Louisiana Voice

With all the top administrators bailing out at LSU, LouisianaVoice has received an anonymous tip that a bombshell might well be coming out of Friday’s meeting of the Board of Supervisors.

It involves another top – as in the very top – mover and shaker at the university packing his bags and rolling on between the ditches (apologies to Emmylou Harris). Boys and girls, can you say William Tate?

It would seem difficult for someone to give up such lucrative salary ($750,000), benefits and incentives in these uncertain times, but perhaps that might serve as a barometer of just how bad things really are on the beautiful campus south of downtown Baton Rouge.

Not since the upheaval in the days of Huey Long has LSU been such a political football, thanks in whole (and certainly not just in part) to the interference of Jeff Landry. And to be sure, it goes far beyond Landry’s demands that athletes line up for the National Anthem before games or his ridiculous, clumsy efforts to have Mike the Tiger brought into Tiger Stadium for games. This is a case of the administration’s undermining of the very foundation of higher education in Louisiana.

The atmosphere at the university right now, as the result of heavy-handed political maneuvers that gave the governor more say-so over higher education, is certain to send a top-tier university spiraling downward into the ranks of mediocre – or worse – institutions.

But there’s always football.

We’re in the final week of our twice yearly fundraiser and we still need your help. As the country song goes, we “ain’t broke but we’re badly bent” here at LouisianaVoice. We have an active legislative session going on and that’s when the most harm seems to be done to taxpayers.

We attempt to monitor what goes on at the Capitol. Not the formal, stuffed-shirt meetings where politicians pontificate, but by sorting through records, audits, minutes, campaign reports and expenditures.

For instance, we revealed that the former head of the Department of Corrections, Richard Stalder, was simultaneously president of the American Correctional Association (ACA), which was responsible for the accreditation of Louisiana prison facilities his state agency ran.

We also revealed that ACA, while serving as accreditor of prisons also served a trade association, lobbying on behalf of prisons.

We also wrote about how Stalder, back in the day, canceled spending on psychiatric counseling for troubled teens in order that his staff could receive $2.7 million in raises.

Not to pick on the Department of Corrections, but this was just one area that we cover at LouisianaVoice and we do so on a daily basis. It costs money to do so.

So, in these waning days of our fundraiser, anything you could see fit to contribute, large or small, would be greatly appreciated. You may contribute by credit card by clicking on the YELLOW DONATE BUTTON to the right of this colum and following directions. Or you may simply mail a check to me, Tom Aswell, 107 North College West, Denham Springs, Louisiana 70726.

Remember, the largest single contributor will receive a first-edition copy of Huey Long’s autobiography, Every Man a King and all contributions of $50 or more will received a signed copy of my latest book, 101 Wrongful Convictions in Louisiana.

Thanks for 14 great years!

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any more political at LSU, another high-ranking administrator has packed it in in the wake of new laws that have given more power over higher education to Gov. Jeff Landry.

Provost Roy Haggerty, the highest-ranking academic administrator on the Baton Rouge campus has become the third high-profile university official to call it quits this year – and that doesn’t count law professors who have found their freedom of speech stifled by the governor.

Earlier this year, the school’s top attorney, Winston DeCuir, resigned and his resignation was followed by that of attorney Kimberly Lewis, who worked with DeCuir at the university.

Lewis had served as Gov. John Bel Edwards’s revenue secretary prior to her appointment to the board of supervisors. She was often at odds with board member Lee Mallett, a Republican donor who contributed heavily to Landry’s campaign.

Landry, who has pushed through laws that give him far more power over higher education in general and LSU in particular than previous governors, called for the punishment of law professor NICK BRYNER who made comments to his law class that Landry interpreted as critical of Donald Trump.

Following that, he called for the university to punish another law professor, KEN LEVY, who was ultimately suspended for his use of profanity in criticizing Landy. Levy is fighting his suspension in court.

While he was still attorney general, the thin-skinned Landry insisted that LSU punish political communications professor BOB MANN who had been critical of one of Landry’s deputy attorneys general who had shared vaccine misinformation at an LSU Faculty Senate meeting.

Mann held on to his position until Landry’s election. Then, seeing that his fate was sealed with Landry becoming governor, he tendered his resignation, effective the day Landry was inaugurated.

It’s obvious from Landry’s efforts to step up executions, limit access to public records, enforce religious beliefs on public school children in a naked appeal to evangelicals, rewrite the State Constitution and grab total control of state government, that he (a) wants very much to be thought of as Louisiana’s Little Trump and (b) has every intention of one day seeking higher office.

There are a couple of items on tomorrow’s (Thursday, April 24) meeting of the Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System that have some observers scratching their heads.

One of those was a mysterious audit and the other appears to be an attempt to a heretofore civil mater, libel and defamation, into a criminal matter and which edges dangerously close to an affront to the First Amendment.

