Firehouse BBQ is suing governor for damages

In 2020 Governor John Bel Edwards issued his emergency rules through the Department of Health, mandating folks wear masks indoors. Firehouse BBQ went toe-to-toe with the governor’s office over the masks and capacity limits, which held up in court after a judge let the business stay open. Fast-forward two and a half years later and the fight doesn’t end there.

“So, that’s what we’re trying to do. You know, get some kind of accountability to what happens in an emergency situation. Showing them, hey you can’t shut people’s businesses down, you can’t damage the public in this way. You have to have some kind of limits to it,” said the owner, Danielle Bunch.

Read more: Firehouse BBQ is suing governor for damages

LOUISIANA RIGHT TO LIFE: Protect ALL Babies: Every Life is Valuable!

Join us for our Lighting the Way in a Post-Roe Louisiana Webinar series!

Our fourth Lighting the Way in a Post-Roe Louisiana webinar is coming up on Tuesday, January 24th at 7PM! We will be diving into discussion with personal testimonies about the currently most argued circumstances that society seeks to justify abortion: Situations in which a baby receives a "medically futile" diagnosis, and when a baby is conceived after sexual assault. Even in these sometimes difficult and also horrendous situations, every life is valuable - we need to work as a society to provide support to mothers who endure these pregnancies, and we need to recognize the value of that innocent human child and protect their life.

Among others, Dustin Bertrand will be sharing his story of being conceived in rape and how he has come to understand the preciousness of his own life and the heroism of his mom. His life and his mom's life matters!

Right now, Louisiana legislation does not protect those who are "medically futile" and we seek to change this. Also, Louisiana legislation does protect those conceived in rape but pro-abortion advocates and some of our legislators want to roll back this protection. Join us for a deeper discussion and learn what you can do!

Stay tuned and check back on ProLifeLouisiana.org/postroewebinars for information on the series.

Read more: Lighting the Way in a Post-Roe Louisiana Webinar

LMOGA: ExxonMobil, EnLink & CF Industries Announce Historic Partnership for Vermilion Parish

CF Industries has entered into the largest-of-its-kind commercial agreement with ExxonMobil to capture and permanently store up to 2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions annually from its manufacturing complex in Louisiana. 

CF Industries is investing $200 million to build a CO2 dehydration and compression unit at its Donaldsonville, Louisiana, facility to capture CO2 to be transported and stored by ExxonMobil in secure geologic storage the company owns in Vermilion Parish. 

The 2 million metric tons of emissions captured annually will be equivalent to replacing approximately 700,000 gasoline-powered cars with electric vehicles.

Read more: A small community with a big role

LADEMOS Chair to "Hear Concerns and Answer Questions" About Potential Run for Governor

.@LaDemos chair Katie Bernhardt, facing criticism for promoting herself as a potential candidate for governor, sent this out to party members, saying they're setting up a call to "hear concerns and answer questions" #lagov pic.twitter.com/fsOIE1Ry7u

— Sam Karlin (@samkarlin) January 25, 2023

Hollis urges leaders not to allow optometrists at VA to perform surgeries

Eight years ago, I fought against House Bill 1065 in the Louisiana State Legislature - a bill that sought to authorize optometrists to perform eye surgery even though they are neither medical doctors nor trained surgeons. I argued that just as chiropractors do not perform surgery on bones and joints, optometrists should not be allowed to perform eye surgery.

I am disappointed to now learn the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs recently made changes signaling the consideration of new national standards that could allow optometrists in the VA network to perform surgeries on our nation's veterans.

This should not even be a conversation. 

Optometrists are not qualified to perform surgeries. The only medical doctors licensed and trained to perform eye surgeries are ophthalmologists.Ophthalmologists go through years of extensive training with clinical and surgical residencies. Surgical courses available to optometrists are optional and involve no actual procedures on live patients. Simply put, optometrists are neither qualified nor equipped to handle the intricacies of eye surgery.

Today, the Veteran Administration's policies allow only ophthalmologists to perform eye surgeries on veterans. This could change with the release of new national standards. This is completely unacceptable and puts our veterans at risk of receiving low-quality care and incurring the risk of severe complications.

Our veterans have earned the right to the highest quality of care from the VA and its providers. There are no substitutions for trained and qualified professionals, and our nation's warriors deserve the best.

