John White just doesn’t get it. A few months ago he went ballistic over information leaked to LouisianaVoice and sources inside the Department of Education (DOE) told us he launched an in-house investigation, including employee emails, in an effort to learn the source of the leaks.
We responded to that report by sending an email to White informing him that none of his employees were as careless with emails as he (remember the “Dude, you are my recharge” email he sent to Pete Gorman, senior vice president of News Corporation’s education division Amplify when Gorman asked White to dinner?).
We informed White that the information we received had been downloaded on a flash drive and passed along to us. We even offered to supply White with a blank flash drive in case he had any information he would like to provide. He never responded to our offer.
Then there was that mysterious email accidentally copied to us from DOE legal counsel Joan Hunt to Troy Hebert, director of the Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control (ATC) as a result of one of our many requests for public records that DOE loves to ignore until they’re hauled into court and hit with fines, court costs and attorney fees. The message to Hebert, who apparently has wormed his way into Gov. Jindal’s inner circle, said, “Troy, we need to reply and say that.”
That’s it. Nothing else. And when we tried to obtain a copy of that email, we were informed that it was subject to attorney-client privilege despite the fact that Hebert, as head of ATC, is not affiliated with DOE, is not an attorney, and certainly is not a client of Hunt.
But now, a new twist has surfaced that may be (or maybe not) related to that exchange between Hunt and Hebert.
Were they laying the groundwork to set up a couple of internet bloggers who have been an ongoing nuisance to White and DOE? If current reports are accurate, it could well be.
Word out of DOE is that administrative types (we have their names but we are not prepared to release them at this time) are leaning hard on DOE employees in the Information Technology (IT) section, even to reviewing all their emails and harassing them in attempts to learn who is leaking information to Jason France of the Crazy Crawfish blog and to Tom Aswell of LouisianaVoice.
Also part of the alleged game plan is to plant tantalizing—but bogus—stories in an effort to get our sources to leak the information to us and to get us to publish them so that we can be discredited publicly and revealed as hacks—and so the leakers can be nailed to the wall.
Silly rabbits, you can’t even devise a plan to plug leaks without the plan itself being leaked. You couldn’t plant petunias without growing a crop of ragweed. I’ve known mayonnaise farmers in Missoula, Montana, who were better at planting things.
As we said earlier, we know the identities of three of the administrative types at the center of this little high school stunt but we’ll keep them confidential for now with the option of releasing them down the road.
Finally, we would be remiss if we did not remind White that our sources are not stupid, nor are they careless. Anything they reveal to us will never be through a state computer—unlike the state employee (Department of Public Safety) who used his state email account to log a commit on our blog today (Tuesday)—at the bottom of our June 28 IT consolidation story—asking us if racism was at the root of our criticism of Jindal. (First of all, we’re anything but racist. Secondly, Lord knows we don’t need racism as grounds for offering legitimate criticism of this administration.)
Finally, Mr. White, we have already been investigated by the best (in Gov. Jindal’s eyes, apparently, and of course, in his own mind). Mr. Hebert ordered an investigation of us some months ago and that came up empty.
Seems we’re actually pretty boring but you’d never know it by the amateur sting operation being concocted by DFA (Detectives for America, the investigative arm of TFA— Teach for America).
Wonder if we should submit a public records request for interoffice emails dealing with planting fake news stories with a couple of pesky blogs?
ESSAGEMAY OTAY OURCESSAY: IXNAY NOAY HETAY TATESAY OMPUTERSCAY.
Louisiana Voice 
Can someone investigate DFA?
Sent from my iPad
Nah. Let ’em have their fun. Apparently they have the imagination and originality of an aardvark.
Forrest Gump: Stupid is as stupid does
I think it’s cute …. Can you almost see them sitting around plotting? Ridiculous. Keep it up Tom, Louisiana owes you a great debt of service!
Cute as a nest of rattlesnakes…
Tom, thanks for great work!
