Tag Archives: Louisiana

May 13, 2013 · 5:42 PM

Bobby Jindal To GOP: ‘It’s Time To Get Over’ Election Loss

Governor Bobby Jindal’s poll numbers may be low in Louisiana, but once again he’s giving his fellow Republicans some sage advice.  The last time he gave the GOP advice, they were not too happy with his choice of words.

The Huffington Post

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal (R) spoke at a GOP dinner in New Hampshire on Friday, urging his fellow Republicans to “get over” last year’s electoral defeats and instead focus on reassessing party priorities ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

“We lost an election that we probably should have won,” Jindal said at a GOP fundraiser in Manchester, N.H., according to ABC News. “It’s time to get over it. … I think we can win elections by sticking to our principles, but I do think we need to make some changes and I think we need to think seriously about where we go from here.”

He continued, “We spent too much time last year criticizing the other side without saying what we were going to do instead, without saying what we were for.”

The Republican governor made headlines last year when he called on members of his party to end “dumbed-down conservatism” and “stop being the stupid party.” During his New Hampshire speech, Jindal offered an explanation for those remarks.

“What I meant by that was we’ve got to present thoughtful policy solutions to the American people — not just bumper stickers, not just 30-second solutions,” Jindal said, according to the Washington Times. “We have to have the confidence and the courage in our convictions and show them that our ideas will benefit them.”

Jindal has frequently been floated as a potential candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016. However, he has brushed off the speculation, insisting that it is too early to wade into the race.

“Anybody on the Republican side even thinking or talking about running for president in 2016, I’ve said, needs to get their head examined,” Jindal said during a February appearance on “Fox and Friends.” “And the reason I say that is, we’ve lost two presidential elections in a row, we need to be winning the debate of ideas– then we’ll win elections.”

 

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March 25, 2013 · 2:31 PM

Louisiana Attorney General Says Angola 3 “Have Never Been Held in Solitary Confinement”

Angola 3 prisoner ordered free for third time

The backstory:

Former Black Panther Albert Woodfox, one of the “Angola 3,” has been in solitary confinement in Angola Prison for the murder of a guard, despite the fact that evidence strongly suggests his innocence. Although a federal judge this week overturned his conviction, Louisiana are likely to keep Woodfox locked up. He has been ordered free by a judge twice before, after all.

Earlier this week the same federal judge that ordered Woodfox’s release in 2008 again ruled Woodfox should be set free on the basis of racial discrimination in his retrial. - Salon

Mother Jones

Actually, they’ve been in solitary for 41 years.

James “Buddy” Caldwell, attorney general of the state of Louisiana, has released a statement saying unequivocally that Herman Wallace and Albert Woodfox, the two still-imprisoned members of the Angola 3, “have never been held in solitary confinement while in the Louisiana penal system.”

In fact, Wallace, now 71, and Woodfox, 66, have been in solitary for nearly 41 years, quite possibly longer than any other human beings on the planet. They were placed in solitary following the 1972 killing of a young corrections officer at Angola, and except for a few brief periods, they have remained in isolation ever since.

The statement from Caldwell follows on the heels of a ruling by a federal district court judge in New Orleans, overturning Albert Woodfox’s conviction for the third time—in this instance, on the grounds that there had been racial bias in the selection of grand jury forepersons in Louisiana at the time of his indictment. Subsequently, Amnesty International, along with other activists, mounted a campaign urging the state of Louisiana not to appeal the federal court’s ruling. In the absence of an appeal, Woodfox would have to be given a new trial or released.

Caldwell’s statement—which was rather mysteriously sent out to an email list that included numerous prisoners’ rights advocates who have supported the Angola 3—begins: “Thank you for your interest in the ambush, savage attack and brutal murder of Officer Brent Miller at Louisiana State Penitentiary (LSP) on April 17, 1972. Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace committed this murder, stabbing and slicing Miller over 35 times.”

Continue reading here…

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November 13, 2012 · 1:51 PM

Jindal: End ‘dumbed-down conservatism’

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal speaks at a Republican Party of Arkansas fund raising dinner in Hot Springs, Ark., Friday, July 27, 2012. | AP Photo


http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/83743.html#ixzz2C86bzb3H

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal on Monday called on Republicans to “stop being the stupid party” and make a concerted effort to reach a broader swath of voters with an inclusive economic message that pre-empts efforts to caricature the GOP as the party of the rich.

