Free Republic

"The health care system in America is broken. Costs are rising at an unacceptable rate -- more than doubling over the last 10 years, which is nearly four times the rate of wage growth. Too many patients feel trapped by healthcare decisions dictated by HMOs. Too many doctors are torn between practicing medicine and practicing insurance. And 47 million Americans worry what will happen to them or their children if they get sick." Who do you think said that? President Obama? Actually, those words were written by Republicans. They are part of the summary of the Patients' Choice Act, introduced...

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While former Sen. John Breaux is deciding whether to run for Louisiana governor, state Republicans and his potential opponent have already begun the fight. Speculation is mounting that Breaux (D-La.) might enter the race in the wake of Gov. Kathleen Blanco?s (D) surprise announcement this week that she won?t seek reelection. But state Republicans, and to a lesser extent Republican candidate Rep. Bobby Jindal, are already firing shots across Breaux?s bow. State observers say this strategy is three-pronged: Give Breaux second thoughts about getting in, let him know the campaign would be bloody and start the public debate before he...

With Gov. Kathleen Blanco’s pass on running for reelection, a number of observers both in and out of elective office seem fixated that lobbyist John Breaux, a former Democrat senator from Louisiana, will change residency from Maryland and move it back to Louisiana. Breaux himself has encouraged such speculation by asking for an attorney general’s opinion on his citizenship status in the state. A review of both legal facts and political realities shows that Breaux and any Democrats supportive of this move are making a tremendous mistake that could cripple the state party for years to come. Louisiana State University...

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Sen. Breaux dismisses rumors he will run Former U.S. Sen. John Breaux said rumors that he’s eyeing a run for governor are just that — rumors and nothing more. “I am not running for governor right now, and I have no plans of running for governor in the future,” Breaux said during a meeting Friday with reporters and editors at The Advocate. Commissioner of Agriculture Bob Odom has talked up the possibility of Breaux making a bid for governor next year, a slap at Breaux’s fellow Democrat, Blanco. “I am not raising money for it,” Breaux said.

Reported by the Associated Press Agriculture Commissioner Bob Odom says that he has lost confidence in Governor Kathleen Blanco's ability to lead and is trying to convince retired U.S. Senator John Breaux to run for her seat in 2007. When asked if he thought Blanco could turn the state around, Odom said, "No, I don't." Odom made his remarks after a speech he delivered during a West Monroe-West Ouachita Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the West Monroe Convention Center. Odom said he and "several others" - who he didn't identify - were putting together a poll that they hope to...

NEW ORLEANS, LA — New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin's comments about a chocolate city and God punishing America with strong hurricanes ended up on the front page of most major newspapers across the country. National Public Radio carried the story. So did all of the national morning newscasts. U.S. Senators landing at Lakefront Airport on Tuesday were all well versed on the Mayor's shoot from the hip statements. Louisiana Senator David Vitter brought his colleagues on a tour of the hurricane damaged city. Vitter called Nagin's comments that New Orleans is a chocolate city because that's the way God wants...

WASHINGTON - New evidence is emerging that the top Democrat on the Senate committee currently investigating Jack Abramoff got political money arranged by the lobbyist back in 2002 shortly after the lawmaker took action favorable to Abramoff's tribal clients. A lawyer for the Louisiana Coushatta Indians told The Associated Press that Abramoff instructed the tribe to send $5,000 to Sen. Byron Dorgan (news, bio, voting record)'s political group just three weeks after the North Dakota Democrat urged fellow senators to fund a tribal school program Abramoff's clients wanted to use.The check was one of about five dozen the Coushattas listed...

Three independent sources have informed us that former U.S. Senator John Breaux is telling political insiders that he is in fact running for Governor. Breaux, a darling of the courthouse crowd, is seen by Democratic Party operatives as the only hope of keeping them in the mansion and shoring up the down ballot statewide incumbent’s political futures. Breaux began his career as an understudy to then Congressman Edwin W. Edwards and followed him in that Acadiana district seat serving many years prior to his election to the Senate. Breaux’s most famous political quote came in the context of a deal...

