Louisiana Voice

Could there be two Chris Youngs – one from Louisiana – toiling away for Elon Musk and IMPOTUS in an obscure position in the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)?

One such Chris Young, an LSU graduate from Monroe, has held a number of positions linked strongly to the Repugnantcan Party, the most recent of which appears to be several layers from any real authority in the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – that is, if we’re talking about the same Christ Young.

Before that, he was either in high demand or just had trouble holding a job. His most recent gig before being hired by Elon Musk back in August before being shuttled off to CFPB was nearly five years as a lobbyist and vice president for PhRMA.

He was executive director for 15 months of Engage Texas, a Repugnantcan super PAC focused on voter registration. He also served as executive director of Nevada’s Future, a GOP PAC for that state for two years before moving to the Texas position.

Prior to that, he served nearly four years on the Repugnantcan National Committee as a state director and then as national field director and before all of that, he served as a shill for…wait for it…Bobby Jindal.

Now, though, he’s hit the big time. Or so it seems. But is it the same Chris Young?

MATT BERG WROTE on X that “Chris Young, a lobbyist for Big Pharma and past field organizer for former Gov. Bobby Jindal” has “appeared in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) internal staff directory.”

His quarter-century of experience in consumer financial services and banking law has landed him the lofty position of Deputy Assistant Director for Supervision Policy at CFPB, according to an internet post by the American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers (ACCFSL). Not director, mind you, and not even assistant director, but deputy assistant director.

Of course, Washington is awash in such titles but truth be known, he’s pretty far down in the pecking order, lodged in a position where he really shouldn’t be able to do much harm.

But wait. Young’s LINKEDIN PROFILE cites all his positions in working for the Repugnant Party, but it says nothing about any experience in consumer financial services. Moreover, his profile lists him simply as Chris Young while the ACCFSL identifies him as Chris J. Young and cites his banking experience rather than his political jobs.

Regardless, having his name linked to that of Elon Musk is certain to have its own consequences down the road when the giant egos of Musk and Don the Con clash – and that’s a certainty, my friends. Those two can never co-exist on an equal footing as they are trying to do at the moment.

When the fallout occurs, there are going to be casualties galore and don’t be surprised if at least one Chris Young is not sent packing back to Monroe, Louisiana.

It’s almost as confusing as trying to keep up with IMPOTUS’s on-again, off-again executive orders and trade wars.

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At a time when Americans are fast becoming inured to an unending string of nonsensical gibberish from the mouth of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., word that IMPOTUS plans to can the KENNEDY CENTER board members and install himself as chairman carries an especially ominous tone.

At a time when the nation is reeling from inflation, conflation, depression and sensation, one would think that rather than becoming the Cultural Icon of the Beltway, Frump might be considering a more appropriate career move, like, for instance, retiring to a mayonnaise farm in Montana.

The obvious question must be asked: What the blazes does this orange-tinted Genghis Don know about culture and the performing arts other than cheating at golf?

Hitching up his Depends, he posted on Truth Social that he was immediately terminating “multiple individuals who do not share our vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture.”

Golden Age? Is that some secret code that he intends to coat the Kennedy Center in the same ostentatious gold that he does all his other properties?

Do the terms Arts and Culture now portend coming attractions like WWE SMACKDOWN?

Maybe we can look forward to one of those events where a cage is locked and two participants, namely Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin fight to the death. Better yet, let’s have a no-holds-barred match between Elon Musk and Marjorie Taylor-Greene.

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In case you are one of those who continues to cling to the belief that Republicans are for “good government,” “transparency,” and some “gold standard” of ethics, you might want to consider actions Jeff Landry has taken to hide the homeless from the prying eyes of football fans during next Sunday’s Super Bowl.

You’ll notice that I said “hide,” not “solve” the growing problem of homelessness in every major city in America. That’s because he’d rather throw $17.5 million at a politically-connected firm to serve as a band-aid for a cancer rather than make any serious effort to actually address the problem.

Of course, this is the governor, who after getting in trouble with the State Ethics Board, moved to solve that problem by simply taking over the board. More on that later, but first let’s look at his actions in eradicating homelessness in New Orleans.

Actually, I can make it easy for you by providing this link to THE GUARDIAN which just today published a lengthy story about that very issue, though some expanding is necessary.

The Guardian alluded to a political connection between Landry and the company that received a no-bid $17.5 million contract to herd homeless individuals into an unheated warehouse, but it did so without explaining what that specific connection was.

An outfit called Workforce Group initially estimated that it would take about $16 million to run the warehouse for 90 days but later revised that estimate upward to $17.5 million. No problem, even though that amount is about what a year’s rent on a one-bedroom apartment for 1,177 people (about 80 percent of New Orleans’ unhoused population).

