Conrad Appel has a short memory.
Appel, the Republican state senator from Metairie, is the same one who made a killing investing in the stock of Discovery Education just before the Senate Education Committee which he chaired at the time adopted the company’s Science TECHBOOK as a digital core instructional resource for elementary and middle school science instruction.
The states of Indiana and Oregon also adopted the program about the same time and the company’s stock went from $40.96 a share at the time of his purchase on Nov. 30, 2010, to $90.21 a share on Jan. 2, 2014, a period of just over three years. More than 7.5 million shares of Discovery Communications stock were traded on the day of Appel’s purchase. The next highest volume was 3.1 million shares on Aug. 1, 2011. Daily trading volume generally ran between 1.1 million and 1.9 million shares in the three-plus-year-period from December 2010 to March 2014.
Okay, that’s old news that LouisianaVoice has reported before, so what’s the big deal?
Nothing much, except that now Appel, apparently in attempt to emulate Bobby Jindal, is penning op-ed columns for The Hayride, a conservative blog. This not a criticism of The Hayride. They believe in what they write just as I believe in what I post, which certainly is a right I would never deny them. And LouisianaVoice also has guest columnists, so, understand that this not a slam on The Hayride.
But in his COLUMN, Appel opens by saying he has been engaged in the past week in “rather heated debate” over undocumented immigration. Funny, we thought he was trying to find a solution to Louisiana’s budgetary problems.
Nevertheless, Appel goes on to say that Louisiana’s weak economy is incapable of absorbing an influx of undocumented immigrants. He does give a nod to the indisputable fact that without that influx of Hispanic workers following Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans would never have recovered in the time it did.
He notes that the workers “flocked in” to form the labor force that rebuilt the region because, he says, jobs were plentiful. But here is a curious cop-out by Appel in his column: “A side question is why the natives didn’t return to assume those jobs but that is a subject for someone else.”
No, Senator, it certainly is NOT a question for “someone else.” As an elected state senator, it is precisely your duty to address that issue head-on, not weasel out of it with some half-baked excuse.
But in case you need a reminder, here’s a major reason, and you can file this away for future use:
The largely African-American male population that fled New Orleans in the wake of Katrina did not return to claim those jobs because they were unqualified to do the work. The Hispanics who “flocked in” were, in fact, skilled laborers, trained in carpentry, roofing, bricklaying, and concrete finishing. They were already trained in contrast to New Orleans blacks who historically have been written off by the power structure—white and black power structure, it should be noted—that considered them of no value other than on election day.
Of course, Appel represents lily-white Metairie in Jefferson Parish, so he would find it difficult to emphasize with the plight of people of color. But here’s an example that stands out as symbolic of the way in which the power structure I alluded to earlier games the system to its own advantage and to the disadvantage of what it considers the bottom feeders.
Following Katrina, FEMA issued 81,241 blue roof tarps (10-feet-by-10-feet). An Austin, Texas, contractor said he charged $300 to cover a 2000-square-foot roof. That equates to 20 tarps, or a buck-fifty per tarp.
FEMA contracted with the Shaw Group of Baton Rouge to place the tarps for $175 per 10-by-10 tarp, or $3500 for that same 2,000-square-foot house–more than 11 times what the Austin contractor charged.
But it gets better. Shaw apparently had no employees qualified to place the tarps, so it subcontracted with a company called A-1 Construction at a cost of $75 per tarp. That’s a profit of $100 per tarp for Shaw, whose employees never touched a tarp.
But wait. A-1 subbed its work out to Westcon Construction at $30 a square (tarp) for a profit of $45 per square—again, without ever touching a tarp.
Westcon then hired the actual workers who placed the tarps at a cost of $2 a square, or a profit of $28 per tarp for Westcon.
If Shaw had contracted to place all 81,000 tarps, the company would have pocketed more than $8.1 million without ever lifting a finger. A-1 cashed in for more than $3.6 million and never broke a sweat while Westcon made a more modest $2.27 million after paying its workers. Of course, those figures don’t take into consideration taxes and insurance paid by the companies. But still….combined profits of nearly $14 million?