UPDATED: 1:11 pm PDT September 10, 2005 NEW ORLEANS -- Although he said it's not time to point fingers, former Louisiana Sen. John Breaux said he deserves some criticism for the problems in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Breaux, a Democrat, said he and other current and former members of Louisiana's congressional delegation failed to get more money for evacuation efforts and the strengthening of levees. But for now, he said, attention should be focused on relief efforts. "Blaming each other does not save a life, does not feed a single family," Breaux said. Meanwhile, a current Louisiana senator who's...

The Talk Shows Sunday, September 4th, 2005 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Chertoff; Scientific American editor Mark Fischetti; former New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial; author Mike Tidwell. FACE THE NATION (CBS): pre-empted by U.S. Open (Tennis). THIS WEEK (ABC): Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La.; Chertoff; author and journalist Rick Bragg. LATE EDITION (CNN) : Chertoff; Sen. Trett Lott, R-Miss.; Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Julie Gerberding; Reps. William Jefferson, D-La., Richard Baker, R-La.,...

M. O'BRIEN: Let me ask you this, though. Let's flip this around for a moment. This is kind of turning in, I'm seeing shreds of this on the web and on the blogs of this being the allegation is that Democrats are using this as a political issue. What to you say to that? BREAUX: I've heard the racial implications. I would categorically reject that. Our good Mayor Ray Nagin is African- American and almost all the city council is African-American. The sheriff is African-American. The areas south of New Orleans, Plaquemine and St. Bernard Parishes are predominantly white and...

Breaux, 'hottest hire' in D.C., keeps pace By GERARD SHIELDS gshields@theadvocate.com Advocate Washington bureau WASHINGTON -- In joining the powerful Washington lobbying firm of Patton Boggs, newly retired U.S. Sen. John Breaux, D-La., will become the 106th former Congress member active in the lucrative lobbying field. "John Breaux is just the latest of the revolving door and that revolving door is out of control," said Craig Holman, campaign finance lobbyist for the nonpartisan, nonprofit watchdog group, Public Citizen. Breaux follows his former LSU Law School roommate U.S. Rep. Billy Tauzin, R-Chackbay, who recently took the job of directing lobbying efforts...

President Bush yesterday appointed a commission to think of ways to simplify the federal tax code, giving it until July 31 to report its ideas. "A simple code will make it easier on the taxpayers," Mr. Bush said after meeting in the Oval Office with the chairmen of his commission, former Republican Sen. Connie Mack of Florida and former Democratic Sen. John B. Breaux of Louisiana. "These fine, distinguished citizens will be taking a good hard look at the tax code and coming up with recommendations as to how to make sure the tax code encourages economic vitality and growth,"...

WASHINGTON -- President Bush on Friday called streamlining and reforming the U.S. tax code an "essential task for our country," but offered few hints of how he intends to get it done. Treasury Secretary John Snow said "everything's on the table," including possibly the popular home mortgage and charitable deductions and a former senator leading a tax-reform panel for Bush said that a national sales tax or flat tax also could be in the cards. "I am firm in my desire to get something done," Bush said at the end of a White House meeting with former Sens. Connie Mack,...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush on Friday appointed two former senators -- Florida Republican Connie Mack and Louisiana Democrat John Breaux -- to head a panel to come up with recommendations on reshaping the tax code. snip Bush said Mack, the chairman, and Breaux, the vice chairman, would lead an effort to come up with recommendations on how to make sure the tax code "encourages economic vitality and growth," instead of discouraging it and requiring Americans to spend billions of hours filling out tax forms. snip The tax panel is to look at a broad array of options, ranging from...

Boustany, Melancon top vote Tauzin III awaits final tally By PATRICK COURREGES and ANGELA SIMONEAUX Acadiana bureau Southern Louisiana voters Saturday appeared to have decided the last two congressional races in the nation, electing Democrat Charlie Melancon in the 3rd District and Republican Charles Boustany Jr. in the 7th District, giving the Democratic and Republican parties a split of the final two seats available. But the 3rd District race was decided by slightly more than 500 votes out of more than 114,000 cast, and 3rd District Republican candidate Billy Tauzin III is not conceding the race. In the 3rd District,...

