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Comeback for Jindal in 2019? He kept ‘America Next’ think tank, is grabbing for Trump coattails, so don’t be surprised

February 3, 2017 by tomaswell

While Attorney General Jeff Landry has been gearing up to oppose Gov. John Bel Edwards in the 2019 elections, there is another potential candidate who is making noise like a potential candidate and if he does run, it can only spell bad news for Landry.

You may remember his name.

Piyush, aka Bobby Jindal.

Before you laugh at the prospect of one with an approval rating hovering around 30 percent when he left office just over a year ago, remember that he is delusional even to the point of believing he was first, a viable candidate for President and later as Donald Trump’s Secretary of Education.

With Timmy Teepell whispering in his ear (for the big bucks he gets at Jindal’s alter-ego), it’s plausible that he actually believes he can waltz back into the governor’s mansion. And I, for one, am not about to discount his chances after my prediction the day Trump announced for president that he would “crash and burn in six weeks.”

For openers, it’s important to note that Jindal never disbanded his AMERICA NEXT 501(c)(4) conservative think tank formed in 2013 to boost his comical attempt to wrest the Republican presidential nomination from a host of presidential wannabes.

Though he has made no formal—or informal, for that matter—announcement that he has his eye on “the only job he ever wanted,” he is making what some observers might see as an attempt to put himself in Trump’s good graces.

Using America Next as his forum, Jindal on Friday launched an attack on critics of Betsy DeVos, Trump’s choice for Secretary of Education. And he got Politico’s help in spreading the word.

Jindal wrote the piece as if (a) he can ride the coattails of Trump (who may not even know who he is) in 2019 or as though (b) anyone cares. This is, after all, the same Jindal who never rose above 1 percent in Iowa, where his presidential campaign started—and died an anonymous death. He is the would-be Boy Blunder to Donald Trump’s Batty Man.

Jindal has never passed up an opportunity for shameless self-promotion, even when ostensibly supporting someone else. And, of course, he didn’t let us down this time when he wrote, “America Next is overseen by former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who has also advocated for education reform. Before DeVos was picked for the post, Jindal had been mentioned as a possible contender.”

It’s highly likely that the only one to mention him as a “possible contender” was Jindal himself. It’s reminiscent of a man with whom I once worked who was constantly applying for jobs for which he held no qualifications. Invariably, he would announce to us at break that he was a lock for the job because “They accepted my application.”

Jindal somehow managed to get Politico, an Internet political news service, to post a story about a pro-DeVos ad campaign being launched by America Next.

In its story, Politico quoted America Next: “With education secretary nominee Betsy DeVos facing a rocky path to confirmation, a conservative group is launching a pair of scorched-earth TV ads defending her – and accusing her Democratic opponents of being ‘full of rage and hate.’”

Politico further quotes from America Next: “Why is the radical left so full of rage and hate? They still can’t accept that Trump won and they lost,” it says. “Now extreme liberals like Elizabeth Warren are trying to stop Betsy DeVos from becoming secretary of education.

“Why? DeVos angers the extreme left because she exposes their hypocrisy. DeVos wants low-income kids to have the same choices that liberal elitists have for their families. DeVos wants equal opportunity for all kids. That makes angry liberals even angrier.”

A second commercial accuses “Washington liberals” of opposing “giving low-income families the same education choices as everyone,” Politico wrote.

The group is spending more than $500,000 to air the commercials, which will begin running Friday morning on multiple networks nationwide.

The ads were created by Curt Anderson, a veteran strategist who has worked for Jindal and a number of prominent Republican politicians.

“Betsy has been very polite and deferential to these Democrat senators,” Jindal wrote in an email. “But we don’t have to.”

Tough talk from a guy who left office with such a dismal approval rating. But hey, he’s a tough guy. After all, eschewing rubber boots, he chose to wear his Hopalong Cassidy cowboy boots at the opening of the Foster Farms chicken processing plant in Farmerville while he was governor.

Oh, and at the end of the piece, there was the obligatory “Click Here to Donate” button. Preachers and politicians just can’t seem to get a message across without asking for money.

