Thursday, April 17th, 2008 Baton Rouge, Louisiana OBAMA’S BITTERNESS COMMENT AND YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT, POLITICALLY  OBAMA CONTROVERSY Presidential Democratic frontrunner Barack Obama found himself in hot water last week over what he perceives to be “bitterness” in small-town America.  The criticism came from Republicans, as well as his Democratic opponent, Senator Hillary Clinton. ...Read More

Thursday, April 10th, 2008 Baton Rouge, Louisiana GOV. BOBBY JINDAL FOR VICE PRESIDENT ARE YOU KIDDING? Well, no.  The new Louisiana Governor is very much in the mix, as more focus took place this week on who Sen. John McCain will pick as his republican running mate. And when you consider the alternatives, and the...Read More

Thursday, April 3rd, 2008 Baton Rouge, Louisiana STAND UNDER THE ARCH TO EARN THE BIG BUCKS IN STATE GOVERNMENT How do you put a dollar value on the worth of a public official? That’s the issue being debated in the Baton Rouge State Capitol this week. The new Economic Development Secretary is asking approval for...Read More

March 26, 2008 Baton Route, Louisiana PRIVATE OWNERSHIP OF ROADS AND BRIDGES? HEAVEN FORBID! In Louisiana, a number of Jefferson and St. Tammany Parish officials were aghast last week over supposedly “secret negotiations” to sell the Causeway Bridge that goes to the North Shore across Lake Pontchartrain. When the state’s largest paper, the Times Picayune,...Read More

Thursday, March 20, 2008 Charlotte, North Carolina MAYBE YOU START WITH THE HOTDOGS One of the biggest challenges facing Louisiana’s newly elected Governor Bobby Jindal is the challenge of re-instilling pride in the attitudes of many Louisianians. Government can only do so much. But a governor can be a catalyst in raising the public’s expectations....Read More

YOU BETTER CHECK WITH SIXTY As in most states, political figures come and go.  Some are talked about for a few years, and others are even memorialized with plaques and statues surrounding some public building. Few leave any lasting impression. But there are exceptions.  One such is former Louisiana State Senator BB “Sixty” Rayburn.  They...Read More

February 28, 2008 Baton Rouge, Louisiana PERCEPTION AND SUBSTANCE ETHICS AND INDIA The Louisiana legislature just completed its first special session under newly elected Governor Bobby Jindal. “We batted a thousand and set the gold standard when it comes to ethics,” ballyhooed Bobby Jindal. It was more like a double rather a homerun, but there...Read More

Thursday, February 19th, 2008 Salt Lake City, Utah TAKING A BREAK OUT WEST? With spring approaching, I have been looking for a good week to head out west, visit several relatives including one of my daughters, and ski some Utah mountains. This is the week. Let me share a Louisiana perspective. A 6:30 a.m. flight...Read More

  BUDDY ROEMER AND PRESIDENTIAL POLITICS Buddy Roemer has been out of the limelight for the past seventeen years, once he stepped down as Louisiana’s Governor in 1991. But with Senator John McCain wrapping up the Republican presidential nomination, Roemer finds himself back in the catbird’s seat as a major player on the national scene....Read More

Thursday, February 7th, 2008 Baton Rouge, Louisiana WHERE ARE THE PRIORITIES IN LOUISIANA? When national companies search for new locations around the country and look at Louisiana, how important is ethics reform? A timely question to ask, since newly elected Governor Bobby Jindal is staking a major part of his reputation on bringing ethics in government...Read More

Thursday, February 1st, 2008 Baton Rouge, Louisiana THE THREE HUNDRED POUND GORILLA IN LOUISIANA’S U.S. SENATE RACE Some 4,000 participants, the largest Mardi Gras crowd in history, jammed the Washington Hilton grand ballroom to celebrate the annual gathering of Louisiana’s political establishment this past weekend. There was plenty of talk of the coming presidential election,...Read More

YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONSTART GETTING HEALTHY! The holidays are over for most of us, and it’s time to start thinking about reducing the waistline, and getting into shape. I don’t claim to be a physical fitness nut, but I’ve enjoyed my 67 years of being around, and want to live for a long time to...Read More

STREET DRUGS AND SPORTS DRUGS One central theme wove its way through a number of major sporting events in America.  There is a pervasive use of steroids and enhancement drugs by professional athletes across the board.  And in the big money sports, particularly baseball and football, drug use gets little more than a slap on...Read More

