Yesterday saw the close of the qualifying period for a slew of races.These races include the replacement of Mitch Landrieu as our Lt. Governor and all of the Federal races – each congressional district as well as the Vitter Senate seat.(This column is about the Federal Races, the State races will follow.)
There has been so much action it is almost enough to make this political junkies head spin right off my neck, but let’s take a look at the more notable races.
USSenate
David Vitter has had his share of problems and now it seems as if he has more than his far share of challengers.First – let’s look at the Republican Primary – yes, - exciting – there will be one!
Two Republican Challengers will be facing off with the embattled senator and they are former Louisiana Supreme Court Justice Chet Traylor and little known Nick Accardo of Franklin.Traylor is definitely the surprise here in this race and could really give Vitter a run for his money.Lacking no far right bonafides, Traylor enters the race as a “country lawyer” with strong support from north Louisiana and in the business community.Traylor is arguably most famous for writing the opinion of Louisiana’s highest court that retained Louisiana’s Anti Sodomy Laws that are still on the books here in our state (albeit completely unenforceable after Lawrence v. Texas).For more on this check out what they are saying on TPM.
In the interest of keeping y'all informed, the Kingfish and some champions of working class Louisianans have compiled a list of the town halls that our Republican elected officials are hosting throughout Louisiana over the next week. If you know of any that are not on this list, or you have the details of one that we know of, but haven't been able to nail down, please let me know in the comments, or you can email me at ryan at dailykingfish dot com.
Fri Aug 14, 2009
Host: Rep. Alexander Where: Monroe City Hall, Council Chamber; 400 Lea Joyner Expressway; Monroe,La. 71210 Time: 2 PM - 3 PM
Mon Aug 17, 2009
Host: Sinning Senator David Vitter Where: St. James Parish Courthouse;
5800 La 44; Convent, LA 70723 Time: 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM
Host: Sinning Senator David Vitter Where: Lafayette South Regional Branch Library; 6101 Johnston St.; Lafayette, LA 70503 Time: 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM
Host: Rep. Cassidy Where: Ascension Parish; Dutchtown High School; 13165 Highway 73; Geismar, LA Time: 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM
Tue Aug 18, 2009
Host: Rep. Scalise - Washington Parish Town Hall Where: Bogalusa City Hall, 202 Arkansas Ave. Bogalusa Time: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM
Host: Sinning Senator Vitter - Monroe Town Hall Where: ULM Student Union Field House 700 University Ave. Time: 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM
Host: Sinning Senator Vitter - Bienville Parish Town Hall
Where: Arcadia City Hall
Time: 4 PM - 5 PM
Host: Rep. Cao - Westwego Town Hall Where: Jefferson Performing Arts Center
177 Sala Ave.
Westwego, LA 70094
Time: 6 PM - 7 PM
Wed Aug 19, 2009
Host: Sinning Senator Vitter - DeSot Parish Town Hall Where: DeSoto Chamber of Commerce; Mansfield, LA Time: UNKNOWN
Host: Sinning Senator Vitter - Marksville Town Hall
LOCATION AND TIME UNKNOWN
Host: Rep. Scalise - Jefferson Parish Town Hall Where: Jefferson Parish Council Chambers, 1221 Elmwood Park Blvd; Harahan, LA Time: 7 PM - 8 PM
Thu Aug 20, 2009
Host: Rep. Scalise - Orleans Parish Town Hall Where: St. Dominic's Knight's of Columbus Hall, 6254 Vicksburg St.; New Orleans, LA Time: 2 PM - 3 PM
Host: Rep. Cao - Algiers Town Hall Where:
Delgado Community College West Bank Campus, 2600 General Meyer Avenue;
Building #1; Room 130;
New Orleans, LA 70114 Time: 6 PM - 7:30 PM
Fri Aug 21, 2009
Host: Rep. Scalise - Tangipahoa Parish Town Hall Where: Ponchatoula City Hall Council Chambers, 125 W. Hickory St.; Ponchatoula, LA Time: 11 AM - 12 PM
What I'm wondering is if the Sinning Senator and his Republican friends will allow the following:
Anyone to enter the Town Hall
UNSCREENED questions from the floor
Supporters of President Obama's health care reform plan to speak without being shouted down or derided
The Advocate quoted GOP Congressman Rodney Alexander about the town halls he's been holding in his district over health care reform:
"We haven't had anybody who's been ugly with us," said U.S. Rep. Rodney Alexander, R-Quitman. "Most people are concerned but nobody has been rude."