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Vitter calls emphasis on traffic tickets 'a silly attack' By MARSHA SHULER mshuler@theadvocate.com Capitol news bureau A national Democratic group is making political hay over Republican U.S. Rep. David Vitter's propensity to get traffic tickets. Vitter, a candidate in Tuesday's U.S. Senate election, called the disclosure "a silly attack." The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee circulated to the media details about 14 separate tickets that Vitter received for traffic violations between 1988 and 2003. The traffic tickets included four for speeding, two for failure to obey traffic signs, and one with multiple violations, including allegations of failure to maintain control of...

State could decide leadership in Senate By GERARD SHIELDS gshields@theadvocate.com Advocate Washington bureau It's still a big "if," but Louisiana voters could decide who runs the U.S. Senate for the next two years. Due to the state's unique runoff election system, the eyes of the nation could well be focused on the Pelican State and its politics beginning Wednesday. If no U.S. Senate candidate gains 50 percent plus one vote in Tuesday's general election, the top two vote-getters will compete in a Dec. 4 runoff. Because all the other 33 Senate elections will be decided next week, the Louisiana race...

Senate forum turns testy Vitter, John rap each other's voting records, political stands By MARSHA SHULER mshuler@theadvocate.com Capitol news bureau LAFAYETTE -- A U. S. Senate forum got testy Thursday with words like "lying" being thrown around as four major candidates tried to differentiate themselves from one another on a range of issues. Republican U.S. Rep. David Vitter and Democratic U.S. Rep. Chris John slammed each other for misrepresenting the other's voting records on welfare reform and importing drugs. Democratic state Treasurer John Kennedy criticized both Vitter and John for participating in the budget raid on the Social Security trust...

Kennedy courts black voters with anti-John calls By MARSHA SHULER mshuler@theadvocate.com Capitol news bureau Democratic state Treasurer John Kennedy became the focal point of the U.S. Senate campaign Thursday as he took to a new level an attack on two opponents, and one of them accused Kennedy of "race baiting." The racial accusation stems from automated calls going to African-American households linking Democratic U.S. Rep. Chris John to former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke. The solicitation promotes Kennedy as "the right choice" for black voters. "He's trying to scare the African-American community. It's absolutely not true," John said. "That...

Candidates trade Social Security policy accusations By MARSHA SHULER mshuler@theadvocate.com Capitol news bureau State Treasurer John Kennedy accused two of his U.S. Senate opponents on Monday of robbing the Social Security trust fund to pay for tax cuts for the rich. That and other accusations came flying as the four major candidates in the Nov. 2 Senate election squared off during the first of three statewide televised debates this month. U.S. Reps. David Vitter and Chris John voted for $1.3 trillion in tax cuts pushed by President Bush, Kennedy said. "Do you know where they got the money to fund...

Breaux leaves bipartisan legacy Analysts assess senator's career By GERARD SHIELDS gshields@theadvocate.com Advocate Washington bureau WASHINGTON -- When U.S. Sen. John Breaux, D-La., was first elected to the Senate in 1986, he was invited to a retirement dinner for outgoing senators. "I remember saying 'Boy, these guys are old,'" Breaux, 60, recalls. "Now they're having a retirement dinner for me." After 32 years in Congress and four years initially working as a congressional aide, Breaux's days in office are winding down as political analysts begin to assess what will be his historical stamp on the institution. Breaux is most remembered...

This weekend, the Vitter Blog pulls no punches in exposing the desire among Louisiana Democrats running for Senate to raise our taxes. Here are two pieces from my blog, "The Hillary Doctrine," and "Rep. Chris John touts "fiscal conservatism," but fails to act!" Do not go unarmed this election season! The Hillary Doctrine...and Louisiana's Democratic Senatorial Candidates Are Going Along With It "Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you. We're saying that for America to get back on track, we're probably going to cut that short and not give it to...

