LAGOP: Democrat Governor John Bel Edwards’ Business Summit Appears To Be A Taxpayer-Funded Campaign Event

The Louisiana GOP sent out the below email regarding a business summit scheduled for this week in Baton Rouge  

With Louisiana currently ranked the worst state to find a job <https://www.wdsu.com/article/the-best-states-for-jobs-aren-t-what-you-might-expect/26133871> and consistently ranking among the bottom ten states for business climate <https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/10/top-states-for-business-louisiana.html>, Democrat Governor John Bel Edwards is hosting a business summit in Baton Rouge on Thursday to hide his failed leadership from voters. But is this event really a business summit, or a taxpayer-funded campaign event to bolster his re-election bid?

Over half of the speakers slated to address the event have either donated to Edwards’ campaign or currently work for him as administration officials:

Five of the 19 scheduled speakers for the event are state employees <https://www.thetjcgroup.com/louisiana-business-summit-agenda> who work for Edwards:

• Don Pierson, Secretary, Louisiana Economic Development
• Ava Dejoie, Secretary, Louisiana Workforce Commission (Department of Labor)
• Jay Dardenne, Commissioner, Louisiana Division of Administration
• Kimberly Robinson, Secretary, Department of Revenue
• Shawn Wilson, Secretary, Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development

Eight of the 19 scheduled speakers donated <http://www.ethics.la.gov/CampaignFinanceSearch/SearchByName.aspx> to Edwards either personally or through their organizations:

• Mike Olivier gave Edwards’ campaign $1,250 on 10/31/16.
• CSRS Inc. gave Edwards’ campaign $5,000 on 10/31/16.
• Eduardo Jimenez gave Edwards’ campaign $500 on 2/4/16.
• Jay Dardenne’s Campaign LLC gave Edwards’ campaign $2,500 on 9/6/17.
• Stream Family Limited Partnership gave Edwards’ campaign $5,000 on 1/23/17.
• Waitr gave Edwards’ campaign $5,000 on 10/27/17.
• Trey Burvant gave Edwards’ campaign $250 on 11/17/15.
• Craig Spohn gave Edwards’ campaign $5,000 on 10/13/16.

Edwards’ apparent decision to use a state-sponsored business summit as an opportunity to rally his supporters and campaign donors on the taxpayer’s dime further shows that he’s just another hypocritical politician who can’t be trusted to lead Louisiana.

"Benedict" Dardenne Rewarded with Administration Position for Selling Out

Photo source: Politicalconundrum

In what should come as a complete surprise to anyone (not), our Lt. Governor, "Benedict" Jay Dardenne is being tapped for a top position within "Honor Code" Edwards' administration when the latter is sworn in next month.  It seems like selling out for the sake of saving your political backside can be quite the thing to do in order to suck off the government tit for another few years.

Dardenne supporters, please tell me again how this guy was such the "conservative choice" in the election when he's now playing on the Democrat ball-team.

Now We Know Why Dardenne Sold Out the Republican Party and His Ethics

In a piece penned on the 25th, Lafayette's Independent reported that Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne has been offered an unspecified position within the administration of "Honor Code" Governor Elect, John Bel Edwards.  This quid pro quo was speculated soon after Dardenne lost his primary race for Governor and endorsed Gov.-Elect "Honor Code".  If there is any indication of the lack of morals and ethics, it is this.  Dardenne sold out his Party and his own integrity to maintain a job within the State of Louisiana.  And to think, people actually believed that this guy was a "conservative Republican".

The Official Litmus Test of the True Conservative

'A House Divided' Revisited - A Letter to Authentic Conservatives of Louisiana

Photo source: Louisiana.gov

In 1858, a young America found itself on the verge of disintegrating into the annals of history to join the likes of Rome. Knowing well the stakes were of the highest sort, President Abraham Lincoln, resolved as ever, prevented the eternal downfall of our country by turning to - among other things - a simple truism that was (is) paramount, timeless and universal in nature.  In an historic speech, President Lincoln warned the people of the United States exactly as Jesus once warned his disciples, telling the nation, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”  We all know the rest of the story (or at least we all should).  Now, 157 years later, we Louisiana conservatives find ourselves cast in the lead roles of our own collective story of a house divided amongst three conservative gubernatorial candidates and their respective supporters.  Because our current scenario is also one with vast implications, my fear is that, at the individual level, idealism could carry the day over pragmatism.  This would result in – by default - the handing over of victory to the true opposition by way of a silent minority.  I find that possibility unbelievably unsettling.  Therefore, I challenge anyone dwelling in this political purgatory to act out of reason rather than dogma in this critically polarized run-off.

