By Dayne Sherman
Guest columnist
I am deeply disturbed by many of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s recent actions—his callousness toward the Bayou Corne sinkhole evacuees, his funding of state services by a “garage sale” of assets, his unwillingness to accept constitutional restraints on his pension and K-12 education policies, his ongoing assault on colleges and universities, and his rejection of the Medicaid expansion for 400,000 of Louisiana’s citizens.
As if that were not enough, he currently is pushing a sales tax plan that will wreck retail businesses within a 50 mile radius of the state line and will tax groups such as the Council on Aging and Habitat for Humanity. The actual bill has not been filed yet out of deceit far more than building good policy and consensus.
I believe this is a reckless tax plan. It will lead to massive state deficits, harm small businesses, hurt 80 % of Louisiana citizens, further destroy colleges, and only serve to help our governor’s national image.
But I am heartened by a recent development, the 250 ministers who signed “An Open Letter from Louisiana Clergy to Governor Bobby Jindal” on March 18th. Their letter goes to the heart of what’s wrong with Jindal’s immoral tax plan.
The signees are a diverse group, the president of the conservative Southern Baptist Convention Rev. Fred Luter of New Orleans and nearly every variety of Louisiana clergy, including the bishops of the Methodist and Episcopal churches.
It is sad that Gov. Jindal, a man who has preached in evangelical congregations statewide (before his reelection, none afterward), cares nothing about the Christianity he professes.
As Charles Pierce wrote for “Esquire” online, “By his works shall you know him and, by his works, ‘Bobby’ Jindal is no more a Christian than the average wolverine is. He’s a Pharisaical monster who’d have sold Mardi Gras beads on Golgotha.”
Though he claims to be a Catholic convert, Jindal obviously did not get the memo that the new pope has emphasized advocating for the weak and the poor, and the pontiff has taken the name Francis after the great Saint Francis of Assisi. Jindal’s “faith,” however, appears more like the selfishness of Ayn Rand and the corruption of Al Capone than the religion of Saint Francis.
Thank God citizens are waking up, and his popularity is falling like a lead sinker dropped in a bayou.
To cite only one recent example, the governor was the joke of the Conservative Political Action Conference, where he gave a bungled speech and was tied for 9th place in the presidential straw poll. His trampling of Louisiana people and institutions has neither helped Louisiana nor his national profile. The sales tax scheme is simply a way to further his amazingly delusional quest to be President of the United States at our expense. Even many Jindal supporters are scratching their heads, wondering what happened to their Rhodes Scholar.
The only message that Jindal respects is strong public pushback that costs him politically. Remember the huge raises for legislators in 2008 and his planned cuts to hospice in early 2013? He backed off. After environmental activist Erin Brockovich showed up at the Bayou Corne sinkhole, Jindal followed suit and headed there for the first time a week and a half later. When the heat is poured on Jindal, he folds up like a cheap accordion.
We all have a responsibility to fight Jindal’s tax swindle. On March 17, I wrote my local representatives about the tax debacle, but I did not receive word back from any of them. Perhaps other citizens will have better luck.
It’s time for all of us to stop Jindal’s wrongheaded sales tax scheme. But it’s going to take every one of us speaking up before it is too late.
Dayne Sherman lives in Ponchatoula and is the author of “Welcome to the Fallen Paradise: A Novel.” His website is daynesherman.com.
Louisiana Voice 
Excellent post Dayne! I see you commenting frequently on nola.com
Sadly I did not see any representatives from the Catholic Church in that group.
Fredster, I also took notice of the lack of Catholic Church representatives. Missed opportunity. Amen.
That was a big disappointment to not see them lending their voices also.
Who are your local legislators Dayne?
Could someone please explain Jindal’s callousness?
Oops! I believe that was the sound of the proverbial other shoe dropping. Great commentary Dayne.
Mr. Shearman , Thank you for putting into words one of, if not the best, description of this mouse of a man . I have been a registered republican for a very long time but I will be changing to another party this week and I will advise anyone who gives me a half a chance to do the same.
Their latest cry is that businesses will pay the majority of the tax. Guess what businesses consider taxes? A cost that they pass on!
If the Governor, legislature, and his top salaried personnel’s wages decrease, and their raises eliminated, this tax proposal may begin to look better for the majority of voters. Let’s see how many of these folks will sacrifice their top salaries for this wondrous tax proposal! Any takers?
One additional class of “new” taxpayers to be created will be children. Children are a very large consumer group who don’t typically pay income tax on their Christmas, birthday, babysitting, or lawn mowing “income.” I suppose they can file for a rebate check each year? They should all be proud that they will now be doing their part to help fund vouchers for other kids to go to private schools.
Your Holiness Pope Francis, Please call your Bishops in Louisiana and let them know that they have missed your message to the World. Your humility and generous nature is foriegn to the Church hierarcy in the conservative south of the United States. Your Bishops and Priests are very concerned that the large contributions to the Church offered to pave the way to Heaven for those who wish to preserve their own kingdoms are at risk. Better to overlook the “Jindal Swindle” than to miss out on their own lifestyles of the rich and famous.
Some of us have believed from the beginning there never was a real plan beyond Governor Jindal getting national attention for proposing elimination of income and franchise taxes. Now it appears clear the ideas he has floated as the balancing parts of the “plan” are ill-conceived and, if ever actually introduced, will be DOA – Even the most compliant legislature in the nation will have trouble passing what has been put out there so far. There is also some evidence the bloom may be off the rose of the governor’s national image. His proposal to eliminate income taxes was neither original nor bold. Several of his other reforms and initiatives are falling flat, and his strict adherence to ALEC-inspired ideology are all working against him. So he may not have even accomplished his original goal of self-promotion.