Joking aside, Jindal has the kind of ego that keeps him in a constant state of denial about his lack of achievements and low approval ratings—and the youth and kind of misplaced self-worth that would drive him to try to match Edwin Edwards at the state’s only four-time governor.

Now if he can just get Trump’s endorsement…

Posted in Politics | 10 Comments »

Notable Quotables (in their own words)

February 1, 2017 by tomaswell

“Hebert respectfully asks the court to stay the proceedings until the statute of limitations has run on any criminal charges that could be brought in connection with these matters.”

—Renee Culotta, attorney for former ATC Director Troy Hebert, in her Memorandum of Support of her Motion for Protective Order in the civil matter of former ATC agent Brett Tingle’s wrongful termination lawsuit against Hebert.

“Should he (Hebert) provide answers to these questions, he could face indictment and criminal prosecution.”

—Culotta, in that same memorandum.

Posted in Politics | 2 Comments »

Troy Hebert files motion to block testimony in civil suit lest answers expose him to criminal indictment and prosecution

February 1, 2017 by tomaswell

There are times when, after you break a major story about official wrongdoing and after the requisite denials by those involved, everything gets quiet and the story seems to have hit a dead end. Or at least been placed in a state of suspended animation.

But generally, if you are willing to be patient and wait long enough, the story gets new life with the surfacing of new information.

So it was a year ago when LouisianaVoice and New Orleans Fox8 News investigative reporter Lee Zurik simultaneously broke a STORY that Troy Hebert, former director of the Office of Louisiana Alcohol and Tobacco Control (and furtive candidate for the U.S. Senate last fall—he got one-half of one percent of the vote), was under investigation by the FBI for:

  • Extorting sex from a New Orleans woman, Sarah Palmer, in exchange for approval of a liquor license for the French Quarter restaurant she managed, and
  • Illegally steered applicants for liquor licenses to attorney Chris Young for representation through Young’s sister, Judy Pontin, executive management officer for the New Orleans ATC office.

Now, thanks to a wrongful termination lawsuit filed against Hebert by a former ATC agent, those same issues have surfaced again.

Documents concerning still another issue, the suppressing of an investigation into a Baton Rouge bar following a 2012 accident involving a patron of the bar who had a blood alcohol content of .307 when he struck and killed two cyclists, killing one and injuring the other.

LouisianaVoice wrote in a February 2016 POST that Hebert wrongfully took control of the investigation and personally exonerated the Bulldog Bar from any wrongdoing. Chris Young was legal counsel for the Bulldog.

The only problem for fired ATC agent Brett Tingle, who filed the lawsuit against Hebert, it’s possible that none of Hebert’s repeatedly invoking the Fifth Amendment in a deposition will be allowed into testimony.

Federal Judge John DeGravelles of Louisiana’s Middle District in Baton Rouge, currently has under advisement Hebert’s motion for protective order filed by attorney Renee Culotta which would, if granted, prohibit Tingle’s attorney, J. Arthur Smith, III, from posing any questions at trial about Hebert’s relationship with Palmer and/or Young.

In his deposition taken in December 2016 in preparation for trial in the Tingle matter, Hebert repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment when Palmer’s name was brought up by Smith, as illustrated by the following exchanges:

  • Smith: “Do you recognize this (redacted) document?”
  • Hebert: “I’m going to exercise my Fifth Amendment right.”
  • Smith: “Do you know a lady by the name of Sara (sic) Palmer?”
  • Hebert: “I’m going to exercise my Fifth Amendment right.”
  • Smith: “Have you engaged in any infidelity during your marriage to Dawn Vick?”
  • Hebert: “I’m going to exercise my Fifth Amendment right.”
  • Smith: “That’s not a Fifth Amendment matter.”
  • Smith” I’m going to show you Exhibit No. 9 (redacted). What is this document, sir?
  • Hebert: I will exercise my Fifth Amendment right.”
  • Smith: “So with respect to Exhibit No. 9, you’re exercising your Fifth Amendment right”
  • Hebert: “I answered the question.”
  • Smith: “I’ll show you (exhibit) No. 10 (redacted). Do you recognize the Exhibit No. 10?”
  • Hebert: “I will exercise my Fifth Amendment right.”