To ensure victory for Senator David Vitter in the upcoming run-off is to ensure victory for every conservative stakeholder in Louisiana.  Yet - in light of recent news - I have deep concerns that the simplicity of this observation could potentially be lost on enough primary supporters of Lieutenant Governor Jay Dardenne and Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle to indirectly elect as our next Governor a man who actually nominated Barrack Obama for a second term...after witnessing the train wreck that was his first term! Take a moment to let that sink in...

If there is one thing that, in theory, all conservatives have in common, it is the recognition that President Obama’s agenda has sought to erode the foundation of our country and systematically destroy the American way of life.  Therefore, it should be a foregone conclusion that conservatives will do whatever is within their powers to counteract any and all further proliferation of the Obama agenda up-to and including serving defeat to any candidate for high public office who had any part in giving this man the Presidency the first time (much less the second!).  So why are we left with questionable uncertainty as to whether Dardenne's supporters and Angelle and his voters will now be backing David Vitter with an official public endorsement and at the polls? I believe, for many, the answer to this question is rooted in a fallacious allegiance we, as humans, tend to have towards our individual idealisms.  To our dismay, however, idealism only succeeds outside of our current reality and at the expense of real-world solutions.

One need not be Dr. Ben Carson to see that some portion of Dardenne and Angelle backers are disenchanted with the outcome of the primary.  That is to be expected, but such a reaction among voters in this cliché scenario certainly is not exceptional. After a competitive primary where candidates routinely tear each other down, there is always to be expected negative emotional aftermath.  Rejection has occurred for some people at the “expense” of a selection which has been made by the selectors. The selection almost instinctively becomes the negative outlet for the suffering felt by the rejected (See: Dardenne officially endorses Edwards). It is at this very juncture where we as conservatives must lead from that part within us which makes us the complete opposite of liberals to begin with: reason! Perhaps Thomas Sowell better captures the sentiment in which I am here trying to impart when he wrote, “Wishful thinking is not idealism.  It is self-indulgence at best and self-exaltation at worst.  In either case, it is usually at the expense of others.  In other words, it is the opposite of idealism.”  I think we can guess as to what Sowell would say of Dardenne's recent betrayal...  Still, I wonder: what portion of voters who pulled the lever for Dardenne or Angelle last month could be caught up in a similar state of self-indulgent idealism to the point they become, in the eyes of their own party, "traitors?"  I pray that number will turn out to be 0% after the election returns are in... 

Some may retort that my entreaty to every single one of Dardenne’s and Angelle’s supporters (and to Mr. Angelle himself) is null because I am a primary supporter of David Vitter for Governor.  Even in that sense, they would be largely mistaken.  I give my word that, if our current scenario were altered whereby I voted for Vitter (which I did), but either Dardenne or Angelle became the nominee, I would not only vote for whichever gentleman was the nominee, but would go to great lengths to ensure that I convinced every primary Vitter supporter I could find to vote for our party's nominee.  Reason, again, dictates that success is achieved by focusing on solutions rather than “problems.”

I present one final alternative way of looking at this situation in general:  most of us (including myself) can easily lose site of the actual “who” and “what” for which we are voting in the first place.  It’s easy to think that we are voting for a person – a candidate – alone.  Yet the reality is that we are voting for each other concurrently.  When I think of all the candidates whom we've elected who is (also) “voting” for us, I think of Senator David Vitter.  I could be no more pleased with the representation he has made for us in the Senate with his solid, consistent record of representation of his constituency.  How rare is that? Still, I am completely confident that he will make an even better Governor.  We have yet to see the best of Vitter.  I have no doubt!