By contrast the workers who actually placed the tarps received $162,000 to be divided between however many workers were hired to do the work.
Can you say profiteering?
Anyone care to bet against the chances that those workers who actually placed the tarps were Hispanic? After all, 45 percent of the recovery workforce was comprised of Latinos, about half of whom were undocumented. Of that 45 percent, 43 percent were from Mexico, 32 percent from Honduras, 9 percent from Nicaragua, and 8 percent from El Salvador.
And here’s the real kicker, just in case Appel ever cares to do a little research on the subject. Many of those ended up as victims of WAGE THEFT at the hands of unscrupulous contractors who vanished without paying the workers.
So, yes, Sen. Appel, there is a problem but to say the economy of this state can’t afford an influx of undocumented immigrants is just a tad hypocritical, given the fact that the Legislature that was so complicit in abetting Bobby Jindal as he tanked the state’s treasury couldn’t seem to get its act together until it had carried the state to the very edge of the metaphorical fiscal cliff. Until you as a body can act responsibly in addressing our teetering state economy, you shouldn’t cast stones—in anyone’s direction.
Especially when many of the undocumented workers who did “flock in” were never paid for the work they did in restoring New Orleans.
Louisiana Voice 
Thank you, very informative, its clearly easier to manulate people, using fear and phobia, than it is to do the hard work of legislating in a responsible manner for the greater good.
The tone of the article above suggests that the Hispanic who took the jobs offered after Hurricane Katrina did it because of a sense of duty or charity to the region. They did not. They took those jobs because they wanted the money and the money was good enough for them to take them – no more, no less.
Those skilled workers generally work fast, hot and cheap – workmanship is often questionable. But, they do work cheap.
The American tradesman pays twice. First, Hispanics work so cheap that it has become common to see construction crews with not one English speaking member further hollowing out the middle class. Second, because the new arrivals don’t pay taxes (other that sales taxes), American workers foot the bill for schools, medical and other social services.
Frenchman and other Europeans are starting to wonder just what it means to be French, or German or English because of the misguided and failed immigration policies of the EU. Foreign born residents of the US (the ones that can be counted)
According to the Migration Policy Institute, as of 2016, the US had the larger number of foreign born residents than any other country (44 million or 13.5% of the American population). Between 1860 and 1920, a period which includes the achievement of Manifest Destiny, foreign born residents averaged between 13 and 15%. In 1970, the foreign born population had dropped to 4.7% or 9.6 million people. The staggering increase in foreign born residents (only about which 1/2 of which are legal) is changing American culture and the very meaning of what it means to be an American.
Okay, I can’t let that go unchallenged. I NEVER said nor did I imply that they took the jobs out of a sense of duty or charity. Where in the world do you read that in the article? My god. I guess people see what they want to see, but there’s no way you should have come away with that impression.
Your second point: The middle class was not “hollowed out.” It was gone. The Hispanics were the only work force available in New Orleans after Katrina. That has been well-documented if you bothered to research just a little. Not one immigrant, document or undocumented, EVER took a job from an American. They were taken away by their employers and given to someone who works cheaper so that the company can make more money. You call it capitalism. NO ONE held a gun to the employer’s head and forced him to hire immigrant labor over Americans. You’re blaming the wrong person. And if the immigrants don’t or didn’t pay taxes, it’s because their employers failed to withhold taxes from their paychecks as they are/were required to do (read: they were paid in cash so the employers could get by with not having to purchase medical, workers compensation and unemployment insurance). Whose fault is that? Again, you’re the victim of an elaborate misdirection scam and you have no idea which cup the ball is under.