In his first interview since his party’s electoral thumping last week, Jindal urged Republicans to both reject anti-intellectualism and embrace a populist-tinged reform approach that he said would mitigate what exit polls show was one of President Barack Obama’s most effective lines of attack against Mitt Romney.

“We’ve got to make sure that we are not the party of big business, big banks, big Wall Street bailouts, big corporate loopholes, big anything,” Jindal told POLITICO in a 45-minute telephone interview. “We cannot be, we must not be, the party that simply protects the rich so they get to keep their toys.”

He was just as blunt on how the GOP should speak to voters, criticizing his party for offending and speaking down to much of the electorate.

“It is no secret we had a number of Republicans damage our brand this year with offensive, bizarre comments — enough of that,” Jindal said. “It’s not going to be the last time anyone says something stupid within our party, but it can’t be tolerated within our party. We’ve also had enough of this dumbed-down conservatism. We need to stop being simplistic, we need to trust the intelligence of the American people and we need to stop insulting the intelligence of the voters.”

Continue reading here: 
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/83743.html#ixzz2C86bzb3H

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November 12, 2012 · 2:02 AM

Sore Loser Secessionists Let Out A Rebel Whine With White House Petitions

Perhaps they’ll want some cheese with that “whine”…

Addicting Info

Nothing says I hate democracy like this White House petition started by Michael E. from Slidell, LA the day after Obama was elected President of the United States of America.

we petition the obama administration to:

Peacefully grant the State of Louisiana to withdraw from the United States of America and create its own NEW government.

As the founding fathers of the United States of America made clear in the Declaration of Independence in 1776:

“When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.”

“…Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and institute new Government…”

And whining cry babies in eighteen other states have joined them in stamping their feet and declaring that they don’t want to be our friends anymore because their candidate wasn’t victorious. Texas had to brag that their state is the 15th largest economy in the world and Oregon added that they still want to remain an ally, but for the most part the wording on the majority of the petitions is similar to Louisiana’s. Even if one of these petitions happens to get the 25,000 signatures needed, it’s doubtful that they are going to receive any response from the White House other than, “No!” Which is appropriate to tell any child having a temper tantrum.

But in case the secessionist path doesn’t work, the Obama haters have another petition out there as well from Jana W., APO, AE.

we petition the obama administration to:

Recount the election!

It has become blatantly obvious the voter fraud that was committed during the 2012 Presidential elections.  In one county alone in Ohio, which was a battleground state, President Obama received 106,258 votes…but there were only 98,213 eligible voters.  It’s not humanly possible to get 108% of the vote!

If ID laws had been enforced (which the administration is completely against because that meant they would lose) then this wouldn’t be an issue.

Recount NOW!

108% of the vote?! That didn’t sound right to me so I did a little more checking. According toclashdaily.net this astounding vote total happened in Wood County, Ohio so I checked their vote counts and found that 31596 votes were cast for Obama, a percentage of 50.9%. Once again the wing nut echo chamber has pulled some lie out of their ass and found almost 10,000 people gullible enough to sign a White House petition based on this phony story. For anyone who thought the right-wing bubble might finally burst and let a few facts in, these asinine petitions should put that idea to rest.

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September 8, 2012 · 12:05 AM

West Wing Week 9/7/2012 or “Engage!”

The White House

This week, the President visited Fort Bliss two years after he marked the end of major combat operations in Iraq and visited with victims of Hurricane Isaac.

Meanwhile, the White House released its top secret beer recipe and the new White House app, and “We the People” got its three millionth signature.

Friday, August 31st:

  • The President returned to Fort Bliss to mark the two year anniversary of the War in Iraq, and discuss his commitment to our men and women in uniform.

Saturday, September 1st:

Monday, September 3rd:

  • The President visited St. John The Baptist Parish in Louisiana to take in the damage from Hurricane Isaac and meet with officials responding to the disaster.