Thursday, December 20th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana ETHICS REFORM LITE? Ethics reform has become the byword of the new Governor-Elect, a number of legislators, and a cross section of most good government groups and various associations throughout Louisiana in recent weeks. Emphasis so far has been directed at financial disclosure by elected officials, and cutting...Read More

Thursday, November 27th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana NEW ORLEANS NEEDS TO GET OVER IT For over a week now, the local New Orleans newspaper has been full of editorials and articles both wailing and bemoaning the fact that the Crescent City will not host one of the major presidential debates next year. The Commission on Presidential...Read More

In just a few short weeks, Louisiana’s new Governor-elect has gone from being an ideologue to a practical politician.? From perception of image to the realities of dealing with the political process. ? Bobby Jindal’s primary victory was a first for a non-incumbent as far back as anyone can remember.? He received an overwhelming mandate.?...Read More

mbattled Orleans Parish D.A. Resigns Former D.A. Connick says he has “strong reservations” about Jordan’s possible interim replacement Tuesday, October 30, 2007   AUDIO ON DEMAND Click here to listen to the Eddie Jordan Resignation Announcement, with comments from interim DA Keva Landrum-Johnson and Mayor Ray Nagin MORE AUDIO ON DEMAND: REACTION TO JORDAN’S RESIGNATION...Read More

CONTRACT WITH LOUISIANA One month to go in Louisiana. Four weeks until one of the most important elections in Louisiana history. The airwaves are being filled with more political spots as each day passes. But do you really know how these candidates feel about a cross section of major issues in the state? I have...Read More

Tuesday, September 11th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana THE SKY IS FALLING! For many years, I have kept a daily dairy about special events.? On this week, commemorating the 6th anniversary of the attack on America, I want to share with you my diary entry of the tragic day. ? ? Tuesday, September 11, 2001 Baton...Read More

Thursday, September 6th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana WHAT HAPPENED TO READING A GOOD BOOK? August has always been my special month to read extensively. No how to, general information, politics, or any other type of practical knowledge reading. It’s always been fiction. Off to summer digs at Gulf Shores, with nothing more to do than...Read More

Tuesday, August 28th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana WAKING UP TO REALITY IN NEW ORLEANS Remember the war scenes of mayhem and destruction in the movie “Good morning Vietnam?” As Agent Orange is brushed across the countryside, and both bombs and machine gunfire continually echo across the killing fields by both sides in the battle, the...Read More

Monday, August 13, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY THE SINKING OF NEW ORLEANS’ SOUL Another politician goes down today. And the malaise continues to hang over the head of New Orleans. Not from Katrina. But from another tragic example of the dismal failure within the political leadership of this once great city. New Orleans...Read More

Musical notes I am pictured with members of a working group of? ? band members who meet for a learning session each Tuesday night at the Sounder Cafe in the Marigny on Charters Street.? You would be surprised how talented some of these young people are both singing and on their instruments.? I’ve been a...Read More

Unnatural disaster A BILLION-DOLLAR DISASTER: Citizens Insurance had both the reinsurance and the cash on hand to handle Hurricane Rita (above is the aftermath in Cameron Parish), which was six times larger than the previous record event in the state. The insurance of last resort, however, was left with a billion-dollar debt. By Seth Fox...Read More

FEMA trailers and formaldehyde Thursday 07-26-2007 8:51am? CT FEMA trailers and formaldehyde were hot topics on my show this week.? There are major problems with numerous FEMA trailers located in both Louisiana and Mississippi, and the phones rang continually as many callers shared their experiences with health problems linked to formaldehyde that is emitted fro...Read More

? What’s the old saying? Don’t pay attention to what I say. Watch what I do. Appreciate the truism here. One only has to compare the rhetoric from Louisiana Republican legislators during the past few weeks of the 2007 session as compared to the actual votes these same legislators cast. Two stark and opposing pictures...Read More

Wednesday, June 5, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana (TAX) SHELTER FROM THE STORM Louisiana needs a much longer Fourth of July holiday break. It’s a tax break I’m talking about, and it should let residents stock up on the storm supplies without having to pay any state sales tax. It’s officially hurricane season, so what better...Read More

Tuesday, May 29th, 2007 Baton Rouge, Louisiana HUNTING, FISHING AND HIGH PROPERTY INSURANCE RATES If there was ever any doubt about both the incompetence and the arrogance in the running of Citizens Property Insurance Company, all you have to do is review the latest Legislative Audit report made public this week. The Legislative Auditor, after...Read More