Well, I guess the Congressman and I have differing definitions of rude, because one young woman, Caina Munson, was shouted down by some obnoxious "patriotic authentic American" while the Congressman just stood there and let the man verbally abuse one of his constituents (Ms. Munson starts speaking around 2:45): (hat tip to CenLamar)
Perhaps the Congressman would like to offer us his definition of rude?
The Employee Free Choice Act has been introduced in the House as H.R. 1409 and in the Senate as S. 560.
The corporate lobbies of America are prepared to spend $200 MILLION to defeat EFCA. I've had many conservative friends (they hate being identified as Republicans these days), and some Democratic friends express concern that EFCA will "do away with the secret ballot" with respect to the choice of deciding whether to join a union.
Unfortunately, they are all repeating the lies from the corporate propaganda machine. Right now, if you were to try to unionize your workplace ... your employer has the right to decide which process you use to decide whether y'all unionize or not - you sign a card or you have a secret ballot. Not surprisingly, companies often choose to force their workers to endure a secret ballot. Labor lawyer Gordon Lafer explains why:
When employees want to form a union, they have to go through a process that looks more like the discredited practices of rogue regimes abroad than like anything we would call American.
For an election to be "free and fair," both sides must have equal access to media and the voters. But not under labor law. Anti-union managers are free to campaign to every employee, every day, throughout the day; but pro-union employees can campaign only on break time. Furthermore, management can post anti-union propaganda on bulletin boards and walls - while prohibiting pro-union employees from doing the same.
By law, employers can force workers to attend mass anti-union propaganda events. Not only are pro-union employees not given equal time, but they can be forced to attend on condition that they not ask any questions. Recent data show that workers are forced to attend between five and 10 such one-sided meetings."
And yet you never hear about that part of union organizing from the corporate interests. All you hear is that the secret ballot will go away. Again, it's NOT TRUE. With respect to elections, the bill simply puts the choice of HOW TO VOTE ON WHETHER TO UNIONIZE where it belongs ... with the workers.
"Funny how the free-traders and deregulators suddenly want the government in everyone's face again when it comes to whether or not regular people should be able to decide for themselves how they want to tell their friends and coworkers that they'd maybe like to get together and cooperate on some stuff.
If I want into a union and feel like saying so, get the hell out of my way, boss. Nobody asked you. It shouldn't be up to you how I get to express that any more than you get to decide how I invite people out for beers after work."
Now ... we've got nine representatives up in Washington. Six of 'em are going to vote "NO" no matter what - Vitter, Scalise, Fleming, Alexander, Cassidy and Boustany.
The other three ... Representative Cao, Representative Melancon and Senator Landrieu are going to be slammed with phone calls from nervous folks here in Louisiana telling them NOT to vote for EFCA. So ... call them, and tell them to stand up for Louisiana's working families by voting for EFCA:
In the wake of the brou-haha over RNC Chairman Michael Steele's apology to Rush Limbaugh over his comments about him:
"So let's put it into context here. Let's put it into context here. Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. Rush Limbaugh, his whole thing is entertainment. Yes, it's incendiary. Yes, it's ugly."
Then not even 48 hours goes by before we get this from Mr. Steele:
""My intent was not to go after Rush - I have enormous respect for Rush Limbaugh. I was maybe a little bit inarticulate ... There was no attempt on my part to diminish his voice or his leadership."
So what did the Lousiana GOP have to say about this? Here's Governor PBJ on CNN's Larry King Live:
King: All right, governor, here was Rush Limbaugh at this weekend's CPAC Conference. Watch.