The board is the governing board for nine colleges and universities that do not have their own specific governing boards. LSU and Southern are the two exceptions that have their own governing boards.

One of the agenda items is Item F. 1, which says in its executive summary:

Attached is a list of internal and external reports completed by various auditors since the February Board meeting. The internal audit reports are prepared based on an independent review of university departments and functions. The internal audits are designed to ascertain compliance with established policies and procedures, to evaluate operational efficiencies of business and management practices, and to determine adequacy of internal controls. The internal audits are conducted to provide management with recommendations and comments designed to improve the operations of university departments and functions. External audits are conducted in accordance with laws, regulations, or contracts. Also included are internal audits that are currently in progress and a Follow-up Time Table to ensure recommendations made in prior reports are implemented.

 This is a report only and no action by the Board is necessary.

Under that item is a list of a number of apparently routine audits for Grambling State University, Louisiana Tech University, Northwestern State University, Southeastern Louisiana University, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, the University of Louisiana at Monroe and the University of New Orleans.

Among the six items under Southeastern Louisiana University was Item 6 on page 19: “Follow-Up of MILESTONE, INC. Fraud Investigation.”

No one on the Hammond campus seems to know much of anything about Milestone, Inc. A search of corporate filings on the Secretary of State’s web page found dozens of Milestone companies. The one that seemed most obvious however, The Milestone Corporation was listed in the Whitney Bank Building in New Orleans but it was also listed as “inactive,” first organized in February 1974 and having filed its last report in January 1975.

Not only is Milestone unknown, but more than a few Southeastern employees have a vested interest in knowing what kind of fraud is being investigated – especially an investigation of a fraud on which “no action by the Board is necessary.”

The second item, if were a federal offense and applied retroactively, might have landed candidate Donald Trump behind bars during his debate with Nancy Pelosi – and on numerous occasions since.

This little agenda item, if approved, would require anyone testifying during any meeting of the Board of Supervisors to sign an AFFIDAVIT affirming that they are speaking under oath and that they would be subject to penalties for perjury “or other applicable legal consequences in the event of an intentional false statement that is material to the matter or issue before the Board.”

“Individuals who knowingly provide materially false testimony may be subject to legal and administrative consequences, including but not limited to referral to law enforcement or other appropriate oversight authorities,” it goes on to say.

But wait. As something of an afterthought, it says, “Exceptions to this policy may only be granted by the Board Chair or System President, and must be documented in writing and retained as part of the official record of the proceeding.”

So, if you’re scheduled to testify before the board and you intend to or if you know for certain that you are going to tell the board a whopper, you must first get permission in writing.

Then it’s okay.

Funny thing, witnesses who testify before legislative committees do so with the understanding that they are testifying under oath. Yet, I’ve seen witnesses sit there stone-faced and lie through their teeth and nother is ever done.

Does the Board of Supervisors for University of Louisiana System think their title carries more weight than a do-nothing legislative committee?

Four Louisiana congressmen could be facing a dilemma of sorts if it should ever come down to the House voting on cutting Medicaid as has been rumored since Agent Orange became IMPOTUS.

Here’s the thing: of the top nine Republican congressional districts with the highest number of expanded Medicaid enrollments, four are from Louisiana – including that of Speaker of the House Mike Johnson.

That could pose a problem since all four are dedicated Trump bootlickers (I cleaned that up for the more delicate reads).

California’s House District 22, represented by David Valadao who also just happens to be a Trump Repugnantcan. His district led the way with 139,800 adult Affordable Care Act enrollees.

But looky-look at number 2! That’s Louisiana’s 05^th District, represented by Julia Letlow, an avid Trumpette. Her district had 131,300 adult enrollees.

Next at third was Oregon’s District 02, represented by another Good Ol’ Party boy, Cliff Bentz. His district rang in with 131,000. Fourth was Kentucky District 5, represented by Hal Rogers (Republican, what else?) with 130,300 ACA enrollees.

Coming in at number 05 is Louisiana District 3. The big dog in that district is one Clay Higgins and 126,400 of his constituents are enrolled in ACA.

Sixth is Louisiana House District 04. That is the district of U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, of whom we are so very proud – as are the 117,500 adult (maybe) voters enrolled in ACA.

In seventh place is Republican Jay Obernolte’s California District 23 (a bit southeast of Valadao’s District 22) with 109,400 enrollees.

Eighth place is held down by Louisiana District 01, represented by none other than Steve KKK Scalise, with 107,800 enrollees.

In the anchor spot of the bottom nine is West Virginia District 01, represented by Republican Carol Miller, with a paltry 98,900 ACA enrollees.

Isn’t it interesting to know that these Republican-controlled congressional districts have the highest adult Medicaid expansion ACA members? Especially since Trump and Musk seem hell-bent on trashing Medicaid and even more especially since each of the districts are loaded down with Trump supporters who are on Medicaid? Wow. Go figure.