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Louisiana Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle announced his candidacy for the U.S. Congress Thursday morning. Angelle, who came in third in last fall’s governor’s race, had been widely rumored to be interested in running this fall for the U.S. House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate seat. Congressman Charles Boustany, R-Lafayette, already entered the race to replace U.S. Sen. David Vitter, who is stepping down at the end of his term. Angelle is running for Boustany’s Third U.S. Congressional District seat, which covers nine Acadiana parishes and includes Lafayette and Lake Charles.

BATON ROUGE - After a poor showing in the Super Tuesday primaries, Marco Rubio quietly canceled his plans for a Baton Rouge event scheduled for Friday. Individuals who signed up for tickets to see Rubio received an email Wednesday that the event was canceled. "In order to use Marco's time as efficiently as possible before Saturday's contests, Marco will not be making a stop in Louisiana Friday night," the email read. Rubio originally announced he would visit the capital city on Feb. 29. The event was planned for 5:45 p.m. at North Boulevard Town Square. The Rubio campaign's Eventbrite page...

I have been struggling to decide who to vote for president. This field that was hyped as the "most talented in a generation" has turned out to be a field full of mediocrities. Standing atop the field until last night was a vulgar carnival barker and reality TV star. Instead of a debate on ideas, we have mindless sloganeering and empty words. Donald Trump absolutely cannot be the Republican nominee. Trump is not a conservative, he has not fought with conservatives, and he has actively aided and funded the enemies of conservatives. It's more than that though. To nominate Trump...

The South will play a crucial role in the 2016 presidential contest, both in the nominating process and in the General Election. For the Republicans, Dixie's plethora of primaries come quickly after the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary and will probably determine the nominee. On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton's strong support among African Americans in the Southern primaries should cement her already commanding lead for her party's nomination. And in the General Election, at least three Southern states are likely to be competitive and may well determine the outcome of the race for the White House. Until...

Not since I voted for Ronald Reagan in 1980 have I been so excited about the prospect of a true conservative as I was for 2016. With the likes of Rick Perry, Bobby Jindal, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) 100% and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) 94% there was plenty to be excited about. What I didn’t realize was the depth of disgust and anger that the base had for the establishment republicans. It wasn’t so apparent to me given that I have been living with RINO’s and turncoats up here in Massachusetts for decades. Then enter Trump. I could never have...

After my last two columns on Donald Trump, several people have written to ask what I think about some of the other Republican presidential candidates. So I thought I’d address that question this week. Hey, I’m nothing if not responsive to my readers. Please excuse me if I don’t mention everyone. I’ve only got 500 words. Ben Carson. No question, Dr. Carson is manifestly the smartest person in the race, on either side. His slogan should be, “It’s just politics, folks. Not brain surgery.” I don’t necessarily agree with him on every issue, but I believe he’s a man of...

Sen. Ted Cruz is cozying up to Republican frontrunner Donald Trump in a cynical ploy to court the billionaire's supporters should Trump drop out of the race for the White House, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal charged Tuesday. In an interview with the Tribune, Jindal said Cruz has "enabled" Trump, who has a history of liberal stands, by refusing to criticize him, instead cultivating a chummy relationship with the New York developer. The Texas GOP senator has praised Trump for drawing attention to illegal immigration, headlined a rally with him against President Barack Obama's nuclear deal with Iran and repeatedly passed...

The Fox News Channel’s efforts to promote the presidential candidacy of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) are not working out so well, according to the Fox News Channel’s own polling. Rubio is at just nine percent, according to the latest Fox News poll, trailing GOP frontrunner billionaire Donald Trump and Dr. Ben Carson by a significant margin. Trump has 26 percent according to the new Fox News poll, and Carson has 18 percent. Former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina is tied with the struggling Rubio’s nine percent, while Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) comes in next with eight percent. Former Florida Gov....

Madison (WKOW) -- A new national poll shows Governor Scott Walker polling at 0 percent in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. The CNN/ORC poll released Sunday shows there were five candidates who received less than one percent of support from likely Republican voters. Walker was among them, joined by former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, and former New York Governor George Pataki. Less than one percent equates to zero percent, statistically. The results show Donald Trump is still the front-runner with 24 percent, but has lost ground from earlier in...

Tenth farking place. Three months ago, I would have told you that a midwestern evangelical governor with Scott Walker’s record could stay home in Wisconsin and never campaign and still do no worse than, say, third in Iowa. Remember, this is supposed to be Walker’s must-win early state. Donald Trump has the support of 27 percent of Iowa likely Republican Caucus participants, with 21 percent for Ben Carson and 9 percent for U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. This compares to the results of a July 1 survey by the independent Quinnipiac...