I appreciate Senator Bill Cassidy's leadership on this issue and urge him, as a medical doctor and a member of the Veterans Affairs Committee, to call upon the VA to maintain its long-standing policy of allowing only ophthalmologists to perform eye surgery on veterans. We must continue to give our heroes the quality of care they deserve.

Rep. Paul Hollis 

District 104

St. Tammany Parish

LOUISIANA FAMILY FORUM: Pro-Life Warrior Announces for AG

Solicitor General Liz Murrill officially announced her candidacy for Attorney General this week. Her campaign team released this video:

When asked if she would take leave from the state Justice Department to run, Murrill indicated it was unlikely, stating, "I’m going to stay as long as it’s manageable because we have a lot of important work I’m quarterbacking." Also expected to qualify are District Attorney John Belton of Ruston and HGA Chair John Stefanski.

Kennedy Email Sent to Supporters Announcing His Decision on Governor's Race

Sen. John Kennedy emailed his supporters yesterday indicating his decision to remain in the US Senate and not seek election to Governor of Louisiana.

The complete email @SenJohnKennedy sent to supporters... #lalege #lagov https://t.co/sA91tNjIi9 pic.twitter.com/9q9pKBksut

— Jeremy Alford (@LaPoliticsNow) January 4, 2023

LANDRY: Louisiana Population in Decline

GROW LOUISIANA COALITION: End of the World, Center of the Universe

Partnership for Our Working Coast is an alliance of industry and environmental partners collaborating to contribute to the coastal resiliency of our community, the environment and industry. Port Fourchon’s plan to dredge Belle Pass to 50 ft. will result in millions of cubic yards of dredged material that can be used to strengthen critical coastal infrastructure. The goal of the partnership is to identify beneficial, nature-based solutions for this material to contribute to Louisiana’s coastal sustainability efforts, protect communities and support America’s Working Coast.Show less

PELICAN INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY: Louisiana Education Dashboard

Understanding the data is extremely important in evaluating trends associated with, and the performance of, Louisiana’s elementary and secondary education system. Despite spending the most per student in the southeast U.S., Louisiana consistently ranks at the bottom of the country in public school educational outcomes. While there has been incremental progress, it’s been very slow, and generations of kids have been shortchanged in the knowledge and skills they’ve acquired for their future. Positive change can only happen when there’s honesty and transparency about current performance, high standards for student achievement, a strong plan for school improvement, and a system of choice that empowers parents to select the school that best meets their child’s needs.

With this in mind, the below dashboard provides insights and comparable data on student enrollment, finances, and academic performance. View local data by selecting your parish or school system from the drop-down menu. Individual pages can be printed using the icons at the top right of the dashboard.

Read more: LOUISIANA EDUCATION DASHBOARD

Three Gubernatorial Races to Watch in 2023

State Attorney General Jeff Landry (R) is so far the only GOP candidate to announce a run, while other Republicans are expected to join the race. Sen. John Kennedy (R) has said he is seriously considering a gubernatorial bid, while others weighing a run include Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser (R), Sen. Bill Cassidy (R), Rep. Garret Graves (R), state Sen. Sharon Hewitt (R) and state Treasurer John Schroder (R), according to the Lafayette Daily Advertiser.

No Democrats have yet officially joined the field, but as the Hill noted, a Democrat candidate would likely face an uphill battle, as the last time the state elected a Democrat governor before Edwards was in 2003.

Read more: Three Gubernatorial Races to Watch in 2023

Violent tornado damages hospital, homes in New Iberia, Louisiana

NEW IBERIA, La. – Cleanup is underway after a violent tornado roared through New Iberia, Louisiana. Damage forced 60 families out of their homes in the city limits.

The tornado touched down near the Southport subdivision and damaged several homes there. Across town, it tore windows out of a medical center and the glass and debris rained down on the parked cars.

Read more: Violent tornado damages hospital, homes in New Iberia, Louisiana

HENRY: Give Our Vets The Best Care!

Written by Senator Cameron Henry - Cameron Henry is a member of the Louisiana State Senate representing District 9, which includes Jefferson and Orleans parishes.

In 2014, the Louisiana State Legislature passed House Bill 1065, authorizing optometrists to perform eye surgery despite the fact that they are neither medical doctors nor trained surgeons. I opposed that bill then and still oppose the policy.