Rush Limbaugh: What is so strange about being honest and saying I want Barack Obama to fail if his mission is to restructure and reform this country so that capitalism and individual liberty are not its foundation? Why would I want that to succeed?
King: Governor, do you think people are thinking about capitalism now or are they thinking about problems?
Jindal: Look, clearly, the American people are worried about paying their mortgages, keeping their jobs and paying their health care bills. I think Rush is a great leader for conservatives. I think he articulates what a lot of people are concerned about.
King: Do you want him [Obama] to fail?
Jindal: I don't want those policies to be adopted. I want my country to succeed, but I don't want policies to be adopted.
King: What if the policies work?
Jindal: Well, again...
King: What if they work?
Jindal: This is where we have a fundamental disagreement. I don't think it's going work ... to spend in excess of our revenues.
And just for the sake of comparison, here's what Joseph "Holy" Cao's Chief of Staff told Big Red Cotton:
Cao's chief of staff Clayton Hall says on the record:
"No... the problems in this country are too big. Rush Limbaugh can say whatever he wants to say. Congressman Cao does not want the president to fail."
So I asked him does Cao want the stimulus package, which he voted against, to fail. Hall gave a curt "No".
Heh. There's a schism within the LA GOP regarding the power of Rush. Obviously, Governor PBJ is a wimp. Cao, like Oyster notes, knows kung fu.
What about the rest of Louisiana's GOP delegation?
This is a new feature that I plan to do on a regular basis; hopefully, a weekly basis, once I purchase a new computer. For the first month of the 111th Congress, there were 46 roll call votes in the House,and there are 6 votes I am focusing on in the House:
There are some surprises here. The Presidential Records Act was to deny President Bush the power to seal his records forever, and allow the House to investigate the Bush Administration's malfeasance. So it was surprising to see Reps. Scalise and Alexander vote for it. Perhaps they were voting to ensure that the Clinton records would stay open or something.
Other than that, the only other surprise is Representative Cao. He did vote for the Presidential Records Act as well as the Paycheck Fairness Act, which posits that workers, regardless of gender, should be paid equally for the same work. But he didn't vote for the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which supplied the remedy for when an employer pays a woman (or a man) less than his job counterparts. Rep. Cao also voted to reauthorize the Children's Health Insurance Program, and expand it to include an additional 10 million children.
Other than Rep. Cao, the rest of the Louisiana Republican delegation - Rep. Scalise, Rep. Fleming, Rep. Alexander, Rep. Cassidy and Rep. Boustany - voted against equal pay for women, and against ensuring that Louisiana's children have health insurance.
The entire Louisiana Republican delegation in the House voted against the shelling out the rest of the TARP funds to the nation's banks. Interestingly, Reps. Alexander and Scalise flipped their votes ... perhaps because they trusted President Bush more than they trust President Obama? It seems that the Louisiana Republican delegation is in the same boat as Rush Limbaugh - they want to see the economy fail.
On Friday, Congress took up the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which seeks to ensure that women have a remedy when their right to equal pay for equal work has been denied by their employer. Seems fair, no?
Well, the Supreme Court, in Ledbetter v. Goodyear, applied a strict constructionist view of the statutes governing pay in the workplace, and denied women the right to sue their employer over sex discrimination in pay if they didn't bring such a suit within 180 days of a corporation deciding to discriminate against the worker. What the Supreme Court majority failed to understand in this case was that most businesses do not publish their pay scale for all workers to see, so it is not likely that anyone will know that they are being paid less than their colleague within a 180 day period.
According to the entire Republican delegation representing Louisiana in Congress, it is not fair to make businesses that pay women who perform the same work as their male counterparts accountable to the legal system unless such a suit is brought with 6 months of receiving less pay as their male counterpart for the same work. In fact, to the Louisiana Republican delegation - Steve Scalise, Joseph Cao, John Fleming, Rodney Alexander, Bill Cassidy and Charles Boustany - it is downright discriminatory to those businesses, who ought to be able to discriminate against women in the workplace at will, and never face repercussions for doing so.
As Jeffrey at Library Chronicles notes, the vote made by Congressman Gao is not one that Congressman Jefferson would have made. I would add that Congressman Cazayoux would have voted differently than Congressman Cassidy as well.
