This spring, once the Mistake On the Lake, errrr, Steve Scalise secured the Republican nomination, he decided he didn't need to face the voters for the general election. So he skipped a scheduled League of Women Voters (LWV) debate with Democratic nominee Gilda Reed in May.
It seems that he's at it again, as the League of Women Voters of St. Tammany Parish plans to host a debate between Steve Scalise and Democratic nominee Jim Harlan later this month. Mr. Harlan has agreed to debate, but the LWV hasn't set a date yet, thanks to the failure of Steve Scalise to respond to several phone call requests from the LWV.
Mr. Harlan has also accepted a Press Club of New Orleans invitation to debate. The question remains whether Mr. Scalise will even bother to face his opponent or the voters. It'd be nice to see if Mr. Scalise believes that the people have a right to hear the views of candidates for public office. But I'm betting he'd rather go to Alaska to hunt some moose and learn how to field-dress one from the Barracuda herself.
Please do not hurt for me. I am fine with my election loss last night and, in fact, am relieved to become a regular mom, grammy and teacher again. We local Democrats worked hard and I fully appreciate every single thing you did to spread the word. I have made life-long friends among you.
Well ... THIS IS IT. We're less than 12 hours from the opening of the polls. If you want to help Gilda's campaign in Orleans Parish, Jefferson Parish, or in the Northshore Parishes, call (504) 287.4328.
If you want to help out Don's campaign in the Capital region, call (225) 336.3338.
I'll be helping out the Cazayoux campaign in Baton Rouge throughout the day tomorrow, as I live here. I will update this hopefully once, maybe twice, throughout the day, with some turnout numbers. Be sure to check back here tonight after the polls close at 8 PM, as I will be live-blogging the results of both races.
Well ... it's Wednesday. That means there are 70 Thursday night ... less than 32 hours until voting starts on Saturday morning at 6 AM across LA-01 and LA-06.
So, if you want to help out Gilda Reed in LA-01, call (504) 287.4328 to ask how you can help. Or just show up at their campaign office in Metairie between 9 AM and 9 PM in the next 4 days. The address is 1108 N. Starrett Rd. in Metairie, LA. Also, if you know have family or friends in that district, click here to let them about Gilda, who's facing a real conservative wing-nutter in Steve Scalise. Tell them that the citizens of LA-01 deserve to have a Congresswoman who stand up and fight for them in the halls of Congress on the things that really matter - health care, jobs, money to rebuild their lives after Katrina, and that person is Gilda.
If you want to help out Don Cazayoux in LA-06, which encompasses the Capital Region of Louisiana, you can call (225) 336.3338 to ask how you can help. Or you can email them at info@doncazayoux.org. You can even stop in at their campaign HQ in Baton Rouge at 816 Main Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70802. And also, tell your friends in the Baton Rouge to get out and vote for Don if they want a Congressman that will stand up for the working families of the Baton Rouge area. Lord knows that his Republican opponent, Woody Jenkins is not going to come anywhere near helping out the working families of this district in a Democratic House when he keeps trashing the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
LA-01 Republican nominee Steve Scalise likes to hang out with folks who are under investigation by the FBI and the IRS. In the picture to the right, the person under investigation is Malcolm Petal. Why is he under investigation?
While this place has been hopping with LA-06 posts, LA-01 is still out there. Our candidate is Gilda Reed, a progressive Democrat, and one that will actually stay in Congress to get the job done for LA-01. She won't be taking any lobbying gigs, nor will she use the seat as a stepping stone to something bigger, as her predecessors in this seat - Sinator Vitter and Governor PBJ - have done, and State Rep.State Senator Scalise will almost certainly do, perhaps as early as 2010, if he chooses to challenge Sinator Vitter.
Listen to Gilda speak (she starts speaking at the 2:59 mark) ... and then mosey on over to her ActBlue page.
So I heard the other day that Walker Hines (D, H-95), a freshman Member of the State House here in Louisiana crossed party lines to endorse Repewblican Steve Scalise. I originally thought this more of the same old conservative Democrat wanting to kiss the arse of a Repewblican, and thus establish his conservative bona-fides to the conservative voters in his district.