The US has the largest number of foreign-born residents than any other country? Really? What extraction are you? English? French? German? I would imagine there are lot of Sioux, Choctaw and Apaches who would put the number of “foreigners” in this country a lot higher. This country was settled by immigrants, for god’s sake! Study your history and see who took the menial jobs at the turn of the 20th century. It was the Irish, the Italians, the Swedes, the Asians, the Eastern Europeans. No one complained about the Chinese and the Irish who built the Transcontinental Railroad under inhumane conditions. Before that, it was blacks kidnapped and brought into this country against their will by so-called patriots who sold them into bondage. You possess a very narrow view of immigration and you need to crack a few history books and see what immigrants have contributed to this country.
My ancestors were Scottish. They were IMMIGRANTS! Donald Trump’s wife is an immigrant and she brought her family over as part of the policy of “chain migration” that her husband now opposes.
Bottom line: Immigrants built this country.
Damn Tom, do you read media matters every morning? There is a big difference in legal and illegal immigration.
Mike, I know the difference between illegal and legal. But I sure didn’t get it from Rush Limbaugh or Fox News.
Here are some examples someone sent me:
LEGAL: Slavery
ILLEGAL: Helping people escape slavery
LEGAL: The Holocaust
ILLEGAL: Smuggling Jewish people out of Germany
LEGAL: Segregation
ILLEGAL: Refusing to move to the back of the bus or to leave the white lunch counter
LEGAL: Taking land from Native Americans and consigning them to reservations
ILLEGAL: Native Americans trying to hold Congress to the terms of innumerable broken treaties
LEGAL: The wife of the president, an immigrant, bringing her family to America via “chain migration.”
ILLEGAL: Anyone else who attempts to do the same
I also know if an illegal immigrant comes into this country and goes to work here, more than one person is breaking the law. Somebody’s hiring them. If they don’t get hired, they won’t be so eager to come here, so just who is the real illegal here? It’s kind of the same principal as the drug market. If there were no buyers, there’d be no dealers.
You know, I always thought of you as being an open-minded person. Guess I was wrong.
You have hit the nail on the head, someone, or shall I say a bunch of someone’s are hiring them, so who is the real culprit?
Bottom line they come here to work, and because of their status are exploited,by American companies, I would do the same thing, when you are desperate,and poor,it’s the only alternative. I do not begrudge them for this, they do back breaking work, they pick the produce I eat, they clean the hotels I stay in, they do hard back breaking work and I appreciate it…..
“When Katrina hit, a great many of our native population of workers departed and stayed away for a long time. In their place great numbers of undocumented (I assume) workers flocked in to form the labor force that re-built our region. It is interesting to note supply and demand again, jobs were plentiful and so workers came. A side question is why the natives didn’t return to assume those jobs but that is a subject for someone else.”
Senator, many natives had their eyes opened for the first time living outside of Louisiana. The grass is actually greener in other states. Why return for temporary recovery jobs and live where schools, infrastructure, and jobs are more like a third-world country?
“As long as we have a basically stagnant business sector in our region the number of jobs, especially low-skill jobs, will stay stagnant. As undocumented immigration remains unimpeded the number of workers competing for those jobs will increase and wages for all will fall. That is not a recipe for a healthy city or state.”
Senator, why is the business sector stagnant? Do we fail to demand enough from the existing industries who extract our oil, gas, and other resources, who in the process pollute our land, air, and water, and wear out our roads and bridges? Do we fail to attract new business and industry because Louisiana ranks last, or near so, in every positive category?
Why do you think that is Senator? Could it be the apathetic culture of too many of our citizens and the corruption that permeates every level of government across the state?
What business worth having would want to setup operations in Louisiana and subject its valued employees to that?
No Senator, wages won’t fall for all. Wages will only fall for unskilled jobs. Unfortunately, that’s the type of work that is growing fastest in this state.
Most of the natives were on some type of government assistance before Katrina and when they were forced to leave they found government assistance was available elsewhere, so why bother coming back to an area where they might be asked to work!!
Wow! I wish I had written that. So eloquent and so true.