Tuesday, September 4th:

Wednesday, September 5th:

  • The White House hosted a special session of Office Hours on Twitter with White House Curator, Bill Allman.

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August 30, 2012 · 12:05 AM

Limbaugh Makes Racist Suggestion About New Orleans

 

The author of the following article thinks Rush Limbaugh’s “shocking and cynical” comments were beyond the pale, even by Rush Limbaugh standards.  I say it’s par for the course.  Limbaugh is simply a racist pig and has always been a racist pig.  End of story.

Crooks & Liars

Talking about showing his true colors!  Does Rush have any advertisers left?  Because I have to wonder if they want their products associated with this racist, disgusting excuse for a human being.  Via Raw Story:

Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh on Tuesday proposed putting “bags of money” around the levees in New Orleans so that “Republicans can get rid of even more Democrats” when poor people drowned because they tried to make off with the cash.

“We are mere hours away from Tropical Storm Isaac, which everybody’s desperately hoping becomes a hurricane,” the conservative icon pointed out during his Tuesday morning broadcast. “It’s the Democrats’ wet dream that this thing hits New Orleans!”

Recalling the way that President George W. Bush’s administration bungled the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina seven years ago, Limbaugh decided to offer the Republicans a few tip on dealing with the current storm.

The first idea seemed reasonable enough: “First thing we do is offer to send 500 bus drivers to New Orleans, paid for by us, to make sure that the buses that were not used by the Democrat mayor during Hurricane Katrina will be used to evacuate people should it become necessary.”

But the next proposal was shocking and cynical, even by Limbaugh standards.

“The second thing that I think the Republicans ought to do is send bags of money instead of sand,” he said. “Bags full of money to shore up the levees in New Orleans.”

“So, we have Romney’s five sons deliver the bags of money to shore up the levees,” he added. “Now this will accomplish much. It will show our compassion.”

“And it will do something else: Once we publicize that we have sent 500 bags of money — well, whatever number of bags — bags filled with money to shore up the levees, what will happen?  The poor of New Orleans will storm the levees and steal the bags, thereby putting themselves at risk for the eventual flooding that will happen once they remove the bags of money. And that way, Republicans can get rid of even more Democrats in Louisiana and shore up the state for themselves.”

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August 8, 2012 · 10:17 AM

Schools Force Children To Take Pregnancy Test Or Face Expulsion

Now they’re targeting teenage girls…sheesh!

Addicting Info

A Charter school in Delhi, Louisiana has mandated that it must be allowed to see inside a girl’s uterusif she wants to attend their classes. If she objects to this invasion of privacy – or, worse, submits and has a positive pregnancy test – she risks being banned from the school, and forced into home-schooling.

Please note, this is not from The Onion or a Saturday Night Live skit ridiculing the south. This is a real school, with real kids and now, a real ACLU challenge.

So, being pregnant and under 18 in this Louisiana school means you not only have to notify your parents (or go to court and beg a judges approval) if you want an abortion, thanks to their Parental Consent Law – victims of incest and child abuse are not exempt from this requirement, raising serious child safety concerns – you also get to worry about being tossed out of your school, regardless of how you became pregnant or whether you even intend to carry to term.

The school’s policy isn’t just illegal under Title IX, it’s downright nauseating; the shame society heaps on to pregnant teens is bad enough without making them pee in a cup on command. The creators of this draconian punishment are probably the same people who spread the “welfare queen” myth because oh-shit-oh-my-god-the-injustice 0.2% of their taxes go to feed poor children.

Not surprisingly, this isn’t even the first time charter schools have embarrassed the great state of Louisiana. Just this past June, the institution calling itself “Accelerated Christian Education” was caught teaching students that evolution is just a conspiracy, holding up the Loch Ness Monster as proof of Creationism. Shortly after that little scandal, Rep. Valarie Hodges was shocked to discover that the education bill funding religious schools in her state would go so far as to cover all religions, not just her brand of Christianity. She promptly withdrew her support.

History demonstrates that fact-based sexual health information, teaching kids how to avoid unintended consequences in the first place, remains the most effective course of action for a school so worried about teen pregnancy. Sadly, there are those in the Republican party which is against common sense, wishing to base health decisions on biblical sources and claiming that as moral.