Now, eight years later, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is taking steps in the same direction, which could put the health and safety of our nation’s heroes at risk. Optometrists are licensed to practice optometry, which involves services like primary vision care, including eye exams and fittings for glasses and contacts, as well as diagnosing and monitoring certain eye conditions. While optometrists play an extremely important role in eye care delivery, they are not qualified to perform eye surgery, including laser surgical procedures. Optometry’s education model doesn’t require students to attend any surgical residency, and any optional surgical courses available to optometrists don’t involve extensive training or procedures on live patients.

Read more: HENRY: Give Our Vets The Best Care!

LOUISIANA FAMILY FORUM: Lockdown Hurts Louisiana's Youngest

Last week, the Louisiana Department of Education released its annual Reading Report for children in kindergarten through third grade. The report revealed that older students are showing improvement, but younger children show a decline.

What’s the cause? Some think that “emergency” closures of schools and early learning centers coupled with mandatory masking delayed speech development and language acquisition.

Jeff Sadow writes: “The tail end of the cohort that caught the beginning of the pandemic restrictions in their crucial learning period are first graders today, while kindergartners are the first to bear the full brunt of restrictions. As it was, third graders scoring satisfactorily on reading were up 1.3 percent and second graders 1.9 percent, but first graders managed only a 0.6 percent gain in numbers and kindergartners dropped 2.3 percent.”

Public policy has consequences. 

Supporting Port Fourchon, Protecting Louisiana's Coast

Partnership for Our Working Coast is an alliance of industry and environmental partners collaborating to contribute to the coastal resiliency of our community, the environment and industry. Port Fourchon’s plan to dredge Belle Pass to 50 ft. will result in millions of cubic yards of dredged material that can be used to strengthen critical coastal infrastructure. The goal of the partnership is to identify beneficial, nature-based solutions for this material to contribute to Louisiana’s coastal sustainability efforts, protect communities and support America’s Working Coast.

PAR Guide to the 2022 Constitutional Amendments

The 2022 Guide covers the potential impact of 11 constitutional amendments the public will consider on the Nov. 8 and Dec. 10 ballots. This nonpartisan, educational review helps you understand the issues and the proposed changes so you can develop your own positions on each proposition. To view the 2022 Guide, please visit the links below.

Click here to download the one-page PAR Guide to the December 2022 Constitutional Amendments.

Read more: PAR Guide to the 2022 Constitutional Amendments

Influential State Senator Voices Support For Carbon Capture Storage Amid Statewide Debate

Photo source: Louisiana State Senate

In a recent edition of the Abbeville Meridional, Senate Natural Resources Chairman Sen. Bob Hensgens voiced his support for Carbon Capture as a way for the Energy Industry can continue their important job creating function. He highlighted this 250,000 worker strong sector has been critical to the development of Louisiana and how CCS can continue to grow the LA economy.

Read more: Influential State Senator Voices Support For Carbon Capture Storage Amid Statewide Debate

UNITED IN VICTORY Republican Party of Louisiana Formally Endorses Jeff Landry for Governor

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 14, 2022

BATON ROUGE, LA— The Republican Party of Louisiana today formally announced its endorsement of Jeff Landry for Governor. The announcement comes after a majority of the elected 230-person governing body of the party, the Republican State Central Committee, endorsed Landry’s candidacy and the Executive Committee approved the endorsement in a near unanimous vote.

"Jeff Landry is a strong leader ready to transform Louisiana. Jeff’s conservative vision for our state is one of job creation, better schools, safer streets, and raising expectations of state government,” LAGOP Chairman Louis Gurvich said. "The Republican Party of Louisiana proudly endorses Jeff Landry and urges all Louisiana Republicans to unite and support his candidacy.”

"When our party is united, we win, and our party is united behind Jeff Landry," stated Chairman Gurvich. “Our elected governing body sent a resounding message of support for Jeff by endorsing him in an impressive effort where a strong majority of our members spoke very clearly. We will flip the Governor's Mansion next year in Louisiana with Jeff Landry as our candidate," Gurvich said.

Gurvich also addressed recent media stories that incorrectly reported on the endorsement and got their facts wrong. “We know the liberal media is going to do everything they can to smear our party and attack Jeff Landry. Many of the reports on this endorsement were fake news that were based on leaks and bad information. This endorsement was the result of the majority of our two hundred plus elected members taking action and choosing to endorse Jeff. This process was covered by the media, and our members were sent numerous communications by those leading the endorsement effort. Others who are crying over this endorsement are just upset because they didn’t have the support within our party to win get the endorsement for themselves,” he said.