Of course, Appel is one of the very fattest of the fat cats in the legislature. Still ranting about an exaggerated “problem” from over 12 years ago? I keep looking around Baton Rouge and wondering where are all these so called “invaders”?? And why are these comfortable, very selectively law and order white guys REALLY so afraid of? If they’re that desperate and willing to work, let them come.
One thing is for sure. Sen. Appel really let this guy know how the cow ate the cabbage: https://youtu.be/Bwhpxolif-s.
All I saw was a buffoon trying to shout down a citizen who was testifying before his Senate committee. If you ask me, Appel just showed his contempt for voters in general while trying to pull an impersonation of Rush Limbaugh. My question to his claim that there are no jobs in New Orleans is: Why not, Senator? Why are there no jobs in New Orleans? You seem to have all the answers, so tell us.
Why don’t you actually do some research and figure out that there is big money in the immigration debate. Usually the ones screaming the loudest are guilty. Southwest Key has made $311m in the first half of the year alone. They’ve even been linked to human traffickers that are paid to bring kids across the border. Building a wall cuts off their gravy train. You like to talk about following the money. Talk is cheap.
It certainly is, particularly when cherry-picking “fact” and using misdirection to divert attention from the main point of this column.
What’s your point, Fairness? Seems as if you are going far afield to defend this policy, even to the point of leaving the entire topic of discussion, which is Sen. Appel.
Since you brought it up, though, yes there is big money in the immigration debate. Why do you think the administration wanted to hold the illegals longer than the usual 20 days (at $700 per day cost)? It couldn’t have been to satisfy the private prisons who pour money into the Republican candidates’ campaigns, now could it?
And when you claim Southwest Key has been linked to human traffickers, can you prove this? It is an established fact that Southwest Key, whose CEO pulls down an annual salary of $1.5 million, is being paid $458 million BY THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION to run the immigrant child detention centers. https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/is-trump-administration-southwest-key-458-million/
https://www.thedailybeast.com/nonprofit-execs-rake-in-cash-from-child-detention-center-funding
Again, Southwest Key is being paid by THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION.
So, again, what’s your point? It appears that you are saying that the Trump administration is financing human trafficking. Am I correct on this? Talk about shoddy research.
(Sigh.) Am I going to have to separate you two?
Turns out ol’ Fairness was getting his information from the same source that brought us Pizzagate—the absurd – and debunked – story about Hillary involved in human trafficking via a pizza parlor in Washington. Talk is indeed cheap.
Let’s just be brutally honest and make the statement that trump and his minions, including Conrad Appel, only object to immigrants with dark complexions.
Two of trump’s three wives, his mother and three of his grandparents were immigrants, as were all of our own ancestors at some point, unless we are Native American. trump’s mother was a housemaid who arrived legally and overstayed her visa, becoming illegal until she married trump’s father. trump’s current wife arrived on a legal work visa but collected a salary before her visa allowed it, making her illegal. trump has famously wished for immigrants from Norway, not those “shithole countries.”
Breaking news: the Supreme Court just upheld trump’s Muslim travel ban (which now includes Venezuela, so it’s technically not a religious ban, but they are still brown people). It’s not hard to connect trump’s history and his contemporary comments to his pathological racism. It’s only dark skinned immigrants that Appel, trump and their kind want to ban.
BTW, in a large construction project at my home recently, we had a veritable United Nations workforce – American white and black, Latino including Mexican, Honduran and Brazilian. We passed every inspection by the permit department – the inspectors all said the work was first class, and no one questioned the ethnicity of the workers. All the contractors and sub-contractors who provided those workers were white Americans who knew exactly who was on their payroll.
Good points, earthmother. I’m sure the Pizzagate/Fox/Hannity/Limbaugh crowd have their own “alternative facts” to counter them and there’s the rub. In a country as deeply divided as ours (by the will and design of the POTUS in my opinion) people prove daily they will believe whatever they want to believe, regardless of the source and the Hannitys and Limbaughs of the world are free to make their “facts” up out of whole cloth using the example set by the POTUS.
P. S. I like the way you use capitalization to make an excellent point.