a clue.

Get a life already.

–JAS on Oct 26, 2007

Emil,

You don’t get it, and you never will. Piyush “Bobby” Jindal is an American. That’s right, and “AMERICAN”. You liberals in the mainstream media love to use the term “Melting Pot” to describe the citizenry of our nation, but take offense when someone of “color” doesn’t melt the way you perversely desire. Bobby Jindal is an American first! He was elected by other Americans that will never subscribe to your racial, intolerant, gender identity politics. Sooner or later, you fossils in the mainstream are going to have to accept the reality that you can’t just say or print your biased drivel and think that the rest of us will consume it as fact or truth. Bobby Jindal will make a great governor for the state of Louisiana and all the citizens will be better for it because their governor doesn’t wallow in some ethnicity pity party.

–Lawrence on Oct 26, 2007

Hmmm . . . so his name is Piyush? So what? You last name is Guillermo, what is that William in Spanish? So what? Idiot!!

–RCFlyer on Oct 26, 2007

I thought “The Dream” was to not be judged by the color of your skin but by the content of your character?

Funny thing is, they call themselves “Progressives”.

–Rich Gonzalez on Oct 26, 2007

It seems the author of this is a racist in the worst way. When will the double standard of race baiting from the left stop? What does it take to convince them that blackface, “race traitor,” “Uncle Tom,” and “Oreo” are racist acts and terms, or that saying someone is “passing” (even without being so blunt) is an attack on that person’s race? It’s inconceivable to me that someone so racist can really be that blind to their own hatred.

Try removing the plank from your own eye before removing the splinter from someone else’s.

–Cameron on Oct 26, 2007

So much for the “cultural diversity” and “tolerance” of the Left.

–Joe Chudzinski on Oct 26, 2007

It is said that anyone can have an opinion. What isn’t said enough though is that not all opinions are worth being heard. Emil, you’re opinions are worth about as much as a new Kevin Federline album.

–Eddie on Oct 26, 2007

You are an idiot and a racist, geez.

–Ron Rockstar on Oct 26, 2007

Not your “kind” of person of color, Emil???

A man of not quite enough South Asian ancestry???

You are a sad little pathetic excuse, Emil…..

Not quite sure of WHAT, but you are a sad little pathetic example of it….

–Ziggy on Oct 26, 2007

WOW. I’m speechless. I am amazed at such a racist attack on a man that has made it on his own merits. When I vote, I vote on what that persons record is. Race has never factored into it. If race is all that factors into a persons choice, they shouldn’t vote, period.

–Kimberly on Oct 26, 2007

Emil,

I am constantly amazed by people of left leaning tendencies, like yourself, who can preach tolerance and diversity but cannot tolerate a diverse opinion from your own. This logical disconnect seems to be quite common these days on the left.

–Chuck on Oct 26, 2007

The guy is not even in office yet Emil and you are passing judgement on him. Apparently the citizens of Louisiana believe in Bobby Jindal since they overwhelmingly elected him Governor. Maybe his policy of being color blind makes Bobby a refreshingly great American. Wake up Emil!! You could learn a great deal from Bobby Jindal about being more concerned with getting the job done than finding the negative in all things.

–GreatUSAGuy on Oct 26, 2007

“When you see a person of color, you expect someone with similar values, views, beliefs — someone in touch with the emerging new majority. ”

How about, “when I see a white person, I expect them to think the way I do? - you are soooo ridiculous!

–CJ on Oct 26, 2007

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”

Yeah, that colorless thing sounds like a real tragedy doesn’t it?

–mojoe on Oct 26, 2007

–Rich Gonzalez on Oct 26, 2007

Sorry Rich, I saw your comment after I posted.

–mojoe on Oct 26, 2007

Funny, when I see someone of color I expect to see someone who has his own judgment and his own opinions. I never thought that what I should actually expect to see would be someone who blindly follows the ‘emerging new majority’.

–David on Oct 26, 2007

…the changes are” they’re” on the inside,? Learn proper English. “They’re” is the contraction of “they are.” This should be “there.”
And horrors! He doesn’t act Indian, therefore he’s not really Indian. What racist hoo-hah!

–JFW in NOLA on Oct 26, 2007

Me and my wife are from India and settled in US for last 8 years. My two sons are born here and are Americans. They will be raised to love and respect their country of birth. I hope they grow up to be like Bobby Jindal. I also hope they don’t have to face racists like Emil Guillermo who want to judge us not by the content of our character but by the color of our skin.

–Tushar D on Oct 26, 2007


prej·u·dice
–noun 1. an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.

Yep.

–daddyquatro on Oct 26, 2007

The unfortunate thing here is that this vile form of blatant racism will never be called-out by the mainstream media. Emil, plain and simple, is a racist. A bigot. A person who judges other solely on the color of their skin. Racism is alive and well in America. Just don’t go looking for it in Jena, La. Look for it at Asian Week. And The Huffington Post. And Daily Kos. And Democratic Underground.

–Paul in NJ on Oct 26, 2007

( there's more .... http://www.asianweek.com/2007/10/26/...n-of-no-color/ )

BTW : I hate it when ignorant people fling “Uncle Tom” around as an insult. Uncle Tom is one of the most noble characters in American literature. His motivation was never helplessness or ignorance or sucking-up or fear. He was a brave and loving man who gave up a his life for the salvation of others.

