Photo source: dik.ir
The Buddy Caldwell media campaign is based on the endorsements of Sheriffs and District Attorneys. At first glance, it seems impressive.
They claim to be crime fighters, and their message is that Buddy is this great crime fighter. This looks good until you peel back the onion. And, like a peeled onion, when you pull the skin back on these claims it’ll bring tears to your eyes.
These elected officials “supporting” Buddy are involved in highly suspect activities involving political insiders.
Here’s a few examples:
Paul Connick, one of the DA’s supporting Buddy? His law firm has no-bid contracts from Caldwell’s AG office.
Sheriff Marlin Gusman of Orleans Parish? He contracted with the Firm of Usry and Weeks to the tune of 1.7 million a year. FOX8 in New Orleans reported they can’t determine what work this law firm did for this massive amount of tax dollars. Their leader Allen Usry has been Buddy’s campaign director for years and has also benefited from millions of dollars in no-bid contracts from the Office of the Attorney General.
Sheriff Mike Cazes, another one of the Good Old Boys in Buddy’s commercials? His son works for Buddy Caldwell. This is the same Sheriff that WBRZ questioned giving special treatment to a major campaign contributor's imprisoned relative.
District Attorney Earl Taylor, another one of the stalwarts in Buddy’s commercials? At a Mary Landrieu rally last year, Democrat operative Don Craven told the crowd, "tomorrow we're going to elect Earl Taylor as DA so he won't prosecute you if you vote twice".
These are the “Law Enforcement” officials supporting Caldwell in his campaign. It is an incestuous den of Good Old Boys who are doing everything and anything to protect the cronyism, nepotism, and Buddy System.
What’s more, the AG’s role, according to the Louisiana Constitution, is primarily in civil cases. The Attorney General has a very limited role in law enforcement. In fact, the AG doesn’t even have original prosecutorial jurisdiction. That role is reserved to local District Attorneys.
When Buddy has been granted authority to prosecute, it’s mostly in politically charged cases involving elected officials. In this regard, Buddy has been a complete disaster. For example, when he had the opportunity to prosecute an elected official in Tangipahoa Parish who defrauded Medicaid to the tune of 3.5 million dollars Buddy plead that guy to a misdemeanor... a slap on the wrist. It’s shameful.
His record on investigating and prosecuting other corrupt individuals is no better. He refused to clean up corruption in at least two other DA’s offices, both of which were highly publicized. In the Walter Reed and Mike Harson cases, the feds had to come in and clean it up. In both cases, federal indictments came down and prosecutions moved forward – without Caldwell.
The good news is there is someone running against Buddy Caldwell who has vowed to put an end to this Buddy System.
If you care about ending corruption in Louisiana and changing the legal regime in our state, you’ll have an opportunity to do so on November 21, 2015 by voting for Jeff Landry as our next Attorney General.