I should note that the bill passed overwhelmingly, thanks to the new Democratic majority in the U.S. House, 247 to 171, with 15 Members not voting.
That tells me that Rodney sees the writing on the wall, and will not be a candidate for the Senate in 2010. It is still possible that he could switch parties at the last moment, much like he did in 2004 to undertake a challenge from the Democratic Party, but I just don't see it happening at this point.
It seems all but certain that Alexander will be facing Andrew Clack in a GOP primary again, though it remains to be seen how effective such a challenge will be. If Mr. Clack can get the Club for Growth folks involved, he stands a better chance of wresting the nomination away from Alexander.
The question then becomes whether there is a Democratic candidate out there willing to challenge Alexander in a general election. There were rumors that such a candidate would emerge during the filing period this summer, but none did.
I wonder if Alexandria Mayor Jacques Roy would be willing to take on this fight. Doing so however, would mean foregoing a re-election campaign for Mayor, which is that fall as well.
Sinator David Vitter held a "Mardi Gras in December" fundraiser in Washington last week at which Governor Jindal stood alongside the adulterous Sinator in photos for those that paid $4,600 to have their photos taken with the men.
What is more interesting, however, is the list of hosts:
Senator J. Bennett Johnston
Congressman Jim McCrery
Congressman Rodney Alexander
Congressman Charles Boustany
Congressman Steve Scalise
Congressman Bob Livingston
Congressman Billy Tauzin
Congressman Jimmy Hayes
Congressman John Cooksey
Congressman Henson Moore
Congressman Clyde Holloway
Congressman?Elect Bill Cassidy
Lamar expressed profound disappointment with the fact that a former Democratic Senator, J. Bennett Johnston, has essentially endorsed Vitter by co-hosting this fundraiser for him.
Senate Guru made hay out of the fact that Secretary of State Jay Dardenne didn't co-host, which I don't think was that big of thing, since Governor Jindal was also not a co-host. But it is interesting that Mr. Dardenne also didn't show up, whereas Governor PBJ did.
And Mr. Dardenne certainly didn't do much to quell the rumors that he is considering running for the Republican nomination against Vitter in 2010:
Dardenne, who did not attend Vitter's "Mardi Gras in December" event in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday night, said the encouragement he's received has come from friends and supporters in Louisiana rather than from individuals in Washington.
But, for now at least, Dardenne said he's happy with his role as secretary of state and he doesn't have any timeframe in mind for making a decision about the Senate seat.
"I haven't done anything to advance a candidacy for the U.S. Senate except listen to people who have encouraged me to run," he said.
But what I take from this is that Congressman Rodney Alexander sees the writing on the wall, and is likely not going to challenge Vitter for the GOP nomination.
Last week, I brought this ad on Craigslist to your attention. But there is much, much more happening in regards to 2010:
Two commentators have dropped Don Cazayoux's name as a candidate for the Senate in 2010, here and here. This may be why the Business Report reported today that Senator Landrieu is among those pushing to have Cazayoux named as the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Louisiana.
According to well-placed sources, one on the Republican side of the aisle, and another on the Democratic side of the aisle, Congressman Rodney Alexander is considering running for the Senate in 2010. And these sources tell me he's not made up his mind entirely as to which party he'd make the run in! I can't see Alexander being welcomed with open arms in the Democratic primary, so my guess is he's stuck in the GOP.
It's an open secret within Democratic politics that Shaw Chairman Jim Bernhard is seriously considering running for the Senate. What folks don't know is that some of the big money donors in Louisiana Democratic politics, like Sarah Palin donor Calvin Fayard, are attempting to clear the field for Mr. Bernhard. Whether they are successful is another matter, as rumors abound that the Landrieu camp is trying to entice a Central or Northern Louisiana Democrat into the race.
Sinator Vitter is still attempting to shore up his biggest weakness - North Louisiana - by calling into Tom Pace's "Talk of the Town" radio show tomorrow on Shreveport's KRMD-AM 1340. You can listen in here.