Wednesday, May 23rd, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana PRESIDENTIAL IMPACT OF LOUISIANA SLIPPING AWAY With the current Louisiana legislative session already one fourth over, there has been, so far, little interest in moving the state’s presidential date from the current date of February 10th. And if this date holds up, Louisiana will drift into oblivion as...Read More

Wednesday, April 25th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana LOUISIANA LEGISLATURE LOOK TO THE SUNSHINE STATE It’s a shame former US Senator John Breaux did not pursue his residency problem in the Louisiana state court system. You see, there’s another outsider in a Southern state that could be exactly the candidate Louisiana is desperate looking for. And...Read More

Monday, April 16th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana   BREAUX’S OUT BUT TIME FOR REPUBLICANS TO PRODUCE   Friday, the 13th turned out to be a bad news day for Louisiana Democrats. And if the Saints were in the market for a new kicker, they sure found one in Attorney General Charlie Foti who punted on...Read More

Thursday, April 5th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana   SO I GET THIS CALL FROM RAY NAGIN The mayor of the city of New Orleans called me last night. I was just about to doze off when the phone rang. And can you believe it? He wanted my advice on how to deal with the degenerating...Read More

Tuesday, March 28th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana   COULD LOUISIANA HAVE THE FIRST PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY? Could Louisiana be a major player in presidential primary politics? Not according to the present election day schedule. But what with a little fine tuning, the Pelican State could emerge as a major factor in deciding what candidate in both...Read More

Wednesday, March 14th, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana     IN LOUISIANA, DO IDEAS MATTER? A number of candidates are posturing themselves in the coming fall gubernatorial election. And several new business and good government groups have sprung up in recent weeks to supposedly “set the agenda” for the political season. One candidate for governor is...Read More

January 18, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana  Did you ever notice how Louisiana is shaped like a boomerang? Where ever you throw it out there or whatever might happen, things always seem to come back and knock you off balance. Living day to day in the Bayou State is a rollercoaster ride; a yo-yo with highs...Read More

Thursday, January 18th, 2006 New Orleans, Louisiana GOOD NEWS AND BAD IN THE CRESCENT CITY Did you ever notice how Louisiana is shaped like a boomerang?? Where ever you throw it out there or whatever might happen, things always seem to come back and knock you off balance.? Living day to day in the Bayou...Read More

January 9, 2007 New Orleans, Louisiana   The New Year was not supposed to start off this way. 2006 had been a disappointment for thousands of people in the greater New Orleans area who were overwhelmed with frustrations over dealing with a federal, state, and local bureaucracy that seemed barely to function at all. 2007 was...Read More

They buried former President Gerald Ford this week. The funeral took place Tuesday morning, while I was airing my New Orleans radio talk show. I told my listeners that I had met the former president on three different occasions. And I really believe I was the first person to call him “Mr. President.” My first...Read More

TALK RADIO MAKES A BIG COMEBACK Just a few years ago, talk radio held a small niche of the listening public both in Louisiana and throughout the Deep South. Here in the Bayou State, only a handful of stations even carried talk radio shows. Several New Orleans stations had the fairly strong signals that could...Read More

I’ll tell you how slow my weekend was. I actually sit down and read the Iraq Study Group Report, and all of its 79 recommendations. I learned that the situation in Iraq is grave and deteriorating. No big surprise here. Lots of finger pointing and generalities, but where’s the beef? Will Rogers once asked: “How...Read More

November 2, 2006 New Orleans, Louisiana  Britain’s former Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli was full of insight with his poignant anecdotes. He once summed up the political courage of one of his opponents by observing: “Our citizens are moving in the streets. And I must find out which way they are going, and get in front...Read More

Political prognosticators all over the state are jumping on the bandwagon writing obituaries for the state Democratic Party in Louisiana. A wipeout they say in the most recent statewide election. Two major offices were captured by the state GOP. Is this a sign of things to come in next year’s gubernatorial election? Hardly. Let’s take...Read More

Remember GE’s Jack Welch who wrote a book last year about the four stages of crisis management? Republican leaders in Congress need to do some real soul-searching and move beyond the quagmire outlined by Welch. First comes “denial” followed by “containment.” We have seen plenty of that from the GOP over the past 12 days....Read More

Had your fill of mud slinging over the airwaves leading up to last Saturday’s election? Well don’t expect any changes in the near future. There are two major statewide elections on the horizon and both to take place in the next 60 days. And before you know it, the Louisiana Legislature will be back on...Read More

