Free Republic

HB 1035, a bill by Rep. Valarie Hodges that would have mandated that schoolchildren in Louisiana be taught the Declaration of Independence, sailed through the House Education Committee with a 6-2 vote. But Wednesday, when the bill reached the floor of the House, it had a different fate – amid a torrent of squabbling, Hodges returned the bill to the calendar and it’s likely finished for the session. The Louisiana House of Representatives has 61 Republican members out of 105, and yet it was apparent no consensus for a cornerstone of basic civics in the state’s public schools did not...

If you’d signed up on Eventbrite for the Marco Rubio rally in Baton Rouge, you got an email this afternoon that likely disappointed you.

The Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance alerted colleges and universities Thursday that they were stopping TOPS payments immediately because of uncertainty related to the state budget. "Due to the possibility of state budget cuts, all TOPS payments are being suspended until further notice," said an email that went out to all TOPS eligible institutions at 3 p.m. "More details will be provided as information becomes available." What that means for students and parents is that every student who is currently receiving a TOPS scholarship could end up owing the remainder of the semester's tuition that's not already paid.

Fiery populist Rep. Alan Grayson of Florida is in the news for reporting death threats and comparing the rightwing to Nazis who burned the Reichstag. But another comparison from the 1930s may be more apt, at least visually. Grayson has taken to wearing orchid-colored shirts like the "Kingfish" Huey P. Long, the legendary Louisiana populist assassinated in 1935.

Here is the Initial Report from the Streamlining Government Commission in the State of Louisiana. Among the recommendations to trimming the state government are: 1. Trimming the state fleet of vehicles by roughly 30% by December 31, 2011. 2. Abolishing all special funds in the State Treausry by June 30, 2011. 3. Outsourcing and consolidating different activities within the State Departments. The State Legislature will review the recommendations once that are submitted to the House and Senate Governmental Affairs committees early next year to determine which recommendations to adopt.

Thirty-seven percent (37%) of likely Democratic Primary Voters in Pennsylvania are not sure how they will vote when it comes time to select a Democratic Party nominee for governor in 2010. In this wide open setting, Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato attracts 19% of the vote, while state Auditor Jack Wagner is the choice for 14%. Former Congressman Joe Hoeffel is preferred by 11%. Two other candidates pick up single digit support: Scranton Mayor Chris Doherty at six percent (6%) and businessman Tom Knox with four percent (4%).

We've now obtained the complaint Louisiana State Democratic Party chairman Christopher Whittington has filed with the Senate Ethics Committee, charging that Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) used "appropriated funds to pay for town halls at which he engaged in campaign activity.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Monday shows that 28% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-six percent (36%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of –8. Overall, 53% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. Forty-six percent (46%) disapprove.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 30% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-seven percent (37%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of –7. Overall, 51% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the President's performance. Forty-eight percent (48%) disapprove.

"The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Thursday shows that 30% of the nation's voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-eight percent (38%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of –8. The President’s Approval Index rating has fallen six points since release of a disappointing jobs report last week."

I have conducted some research into the campaign contributions given to Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-5th-LA). Alexander is one of the leading members of the House in terms of earmark requests. "After investigating Rodney Alexander's campaign filings on the Federal Election Commission website, I have found some information on Alexander's contributions from parties associated with the Greater Ouachita Port Commission." "In all, the parties associated with the Port and the Commission have given $36,500 to Rodney Alexander's campaign. With each passing election cycle, the dollar amounts have increased." "The Port has been awarded at least $1.5 million in earmarks since 2004....

Chrysler announced the closing of 789 dealerships earlier this month. On today's radio program, Rush Limbaugh spoke for a few seconds about whether or not some of the dealership closings are the result of politics (campaign contributions). After hearing this, I decided to look up the contributions of the dealers on the Internet. Here are a few examples of the campaign donations made by some of the dealers who will close their doors shortly. I'm not anywhere close to going through the entire list yet. The figures are only from the 2004, 2006, and 2008 Election cycles: (1) Michael E....

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Gov. Bobby Jindal proposed a $26.7 billion state budget for next year, seeking to close a $1.3 billion drop in state general fund income through hefty cuts to health care services, public colleges and education programs and the elimination of state jobs and offices. The 2009-10 proposal unveiled Friday would be nearly 10 percent less than the state's current budget, even with nearly $1 billion in federal stimulus dollars plugged in to fill gaps. The new budget year begins July 1. "We must, we must implement these reforms in order to downsize state government so...

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Sunday shows that 38% of the nation’s voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty percent (30%) Strongly Disapprove to give Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of +8. Since release of the President’s budget, the number of Republicans who Strongly Disapprove has grown to 57%. That’s up fourteen percentage points since Thursday morning. Only 8% of Democrats share such a negative assessment.

Just posted on the Drudge Report. Glenn Beck is close to a deal with Fox News Channel for a show on the 5 PM time slot.

The following is a list of the Senators' voting status on the $700 billion bailout package that is expected to be voting on sometime tonight. Senators who will vote FOR the bailout package: Obama (D-IL), McCain (R-AZ), Bennett (R-UT), Voinovich (R-OH), Coleman (R-MN), Chambliss (R-GA), Lugar (R-IN) Senators who will vote AGAINST the bailout package: Bunning (R-KY), Shelby (R-AL), Sessions (R-AL), Vitter (R-LA), Roberts (R-KS) Please change this list as more Senators announce their positions.

Breaking News from Louisiana: BATON ROUGE -- Gov. Bobby Jindal announced today that he has vetoed the legislative pay raise. After days of saying he would not reject the unpopular measure, Jindal said this morning that he had rejected the measure. Lawmakers in the most recent session voted to raise their annual base salary from $16,800 to $37,500. Jindal has been criticized for his inability to stop the raise before it was passed and his refusal since then to veto the pay raise bill. He pledged during his gubernatorial campaign last year to prohibit an immediate legislative pay raise. The...

The Louisiana House of Representatives this afternoon approved higher pay for legislators. Prior to the final vote, the House unanimously approved an amendment that would lower the amount of a pay raise they seek and removed the language that would increase their wages in the future without having to vote again. Speaker of the House Jim Tucker proposed a salary increase to $37,500 from $16,800 with unvouchered expenses at $6,000 a year.

BATON ROUGE -- An income-tax break that could be worth up to $1,000 a year for married couples is on its way to Gov. Bobby Jindal's desk for a signature after receiving final, unanimous passage in the Senate on Tuesday. Senate Bill 87 by Sen. B.L. "Buddy" Shaw, R-Shreveport, would roll back income-tax rates to 2002 levels starting Jan. 1 by repealing the Stelly Plan increase that voters approved that year as part of a swap that also removed the sales tax on food and residential utilities. The upper chamber voted 38-0 to accept changes made by the House that...

Governor Bobby Jindal has been threatened with a government shutdown over the proposed legislative pay increase, sources tell THE DEAD PELICAN. Sources tell THE DEAD PELICAN that House Speaker Jim Tucker recently received a "heads up" from Jindal Chief of Staff Timmy Teepel that Jindal was going to veto the pay increase. Sources tell THE DEAD PELICAN that Tucker responded by telling Teepel that if the pay increase is vetoed, "Everything the governor wants will be dead on arrival in the house."