Tom,
You keep hope alive! Your sense of humor and equilibrium, not to mention your integrity and unflagging quest for truth, are rare qualities not readily apparent during this dark time in the history of our state.
If you ever try to have a conversation with Troy Hebert you will walk away with a headache.
It is stunning that Jindal has appointed so many mental midgets to such high positions and relies on them so heavily.
This is what he gets for making a Teach for America his Superintendent!
Love that the state employee who left the comment posted about 11:00 in the morning. Is reading your blog now part of his job description?
Really this whole reform thing has been elevated to a joke! If it weren’t for you and Jason and Mercedes and other bloggers nationally, I would have given up my quest and died of boredom a long time ago.
Off topic but check it out:
http://thelensnola.org/2013/07/16/state-documents-detail-standardized-test-cheating-irregularities-at-new-orleans-schools/
I love it!!!
Seems to me that the grease in the frying pan is just about frying temperature!!
what a shame they care much more about flushing out Louisiana’s true patriots than paying attention to voucher schools who take money but don’t educate or charters that discriminate and cheat. Every dog has his day. Hope I have a front row seat when when the White dog has his, Dude!
Hey Hey! Get ’em Get ’em. Be the good version of Edward Snowden. Root them out and publish them. And make sure that anything racial gets made public, because that is the root of all of Jindal’s mess, racism and classism. Go with God!
I heard about this maybe as much as a month ago. I don’t use anything from active employees for this reason. Fortunately for my efforts, if not for some good people, they keep laying off and driving out loyal louisiana citizens left and right. They keep hammering holes in their own canoe and then seem surprised when water pours in like they should be immune to the laws of physics.
All they have to do to shut me up is counter or disprove my arguments,or actually do the right things so they don’t need to worry about “secrets” coming out. I’ve actually moved onto some investigative pieces which I hope to release soon. Other than my Seabaugh Solution stuff, which was given to Tom as well, I haven’t really published any inside info. (And that was former employees as well). All anyone really has to do is read the newspaper, amusing LDOE press releases, or BESE minutes and filings to get more than enough dirt to make all the mudpies anyone could ever ask for.
Jason is right, they are doing most of this stuff right in front of our eyes. They get away with it because most Americans are in a hypnotic state and have been trained to watch American Idol or Big Brother. Even when you bring up issues like Common Core to them and show them all its evils with solid factual proof, they dismiss you as a crazy conspiracy theorists because if it were true then they would have heard it on CNN. Most are quick to call you stupid or crazy yet refuse to even do a 5 min. google search to find out. I have given up trying to wake the masses, we just dont have the time. If this thing is going to be stopped it is going to be stopped by us few who are paying close attention and refuse to be quiet. Thanks Tom and Jason.
Tom I sure hope you do submit a public records request. Mr. White already has enough egg on his face to feed a small army breakfast. Not to mention this would surely raise his BP up a few notches. Great work Tom please keep up the great work.
The DFA, sponsored by the GFA (Governors for America, aka republican governors association) and the LFA (Legislators for America, aka ALEC). You’re better than Jon Stewart, and certainly more sincere. There’s some Louisiana Limbaugh-like pundit on WLAE – maybe you could get a show there?
Afraid that would never work. I’ve been told I have a face for radio. That, unfortunately (or fortunately) does not apply to TV.
You could always use some info in one of your comedy routines, or better yet, write another book. It would be a best seller!!!
WOW! Get ’em, Tom! Thanks for all your work.
This article once again explains why your site is on my daily must read list.
Thank you sir, for all that you do.
Thanks Tom, its good stuff!!! Trying to keep up with these politicians and their less than stellar performance, is, shall we say. exhausting…….
Reblogged this on Crazy Crawfish's Blog and commented:
It’s always nice to see your work appreciated. Many thanks to John White and his band of merry men (and women) for putting a smile on my face after all these months I’ve been gone. It sounds like they might be getting a little obsessed over me and Tom. If they would only put students first, before corporations,politics, and TFA organizations they’d could cease with all the cloak and dagger foolishness and drama.