"[Gilda Reed] is endorsed by both the teacher's union and the NRA. She is in favor of universal medical care and she wants the troops out of Iraq. What more do you want?"
Oyster tell us all that Walker himself apparently penned an email to the late, great Ashley Morris, and Ray in New Orleans, which Ray posted on his blog prior to the legislative elections last fall:
"You will be pleasantly surprised by my passion, personality, background, and voting record. Unlike my opponent who tells you whatever you want to hear, I will never sacrifice my principles for popularity. I'm a progressive Democrat who believes in the Catholic values of social justice."
A progressive Democrat? Walker Hines? The one who endorsed a tax-cuttin', minimum wage opposin', War on Iraq supportin', immigration hatin' wanna-be quitter? Progressive? I think not.
Vote for Gilda. And if you can drop some coin, throw her some. She can use it. Hell, we all can use her in the Congress.
Don't cha love it when Republicans do the dirty work for ya? On March 8th, Democratic candidate Gilda Reed cruised to the party's nomination in the special primary, while presumed front-runner Rep. Steve Scalise missed avoiding a nasty run-off battle royale by a mere 577 votes.
It is wonderful to watch all the mud being slung by the two Republican campaigns, as if they are trying to show that they are "cleaner" than the other. Let's deal with the ethics allegations leveled by Scalise on Tim Burns:
It centers around the belief of the Scalise campaign that Tim Burns used legislative emails to promote his book. He also alleges that Mr. Burns is using his state legislative staff to help run his campaign. Here, I'll let the ad aired by the Scalise campaign tell the story:
Now, for the allegations that Burns is slinging at Scalise:
It deals with Scalise's creation - the Film Tax Credit - which seeks to give film production companies a tax break for filming in Louisiana. The Louisiana Institute of Film and Technology (LIFT) is currently under investigation for its use of the Film Tax Credit by the FBI. Two of the people under investigation for their roles in the scandal - Malcolm Petal, a co-founder of LIFT; and Will French, the co-founder and co-president of Louisiana Production Capital.
The issue here is not that they run those operations and are under investigation, but that they have donated substantial sums to Scalise. Mr. Petal has donated $2000 to Scalise's current Congressional campaign, and Mr. French has donated $4000 to Scalise's current Congressional campaign. Normally, money contributed by folks under investigation by the police or under indictment are donated to charitable organizations, but that does not seem to have been done in these two cases, despite Mr. Scalise's claims that he has donated the money to Crime Stoppers.
The second allegation that Mr. Burns levels at Mr. Scalise is that he lobbied for a company that employs his father, before the Jefferson Parish Council in regards to a contract for installing bus stop benches and advertising on the benches. The firm, Go-Go Graphics was the worst bid of the three companies that bidded. Mr. Scalise's defense is laughable:
"Steve Scalise said he doubts his letter helped [Ramsay] Skipper [Jr.], the President of Go-Go Graphics"
Although I am a Republican, I do not think it would be wise to elect either of these men to Congress.
Do we really need to send either of these ethically challenged men to represent LA-01? I think not. Help Gilda beat either one of these scoundrels by donating here.
So I decided to go to Saturday's DSCC meeting and network to get this blog known among Democrats throughout Louisiana. I met some interesting people, and I got to see some of the people I've only read about it in the newspapers in action, such as Karen Carter Peterson, Derrick Shepherd, Renee Gill Pratt, Don Cravins, and Buddy Leach.
Let's deal with the elections of officers first:
Chris Whittington was elected to his serve his first four year term as Chairman. I know that there are folks who thought he needed to move on, but I will give him credit for raising the necessary funds to keep the Louisiana Democratic Party functioning after Hurricane Katrina. Further, with the help of DNC over the last two years, as part of the 50 State Strategy, the LDP has hired organizers who have begun the process of rebuilding the grassroots of our Party. I can't recall the numbers of the top of my head, but I will find out and put it here.
