This is the first in what we expect to be a long running segment, CourtTVitter. The DC Madam, Deborah Jeane Palfrey, has promised a circus and despite Vitter’s best efforts to deflect attention it seems inevitable that the image of yet another unethical Louisiana politician will be plastered across the nation’s TV screens. How much longer can this go on?
Rumors are swirling that the Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court, Pascal Calogero, may be about to resign because of accusations of corruption. Read more
There’s a delightfully deceitful bit of spin on the front page of the Dead Pelican currently. Its lead political story, which appears in the top left hand corner of the page, has the following headline:
“Groups tell Jindal to slow up on ethics provision”
Clearly, this is a reference to today’s call by the Council for a Better Louisiana, League of Women Voters, Louisiana Common Cause and the Public Affairs Research Council for Jindal to drop his demand that the state ethics board be stripped of its adjudicatory powers. The implication is that these widely respected government watchdogs are bad because they are trying to slow down ethics reform. The reality, however, is rather different. Read more
We know judges are whining about having to disclose their incomes, and we know their reasoning is inspired by Louisiana’s constitution, rather than any major skeletons in their closet. Louisiana judges, after all, are the ethical standards by which Louisiana’s other branches of government should be measured - as they’ve proven again, and again, and again.
The newest ethics-reform detractors border on the ridiculous: the Louisiana Restaurant Association is trying to raise the $50 ceiling to $100. As the Times-Pic says:
Obviously at the urging of some Baton Rouge members, the group wants the proposed limit to wine and dine legislators set at $100 per feast. That’s double the $50 limit Gov. Jindal proposed.
The legislature got the ethics ball rolling with HB1, which will require strict financial disclosure for pretty much everyone in the Louisiana government - even judges. And the judges are not happy, especially Justice Kimball.
They also eliminated free tickets, forced legislators to recuse themselves from votes where they might have a conflict of interest, and, among other disclosures, will have to explain purchases over $1000.
Another measure is more problematic: the effort to withhold pension funds from officials convicted of felonies raises some serious concerns. Namely, the bill could affect, for example, spouses and children of a teacher who is sentenced to prison, as well as Governor Edwards, if passed retroactively.
Ethics Board Chairman Hank Perret continued his campaign to keep the Ethics Board the way it is.
And, if you hadn’t heard, we have spies among us.
From the Times-Picayune: Governor deflects questions over strictness of the call, ommission of campaign finance rules directed at his own ethics violation.
Is Jindal creating a judicial straw man? And where were all the Legislators?
Also, Jeff Sadow: When a Gold Standard isn’t a Gold Standard, it’s time to create another standard.
A Tulane Law School professor is calling for the Louisiana Supreme Court to require justices to recuse themselves from ruling in cases that involve contributors their campaigns. The 14-year study he and a Loyola economics professor conducted showed:
“an unusually high correlation between campaign contributions and decisions in favor of contributors…”