Earlier this week, it came out that Louisiana GOP Chairman Roger Villere was considering censuring Louisiana Republicans that have endorsed Senator Mary Landrieu in her campaign against Republican John "Wanna Be" Kennedy.
Well, the Times-Picayune reported on Wednesday that Republican Congressman Rodney Alexander attended a fundraiser for Senator Landrieu that was held at former State Senator Randy Ewing's home.
Rodney even spoke(!) in support of Senator Landrieu at the event:
"I spoke for her and told the people there how we have worked closely together on projects for farmers."
So, Roger, what's the punishment you're gonna levy on Rodney?
I'd heard rumors from business owners in Alexandria that somebody with Secret Service protection was coming to Alexandria on Monday. The Alexandria Town Talk has confirmed that President Bush will be in Alexandria on Monday.
It is interesting to note that in an election year, less than three weeks before the election, in a state supposedly trending Republican, the President will not be boosting the Republican candidates in two districts that were represented by Republican officeholders - LA-04 and LA-06 - for over 15 years, and one currently represented by a Republican incumbent - LA-07. All three districts are less than an hours' drive from Alexandria, and yet the President will not be showing up in those districts.
No, he's showing up in a district where there is NO election, thanks to the fact that no Democratic candidate stepped up to challenge the traitorous and ethically challenged Rodney Alexander.
This is the election for this district, as no independents or Democrats qualified to run. So, for all intents and purposes, Rodney Alexander has won re-election. With 547 out 752 precincts reporting:
A tax break for rum produced in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands may trigger a hangover for proponents of Congress' huge bailout bill after the U.S. Senate tacked on tax reductions for the islands' liquor.
In its current form, the estimated cost of the U.S. Caribbean rum tax proposal, which provides payment to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands for rum imported into the mainland, is US$192 million over 10 years.
Normally, this tax break would be extended with little fanfare, but the Senate screwed the pooch on this one, y'all. Something tells me that we're going to be revisiting this mess under the next Administration come January.
Anyhow, here's the breakdown of the Louisiana delegation in the House vote:
Ayes:
LA-03: Charlie Melancon (D)
LA-04: Jim McCrery (R)
LA-05: Rodney Alexander (R)
LA-07: Charles Boustany (R)
Nays:
LA-01: Steve Scalise (R)
LA-02: Bill Jefferson (D)
LA-06: Don Cazayoux (D)
Steve's in the fight of his life in LA-01; and so is Bill over in LA-02; and Don is facing a tough re-election battle against Bill Cassidy. Still, Don sent out this statement about his vote: (emphasis added)
""Today, I cast my vote against Senate version of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act. This was decidedly one of the toughest votes I have taken during my career in elected office, but I am confident that I cast the right vote. It is my firm belief that giving Wall Street $700 billion in taxpayer money is not the right way to solve the fundamental challenges facing our economy and financial markets. I was hopeful that the new compromise bill would have a smaller pricetag with less taxpayer liability, but it did not."
Mr. Thompson is the candidate that has been endorsed by the outgoing Congressman McCrery, which makes him a strong candidate, despite trailing in the money race thus far. All three men's debts are largely due to their personal wealth, with the exception of Gorman, who owes some $4,826.38 to various vendors.
Artis "Doc" Cash has not filed an FEC report at this time. The two Democrats with debts owe them to themselves ... as they donated personal funds to their campaigns. The frontrunner, Paul Carmouche, raised more money than any of the Republican candidates in the last quarter, AND he understands the virtues of fiscal responsibility ... he has no debts. Mr. Carmouche must be considered to be the front-runner for the Democratic nomination. It remains to be seen if he will win the seat in Congress ... that will be up to us ... to make sure that we register every single eligible voter to put Mr. Carmouche over the top.
LA-05
No need to publicize RepTraitor Alexander's fundraising #'s as he does not have a Democratic opponent. There is a real conservative running against him in the primary, but who knows if he'll get any support from the folks he needs in a race like this - Club for Growth. Stay tuned.