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Breaux thinks John best fit for his shoes By GERARD SHIELDS gshields@theadvocate.com Advocate staff writer It's official -- U.S. Sen. John Breaux, D-La., is supporting U.S. Rep. Chris John, D-Crowley, in the race to succeed Breaux. Breaux's endorsement of John was expected. But the fellow Crowley native who is retiring after 32 years in Congress made it official by co-hosting a New Orleans fund-raising event on May 22 on behalf of John. Event chairs were asked to raise $25,000. Event hosts were asked to contribute or raise $10,000. And it was suggested that each guest who attended contribute $1,000. Laura...

Friday, May 21 Bush touts war efforts to LSU grads By PETE YOST Associated Press Writer Trying to counter the attention that Democratic rival John Kerry is paying to Louisiana, President Bush on Friday defended his administration's efforts in Iraq as he combined a commencement address with fund-raising in a state he won comfortably in 2000. Stressing the need to serve society in remarks aimed at projecting the image of strong leadership, Bush received an enthusiastic welcome from the faculty and 3,200-member graduating class of Louisiana State University. Several members of the audience sat in silent protest as everyone else...

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<p>WASHINGTON - Despite trailing in the polls, Democratic candidates in the race to replace retiring Democratic Sen. John Breaux of Louisiana are narrowly favored to win over the only Republican running, political analysts said last week.</p> <p>But that hairline Democratic edge, as one put it, could change in a puff of Louisiana's erratic political wind.</p>

Former Louisiana governor and congressman, Buddy Roemer, says he's considering a political comeback by jumping into the race to replace retiring US Senator John Breaux. Roemer says the Senate race interests him because -- quote -- Louisiana desperately needs to get its act together. His interest might also have been piqued by a recent poll conducted for a group of businessmen that showed him with 89 percent name recognition and 48 percent of the respondents saying they would at least consider voting for him. If he enters the race, he would become the second Republican in the race, joining US...

<p>Arthur Morrell, a Louisiana state representative since 1983 and a former chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus, announced Wednesday he is seeking the U.S. Senate seat John Breaux is vacating. Breaux announced in December that he would not run again.</p>

<p>Fifth District U.S. Rep. Rodney Alexander is considering switching from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party, he confirmed late Thursday afternoon.</p> <p>"I'd be misleading you if I said I haven't talked to the Republican leadership about it," said Alexander of Quitman. "I'll make a decision within the next few days."</p>

<p>Posted on March 3, 2004 Phone calls from President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney failed to change his mind, but U.S. Rep. Jim McCrery couldn't say no to his wife, Johnette, who convinced him to seek a ninth term in Congress.</p>

A politically active gay and lesbian group in Louisiana immediately attacked President Bush for his proposal to ban gay marriages. But others, including two US Senate candidates, say they would support such a ban. Yesterday, Bush called on Congress to pass a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage to protect what he calls the most fundamental institution of civilization. Christopher Daigle is the political adviser to Equality Louisiana. He says the issue of marriage regardless of the gender of the parties involved should not be used as a football on the political gridiron. US Representative David Vitter, Metairie, a candidate for...

<p>BATON ROUGE - State Treasurer John Kennedy already has plans to introduce four pieces of legislation if he is elected to the U.S. Senate this November.</p> <p>Kennedy, one of three announced contenders to replace Sen. John Breaux, who has announced his retirement, told the Baton Rouge Press Club on Monday that he's running because "Louisiana needs an aggressive voice in Congress."</p>

A recent poll by Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates Inc. shows Republican David Vitter leading the race for US Senate with his Democratic rivals Chris John and John Kennedy tied for second place. Vitter has 34 percent, John has 16 percent and Kennedy has 15 percent. Democrat Jim Bernhard polled 4 percent, and 31 percent of voters were undecided. The poll of 502 likely voters was conducted from Jan. 22-24. It's margin of error is +/-4.4 percent. The poll was commissioned by the Kennedy Campaign.

This afternoon, my wife and I stood outside her high school alma mater and announced that I am running for Congress in Louisiana’s 1st Congressional District. This is an important race, and I need your help to be successful. But before I ask for your support, I want to share with you the reasons why I decided to run for Congress. After coming so close in the gubernatorial election, my wife and I had several months to think about the future of our great state, and reflect on the “Bold New Vision” we discussed during that campaign. And those ideas…...