The executive director of Louisiana Association of Charter Schools admitted to The News Star that this may be “problematic”. The school itself has yet to respond to the ACLU or the press.

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June 25, 2012 · 10:22 AM

The Loch Ness Monster Is Real; The KKK Is Good: The Shocking Content of Publicly Paid for Christian School Textbooks

Unbelievable…

Alternet

Thousands of Louisiana students will receive state voucher money, transferred from public school funding, to attend private religious schools. What will they learn there?

This 2012-2013 school year, thanks to a bill pushed through by governor Bobby Jindal, thousands of students in Louisiana will receive state voucher money, transferred from public school funding, to attend private religious schools, some of which teach from a Christian curriculum that suggests the Loch Ness Monster disproves evolution and states that the alleged creature, which has never been demonstrated to even exist, has been tracked by submarine and is probably a  plesiosaur. The curriculum also claims that a Japanese fishing boat caught a dinosaur.

On the list of schools approved to receive funding through the new voucher funding, that critics warn could eventually cut public school funding in half, are schools that teach from the Christian fundamentalist A Beka Book, Bob Jones University Press, and Accelerated Christian Education curriculum.

What’s in that curriculum? Last year, researcher Rachel Tabachnick and I co-produced a 35-minute documentary on the spread of a similar voucher program in Pennsylvania and other US states, titled “School Choice: Taxpayer-Funded Creationism, Bigotry, and Bias”. Embedded at the end of this post is an eight-minute video segment from that documentary with scans from material in currently used A Beka Book and Bob Jones University Press texts (in this May 25, 2011 story Tabachnick provides quotes from those textbooks.)

One of the schools cleared to receive substantial new funding through LA governor Bobby Jindal’s voucher program is Eternity Christian Academy, in Westlake, LA, which according to Independent Weekly writer Walter Pierce,

…has been approved to accept 135 new students. That’s a considerable uptick in enrollment, which at the end of this school year stood at 38 — a more than 300 percent increase. Talk about buttressing the budget; $1 million in tax dollars will be diverted from the public school system to Eternity Christian, a school that, according to its mission statement, offers “a quality faith-based curriculum that is soley [sic] based on principles from the Bible …

Continue reading here…

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March 25, 2012 · 5:30 AM

Sunday Morning Blog Round Up

Cheney Gets Heart Transplant

Santorum Takes Louisiana

Supreme Court, free men and bullies

Health Care Reform on the Line Next Week

The Parallels Between Clinton and Obama

Obama confronts nuke threat on N. Korea front line

At CIA, a convert to Islam leads the terrorism hunt

Penn State Police Had Warnings About Sandusky in 1998

Afghan Shootings Done in 2 Trips From Base, Officials Find

Wingnut Conspiracy Theory: Trayvon Photo Was Lightened to Make Him Look ‘Innocent’

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March 23, 2012 · 2:24 PM

Santorum told to ‘pretend it’s Obama’ at shooting range

One of the sad commentaries on the state of our nation…

The Raw Story

At a shooting range in Louisiana on Friday, an onlooker encouraged Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum to pretend the target he was firing at was President Barack Obama.

“Santorum is shooting a 1911 Colt,” Politico’s Juana Summers tweeted from the sheriff’s office shooting range in West Monroe. “Range master says ‘Well, it’s not your first rodeo.’ Someone here says ‘pretend its Obama.’”

“As Santorum had headphones on and was standing far from supporters, he likely didn’t hear [the] woman say ‘pretend its Obama’ as he shot,” she added.

NBC’s Andrew Rafferty provided confirmation: “Woman watching Santorum at shooting range in LA yells ‘Pretend it’s Obama’ (there is n0 chance Santorum heard it)”

Afterward, the former Pennsylvania senator reportedly called the remarks “horrible.”

A recent Public Policy Polling survey showed Santorum holding a 14 point lead over former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney going into Saturday’s Republican primary in Louisiana.

Update (1:15 p.m. ET): The Secret Service is investigating, according to The Associated Press.

Update (1:30 p.m. ET): MSNBC has obtained audio of the remark.

Watch this video from MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchel Reports, broadcast March 23, 2012.

 

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