While the exhibits were redacted in Hebert’s Memorandum of Support for obvious reasons, the motion did note that exhibits eight and nine were “documents concerning” Louisiana Oyster House, dba Star Steak and Lobster (the restaurant managed by Palmer), notably a notice of violation and renewal applications. Exhibit 10, Culotta said, “concerned Chris Young documents previously attached to Hebert’s deposition as Exhibit 10-12.”

Interestingly, in his Memorandum in Support of his Motion for Protective Order, Hebert said that while he has not been indicted and there is “no active criminal case” against him… “It is clear Hebert has been under investigation by the FBI, and should he provide answers to these questions, he could face indictment and criminal prosecution.” (Emphasis added.)

And this memorandum, we should point out, was written by Hebert’s attorney, Renee Culotta, who is being paid thousands of dollars while under contract to the Attorney General’s office as a contract attorney—just as she was in a previous lawsuit against ATC, that of Lisa Pike, a former ATC employee who also sued Hebert. The terms of that settlement have been held confidential by the court.

LouisianaVoice has made a public records request for Culotta’s billing for legal representation in the Pike matter. Her billing in the defense of the Tingle lawsuit would not be made available because the case is ongoing.

Culotta said in the memorandum that allegations by Palmer against Hebert “occurred in January 2016, well after Tingle’s work for and termination from the ATC. Tingle did not participate in any issue concerning Sarah Palmer and/or Steak and Lobster, and no facts about Palmer or Steak and Lobster are contained in (Tingle’s) complaint.

“Likewise, the issues concerning Chris Young (i.e., whether Hebert gave preferential treatment to Young and/or referred clients to Young as part of an illegal scheme) are also not a part of this lawsuit and are not relevant to and have no bearing on whether Hebert allegedly retaliated against Tingle because of Tingle’s participation in the race discrimination charges and lawsuits filed by three African-American employees.

Tingle’s counsel’s questions and discovery concerning Chris Young and/or Sarah Parker were only meant to embarrass and harass Hebert,” Culotta said in her memorandum.

“Hebert cannot fully defend himself in the civil case (i.e., by explaining his position concerning Young, Palmer and (t)he Star Steak and Lobster license renewal) while the threat of criminal prosecution is looming.

“Plaintiff cannot have it both ways: if he intends to pursue this evidence, he then must agree to a stay in order that Hebert can defend himself without threat of criminal prosecution.

“Defendant Troy Hebert respectfully requests (that) this court issue a protective order forbidding plaintiff’s counsel from discovering, asking any questions about or referencing Chris Young, Sarah Palmer and/or the Star Steak and Lobster restaurant going forward in this litigation. To the extent plaintiff claims these issues are relevant, then Hebert respectfully asks the court to stay the proceedings until the statute of limitations has run on any criminal charges that could be brought in connection with these matters.” (Emphasis added.)

Now I don’t pretend to be a legal scholar. Journalism schools (or at least the one I attended) sadly do not require any courses in law even though any career journalist is going to be covering courtroom procedure at some point during his career.

That said, it appears to me that someone is one helluva lot more concerned with potential criminal exposure than any civil liability.

But then, that’s understandable. If a public official is convicted of criminal wrongdoing, he is the one who is penalized. If, on the other hand, a civil verdict is returned against that same individual, it is the taxpayer who ultimately pays whatever judgment is assessed.

Posted in ATC, Contract, Contracts, Corruption, Courts, Crime, Ethics, Judges, Lawsuits, Lobbyist, Politicians, Senate | 6 Comments »

LouisianaVoice breaks one of its ironclad rules: never respond to those who send out wingnut email blasts

January 30, 2017 by tomaswell

I received an email from an acquaintance whom shall remain nameless for two reasons.

