Politics
A First in Louisiana
by Clay Staggs
An interesting thing happened over the weekend in Louisiana (besides the Auburn game). That state elected a new governor, whose name is Bobby Jindal. Read the wire dispatch here.
Jindal, currently a Congressman from subsurban New Orleans, can claim several firsts. He’s the first non-white governor in Louisiana since reconstruction. He’ll be the youngest sitting governor in the nation in January at the age of 36. He’s also the first governor of Indian heritage in American history.
Most interestingly to me from a political point of view is that, as a Republican in a state where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans 2 to 1, Mr. Jindal won on the first ballot, avoiding a run-off for the first time in decades. He got 54% of the vote in a field of eleven candidates.
He ran on a platform of ending corruption and cronyism, a tall order for Louisiana (as it would be for Alabama, too).
I think, though, that he’s a name you may want to watch.
Posted by Clay Staggs at October 22, 2007 10:47 AM
I don’t know a thing about Jindal but I liked the sound of what I heard. cleaning up the corruption in LA sounds like a big order. I hope he’ll do well.
Peggy,
From what I’ve read, his resume is quite interesting. His parents were immigrants from India, but he was raised in the South. He is very educated - a Rhodes Scholar. Though born to Hindu parents, he converted to Christianity (Roman Catholic). And, on top of all that, he’s a Republican. Mainstream media has NO CLUE what to do with this guy, because he fits NONE of their stereotypes.
I’ll predict this. If he has even a modicum of success with his ethics/reform project, he’ll be a presidential contender before he’s 50.
End the corruption in Louisiana???? I can’t think of a comparison that would be appropriate. Nothing in the history of world government would approach that feat.