A Cringe-Worthy Political Ad in Louisiana - Show Notes, 1/23/22
The Joe Cunningham Show airs 3-4 p.m. every weekday on NewsTalk 96.5 KPEL. The daily show notes offer you a look into the topics of the day and the links to the top stories and Joe's own writings on the state of politics in Louisiana and around the country. Follow Joe on Twitter at @JoePCunningham and Like the Joe Cunningham Show on Facebook. You can also subscribe to the Joe Cunningham Show podcast on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, or Amazon.
The Special Session
Gov. John Bel Edwards has called the Louisiana legislature into a special session to try and work on the looming insurance crisis in the state. He, Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon, and Republican legislative leaders all agree that something has to be done.
Edwards is calling this session an “important first step,” which means its time to grab hold of your wallets and don’t let go.
The reality of the situation is that there doesn’t seem to be much the legislature can do to “fix” the problem aside from just throwing money into a pot and trying to entice companies to come back. Which is exactly what Donelon is asking them to do. If that’s just a “first step,” however, then it stands to reason that Edwards and the gang have more money they want to throw at the problem.
But it’s not as though this crisis is new. This should have been predicted by our political leaders years ago, when insurance companies quietly started deciding there were simply some policies they would not write below I-10 or for certain types of housing. The question, though, is this: Florida has also seen a number of insurance companies folding or leaving the state, so why aren’t they in a “crisis”? The answer may just be that the people in charge there know what they’re doing.
Who Is Katie Bernhardt?
The chairwoman of the Louisiana Democratic Party has dropped an ad in coordination with the Team Louisiana PAC. The ad is ostensibly to raise awareness for the PAC, but the reality is that it looks an awful lot like a campaign introduction. But the ad itself asks “Who are you?” which is definitely not a sign of strength.
It’s also bordering on the illegal - she is not a declared candidate, but if this really is her making her first move into the race, then she has violated election law. Candidates cannot coordinate with PACs.
Because of the questionable ad (it’s really, really cringey), some Democratic activists are asking former U.S. Senate candidate Gary Chambers to jump in.
With all these Republicans jumping into the gubernatorial race, the Democrats really need a strong, unified front. It appears that they may not get that.
AP African-American Studies
I did some commentary for the podcast this morning, which you can listen to here.
But if you’d like to see the document I’m referring to, you can go to this page and scroll down to the end of the story. I have a lot of thoughts stemming from my time teaching AP history and serving as AP coordinator in my past life as a teacher. There are some nuances to this you should be aware of.
Headlines of the Day
Much Too Late, the Biden Administration Admits Canceling the Keystone XL Pipeline Was a Mistake (RedState)
Louisiana School Worker Charged - Sold Pot Edibles to Students (KPEL)
Ex-FBI official arrested for alleged money laundering, Russia sanctions, taking money from former foreign agent (NBC News)
19 injured in two separate Louisiana mass shootings (WWL)
The Perfect Example of Media Bias (Erick Erickson/Substack)