LA-06
The field is set ... it's going to be a fight until November. Here are the fundraising reports:
Well, Jackson's got himself in a hole. Don't be surprised if he raises less than $50,000 for the entire campaign. He can't win this one, no matter who he can convince otherwise. His campaign is being encouraged by former Rep. Richard Baker, in an attempt to take black voters away from Don Cazayoux. It's the only way Cassidy can win this thing ... limit the number of black voters voting for Cazayoux, especially in East Baton Rouge parish, and attempt to run up the score in Ascension and Livingston parishes enough to overcome Don's advantage in Pointe Coupee, West Feliciana, East Feliciana, St Helana, Iberville and West Baton Rouge parishes.
It remains to be seen if this tactic will be effective. Stay tuned.
Interesting ... for an incumbent to burning through nearly $400k - $398,546 to be exact - in 6 fundraising quarters is not a good thing. Perhaps Boustany got a tad overconfident about being re-elected by acclamation like Melancon did over in LA-03.
What many national prognosticators don't realize about LA-07 is that it is a DEMOCRATIC district. If you take a look at the last time a Presidential election was held in Louisiana was 4 years ago, with President Bush driving turnout throughout the state. The 3 Democrats running in LA-07 that year - Cravins, Sr., Carriere, and Mount - received 141,645 votes to the 132,107 votes of the two GOPers running in the jungle primary - Boustany and Thibodeaux. Further, in the Senate race, then-Congressman Chris John actually won the 7th over Vitter - 126,016 to 125,597.
There will be no gay marriage bashing on the ballot to help drive turnout for the GOP. Nor will President Bush be driving turnout. Instead, the Democrats have to ensure that having Senator Obama and State Senator Cravins, Jr. on the ballot in the 7th turns out black voters like never before ... but it will take an efficient, kick-ass field operation in the 7th. Whether it will be done remains to be seen.
The folks that qualified yesterday AND Wednesday are in green text, unless they have are a Democrat AND have a website that I can find. If they are Repewblicans, then they have no linky to their site. This is a progressive website, and there is no need to link to those we are trying to defeat. The folks that qualified today are in black. So, without further adieu:
Senator Landrieu is currently on her "Winning for Louisiana." There will be events in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Shreveport, Monroe, Alexandria, Lake Charles and New Orleans over the weekend. The New Orleans stop will be the final one, and that is being held at the Basin Street Station in New Orleans. You find out about the rest of the stops in the Events Box up in the right corner.
The field you see up there will likely be who is on the ballot come November, as Mr. Stewart is running as an Independent, and will appear on the November ballot. The entrance will likely make things very difficult for the former Democrat turned Republican who now says party labels are irrelevant. I say that because Mr. Fontanesi is a Libertarian and will likely earn votes otherwise intended for the Republican nominee.
LA-01
Jim Harlan, Democrat
M.V. "Vinny" Mendoza, Democrat
Steve Scalise, Republican
James Carter, Democrat Troy "C" Carter, Democrat
William Jefferson, Democrat
Byron L. Lee, Democrat
Helena Moreno, Democrat Cedric Richmond, Democrat
Malik Rahim, Green Party
Kenya J.H. Smith, Democrat
"Jerry" Jacobs, No Party
Anh "Joseph" Cao, Republican
This is likely to remain in Democratic hands, no matter the outcome of the Democratic primary. The real fight here will be on September 6th.
Charlie won his re-election by acclamation. That's more money that can go to Don Cazayoux, Don Cravins, Jr., Jim Harlan, Mary Landrieu, and whomever comes out of the Democratic primaries in LA-02 and LA-04.
John Fleming, Republican
Chris Gorman, Republican
Jeff Thompson, Republican
Chester T. "Catfish" Kelley, No Party
Gerard J. Bowen, Jr., Other
So we'll see one Democrat and one GOPer on the November ballot in the 4th along with Mr. Kelley and Mr. Bowen.
LA-05
Rodney Alexander, Republican
A Republican has stepped forward to take on the traitor ... his name is:
Andrew Clack, Republican
No Democrat emerged to take on the traitor. Oh, well. This race will be decided on September 6th. My guess is that the traitor will win handily, but what do I know about GOP politics?
