I’m glad the Stelly tax finally has come down.

“This legislation is a tremendous victory for the people of our state,” Jindal said. “Allowing Louisianans to keep more of their hard-earned money in their own pockets not only benefits families all across the state, it is also one of the best ways we can grow and strengthen our economy and encourage increased investment. The elimination of the Stelly tax means we have cut more than $300 million in taxes, and more than $1 billion in taxes over the next five years.”

Over on Between the Lines Jeff Sadow defends Bobby’s recent voucher program.  As usual he is spot on.

This was a good idea. From the Advocate

A bill that would initially cut state income taxes by $359 million per year won final legislative approval Tuesday.

The measure, Senate Bill 87, cleared its last legislative hurdle when the Senate passed it 38-0.

The same measure breezed through the House last week 102-0 and now goes to Gov. Bobby Jindal, who earlier endorsed the proposal and called the Senate action “terrific news.”

Also Jindal supports the idea of making lemonade out of lemons, if by lemons one means “destroyed interstate bridges” and lemonade is “coastal reef barriers.” From the Times Picayune:

Gov. Bobby Jindal on Tuesday threw his support behind plans for using concrete from the demolition of the Interstate 10 twin spans to create fishing reefs in Lake Pontchartrain and help shore up New Orleans’ storm defenses.

The reef plans call for sinking the rubble of two 500-foot bridge sections at two locations between I-10 and the U.S. 11 bridge. The reefs, proposed by the Coastal Conservation Association, a nonprofit group, are intended to boost recreational fishing in the area.

A team from the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, with help from other agencies, is still reviewing separate proposals for using the concrete, which Jindal said will save the state upward of $15 million. Parts of the bridge will likely go toward reinforcing levees and strengthening breakwaters off the coast to help reduce storm surge in the lake.

As usual, Jindal is applying a little known skill in politics, that is making priorities. That means some programs get cut, and some projects that have higher priorities get funded. When the benefit of the state takes the top priorities, NGOs and teachers unions tend to lose. I still don’t think he’ll get picked to be VP simply because McCain wants someone to tow his line, and Sarah Palin definitely fits that role and can help garner the coveted white housewife vote.

The capital outlay bill approved by lawmakers each year essentially has been a wish list that leaves decision-making to the governor.

The governor’s office submitted its recommendations for the bill. Lawmakers then added more projects than there was money. That left the governor’s office to choose among hundreds of items to determine which few actually get in line for state dollars. The State Bond Commission must vote on whether to grant lines of credit to projects submitted by the governor, but that vote was seen as a rubber stamp because the commission is packed with the governor’s allies.

Jindal wants the process overhauled to limit the annual construction budget bill passed by the Legislature to five years of projects for which the state can pay. He issued an executive order Tuesday outlining a reworking that includes setting up an evaluation system to review the projects sought by executive branch agencies, lawmakers and local government agencies. It’s amazing that allocating only the amount of money the state can afford to spend is considered a revolutionary idea.

http://www.nola.com/newsflas…storylist=louisiana

An article from the American Spectator touting Jindal’s credentials for vice president. I spoke with the Oracle of Esther the other day and in general I think it is a bad idea. It would look like a desperate attempt by McCain to put a brown face on the ticket.  (Speaking of McCain, isn’t the timing of Nancy Reagan’s endorsement interesting, given she’s about the same age as Barack Obama’s typical white grandmother?) Electorally, it doesn’t gain him anything, and Bobby is still green. Most importantly, we need him to clean up in Louisiana before he makes his run in 2016…heh.

Nevertheless, here’s a good blurb.

Maybe some think that this is going to be an election about health care? Jindal’s the man. In 1991 he was a young Hill staffer working for U.S. Rep. Jim McCrery. One day McCrery asked him to look over some Medicare plans being proposed in committee. A couple of days later, he brought back to the boss a totally revised system that was so impressive McCrery introduced him to Louisiana Governor Murphy J. Foster Jr. A few years later, Jindal, at the age of 24, was appointed Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals. He took hold of the state’s Medicare program, which was running at a loss of $400 million, and in three years produced a surplus of $200 million. He later became chairman of the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare. In 2001, he was nominated by President George W. Bush and approved by the U.S. Senate to be Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation of Health and Human Services. If Jindal gets a chance to debate Hillary Clinton, Hillary will be fumbling for her cue cards.