For anyone still left with a sigh at this point, here is the hard line in the sand, which William F. Buckley, Jr. gave me the words to draw:  “Idealism is fine, but as it approaches reality, the costs become prohibitive.”  Despite our individual ideal outcomes for this race, we are now – like it or not – standing on the ledge of reality.  Since we know what that reality is, we then know the cost of Dardenne, Angelle and their respective supporters not rallying behind David Vitter for Governor because they hoped for a different primary outcome.  That cost would indeed be prohibitive. For one, by withholding support for the sake of making a point will be self-sabotaging for all who do so (join Dardenne at your own risk).  Do I have to even enumerate the myriad of ways in which this is true to my fellow conservatives?  Another - and arguably far worse - reason why not lending full support to Vitter is inherently prohibitive is that such a position (or lack thereof) would be held at the expense of others whom do not deserve to be subjected to such victimization over what is, now, irrelevant (but destructive) political posturing.

I think I speak on behalf of the conservative majority – silent and/or vocal – in applauding the Public Service Commissioner and all of his and Dardenne's supporters for adjusting their sails and pointing the bow of their ships northward.  Louisiana will be all the better for it!  Let's not lose this big-league election because of a small (but still large enough) part of our extended conservative family spent too much time majoring in the minors.  The time for grieving has passed.  It's time now to look toward our future.

Sincerely,

Spencer Drury, MBA

St. Francisville

More Proof of How Hypocritical Jay Dardenne Really Is

Photo source: John Bel for Obama

The RGA Right Direction PAC has released what amounts to a diary of tweets from Jay Dardenne and the Dardenne team during the 2015 Louisiana Governor's election.  As everyone is aware, Lt. Gov. Dardenne has come out in support of the Democratic candidate, John Bel Edwards, following Dardenne's defeat in the primaries.  The tweets show a vastly different story as to the diatribe that Dardenne spewed yesterday when he was fawning over Bel Edwards.  If there is any doubt left as to the total hypocrisy of the Dardenne campaign, it is the list of these tweets that were issued during the primary.

What is the real reason that Dardenne is endorsing the Democratic candidate's run-off against Sen. David Vitter?  Is it a quid-pro-quo or just Dardenne falling back onto his tried and true liberal leanings?  Guess we will see once the runoff is done.

Read more: John Bel for Obama

A Letter to Jay Dardenne

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus and Republican Party of Louisiana Chairman Roger Villere sent the below letter to Lieutenant Governor Jay Dardenne regarding his endorsement of liberal democrat John Bel Edwards for Governor. Following the release of the letter, Chairman Villere issued the following statement: 

“Today, Jay Dardenne became the Nick Saban of Louisiana Politics," Republican Party of Louisiana Chairman Roger Villere said. "After decades of using the Republican Party and its members for his benefit, Jay has decided to end his political career by supporting a candidate who opposes every public policy position that he once espoused. We have a clear choice between John Bel Edwards, a liberal legislator who has a 29 percent lifetime record with Louisiana business or a proven conservative in David Vitter. It is sad that Jay allowed his personal feelings to cause him to betray his party and state. The Republican Party stands firmly behind Senator Vitter, " Villere concluded. 

Tell Me Again How Dardenne Is A Conservative

You know it's bad when the Democrat in the Governor's race won't consider personal tax increases, but Jay Dardenne will. 

Jay Dardenne's "Birthday Bash"

Sen. David Vitter's office has released the below video and documentation showing Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne's taxpayer funded trip to Europe. 

The state documents are below and can be found at this website.

The Very Liberal Jay Dardenne

In what can be called a history lesson on the "Republican" Jay Dardenne's voting record, Cajun Conservatism would like to take the time to revisit his history while a member of the Louisiana legislature.

While touting himself as a fiscal conservative, Dardenne has supported higher fees, taxes and spending. Additionally, his record on abortion is not quite stellar.

This list is several years old, but nonetheless, he cannot shake the RINO label he so richly deserves. 

Fund For Louisiana’s Future Still Playing Nice

Photo source: The Advocate 

Recently, Cajunconservatism.com reported on the Super PAC’s influence in the race to be Louisiana’s next Governor. There are at least five Super PAC’s trying to impact the race, and four of the five have already been on TV. 

The Louisiana Water Coalition PAC is by far the most aggressive, which is somewhat of a surprise to observers who expected former Bill Cassidy Campaign Manager and the Fund for Louisiana’s Future (FFLF) Executive Director Joel Digrado to use their millions taking Vitter’s opponents to the woodshed. After all, Digrado is the one I’ve heard was behind Vitter’s vicious 2010 ad on illegals. Their ads to date have been tame or non-existent so far. 