Michael Jackson, No Party
As far as I am concerned, the Democrats in the State House ought to dump Mr. Jackson. Let him run as an Independent from here on out. Party rules require Democrats to support the Democratic nominee in general elections, and Mr. Jackson is blatantly dissing that rule. Come on EBR Democrats, show Mr. Jackson that you've got a spine!
LA-07
Don Cravins, Jr., Democrat
Charles Boustany, Republican
Peter Vidrine, Other
The folks that qualified yesterday are in green text, unless they have are a Democrat AND have a website that I can find. If they are Repewblicans, then they have no linky to their site. This is a progressive website, and there is no need to link to those we are trying to defeat. The folks that qualified today are in black. So, without further adieu:
Senator Landrieu plans to qualify on Friday morning, after which she will kick off her "Winning for Louisiana" tour with stops in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Shreveport, Monroe, Alexandria, Lake Charles and New Orleans over the weekend.
John Neely Kennedy kicked off his "Nonsense on a Bus" tour through the state, and will apparently qualify tomorrow.
LA-01
Jim Harlan, Democrat
Steve Scalise, Republican
M.V. "Vinny" Mendoza, Democrat
James Carter, Democrat Troy "C" Carter, Democrat
William Jefferson, Democrat
Byron L. Lee, Democrat
Helena Moreno, Democrat Cedric Richmond, Democrat
Malik Rahim, Green Party
Kenya J.H. Smith, Democrat
"Jerry" Jacobs, No Party
Kenya Smith's filing leaves State Senator Cheryl Gray as the lone Democrat still considering the race. The two Republicans I mentioned yesterday, attorney Joe Lavigne, who finished 4th in the 2006 jungle primary, and Dillard University professor Gary Clark, are still considering it.
So far, no one else has qualified. It'll be interesting to see if any Republicans bother to throw their hat in the ring, considering that Charlie will be seeking his 3rd term this fall, and he won his re-election campaign quite convincingly over former State Senator Craig Romero, 55-40 in 2006.
John Fleming, Republican
Chris Gorman, Republican
Jeff Thompson, Republican
Chester T. "Catfish" Kelley, No Party
Mr. Kelly ran back in '06, and garnered some 2% of the vote as a Republican. My guess is he'll garner about the same as that, or even less than that in a competitive open seat election.
LA-05
Rodney Alexander, Republican
A Republican has stepped forward to take on the traitor ... his name is:
So here's the list of folks who qualified to run for the eight federal offices up for election in Louisiana this year, with a note as to when various folks are planning to qualify:(if there is no link to a website, it's because the candidate is a Republican, or they don't have one)
LA-Sen
None today.
Senator Landrieu plans to qualify on Friday morning, after which she will kick off her "Winning for Louisiana" tour with stops in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Shreveport, Monroe, Alexandria, Lake Charles and New Orleans over the weekend.
John Neely Kennedy kicked off his "Nonsense on a Bus" tour through the state, and will supposedly qualify at some point during the tour.
I believe these two are the only ones planning on running from either party ... there may be some minor candidates that come out of the woodwork between now and Friday, but this will be main event here in LA-01.
LA-02
James Carter, Democrat Troy "C" Carter, Democrat
William Jefferson, Democrat
Byron L. Lee, Democrat
Helena Moreno, Democrat Cedric Richmond, Democrat
Malik Rahim, Green Party
Apparently, Karen Carter-Peterson is not running. There are still others considering it, including Nagin aide Kenya Smith, State Senator Cheryl Gray, both of whom are Democrats. There are two Republicans considering making the race, attorney Joe Lavigne, who finished 4th in the 2006 jungle primary, and Dillard University professor Gary Clark.
So far, no one else has qualified. It'll be interesting to see if any Republicans bother to throw their hat in the ring, considering that Charlie will be seeking his 3rd term this fall, and he won his re-election campaign quite convincingly over former State Senator Craig Romero, 55-40 in 2006.