  1. He didn’t compose the idiotic tripe so there is no reason to single him out;
  2. I don’t want to embarrass him needlessly just because he has drunk the Trump Kool-Aid.

But I cannot let this pass without addressing the content of the message, as intellectually weak and morally empty as it is.

Be proceeding any further, I also want to point out that a spokesman for the Louisiana Republican Party recently described me as a liberal blogger. He is incorrect. I am neither a conservative nor liberal. I am a recovering Republican who voted the Republican ticket faithfully until the Bobby Jindal accident. It was because of Jindal and the Republican programs that I, like a two-week-old puppy, finally opened my eyes.

Coincidentally, on the heels of the diatribe below, The Atlantic on Sunday published an article ARTICLE by Eliot Cohen entitled “A Clarifying Moment in American History,” which reads as if it was written in response to that email.

Rather than respond to the email at the end of the distorted message (in boldface), I am inserting my comments in italics throughout the document.

So without further ado, here goes:

GOOD MORNING. WELCOME TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, a Christian nation, land of the free and home of the brave.

Press ‘1’ for English.

Press ‘2’ to disconnect until you learn to speak English. There has been an ongoing effort for years to preserve the Cajun heritage in South Louisiana, including the Cajun French language. No one seems to complain about that. Elsewhere in this country, no one seems to object when Swedes, Danes, Italians or Asians speak in their native tongues. Somehow, it’s only when Latinos or Middle Easterners do. But here’s a thought: If you’re so determined that everyone learn the language of their new home, perhaps we should all be speaking Apache, Comanche, Navajo or some other Native American dialect. Can you say “two-faced moron”?

And remember only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you, Jesus Christ and the American Soldier. One died for your soul, the other for your freedom. Not really sure what point is being made here but in my lifetime, the highest body count came from Vietnam, a country we had no business in, fighting a war without clear objectives other than a flawed philosophy called the “domino theory,” and where probably 90 percent of those killed were those who unfortunates who lacked the political connections to avoid the military draft in effect at the time. Don’t think any of those “offered” to die for me. In fact, one of the bravest men of that era, a Muslim, by the way, was stripped of his Heavyweight boxing title because he refused to sacrifice his religious principles.

2017, A NEW YEAR AND A NEW BEGINNING WILL SOON BE HERE. 
A Nation of Sheep – Breeds a Government of Wolves! And the rhetoric of wolves seems to breed a nation of sheep.

Borders: Closed. And the Native Americans wish they had thought of a wall way back when.

Language: English only. (See response to “Press 2 for English above.)

Culture: Constitution and the Bill of Rights!!! Soooo glad you brought up the Constitution and Bill or Rights. In fact, let’s go straight to the First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.” Let’s take the “establishment of religion” first. The prohibition of certain religions like Islam is a prohibition of the free exercise of religion in no uncertain terms. I recently read an online post which noted the irony of a country founded on the principle of allowing freedom from religious persecution now using religion to persecute freedom.

Now let’s talk about my favorite subject: freedom of the press. Thomas Jefferson is a man the so-called “patriots” love to quote and the uber-patriotic American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) even gives an annual Thomas Jefferson Freedom Award (Bobby Jindal is one of the recipients). That said, it was Jefferson who said given the choice between a government with no free press and a free press with no government, he would not hesitate to choose the latter. But der Führer Trump rolls out Sean Spicer to whine over the media’s attendance figures for the inauguration (as if that was an issue of real import) and Kellyanne Conway first invokes something called “alternative facts” and followed that with a complete meltdown on Fox News Sunday when she called for the firing of any journalist who wrote or said anything critical of her boss. Apparently the Trumpets’ first priority is, to paraphrase William Shakespeare in Henry VI, Part II, to kill all the journalists.

Drug Free: Make a drug screen mandatory for anyone on welfare and/or food stamps!

No problem. Provided that members of Congress, the President, Vice President and members of the President’s Cabinet be held to the same standard—because sometimes it seems they’re all on crack.

No freebies to Non-Citizens or illegal immigrants!