The Water Coalition, who says they are not affiliated with any individual campaign, continues to attack U.S. Senator David Vitter. Most recently, they are going after a former staff member who has since been fired but pled guilty to charges regarding an attack on an ex-girlfriend (even though the charges were dropped and the staff member was fired).

The Water Coalition PAC claims to be impartial, although they are promoting the candidacy of John Bel Edwards, Scott Angelle and Jay Dardenne on their website betterthanvitter.com. 

The FFLF appears to only be running an ad depicting Angelle and Dardenne as used car salesmen for the use of state cars. Cajunconservatism.com would give this ad a “C+”. We’ve also seen an online ad from the FFLF hitting Scott Angelle for his role in the Bayou Corne Sinkhole. The ad shows Angelle as negligent and a quitter in regards to the Bayou Corne Sinkhole. This ad seems to be very strong and we would give it an “A,” however it does not seem to be up on television in the major TV markets and FFLF isn’t going to move Angelle or Dardenne numbers with online email buys.

We will continue to monitor the advertising traffic for each of the candidates as well as the Super PACs as we enter the final month of the primary. 

Fund for Louisiana's Future Releases "Salesmen" Video

The Fund for Louisiana's Future has released another video, this time highlighting the spending habits that Scott Angelle and Jay Dardenne have had regarding vehicles bought and maintained by taxpayer money. 

Super PAC Influence in Louisiana Gubernatorial Race Mediocre or Worse So Far

Photo source: NOLA

Super PAC’s influence in the race to be Louisiana’s next Governor is still uncertain. There are at least five Super PAC’s trying to impact the race, and four of the five have already been on TV.

The latest, the Louisiana Water Coalition PAC, made a substantial media buy aggressively going after U.S. Senator David Vitter’s past. Their ad has seemed to generate the most media buzz, and therefore probably having the most impact. The Water Coalition PAC claims to be impartial, although they are promoting the candidacy of John Bel Edwards, Scott Angelle and Jay Dardenne on their website betterthanvitter.com.

The Fund for Louisiana Future, the Super PAC supporting Vitter, has been missing from the mix for the most part. There was much anticipation over how aggressively they would attack Vitter’s opponents, but thus far they have been quiet and largely unimpressive. They started with a positive ad, which seemed counter intuitive given that Vitter was running positive at the same time, and then transitioned into a weak attack on Dardenne and Angelle over taxes. It’s hard to believe that internet sales tax will be moving numbers for voters.

We will continue to monitor the advertising traffic for each of the candidates as well as the Super PACs, and we can only hope it gets more interesting.

Updated: Acadiana source says Angelle's Super PAC has increased their ad buy attacking Vitter to over $500,000. 

Fund for Louisiana's Future Releases "Common" Video

The Fund for Louisiana's Future released a video highlighting Jay Dardenne's and Scott Angelle's support for higher taxes today. 

Is Jay Dardenne's Criticism of Bobby Jindal's Use of State Police Hypocritical???

Photo source: Twitter

Louisiana Lt. Governor and candidate for the office of Governor in this fall's election, Jay Dardenne, has come out hard against the current officeholder, Bobby Jindal, for his use of Louisiana State Police during his campaign for President.  A piece written by NOLA goes into great detail regarding this issue and Dardenne's criticism of this practice.  However, videos have recently come out that show Dardenne utilizing the same agency during his campaign for the Governor's office.

And, another video shows that Dardenne readily admits that he utilizes the State Police in political events.

Could this be a mere oversight on the part of Dardenne or could this be a case of blatant hypocrisy? You be the judge.

Louisiana Gubernatorial Debate Set for Wednesday

Photo source: The Advocate

A recent piece by NOLA highlights a debate is being scheduled for Wednesday, 6/17/15, at the Alario Center in Jefferson Parish for the gubernatorial candidates in Louisiana's fall elections.  The proceeds from the event will benefit Café Hope, a culinary training program for at-risk youth.

More information can be obtained from Rep. Bryan Adams' office at 504.361.6013 or email adamsb@legis.la.

Read more: Louisiana gubernatorial debate set for Wednesday at Alario Center

Jay Dardenne Compliments David Vitter's Effectiveness

A recent debate where Lt. Gov. Dardenne compliments the effectiveness of Sen. Vitter in the US Senate.