The key points of the latest press release, which can be found here, followed by my insta-reactions.

Louisiana must be a place where businesses can startup and thrive, where employers can put down roots, and where families can count on good careers.

That’s a big boat to turn around. There are many, many Louisiana ex-pats throughout the country.

That is why I am proposing that we dedicate monies that come from vehicle and licensing fees to what they are intended for — transportation needs, instead of disappearing in the general fund. I am also proposing that we invest hundreds of millions of dollars to improve roads and bridges, as well as for expanding interstates and major highways throughout the state, such as I-12, I-49, and LA-28.

Sounds good to me. I like to play a game where I don’t read signs as I enter or leave Louisiana to see if I can tell the difference in states by the pothole frequency.

We must also invest $50 million in Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, a worldwide leader in nutrition research. Currently, the University of Alabama-Birmingham receives more federal research funding than all of Louisiana’s public universities combined. This cannot continue.

This one hits home. Now I’m in the Baylor College of Medicine, and I was just talking with the Jordanian about how once you leave Houston the best places to do research is Dallas, then Austin, then Birmingham. I love to see when yankees have to come down to Birmingham just because they have to follow the money. Pennington will never surpass Baylor or Southwestern, but if Birmingham can attract yankees and federal money why not Baton Rouge.

It may seem at odds against my inner libertarian, but Newt Gingrich once said that it is fiscally conservative to have a populace that lives longer, and is more healthy and able to work throughout their longer lives. The research in Pennington, or Baylor, contributes to the findings that extends lives and improves the quality of life of American citizens.

Update:  Good news!  Finally, we have provided a $50 million capital investment in Pennington Biomedical Research Center, one of the world’s leading nutrition research centers. This will provide for a new clinical research building, new high-tech equipment, and recruitment of faculty who are worldwide leaders in their fields. This will also bring more than 1,100 new jobs, and provide an economic impact of more than $110 million annually.

(That’s good news, but Bob McNair donated $100 million out of his pocket to Baylor College of Medicine.)

Here is a note from Bobby. The Obama candidacy, in it’s way, is charting the course for a Jindal campaign in the future.

Dear Friends,

Bringing Transparency to Government

Thanks to the hard work of the Legislature over the past two weeks, we are now on the verge of passing strong ethics reform legislation called for by the people of Louisiana. Transparency and openness are the foundation of the new Louisiana, and these reforms will help move our state from the bottom five states to the top five in terms of strong ethics laws.

Transparency is critical to changing our state’s image and building a better Louisiana not only in the present, but for our children and grandchildren as well. Recent studies by both LSU and Forbes have shown that the most important issue Louisiana must address to entice more companies to locate in our state is a dramatic strengthening of our ethics laws. Thanks to the Legislature and your help, we are on the brink of accomplishing that goal.

For example, House Bill 1, one of the cornerstones of my ethics reform plan, will strengthen our state’s disclosure laws, making elected officials’ and many appointees’ financial records public and available on-line. This legislation has passed both the House and Senate and the final details are being worked out in a Conference Committee before being sent to my desk for signature.

Two other bills are also in Conference Committee- Senate Bills 1 and 8 - that will prevent state officials from obtaining state contracts and will put an end to the lavish meals that elected officials are currently able to accept.

These bills are critical to our efforts to reform our state’s ethics laws. These bills, along with others, are awaiting final passage by the Legislature, and are a testament to both the new Legislature and the people of Louisiana.

The cry for change has been heard, and, as we enter the final week of this special session, now is not the time for rest. There is still work to be done as these bills and many others are worked out in Conference Committees, and we still need your help to ensure their passage.