We love our elections in Louisiana. Or, at least our public officials sure do. We have already had four election dates this year, and guess what? We still have three more elections to go. And what little interest there was seems to be waning. The forty percent turnout being ballyhooed by elections officials a few...Read More

For years, New Jersey has regularly led the nation in having the highest auto insurance rates anywhere in the country. All of a sudden, their rates are plummeting, while Louisiana stays at the top of the list for what drivers have to pay. What happened to New Jersey, and why can’t the same thing take...Read More

Candidates for Louisiana Insurance Commissioner met in a debate this week before the Baton Rouge Press Club. Libertarian candidate S.B.A. Zaitoon made a well received observation. “The way these two guys are throwing mud at each other, they are making my case that the office should be appointed.” There was little discussion of meaningful insurance...Read More

An election to fill two statewide vacancies is a little over three weeks away, but it would be an understatement to say that the general public is not, as yet, paying much attention. Most voters have no idea a major election is just around the corner. Look for a big advertising blitz to begin for...Read More

We have heard the message over and over again for months. The whole Katrina recovery effort will take time. There are checks and balances we must build in, but with a great deal of effort, we hopefully will soon get back to our pre-Katrina life. Just hang in there with us, say our public officials,...Read More

Does anyone still take serious vacations? In the “good old days,” schools did not start again until the Monday after Labor Day. The last two weeks in August used to be a popular time for families to get away to the beach for a final summer fling. But not anymore. The American family vacation seems...Read More

Special statewide elections in Louisiana are only six weeks away. At the top of the ballot on September 30th will be an office second in line to the governorship. All the candidates are harping on the same theme. Each wants to be the business development voice of the state. Will the Governor let that happen?...Read More

Could the entire federal, state and local justice system operating in New Orleans be more dysfunctional? It’s hard to imagine how things can get much worse. From federal and state judges to a police department that seems to have lost any set of priorities, there seems to be almost unanimous consensus that the present system...Read More

The threat of Allstate Insurance Company leaving Louisiana put insurance issues on the front burner and on the front pages of the state’s daily newspapers all this week. Would the state’s second largest insurance company actually pick up and pull out? Yes says the current insurance commissioner (Jim Donelon). Nothing but a hoax says major...Read More

Allstate Insurance Company stirred up a fire storm this week by announcing that they planned to drop hurricane coverage for some 30,000 of its Louisiana policy holders in 18 coastal parishes. But this could just be the tip of the iceberg as other companies selling property insurance along the gulf Coast consider the same option....Read More

I have penned several recent columns about how appointed judges on both the state and federal level often seem to be exempt from basic rules of accountability. That is why in a number of state legislatures throughout the country, as well as in Congress itself, proposals are being offered for more accountability and limiting the...Read More

Whatever final result is reached in the current high profile investigation of New Orleans Congressman Bill Jefferson, there are plenty of losers all around. Whether or not the six-term Congressman is indicted and convicted, his days of serving as a major Louisiana elected official seem to be on a track to come to an early...Read More

Legislators at the state level and members of Congress in Washington are becoming more and more concerned about how appointed judges throughout the country are exempt from basic rules of accountability. In Washington, Congress is seriously considering legislation to establish an Inspector General, who will have the power to investigate federal judges. Simply put, a...Read More

Everyone knows a man’s home is his castle – Agreed? The basic right of privacy in one’s place of residence has been a fundamental founding principle in any Democratic system, going back to England in the 1600s. William Pitt expressed this concept well in the English Parliament in 1763, “The poorest man may, in his...Read More

Remember the 1978 movie “Heaven Can Wait?” Julie Christie looks up at Warren Beatty and says, “You’re the quarterback. You’re the one.” I guess there’s nothing like hanging out with the quarterback. And that’s exactly what I got to do last week in Shreveport at the Doug Williams Foundation Celebrity Golf Classic. Doug was quite...Read More

Louisiana’s Governor says it’s time to play “hardball” with Washington, so she plans to file a lawsuit stopping the federal government’s planned August 17th offshore oil lease sale. She is drawing the line in the dirt unless Louisiana starts receiving 50 percent of the offshore oil revenues now going exclusively to the federal government. Now...Read More

Would you believe it? The nation focused on the recent Mayor’s Race in New Orleans and you would assume there would be a break. Not so. A major election, involving the selection of two statewide officials as well as congressmen, and many other local officials, is only four months away. A hotly contested race is...Read More

Business executives and academics are joining forces all this week on the North Carolina coast to debate and pinpoint America�s future in the 21st century. How does our country fit into the global flow of ideas, commodities, and rapid development of technology? Will the U.S. continue to lead, or be swept up in the cross...Read More