Jay Dardenne's Broken Reagan's "11th Commandment"

When running for Lt. Governor, Jay Dardenne quoted Reagan when saying he wouldn't speak ill of a fellow Republican.

One can only guess that this won't apply to this year's campaign for Governor.  Dardenne posted the below tweet regarding a vote missed by Sen. David Vitter in DC.

Only problem is, Sen. Vitter had, what most people would feel, a legitimate excuse for missing that vote.  His twin daughters were graduating high school.

With all the issues that Louisiana is facing, one would think that Dardenne would have something more constructive to debate.  Let's start working on what can be fixed in this state rather than resort to this.

New Poll Reveals Vitter with 10 Point Lead in Louisiana Governor's Race

The latest MarblePort Polling done in regards to the Louisiana Governor's race shows Vitter widening his lead over his nearest competitor, John Bel Edwards, by 10%.  Vitter has shown consistent support amongst Republicans in the race and leads overall by 37.6% to Bel Edwards' 27.1%.  The other two Republican candidates, Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne and Public Service Commissioner, Scott Angelle, both polling at 14.9% and 5.8% respectively.  The undecided vote is at 14.6%.

The report also references the "Honore' Factor", meaning a potential entrance of retired General Russel Honore'.  With Honore' factored into the polling data, Vitter still maintains a substantial lead, with Honore' polling at 7.4%.

The report was done in conjunction with Scott McKay of The Hayride and his piece on the poll can be seen here.

VITTER CONTINUES TO DOMINATE IN FUNDRAISING

Photo source: WBRZ

It’s always entertaining to watch political spin on fundraising numbers. But the funny thing about numbers; they don’t lie. Here’s a breakdown of the four gubernatorial candidates.

• David Vitter raised $1.1 million this quarter and has $4.2 million cash on hand.
• John Bel Edwards raised $230,000 this quarter and has $894,000 cash on hand.
• Jay Dardenne raised $518,974.80 this quarter and has $1.8 million cash on hand.
• Scott Angelle raised $622,000 this quarter and has $1.2 million cash on hand.

Edwards continues to lag in fundraising. Yesterday New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu announced he was not running for Governor, which may help Edwards’ weak fundraising.

Angelle’s numbers would be respectable, except he’s spent like a liberal Democrat. He spent more than $800,000 this quarter – burning through more than he spent.

Dardenne continues to lag behind in fundraising and in polls. He’s currently in third in fundraising behind Vitter and Angelle, and third in polls behind Vitter and Edwards.

The x-factor in the Governor’s race is that the Fund For Louisiana’s Future (FFLF), a pro-David Vitter Super PAC, raised $700K this quarter, more than each of Vitter’s competitors, and has $3.5 million cash on hand. The FFLF has more to spend that the other two Republicans in the race, Angelle and Dardenne, combined.  

And if you combine Vitter’s earning with the FFLF – they have combined $7.7 million cash on hand.

It's hard to deny these numbers.  Vitter decidedly has the lead in the money game at this point in the Louisiana Governor's race.

MARBLEPORT POLLING RELEASES REPORT ON POLLING IN LOUISIANA RACES

MarblePort Polling and Ethan Zorfas, general consultant for Bill Cassidy’s Senate campaign, released the following polling report today.  The survey was conducted Monday March 17th, 2015. In total, 1071 interviews among likely voters were completed. The margin of error is +/­‐2.99%.

One of the biggest questions in the poll was for candidate for Louisiana Governor.

The poll highlights the strength of Vitter’s support, which is mainly among Republican voters in the state.  John Bel Edwards is enjoying considerable support in both Democrat and African-American voting areas.  Jay Dardenne’s support mainly comes from within the Baton Rouge area, while Scott Angelle’s support is coming from the heavily Cajun area of the state, Acadiana.

The second part of the poll deals with the political mood within the state.

Voters were also asked which party they trusted more to lead the state legislature.

Jindal’s job performance was questioned, which could possibly be a referendum in the fall election.

Regarding education, Common Core remains wildly unpopular here in the Bayou State.

When asked about the state’s deficit, 66% of voters state that they agree that the state spends too much money on wasteful projects.

Due to the fact that the state is in such a financial bind, many of those polled support a hike in the amount taxed on cigarettes in the state.

The report can be read in entirety here.

Source: MarblePort Polling – Ethan Zorfas