I have attached links to a few stories I believe you might find interesting regarding our ethics session.

“Key Bills in Ethics Reform Package Moving Toward Passage” The Daily Advertiser

“Jindal’s Ethics Plan on Track” The Baton Rouge Advocate

Meeting with Fellow Governors

I was pleased to attend part of the National Governors Association’s winter meeting in Washington, D.C. this past weekend. The meeting allowed me to meet with other governors to discuss and share ideas pertaining to transportation, education, and energy, three issues that are critical to the future of our state.

Many governors asked about the ethics reforms we are currently pursuing and expressed their support for these measures. The nation is taking notice that this is not the same old Louisiana, and that we are on the rise.

Sincerely,

Governor Bobby Jindal

Signed an executive order to freeze hiring of state employees, saving approximately $25 million of the state budget.  Approximate number of families that could benefit from 25 million via, say, the road home program: 166.  Well, he’s got a long way to go on that front but it’s been only a week.

From Leesville Daily Leader 

John Fund from the Wall Street Journal has some advice for Bobby Jindal:

He plans tax cuts and an expansion of school choice. Part of his philosophy is that the federal government can’t be Louisiana’s salvation. “New Orleans has suffered from the trauma of three crises,” he told The Wall Street Journal last year. “First was Katrina, second was the levees breaking, and the third has been a case study in bureaucracy and red tape at its very worst.”
…
Mr. Roemer’s failure to alter the state’s mores provides some guidance for Mr. Jindal. While he won outright election on Saturday, many races for the state legislature will be decided in runoffs next month. With legislative term limits kicking in for the first time this year, many of those runoffs will be in open districts where reform candidates will square off against those more are skeptical of change. If Mr. Jindal wants to be a successful governor, he would be wise not to rest on his laurels but instead to pour his time and energy into making sure a Legislature is elected that will pay more than lip service to his bold proposals.

Here’s a blurb from the Times Picayune:

After thanking his wife and family, Jindal said his victory represents a “fresh start” for the state and likened the state’s future to the American dream that his parents came to Baton Rouge to pursue shortly before he was born.”Guess what happened? They found the American dream to be alive and well right here in Louisiana,” Jindal said. “In America and here in Louisiana, the only barrier to success is your willingness to work hard and play by the rules.”

Stressing the themes that he has emphasized throughout the campaign, Jindal promised to call the Legislature into special session shortly after he is inaugurated to pass stronger ethics laws: an issue he termed the “linchpin for change.”

Should anyone try to derail those efforts, Jindal said, “I will call them out.”

Here’s what a commenter at the Times Picayune has to say:
Governor-Elect Bobby Jindal won 54% of the voters who actually voted, but Governor-Elect Jindal received only 25% of the total registered voters.
75% of Louisiana voters did not vote for Governor-Elect Jindal, making him a minority governor in more ways than one.
We will have to wait and see if a minority governor can govern — or was it all empty talk and show.
Classy opposition, huh? These kinds of trolls are all over the net, often on both sides, but let’s take a closer look at some of the numbers.

Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Piyush Jindal 699,672 53.91
Democratic Walter Boasso 226,364 17.44
Independent John Georges 186,800 14.39
Democratic Fost Campbell 161,425 12.44

The top three candidates were all center-right, and the left-wing populist received 12% of all votes. That’s a far cry from the political victories of the Long’s and Edwin Edwards. That he won 60 of 64 parishes says, by any legitimate definition, that he has a mandate to run the state.

I think in her heart Blanco is a good person, but is shameful that she was more loyal to her political party than to the citizens of her state in a time of crisis. And the road home program hasn’t been too successful either. It’s time for a change, and I think for the better. No place to go but up, anyway.

Also, here’s what the Indians think about “Bobby”. No snickering from them.

Lastly, the folks at national review put together a neat spreadsheet of the 2003 & 2007 elections

I hope this holds true

Don’t listen to the haters! Go vote for Bobby, fellow Louisianians!