Never mind that the warehouse has been described as unsafe for human habitation by a representative of a New Orleans city council member who noted that the building had no flooring, no insulated walls, was open with no heating. Of course, Landry might argue that they were living on the street anyway, so what’s the difference? The difference is the state wasn’t throwing $17.5 mil at political cronies to allow them live on the street.

Never mind that there were no bids on the contract; just declare an emergency and never mind that the $17.5 million price tag was about twice what one leading agency was already spending to alleviate homelessness.

Look, let’s be reasonable here. As long as visitors to the Super Bowl are unable to see homeless people wandering around, the problem really doesn’t exist, right? It’s kind of like when your car engine makes a funny noise, you turn the radio volume up so you can’t hear it. Of if the check engine light comes on, just cover it with a piece of tape – that’ll fix it.

Anyway, the contract to relocate the homeless people want to a company called Workforce Group, which is cleverly tucked away as a subsidiary of the Lemoine Co., a Lafayette corporation run by brothers Lenny and Tim Lemoine. The Lemoines are quite generous in making political contributions to Louisiana Republicans. The brothers’ nephew, Seth Lemoine, just happens to be the stepson of former gubernatorial candidate Eddie Rispone. Rispone was a major supporter of Landry in the 2023 governor’s race and each of the Lemoines contributed to Landry’s campaign and to other Republican candidates.

There’s an app adage for that: one hand washes the other – and boy, do those hands need washing.

Landry, throughout his political career, has left a long trail of questionable maneuvers and insider deals – hell, while attorney general he once sued someone for seeking a public record – so it should come as no surprise that he has continued that tradition now that he’s governor. I suppose in the game of Louisiana politics, it’s expected but just we shouldn’t expect him to be so obvious about it; at least make some effort toward honesty and integrity.

It apparently wasn’t enough that he slammed the door on public records by pushing legislation that removed the penalties for non-compliance, but he also made that brazen move to commandeer the ethics board by making his own APPOINTMENTS, including the chairman, even as he fought the board over his own ethics violations.

Then, in January, we learned that that same ethics board for seven months kept PERSONAL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE FORMS of five of Landry’s top staff members from the ethics board’s web site even though under state law, the records are supposed to be public. The purpose of requiring the publication of the records is to hold public officials accountable and to guard against public servants enriching themselves through their government jobs – and gosh, we know that doesn’t happen.

Maybe it’s just me, but it somehow doesn’t seem right that any official with matters pending before any board would have authority to appoint any of its members. Seems to me that’d be like a defendant in a trial being able to appoint the judge and jury.

But then again, maybe that’s just Louisiana politics.

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There’s an interesting story in today’s New York Times that quotes our junior senator as basically saying he doesn’t give a rat’s patootie about what any of his constituents think; he’s just going to allow himself to be sucked up into the Trump vortex until his brain, like that of IMPOTUS, is nothing but mush.

In fact, John N. Kennedy is already so far along that path that he long ago reached the point of no return.

Kennedy long ago – even before fellow senator Bill Cassidy’s shameful but at the same time, shameless, thumbs-up on yesterday’s confirmation hearing on Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health – sold his soul to IMPOTUS.

He’s in so deep that he now actually believes he answers to no one other than the ringmaster of Washington’s three-ring circus.

What he doesn’t seem to understand is that politics is like a clock’s pendulum; it swings both ways. Right now, it’s at full-tilt right swing but one day, when the infatuation with this orange blowhard is past, it’ll swing back. A quick look at history will affirm that theory.

One day when Mrs. Putin has exited the White House and America comes to its senses, people like Kennedy, Mike Johnson and Clay Higgins will be footnotes, unworthy of serious study.

Think about it. What have they said or done, really? Clay Higgins froths at the mouth a lot. Mike Johnson has a porn app to monitor his son and vice-versa and Kennedy is Foghorn Leghorn reincarnated. Kennedy is full of platitudes and cliches that contribute nothing to serious debate and now, he’s even insulted all of us with his observation on Trump’s efforts to dismantle the federal government, starting with USAID when he said:

“To my friends who are upset, I would say with respect, you know, call somebody who cares. They better get used to this. It’s USAID today. It’s going to be Department of Education tomorrow.”

Seems to me he’s actually trying to take credit for what billionaire – and unelected – Elon Musk is doing. It also appears that he’s forgotten where he came from – Zachary – but let’s allow that to pass and concentrate on Kennedy’s Bronx cheer message: “Call somebody who cares.”

That’s about a crass as an elected official can get. If someone decides to run against this buffoon in six years, it would be wise to plaster TV ads with clips of Kennedy uttering those ignoble words.

“Call somebody who cares.”

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LouisianaVoice, in an exclusive report, can report why Donald Trump is so vehemently opposed to DEI in the staffing of federal agencies.

It turns out that IMPOTUS is simply unable to spell DEI, even if you spot him the D and the E.

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