The polls in New Orleans open up in less than 48 hours. And by Saturday night, we will know the results of one of the most watched and scrutinized mayor’s races in the country. When the smoke settles and all of the votes are cast, whoever wins will not just be “the Man” in New...Read More

Less than three weeks. June 1st. It’s almost here. Hurricane season again. Is Louisiana ready? You be the judge. First of all, we’ve been told by reliable sources that New Orleans’ levees are prepared for no more than a Category 2 storm, and that the repairs being done to the levee system throughout this area...Read More

A 21-year-old Louisiana soldier was killed in Iraq last week. He is the 54th service man from Louisiana who has died since the combat began in March 2003. And you would have a hard time reading about this young man’s death. It was buried in the back pages of his hometown newspaper. Have we become...Read More

In the New Orleans mayor’s race, the two run-off candidates began posturing late election night when it became obvious that the incumbent and the Lieutenant-Governor would face each other for the top prize. Their messages were pretty much the same. Stick to the issues and keep race out of the run-off. And you know what?...Read More

My dog, Shorty, a five-and-a-half pound Yorkie, travels a lot with me. I have written about her before. We included wife Gladys this time around, and headed out a month ago on an extended trip to the west. A family wedding, visits with numerous relatives along the way, spiced up with stops for skiing, hiking,...Read More

Taking a break from a family vacation in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, I went to the Internet and checked on all the local news back home in Louisiana. The insurance news for homeowners, particularly in Louisiana, was bleak. Headlines blaring 49 percent rate increases, companies refusing to pay claims, little known causes that completely wipe...Read More

My wife, Gladys and I were in Shreveport last week attending a funeral. Because of a houseful of guests at my mother’s house, we decided to stay at the Horseshoe Hotel and Casino, a bustling enterprise on the Red River in Bossier right across from downtown Shreveport. Gladys wondered off to the gift shops as...Read More

For weeks, the LSU Board of Supervisors has been embroiled in a controversy over the selection of a new president for the LSU system. Rumors have been flying for months that incumbent head William Jenkins was being pushed aside by a handful of the present Board with his successor already handpicked. In a recent special...Read More

Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco says it’s time to play hardball. Many would say it’s about time. But is attempting to block the sale of federal mineral leases off the coast of Louisiana the way to begin? Even Chris Mathews might raise his eyebrows on this one. Here’s the background. The U.S. Department of the Interior,...Read More

If there is going to be a defining issue in the fall race for Insurance Commissioner, it’s going to be property insurance in Louisiana. Both pre-Katrina and post-Katrina, finding affordable property insurance for homes and businesses has become more and more difficult. The cost has skyrocketed, and many homeowners are dramatically underinsured. And unfortunately, under...Read More

Availability and affordability. The buzzwords when it comes to insurance for small consumers and big businesses alike. The insurance climate wasn’t much before Katrina. But the overall insurance climate took quite a dip in the last five months. Get ready for a knock down drag out on what’s important to the insurance buying public. We...Read More

Now let me get this straight. As part of levee board reform, the Louisiana Legislature, with the Governor’s blessing, will split the oversight of flood protection in New Orleans between two levee boards with a third board over these two boards. And this is supposed to be progress? Up until now, our state has taken...Read More

Do you want to know how disjointed and out of focus the Louisiana Democratic Party is right now? Just look at what happened in last week’s election for a state party chairman. Baton Rouge lawyer and long-time party loyalist, Chris Whittington was the early favorite, and ended up winning a big victory. But look who...Read More

In Louisiana, politicos are always looking to the next political race, or a new vacancy that needs to be filled. And with speculation that present Lieutenant-Governor Mitch Landrieu is about to announce his candidacy for Mayor of New Orleans, the rumor mill has already begun as to who will take his place if his campaign...Read More

In a normal election cycle, 2006 would be a somewhat dull election year with a contested congressional election or two. Not a lot to spark the average voter’s interest. But no more. Get ready for a whole litany of contests, from possible three statewide elections, to a series of hot congressional matches as well as...Read More

A major effort is being made to recall Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco. A website set up to give information about the recall effort received, according to those organizing the effort, some 200,000 hits in the first day alone. Petitions are being circulated, and there is supposedly a major effort underway to obtain the required signatures...Read More

Here in the Crescent City, the lines would seem to have been drawn in the dirt. Many residents want a quick election to pass judgment on those who want to govern the city in the future. Others want to delay the election. And political motives are attributed to both sides. Who benefits by the changing...Read More