Again, let’s prohibit special perks like a gym, dining hall, barber shops, franking, and limos for members of Congress and throw up our own wall—blocking lobbyists’ access to lawmakers.

WITH THE ELECTION OF DONALD TRUMP, WE THE PEOPLE, WILL BE HEARD AT LAST.

Seriously? You really believe in your heart of hearts that your opinion matters to this egomaniac? You poor, pathetic, misguided person, you are in for the biggest disappointment of your Kool-Aid-drinking life.

(AND TO ALL MY LIBERAL FRIENDS OUT THERE – REMEMBER THE IMMORTAL WORDS OF THE NEWLY ELECTED PRESIDENT OBAMA IN 2008:

“ELECTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES…..I WON ……YOU LOST…..GET OVER IT!”). WE REMEMBER!

Well, first of all, you moron, it was in 2013, not 2008, that he made that statement.

That being said, the person who sent this email to me also asked that I give Trump a chance.

Sure, no problem. I’ll give Trump the same chance all those who hate Obama for no other reason than the color of his skin (and don’t even try to deny that) gave him. When Republican Congressional leaders said they would not support an Obama Supreme Court nominee “no matter who it is,” what does that tell you about bipartisanship? When Rush “Pass the OxyContin” Limbaugh said in 2008 that he hoped Obama would fail, what does that tell you about pseudo-patriotism?

But did Obama fail as a president? Well, first of all, he inherited a catastrophic economic crisis when greedy Wall Street investment firms run amok, intoxicated on deregulation, went into a financial free fall, threatening the economic well-being of not just the U.S., but the entire world. Wall Street not only recovered, but has been consistently breaking new records. Only last week the Dow hit 20,000 for the first time in history. Along with that, unemployment has been cut in half during Obama’s eight years—and this from an administration that Republicans in Congress tried to block at every turn.

But do you can find a single Trumpet who would give a nod of approval to Obama. You can check that box “NO” with a red, heavy-duty Sharpie. How else could you explain support for a man who cheated people out of millions of dollars with his Trump University? How else could you explain that support when the Florida Attorney General abruptly dropped her investigation of Trump University after Trump gave her a $25,000 campaign contribution? And don’t try to say there was nothing to investigate when we all know there was massive fraud.

One final note: Trump is so frightening, so deranged, so mentally unstable and so narcissistic, that I find myself longing for the comparative sanity and ethical integrity of Bobby Jindal.

Posted in Corruption, Ethics | 47 Comments »

LouisianaVoice’s ‘Eye in North Louisiana’ spots new work release/credit angle in Jindal’s $50 million chicken plant

January 27, 2017 by tomaswell

There was a popular game about 40 years ago called “Whack-a-mole.” (For all I know, it may well still be around.) Anyway, the object of the game was for a player to “whack” a rodent with a rubber mallet each time it appeared out of one of five holes. The problem was each time a mole was “whacked”, it invariably popped up again from one of the remaining four holes.

So it is with certain news stories that just when you think you’ve written about all there is to say on the subject, up pops another angle to pursue.

This time though, two separate—and seemingly unrelated—stories that have been covered extensively in the past by LouisianaVoice have now converged to warrant a fresh look at old news.

Before I go any further, I should acknowledge the ever-sharp eyes of my bronchitis-infected friend and Ruston High School classmate John Sachs (Class of ’61). It is he, after all, that brought an otherwise routine local news story in the Farmerville Gazette to my attention. (I guess I’m going to have acquiesce and give him that honorary Deputy Ace Reporter badge he’s been clamoring for.)

Eagle-Eye John called me about efforts to hire a private prison management company to take over management of the 380-bed Union Parish Detention Center. You may recall that LouisianaVoice had a couple of stories about the facility last year, on MAY 10 and MAY 31 about a convicted rapist who was allowed out of his cell to rape a female prisoner. Twice.

That incident, deplorable as it certainly was, is not what this is about, however.

The Gazette story recounted the reason for the decision by LaSalle Corrections to decline Union Parish’s offer. Those reasons dealt with the potential shortage of prisoners if Gov. John Bel Edwards is successful in reducing the number of state inmates and the financial impact of such a move.