John Fleming, Republican
Chris Gorman, Republican
Jeff Thompson, Republican
Mr. Banks and Mr. Milkovich are first-time candidates for this seat, I believe. Dr. Cash ran back in '06, and split the Democratic vote with Patti Cox 17% and 13%, respectively, with little or no Louisiana Democratic Party backing. This time, Mr. Carmouche is considered the heavy front-runner for the Democrats, thanks to his long service as the Caddo Parish District Attorney.
On the Republican side, outgoing Congressman Jim McCrery has been instrumental to Jeff Thompson, going so far to endorse him, and secure the endorsements of House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio, Republican Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia, Rep. Dave Camp of Michigan and Rep. Pete Sessions of Texas. Needless to say, the Republicans back home aren't sitting on their hands ... they're challenging McCrery's pick.
LA-05
Rodney Alexander, Republican
So far, no one has stepped forward to take on the traitor. Hopefully, someone will, but it will be an uphill fight, as it is late in the game to start the fundraising.
Don Cravins, Jr., Democrat
Charles Boustany, Republican
Peter Vidrine, Other
Boustany has been an absolute disappointment as a Representative for Southwest Louisiana, refusing to earmark any money for this district, which is struggling to rebuild after Hurricane Rita washed ashore in 2005. Mr. Cravins offers an attractive alternative for voters ... and will give Boustany a run for his money.
Today is the start of qualifying for all federal elections being held this fall. To date, I have received emails informing me when the following folks are qualifying for office:
Today, Wednesday, July 9th
John Kennedy, Republican, LA-Sen
Jim Harlan, Democrat, LA-01
Don Cravins, Jr., Democrat, LA-07, 3 PM
Thursday, July 10th
TBA
Friday, July 11th
Mary Landrieu, Democrat, LA-Senate, 9 AM
I assume that Congressmen Alexander (R, LA-05), Boustany (R, LA-07), Cazayoux (D, LA-06), Jefferson (D, LA-02), Melancon (D, LA-03), and Scalise (R, LA-01) will be qualifying on Friday as well, since the act of qualifying is usually good for some press attention, and the House of Representatives is currently in session.
I also believe that the following people will be qualifying at some point in the next few days:
Cedric Richmond, Democrat, LA-02
Karen Carter-Peterson, Democrat, LA-02
Helena Moreno, Democrat, LA-02
Paul Carmouche, Democrat, LA-04
Bill Cassidy, Republican, LA-06
Michael Jackson, Independent, LA-06
The Republicans have caught a HUGE break with Woody Jenkins' announcement that he will not seek the GOP nomination for LA-06 this fall. What does that mean? Don Cazayoux better start moving back to the Democratic Party. If he continues to tack to the center, he's going to face a helluva fight this fall. He'll have the coattails of Obama in the black community here in the Baton Rouge area, but he can't win with the black community alone. And any advantage he will have will be sorely tested by the potential entry into the race by State Rep. Michael Jackson as an Independent, which will catapult him directly into the general election. I hope it doesn't come to pass, but I fear that Don is now facing a perfect storm of his own, a mere two months after the GOP faced their own perfect storm of circumstances in the special election.
Tooling around the internets, or the tubes, this morning, I came across a valuable resource, GovTrack, which tracks all of the happenings and going-ons in the United States Congress. Currently, it is missing the votes and names of Scalise and Cazayoux, along with a picture of Boustany, which I've emailed to the creator and operator of the site. Hopefully, that will be rectified shortly.
I've set up a tracking page for all of the votes in both the House and the Senate, so we can keep track of what our Representatives are doing in our name. You can check it out on the far right near the bottom, where it says GovTrack.us.
I've also set up an Events Calendar on the far right at the top, where folks can add events happening in their area. While this is a Democratic leaning site, I'm cool with linking to the events held by the elected officials of the Republican Party. They are our representatives, too, and need to be held accountable as well. I will likely be tinkering with it a bit, so it may not look the same in the coming days.
UPDATE: You might need to sign up at GovTrack.us to view the entire Louisiana delegation. When I'm not signed in, all I see are our Senators. When I am signed in, I see the entire delegation, save Cazayoux and Scalise.