The other folks that were elected are:
Name
Town/City
Position
Michael McHale
Lake Charles
1st Vice Chair
Elsie Burkhalter
Slidell
2nd Vice Chair
Wesley T. Bishop
New Orleans
3rd Vice Chair
Alton Bailey
Leesville
4th Vice Chair
David Gereighty
Jefferson
Treasurer
Arlenda Williams
Houma
Secretary
City Councilman Brian Thomas
Opelousas
Vice Chair for Elected Officials
Kenny Hooks
Baton Rouge
Legal Counsel
Arthur Morrell
New Orleans
Clerk
State Sen. Derrick Shepherd
Marrero
Parliamentarian
The DNC members that were elected are:
Name
Town/City
Position
House Speaker Pro-Tem Karen Carter Peterson
New Orleans
Democratic National Committeewoman
State Rep. Claude "Buddy" Leach
Leesville
Democratic National Committeeman
Ben Jeffers
Baton Rouge
DNC Member-At-Large
But the best news of the day came when Mr. Whittington asked candidates for Congress to get up and speak ...
Gilda Reed got up and just told the crowd that they better get behind her, as she is going to make history in LA-01 by taking that seat come May. Folks, I cannot emphasize enough that if we want more and better Democrats, we have got to put our money where our mouths are. Go donate to Gilda. And add .08 to your donation so they know it came from the Louisiana netroots.
And then Gil Pinac of Crowley got up and gave a very, very brief speech. You know know what that means ... we just may have a good candidate to take on Boustany in the LA-07. He has not made it official, he just wanted to thank everyone for their support.
If he's going to run, I would highly urge him to declare soon. If he doesn't, I would love to see Mayor Donald Cravins, Sr. of Opelousas take another shot at it.
I think both Pinac and Cravins, Sr. would walk away with the race, as they would get more than enough votes from the Lafayette area to add to the Democratic votes from Lake Charles to defeat anti-middle class Mr. Boustany.
The GOPers are heading into a run-off between Scalise and Burns. There are only 4 precincts left to report in Jefferson Parish, which is Scalise's base, and 25 precincts to report from Washington Parish, which is on the Northshore, and it is no friend of Scalise, as it is one of two parishes he will lose tonight.
Gilda Reed was interviewed on WWL-TV in New Orleans the other day. I can't embed the video, as WWL-TV doesn't allow for that. What I can do is give you the link:
After raising seven children, Ms. Reed earned bachelor's and master's degrees in psychology and a doctorate in applied biological psychology from the University of New Orleans. Since then she has worked as a full-time adjunct professor at UNO. She describes herself as fiscally conservative and wants to rein in spending in Washington.
She also would focus on ensuring that the region has sufficient hurricane protection and on rebuilding the coast. An emergency insurance program for future disasters also is a priority. Ms. Reed, who with her husband adopted two special needs children, promises to be an dedicated advocate for people in the district.
Editor's Note: We have endorsed Gilda Reed in the Democratic Primary.
Let me give you the basics - he's 42 yr old with a degree from LSU in Computer Systems. He works for a firm in Metairie that does a lot of DoD work. He's married, and they have a baby girl. He's served in the State Legislature since he got elected at 30, starting in HD 82 until he ran for SD 9 this past fall.
Iraq
Scalise lists "Strong National Defense" as an issue for his campaign, but there is absolutely no reference to the current Middle East wars on his website. The disrespect this does to our troops as well as the intelligence of the voters of LA-01 is incredible.
Flood Protection
Scalise's campaign website says he supports funding 100-year-storm protection for Southeast Louisiana, yet he stands by the records of his predecessors. His friend David "Diaper Dave" Vitter, and PBJ both fully supported the Cheney Administration's ongoing underfunding of flood control projects for Southeast Louisiana. Scalise offers no explanation for this conflict in his words and actions.
Healthcare
Fought last year to cut 1,532 state jobs from the budget, most coming from the Department of Health and Hospitals. Adamantly opposed to rebuilding Charity Hospital New Orleans, even though it was one of the state's largest employers, teaching hospitals, and the primary source of healthcare for the metro area's uninsured.
Education
Voted last year to cut $177 million in education funding from the state budget. Supports tuition tax deductions for families that have children in parochial schools.