Jeff Landry expressed gratitude to the elected party leaders for trusting him to lead the Republican Party to victory.

"I have proven my commitment to our conservative principles, and my desire to bring people together to make our state a better place to live. As Governor, I will fight every day to make that a reality in Louisiana. Having the official endorsement of our party is a big deal, and it means we can combine forces and grow a campaign and party infrastructure across this state. We've watched our neighboring states thrive because conservatives were elected as Governor. United, our party will have that same success,” Attorney General Jeff Landry said.

The elected LAGOP State Central Committee has a long history of endorsing candidates via this process. This endorsement procedure has also been used to endorse previous candidates for US Senator, Congress and legislature. The party first created an endorsement procedure for statewide offices during the 1970's with the help of party elders like former Chairman William Nungesser who wisely wanted a framework for limiting the risk of having multiple Republican candidates seeking the same office and ultimately splitting their vote.

In 2015 and 2019, Democrats won the state’s highest office as the GOP fractured between candidates. Efforts to solve this dilemma by creating a closed primary election were strongly supported by party officials and many Republican legislators, but the Louisiana Legislature has failed to act.

The LAGOP is energized and will hit the ground running to help Republican candidates up and down the ticket in 2023. In the weeks and months to come, we will be opening LAGOP Victory offices across the state to provide resources to local Republican campaigns and volunteers.

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"So much is at stake in this next election. We saw the mess of the last two election cycles, where Republicans were divided and lost. The Republican Party is getting it right this time by rallying around Jeff's campaign. Committee members know we don't have time to wait for others to selfishly kick tires and float trial balloons. Jeff is the only person who’s shown the courage enter the race while others appeared to be waiting for the better deal. We need someone who is ready to go all in for our state."

-MISTI CORDELL
Member of the Republican State Central Committee


“I’m so glad our party is learning from its mistakes. We must be united to win, and Jeff Landry is the right candidate to unite behind. No one will outwork him, and no one has proven himself more to our party. The State Central Committee, the Chairman, and the Executive Committee deserve much credit for this decision.”

-WILLIAM P. MILLS, III
Former LAGOP Finance Chairman


“For decades, Republican volunteers have poured countless hours into winning elections. Unifying the party means we will spend time building momentum instead of wasting energy on nasty attacks that only benefit Democrats. Republicans are uniting behind Jeff Landry because they want to win and they want a strong conservative as Governor.”

-JESSIE MORTON, Former Chairwoman
Louisiana Federation of Republican Women

HEALTH FREEDOM LOUISIANA: You Can't Sue Pharma and Our Children Pay the Price

Photo source: Health Freedom Louisiana

The following was written by the newest Health Freedom Louisiana team member, Katie Green.

Imagine, if you will, a company so powerful that it controlled all the other companies; an industry so dominating, it was at the helm of the hospitals, the schools, government, and the entire country’s healthcare system. Now imagine that same company could harm individuals without having to suffer even a single consequence. Envision the hospital your grandmother resides in or the school your 5 yr old son is applying to next year entirely protected from any form of accountability or liability.

The majority of Americans believe that the large companies, agencies, and systems that “serve” them are all independently run. They are blissfully unaware of the hard hitting fact that the industries who dominate our lives collude, partner, and intertwine intimately together in an incestuous relationship with the government to shape the everyday existence of our domain. The landscape in which the public interacts with day in and day out traces back to the path of big pharma and its never-ending dance with monetary incentive.

The pharmaceutical companies are personally responsible for the engineered belief that toxins are healthy, children are born broken, immune systems don’t exist, and illness needs to be prevented with a cocktail of physiological mayhem.

Read more: You Can't Sue Pharma and Our Children Pay the Price

OCCUPATIONAL LICENSURE: IT’S NOT JUST REGULATIONS THAT ARE THE PROBLEM

Photo source: Facebook

The Pelican Institute has long advocated for increased freedom for Louisianans to work and pursue the American dream. In particular, we’ve called to reform government regulation and interference through occupational licensure – a form of government permission slips for individuals to work within a given profession – unless there exists significant risks to consumers or the public at large.

There is very little evidence that licensing improves the quality of services that consumers receive. Research consistently finds that it reduces the supply of workers, increases prices and other burdens for consumers, limits innovation, and reduces workers’ ability to seek opportunity in other states.

Read more: OCCUPATIONAL LICENSURE: IT’S NOT JUST REGULATIONS THAT ARE THE PROBLEM