                                    U.S. Senate                                 Committee on Armed Services,                                Washington, DC, October 9, 1998.       The President,       The White House, Washington, DC.           Dear Mr. President: We are writing to express our concern        over recent developments in Iraq.           Last February, the Senate was working on a resolution        supporting military action if diplomacy did not succeed in        convincing Saddam Hussein to comply with the United Nations        Security Council resolutions concerning the disclosure and        destruction of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. This        effort was discontinued when the Iraqi government reaffirmed        its...

SENATE RACE WON'T BE THAT CROWDED by Jim Brown PoliticsLA.com columnist posted January 7, 2004 Following the intense interest in the recent gubernatorial election, the general assumption has been that there will be a number of major candidates vying to fill the U. S. Senate seat being vacated this fall by long time incumbent John Breaux. Not so! When qualification time comes around, you can count the number of major candidates on one hand. Numerous newspaper columns have touted several unsuccessful gubernatorial candidates as sure qualifiers. The columns point to the 1996 race when Mary Landrieu bounced back from a...

<p>BATON ROUGE - For a time in 2003, it looked as though Louisiana voters might jettison old habits and elect a man who looked and sounded different from any previous governor.</p> <p>In the end, old themes reasserted themselves and some traditional trends in Louisiana politics won out. Instead of sending the nation's first Indian-American to the Governor's Mansion - and electing the first nonwhite governor in Louisiana history - voters chose a white career politician whose candidacy echoed that of predecessors.</p>

Breaux's Retirement Could Mean GOP Pickup by John Gizzi Posted Dec 22, 2003 Alone among the 13 states of the Confederacy, Louisiana has never elected a Republican to the U.S. Senate. But with three-term Democratic Sen. John Breaux announcing his retirement last week, Republican operatives in the state are confident they have a good chance to change that. Louisiana will now be a major focus for Republicans in the 2004 Senate races. Breaux’s retirement, along with the retirement of other Democratic senators in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, gives the party an excellent opportunity to pick up as...

<p>Candidates Chris John, David Vitter present differences.</p> <p>John Hill Posted on December 22, 2003 BATON ROUGE - So far, the U.S. Senate race of 2004 could be shaping up to reflect this past fall's gubernatorial runoff campaign.</p> <p>The two candidates who are definitely in the battle are a conservative Democrat and an ultra-conservative Republican.</p>

<p>The Washington that Senator John Breaux is leaving is a vastly different place than the capital the Louisiana Democrat arrived in 35 years ago in a rented U-Haul truck. A pragmatic moderate and consummate dealmaker, Breaux has come to feel like a crawfish out of water in the poisonous partisan swamp of Capitol Hill, where, as he put it in announcing his retirement on Dec. 15, "cooperation and legitimate compromise between our political parties [is now] seen as political failure."</p>

<p>The South: Will The Last Dem Turn Out The Lights?</p> <p>The Washington that Senator John Breaux is leaving is a vastly different place than the capital the Louisiana Democrat arrived in 35 years ago in a rented U-Haul truck. A pragmatic moderate and consummate dealmaker, Breaux has come to feel like a crawfish out of water in the poisonous partisan swamp of Capitol Hill, where, as he put it in announcing his retirement on Dec. 15, "cooperation and legitimate compromise between our political parties [is now] seen as political failure."</p>

<p>BATON ROUGE, La. — Sen. John B. Breaux of Louisiana, one of a dwindling number of conservative Southern Democrats, announced yesterday that he would not seek a fourth term.</p> <p>"There comes a time in every career when it is time to step aside and allow others to step up and serve, and for my family and me, that time has arrived." said Mr. Breaux, 59, in an emotionally charged 10-minute news conference.</p>

<p>WASHINGTON - Democratic Sen. John Breaux of Louisiana will not retire for another year, but colleagues, friends and political observers already feel the upcoming loss.</p> <p>And, perhaps, Democrats feel it more.</p> <p>"With Sen. Breaux's retirement, the Senate loses one of (its) most respected legislators, and I lose one of my most valued colleagues," said Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D. "I've come to rely on his counsel and cherish his friendship."</p>

Breaux to announce retirement...