Crossposted at Daily Kingfish
The coverage of L’Affaire Vitter is just beginning to have its discursive effects: the Republican Party is splintered, and Walter Boasso is experiencing the first phase of what will be an unstoppable surge. According to an Anzalone-Liszt poll cited by Steven Sabludowsky of The Bayou Buzz,
“Boasso has more than tripled his current vote since May, moving from 6% to 21% with just four weeks of a moderate television buy. Currently Jindal leads with 52%, followed by Boasso (21%), Campbell (6%) and Georges (1%). One-in-five voters are still undecided (21%).
Not only has Boasso moved up 15 points, the undecided vote has increased by 7 points, from 14% to 21%. The Boasso television has softened Jindal and Campbell’s support and moved some of their votes to the undecided column. (Campbell’s support is down to 6%, from 9% in May).”
Walter Boasso educates the voters; Walter Boasso’s numbers grow. And I imagine they will continue to grow once voters realize “Bobby” Jindal’s misleading message of ethics and change has no real empirical basis. That Foster Campbell and John Georges are yet to air television commercials should be kept in mind. In other words, Jindal will find himself in what will be a bitter but entertaining runoff.
Also interesting in Sabludowsky’s article is following report from the Jindal rally in Kenner:
But, after attending the Jindal rally in Kenner Louisiana (a suburb of New Orleans), there was no question that anger was in the air. One very prominent Republican leader told me off the record that Vitter only cares about himself. So, why Vitter chose one hour before the Jindal rally escapes many.
Kenner is the base of Jindal and Vitter. If voters are confused and exasperated in Jefferson Parish, I can only wonder what they are saying in other areas of the state. I know voters are not terribly pleased with either of the ethically and morally challenged Republicans in my neck of the woods.
Sabludowsky’s claim that Jefferson Parish voters are splintered and upset is corroborated by Jeff Crouère’s discussion of how all the media attention directed to the Vitter press conference in Metairie upset Jindal partisans, as they feel their candidate is entitled to all the coverage. If this has created a Republican rift as Crouère alleges, Jindal may have a problem consolidating the Republican vote by October.
The Governor’s race is far from over, mes amis. Georges and Campbell are not yet on the air, and Boasso is still introducing himself to voters. To use of trite phrase that is the rallying cry of Daily Kingfish: Laissez les bons temps rouler!
but oh well, he’ll be better than Jindall, and if stays a Democrat he’ll set the Republican party back significantly. This is their perfect year for a take over. Thjeir is going to be a runoff, Georges is going to run five million dollars of ads late in the election. That’s probably going to be close to jindall’s total, and you don’t spend that kind of money and not get 10 percent of the vote, at least, and he’s got some very experienced campaign managers and media guys working for him.
Hey, if Diaper Dave Vitter can take down Jindal along with himself, that’s a two-fer to take fur sure!
I also liked Campbell better than the two-timing party-switcher, but I have to say that I LOVE Boasso’s TV ads. And once I fell in love, I started to find ways to rationalize . . .
In a perverse way, the fact that Boasso was a Democrat, switched to Repub Party, and now has switched back to run as a Dem may turn out to be a big plus: Boasso is doing what he is asking the voters Louisiana to do now, after flirting with the Repubs, to go back home to the Democratic Party!
BTW Tonight I tuned in to catch a bit of the filibuster on C-SPAN. Senator Mary Landrieu got an early time slot for her remarks, and my roommate agrees that she looked good and made good sense. Very nice show for Mary.
Email I got from Foster campbell:
Before voters pay much attention to what a candidate says he will do if elected, it makes good sense to know what he’s actually done in the past.
Foster Campbell’s record as a leader who has worked by the principles of the Democratic Party is clear. Throughout his career in the Louisiana Senate and now on the Public Service Commission, Foster has carved out a record of serving the average people of Louisiana, and not the special interests.
He’s led the fight to hold down utility bills, to prevent payday lenders from gouging consumers, to fund public schools adequately and to curtail the influence of big special interests.
Most recently he has received awards for passing a rule prohibiting utilities from charging deposits to women who move out of their homes to escape domestic violence.
Now he leads the fight to make foreign countries and multinational oil companies pay for the privilege of using Louisiana’s land, marshes and offshore waters to process their oil. He’ll use the proceeds to eliminate your state income tax, both personal and corporate, invest in education, highways, coastal restoration and hurricane recovery. With $3.1 billion in the pockets of Louisiana’s people each year instead of in the state treasury, Foster will spark the biggest economic boom in modern Louisiana history.
And what about the other candidates? What do we know about where they stand?
One, the registered Republican, votes down the line with George Bush, even when it hurts Louisiana and its people. To support Bush’s war plans, Bobby Jindal voted against billions in hurricane recovery funds targeted to New Orleans and other hard-hit South Louisiana areas.
Jindal has never met a big corporate special interest he dislikes.
The other candidate, a recent convert to the Democratic Party, switched from the Republican Party of Bush and Jindal to find a more convenient home to run for Governor.
But his record shows he fought against raising the minimum wage and voted to limit the rights of consumers when they’re wronged by big corporations.
He recorded a 90% favorable voting record with LABI, the big-company group that fights every year to help enrich themselves, at the expense of hardworking Louisianans.
Foster Campbell has been a lifelong Democrat. Even when other elected officials in his conservative North Louisiana area switched to the GOP as a convenience, Foster has remained and will remain a Democrat. He’ll continue to represent the regular people of Louisiana and work with small businesses to grow and prosper.
If you’re tired of Republicans and Democrats who vote like Republicans, Foster Campbell is your leader.”
thoughts?