ATLANTA — Jeb Bush, who has fought the perception of conservatives that he is not one of them, journeyed into the lion’s den on Saturday. While he may not have converted every skeptic at the RedState Gathering, a conclave of anti-establishment Republicans, he persuaded more than a few to give him a second look. After Mr. Bush’s solid but largely unmemorable outing Thursday in the first Republican debate, where he was overshadowed by the pyrotechnics around him, he came across in Atlanta as having tamed his wonkiness, and as being confident in defending positions he knew were unpopular with many...

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Bernie Sanders told veterans in Iowa Friday that unlike some other politicians, he doesn't pay lip service to their concerns. "It is very easy to raise the flag at a troop deployment, it is very easy for a politician to give a moving speech on Veterans Day," Sanders said. "But it is very hard to go down that long road with the men and women who served and make sure that they continue to get all the benefits, all the healthcare, that they are entitled to for the rest of their lives." The Vermont senator told...

Pataki sends letter to other GOP candidates asking them to call out Trump on comments regarding illegal immigrants.ALLENSTOWN, N.H. —Presidential candidates flocked to the Granite State during the July Fourth weekend. Former New York Gov. George Pataki and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal attended a cookout hosted by the Merrimack County Republican Committee. The event was low-key and gave both Republican candidates the chance to talk one on one with voters. Both candidates had something to say about recent comments from Republican challenger Donald Trump. “I am disappointed he (Trump) hasn’t seen that it was a stupid and wrong comment,” Pataki...

KENNER, La. — Bobby Jindal went there. As the 13th Republican candidate to enter the presidential race, the Louisiana governor tried to grab attention by going negative with his announcement speech Wednesday, smacking down his rivals as “selfish” politicians who are nothing more than “talkers,” and calling out Jeb Bush as a mushy conservative. “You’ve heard Jeb Bush saying we need to be able to lose the primary to win the general election. We’re going to help him do that,” Jindal said, kicking off his long-shot bid for the GOP presidential nomination. Presenting himself as an unapologetically religious, small-government conservative,...

Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce, the funding arm of the political network backed by the billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch, wants a lot more hard information from the crowded field of presidential contenders before deciding what to do with its considerable resources. The group is pressing every 2016 candidate to detail on the record their plans for economic growth, deficit reduction, entitlement reform, criminal justice and even foreign policy. The tax-exempt entity, a key node in a constellation of conservative entities that aims to spend $889 million before the next White House election, distributed a detailed survey Thursday to...

"The Values Voter Summit, a four-day orgy of people fundamentally opposed to orgies" (VIDEO-AT-LINK) Stephen Colbert ripped into the ninth annual Values Voter Summit, last night on “The Colbert Report.” Very few were spared. ”There were so many great speakers,” Colbert said. “Also Sarah Palin.” But the speeches were just part of the Values Voter Summit. It also holds the first large straw poll for presidential candidates....

Former U.S. senator and presidential candidate Bob Dole believes a governor, not a senator, will win the 2016 Republican nomination for president. “I think it’s going to be a governor,” Dole said Thursday after a commemorative event at Forbes Field. “I don’t know which one.” Two former governors have announced they will seek the Republican nomination: Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas, and George Pataki, former governor of New York. Several other current and former governors are considering a presidential run, including Jeb Bush, of Florida; Rick Perry, of Texas; Scott Walker, of Wisconsin; Chris Christie, of New Jersey;...

A reporter in Texas recently asked GOP presidential candidate Senator Ted Cruz this question: “Do you have a personal animosity against gay Americans?” Why would a reporter ask a Republican, running for president, such a question? I don’t know the reporter so I can’t say with certainty, but it wouldn’t shock me if he were trying to start trouble; if he were trying to trip up the senator into saying something negative about gays and getting some national publicity for himself in the process. But there’s another reason, I think, for the question. There’s no hiding the fact that some...

Latin Post presents "Turnout," a series featuring leading Latino politicians, government leaders and advocacy groups discussing and debating the most important issues facing the Latino voting bloc. Listen to the Unedited "Turnout" Interview with People for the American Way's Coordinator for Political Campaigns Carlos Sanchez:(AUDIO-AND-VIDEO-AT-LINK)More than two-thirds of the U.S. Latino electorate live in six states -- Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, New York and Texas -- but one progressive advocacy organization has been working on having anti-Latino and anti-immigrant representatives accountable and heard for Latinos across the country, especially for the presidential election season. With people entering their names for...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)The road to the White House goes through downtown Oklahoma City this week as hopefuls in the crowded Republican field audition on a stage ideally suited for their messages about military power, religious liberty and energy independence. Eleven Republicans with presidential aspirations — including some who have not officially declared their candidacy — will speak at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference, which begins at the Cox Convention Center on Thursday and ends Saturday with the release of a straw poll. “This is a huge event for Oklahoma City,” said Gov. Mary Fallin, who will address the conference and introduce some...