He is the Christ character in the book for goodness sakes. Calling someone an “Uncle Tom” is calling them “Christlike.” Anyone who thinks that’s a smear is just proving their own ignorance or hatefullness.

__________________
Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

Jolie Rouge

New La. gov. pledges to fight corruption
By MELINDA DESLATTE, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 5 minutes ago

BATON ROUGE, La. - Republican Bobby Jindal, the nation's first Indian-American governor, was sworn in Monday in Louisiana and moved quickly to make good on a campaign promise to clean up the corrupt image of this hurricane-battered state. "We have the opportunity — born of tragedy but embraced still the same — to make right decades of failure in government," Jindal said in his inaugural speech, referring to hurricanes Katrina and Rita of 2005.

Jindal, a former congressman, became Louisiana's first nonwhite governor since Reconstruction. He took the oath from the state Supreme Court's chief justice, Pascal Calogero. Jindal's wife Supriya held the Bible.

He said he will call a special legislative session Feb. 10 to address the state's image as a haven for cronyism and self-serving politicians. In his speech, he made numerous references to a "new Louisiana" and a "new beginning" for the state.

"We can build a Louisiana where our leaders and our people set the highest standards and hold every member of our government accountable, a Louisiana where incompetence is not a synonym for government, a Louisiana where corruption does not hold us back," he said without providing specifics.

Jindal, 36, a conservative Republican, won more than 50 percent of the vote in October's primary election. He takes over from Democrat Kathleen Blanco, who had defeated him four years earlier. Blanco chose not to run after heavy criticism of her performance after Katrina.

While Jindal has focused on fixing the state's shady reputation and overhauling ethics laws, he inherits an array of problems that have dogged his predecessors. Louisiana is among the nation's most unhealthy and poorest states, its students still perform below average on national educational tests and its population is dwindling.

Worsening the state's long-term history of problems, back-to-back blows from hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated much of south Louisiana and left New Orleans struggling to recover. The pace of hurricane rebuilding has been sluggish, with thousands of homes left abandoned, thousands of residents displaced and basic government services destroyed.

The boyish-looking Jindal will be the youngest U.S. governor in office, but he's used to being among the youngest people in the room in his previous posts.

By the time he first ran for governor at age 32, Jindal already had served as Louisiana's health care secretary, president of one of its university systems and an assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under President Bush. Republican former Gov. Mike Foster tapped Jindal to be the state's health secretary in 1996, when Jindal was only 24.

Earlier Monday, newly elected legislators unanimously backed two of Jindal's choices for leadership posts. Republican state Rep. Jim Tucker was elected Speaker of the House, while Democratic state Sen. Joel Chaisson was elected president of the Senate. Both were elected without opposition.

On Sunday, Jindal attended a prayer service where churchmen from around the state read scripture and offered support. Jindal, a Roman Catholic who converted from Hinduism as a teenager, sat in a front pew next to wife and other family members at St. Joseph Cathedral in downtown Baton Rouge.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080114/...1EKvtkxH2o cA

__________________
Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

Jolie Rouge

Sunday, December 30, 2007
DID JINDAL WIN A MANDATE FOR HIS REFORMS FROM THE VOTERS?

I realize that, due to voter turnout, many naysayers, particularly Democrats, argue that Louisiana Governor-elect, Bobby Jindal, did not receive a mandate from the voters. Despite what they say, however, Jindal did receive a mandate from those that bothered to cast their votes, and those are the only votes that count. But all is not guaranteed 'smooth sailing' for his proposed reforms. (See: "Study supports mandate for Jindal platform").

"On Oct. 20, Louisiana had 2,826,047 registered voters. Of these voters, 53 percent were registered Democrats, 22 percent were registered Republicans, and 25 percent were associated with other parties. The demographic breakdown of the voter rolls shows that white voters comprised 66 percent of the electorate while African Americans made up 30 percent and other races made up 4 percent, according to the GCR report." id. These figures prove that Jindal won a mandate from the voters, because there is no way he could have won without crossover votes from Democrats and Independents.

However, insofar as Jindal's planned reforms, it was noted that "for instance, most of the legislators on whom Jindal must rely to approve his plans attracted more votes in their districts than he, leaving them less beholden to the governor-elect. Also, the analysis reveals that the expected shift of Louisiana from a Democratic state to a Republican one failed to materialize, despite the advances made by the GOP." id. But with the Blueprint Louisiana pledges by most of the Legislators, and the promise of Blueprint to hold them to them, together with the popular tide demanding reforms, especially in ethics, I believe that there will be "Hell to pay" if the Legislature does not adopt meaningful reforms.

It is also possibly a good thing that the state GOP didn't win an outright majority of the Legislature, as David Vitter's dirty tricks LCRM wished, because a multiple party system keeps in check the excesses of both major political parties.

http://centrallapolitics.blogspot.co...s-reforms.html

__________________
Laissez les bon temps rouler! Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.** a 4 day work week & sex slaves ~ I say Tyt for PRESIDENT! Not to be taken internally, literally or seriously ....Suki ebaynni IS THAT BETTER ?

Jolie Rouge