Another factor, said LaSalle Chief of Operations Johnny Creed, was the size of four other facilities in north Louisiana managed by LaSalle: Richwood Correctional Center (1,129 inmates), Jackson Parish Correctional Center (1,285), LaSalle Correctional Center (785) and Catahoula Correctional Center (835).

image-13

(CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE)

And then Creed said the thing that caught Sach’s eye, prompting him to call me with his croaking voice and rattling cough: “As small as (Union Parish Detention Center) is, we would need to bring our work release inmate that work for Foster Farms from our Richwood facility.”

Wait. What?

Foster Farms has 100 work release inmates working at its cotton-pickin’ chicken-pluckin’ plant in Farmerville?

Isn’t this the same plant that Bobby Jindal, with the support of State Sen. Mike Walsworth (R-West Monroe), gave $50 million to in order to get Foster Farms to take over the plant from Pilgrim’s Pride back in 2009?

Wasn’t Foster Farms supposed to provide up to 1,100 jobs with that $50 million?

Does Foster Farms get a $2,400 tax credit for each inmate it employs in the work release program?

And aren’t work release programs something of a cash cow for sheriffs and private prisons farming out prisoners to work for just a smidgen more than minimum wage?

Yes,

Uh-huh.

Yep.

Hell, yes.

You mean to tell me Foster Farms gets a $240,000 tax credit (that’s credit, not a deduction, meaning that’s $240,000 income on which Foster Farm pays no taxes) for hiring 100 prisoners at $7.75 per hour (about 60 percent of which goes to the local sheriff), jobs that should be going to local folks?

Very perceptive, Grasshopper.

This, folks, is yet another lingering smell that hits our olfactory like a pair of dirty socks but which we affectionately call the Jindal Legacy.

The work release program is such a golden egg that sheriffs all over the state, reading the tea leaves shaped like dollar signs, rushed to build their own programs, complete with barracks and vans for workers. And to make sure the beds stayed filled, which is the only way they can get the maximum state dollars, the accommodating Louisiana Sheriffs’ Association lobbied (read parties, booze, women and campaign contributions) Louisiana’s law and order legislators to be more law and order-oriented and pass stiffer penalties for even the most insignificant crimes.

To see just how lucrative this could be for a small parish like Union, let’s run the numbers.

State law allows the sheriff or operator of the private prison to take up to 62 percent of a prisoner’s earnings. One hundred prisoners working 40 hours per week for 50 weeks per year at $7.75 per hour. That comes to $1.55 million earned by the prisoner.

The Union Parish Detention Center is unique in that it is the only such facility in the state in which neither the sheriff nor a private company has operational controls. It is operated by committee comprised of a member of the Union Parish Police Jury, the district attorney and parish police chiefs. Lincoln Parish at one time was run in the same manner but it is now run by the sheriff.

If the parish takes “just” 60 percent, that’s $930,000 per year for the sheriff/operator. And that’s over and above the rate the state pays the sheriff/operator to house the prisoners. More than six years ago, LOUISIANA VOICE published a story that examined some of the housing contracts between the state and several Louisiana parishes.

Despite the money generated by the work release program, the Union Parish Detention Center has continued to lose money. That is the reason for the unsuccessful attempt to lure LaSalle into managing the center.

We followed our December 2010 post with a story in AUGUST 2015 that illustrated the abuses that can occur when someone with the right connections can use that advantage to manipulate a system like work release for his own monetary gain.

Jail operators, be they sheriffs or private corporations, love the money the work release program brings in to augment that paid by the state for housing the prisoners.

And businesses like Foster Farms love being able to hire 100 prisoners at near-minimum wage and receive a $240,000 tax credit in the process.

It’s a win-win for everyone but the taxpayers.

So, bottom line: Thar’s gold in them thar jails.

Posted in Business, Ethics, Governor's Office, Incentives, Jobs, Lobbyist, Prison, Privatization, Revenue, Taxes | 31 Comments »

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