Voting Rights
Took the lead in developing "ballot integrity programs" for the LA Republican Party. The plans included increasing the number of Republican "poll watchers" for the 2002 Landrieu-Terrell Senate race.
Smoker's Rights
Opposed a ban on smoking in Louisiana restaurants (the ban passed and went into effect on January 1, 2007). What is significant about Scalise's opposition is that he did what one of his primary benefactors, the Louisiana Restaurant Association, told him to do. In many states, state-wide smoking bans are welcomed by restaurants, lest a county-by-county patchwork create inequities. In Louisiana, however, restaurants are gambling venues. By banning smoking, video poker players who want to drink, smoke, and gamble, have to go someplace else. That has caused a huge drop in restaurant gambling revenue. Scalise conveys the impression that he is a gambling opponent, but he serves a special interest that has made a lot of money from video poker in the last 15 years.
LA-01 needs someone who is going to work full-time for their needs, one that will stand UP and FIGHT for her people in Congress on a full-time basis, not look to abandon the seat for "bigger and better things" like the U.S. Senate or the Governor's mansion, as former Congresscritters Sinator David Vitter and Governor PBJ did. That person is Gilda Reed.
For those of you who have never met me, I have a bilateral hearing loss. I have a cochlear implant in my left ear, and wear a hearing aid in my right ear. And when I met Gilda for the first time last year at the Yearly Kos Convention in Chicago, I knew that this was a woman who just doesn't give up.
I say that because she hasn't let polio, which she contracted after swimming at Pontchartrain Beach in 1949, when she was but two years of age, slow her down. She had to learn how to sit up and walk again, and dealt with 17 surgeries along the way. Yet, she has never stopped - raising 7 children with her husband, a Navy veteran and a retired electrical inspector for Shell; earning her B.A., Masters and Ph.D. in 1991, 1994 and 1996 from the University of New Orleans; and teaching at UNO starting in 1994, and serving on the School Board of her Church Parish, despite the fact that all of her children attended public schools.
When I met her, and I saw how she interacted with people at Yearly Kos, I knew that we needed to get her elected. She's a Wellstone, people. You'll always know where she stands, because she's not afraid to speak her mind.
So, if you can spare $5, $10, $15, or $20, please do so. This is a fight we can win. You can donate to Gilda in the Donate to LA Dems box in the lower left corner of this screen, or simply click here to donate to Gilda.
First, let me explain why I refuse to link to Vinny Mendoza at this site. He's a perpetual candidate that has run for LA-01 in 2004, LA-02 in 2006, Governor in 2007, and now he's running again in LA-01.
Second, I finally had the time to look up Jason DeCuir, Michael Jackson, Andy Kopplin's websites. They are posted under '08 Candidates.
Also, lest DKF be branded as favoring Don Cazayoux before I make an endorsement, I will be pulling Cazayouz's name from the fundraising links, and putting up the General Fund for the eventual nominee.
So, if you want to help out 
If you want to help out 
LA-01 Republican nominee Steve Scalise likes to hang out with folks who are under investigation by the FBI and the IRS. In the picture to the right, the person under investigation is Malcolm Petal. Why is he under investigation?
Let me give you the basics - he's 42 yr old with a degree from LSU in Computer Systems. He works for a firm in Metairie that does a lot of DoD work. He's married, and they have a baby girl. He's served in the State Legislature since he got elected at 30, starting in HD 82 until he ran for SD 9 this past fall. 
I say that because she hasn't let polio, which she contracted after swimming at Pontchartrain Beach in 1949, when she was but two years of age, slow her down. She had to learn how to sit up and walk again, and dealt with 17 surgeries along the way. Yet, she has never stopped - raising 7 children with her husband, a Navy veteran and a retired electrical inspector for Shell; earning her B.A., Masters and Ph.D. in 1991, 1994 and 1996 from the University of New Orleans; and teaching at UNO starting in 1994, and serving on the School Board of her Church Parish, despite the fact that all of her children attended public schools. 
On Mardi Gras, Gilda Reed was given a reason to celebrate something other than the fact that it was Mardi Gras. She received the 
