Louisiana has long been known for its political characters for better or worse.
Throughout the state’s history, those figures were almost exclusively Democrats, but the tide has changed in Louisiana with flamboyant Republican politicians controlling all but one statewide elected office.
Gone are the days of Huey Long and a chicken in every pot, supplanted instead by Sen. Kennedy and drinking weed killer for fun.
Kennedy is among the most visible members of the upper chamber due to his frequent cable television one-liners; now his fellow Republicans in Baton Rouge are fighting for a bigger part of the spotlight.
The latter half Gov. Edwards’ term can be largely summarized by increasing extremism on the Republican side of the aisle.
Radical right-wing legislators are abandoning more common-sense solutions everyday while they continue to erect and expand various culture war issues.
That strategy does nothing to help the people of Louisiana and will only further cement our position as one of the most impoverished, disadvantaged, and undereducated communities in the United States.
Legislative Republicans have refused to work with the people of Louisiana to improve the state and their antics continue to tarnish the image and reputation of our great state.
The rejection of knowledge and expertise in the Republican party has and continues to hamper the state’s coronavirus response, potentially prolonging the yearslong virus in a state that consistently ranks among the worst states for health outcomes.
Attacks on academic freedom have also recently manifested themselves as the latest salvo in the conservative campaign to leave Louisiana in the stone age as world-class academics sound alarms in other states going along the same road.
The refusal to add an additional majority minority congressional district as required by the Voting Rights Act is the epitome of the ends justifying the means as Louisiana Republicans intend to strike down more sections of the voting rights act by using the state as material for the newly radicalized Supreme Court that I wrote about recently.
Louisiana needs people who are willing to put aside the partisan politics and work to advance legislation that lifts people up rather than being tailor-made for Fox News and Republican primaries.
Former Gov. Bobby Jindal could teach current Legislators a couple things about the politically charged and logically unsound legislation that they are pushing — It won’t work, and you won’t get promoted for it.
Jindal’s 2016 Presidential Campaign did not even eek out 1% in the polls and not a single electoral vote was allocated to him during the race.
Jindal’s story should serve as a warning sign to Legislative Republicans who have prioritized hot-button issues rather than true solutions to problems that the people of Louisiana face.
The warning being that when the time comes to get reelected or promoted, no one will remember that your culture war theatrics because our state is falling into the gulf, neighbors are leaving for greener pasture and all their representative did was legislate high school sports from the state Capitol.
Charlie Stephens is a 21-year-old political communication senior from Baton Rouge
Louisiana has long been known for its political characters for better or worse.
Throughout the state’s history, those figures were almost exclusively Democrats, but the tide has changed in Louisiana with flamboyant Republican politicians controlling all but one statewide elected office.
Gone are the days of Huey Long and a chicken in every pot, supplanted instead by Sen. Kennedy and drinking weed killer for fun.
Kennedy is among the most visible members of the upper chamber due to his frequent cable television one-liners; now his fellow Republicans in Baton Rouge are fighting for a bigger part of the spotlight.
The latter half Gov. Edwards’ term can be largely summarized by increasing extremism on the Republican side of the aisle.
Radical right-wing legislators are abandoning more common-sense solutions everyday while they continue to erect and expand various culture war issues.
That strategy does nothing to help the people of Louisiana and will only further cement our position as one of the most impoverished, disadvantaged, and undereducated communities in the United States.
Legislative Republicans have refused to work with the people of Louisiana to improve the state and their antics continue to tarnish the image and reputation of our great state.
The rejection of knowledge and expertise in the Republican party has and continues to hamper the state’s coronavirus response, potentially prolonging the yearslong virus in a state that consistently ranks among the worst states for health outcomes.
Attacks on academic freedom have also recently manifested themselves as the latest salvo in the conservative campaign to leave Louisiana in the stone age as world-class academics sound alarms in other states going along the same road.
The refusal to add an additional majority minority congressional district as required by the Voting Rights Act is the epitome of the ends justifying the means as Louisiana Republicans intend to strike down more sections of the voting rights act by using the state as material for the newly radicalized Supreme Court that I wrote about recently.
Louisiana needs people who are willing to put aside the partisan politics and work to advance legislation that lifts people up rather than being tailor-made for Fox News and Republican primaries.
Former Gov. Bobby Jindal could teach current Legislators a couple things about the politically charged and logically unsound legislation that they are pushing — It won’t work, and you won’t get promoted for it.
Jindal’s 2016 Presidential Campaign did not even eek out 1% in the polls and not a single electoral vote was allocated to him during the race.
Jindal’s story should serve as a warning sign to Legislative Republicans who have prioritized hot-button issues rather than true solutions to problems that the people of Louisiana face.
The warning being that when the time comes to get reelected or promoted, no one will remember that your culture war theatrics because our state is falling into the gulf, neighbors are leaving for greener pasture and all their representative did was legislate high school sports from the state Capitol.
Charlie Stephens is a 21-year-old political communication senior from Baton Rouge