Louisiana opened 2016 by swearing in Gov. John Bel Edwards, the first Democrat to win statewide office since 2008. The nation ended the year by electing Republican Donald Trump as president, a real shocker that continues to shake up half the country’s voters.
Edwards is ending the year with a comfortable 62.8 percent approval rating. However, Republican state Attorney General Jeff Landry and some 20 hard line GOP members of the state House of Representatives have thrown up roadblocks at every turn.
The governor’s approval rating stems from the effective and personal way he has handled devastating floods in the western and southeastern parts of the state, the Baton Rouge police shooting of a black citizen and a lone gunman’s killing of three Baton Rouge law enforcement officers.
Edwards also began reform of the long-standing industrial tax exemption program by making recipients more accountable and removed over $1 billion in projects from the state’s capital construction bill that have no chance of being funded.
House Republicans began the year by denying Edwards his choice of House speaker, which led to stiff resistance to his plans to deal with two years of deficits totaling almost $3 billion left over from the Bobby Jindal administration. Legislators at two special sessions raised $1.5 billion in new taxes — most of them temporary — but refused to go far enough.
The net result is the state is experiencing the same revenue shortfalls it has faced for the last nine years. On top of that, the TOPS scholarship program wasn’t fully funded this fiscal year for the first time in its history. GOP House members hoped revenues would be higher in the fall, but it never happened.
Greg Albrecht, the chief economist for the Legislative Fiscal Office, said if the Stelly income tax reform plan enacted in 2002 had stayed in place the state would have had about $800 million more in the bank each year. The reform plan was repealed in 2008 with Jindal’s support.
Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand, who never hesitates to speak his mind, had some advice for his fellow Republicans early in the year. He said there are some systemic issues that need to be addressed and compromise isn’t a dirty word.
“We have to look at ourselves critically as a party, and figure out where we are and what we’re going to be about,” Normand said. “The fact that the Republican leadership in this state is now trying to blame Gov. John Bel Edwards, who’s only been in office 40 days, is incredulous to me.”
Despite continuing resistance, Edwards remains optimistic and has been willing to work with leaders of both major political parties. It’s the same attitude that he had when he ran for governor, convinced that he was going to win despite those in his own party who asked him to drop out of the race.
Legislators did finally give state motorists an opportunity to apply for REAL ID driver’s licenses that will be required for air travel and entering federal facilities. They once again refused to raise the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour to $8 that was pushed by the governor.
Voters and lawmakers refused to approve measures reforming the state’s corporate and personal income taxes, which signals hard times for 2017 when the Legislature will be asked to fix the broken tax and budget systems.
Roads and bridges continue to be major problems that haven’t been addressed, but a transportation task force is recommending an increase in the 20-cent-per-gallon state gasoline tax. Revenues are needed to begin clearing up a $13 billion maintenance backlog and begin work on $16 billion in long-overdue road and bridge construction, including a new Interstate 10 bridge over the Calcasieu River at Lake Charles.
The long presidential campaign grew bitterer as the months rolled by with Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton receiving the highest unfavorable ratings in the nation’s history.
Frank Luntz, a respected Republican pollster and political consultant, was like many others who believed Trump was blowing the GOP’s chances to win the presidency.
“I have never seen a campaign that has less discipline, less focus, less effective vision at a time when more Americans are demanding a change in the way government works,” Luntz said in late-October. “This should have been a slam dunk for the GOP.”
Meanwhile, Clinton enjoyed large Democratic super delegate support, favorable poll ratings and many newspaper endorsements, but it didn’t prove to be enough in the end to win.
Democrats and others tried to undo the results with vote recounts and appeals to members of the Electoral College to vote for someone other than Trump, but every tactic failed. Now, “Mr. Twitter” is headed for the Jan. 20 inauguration.
Louisiana voters elected Republican state Treasurer John Kennedy to the U.S. Senate to replace U.S. Sen. David Vitter, R-Metairie, re-elected four incumbent congressmen and picked two newcomers. Republican Clay Higgins, who made a name for himself on You Tube as the “Cajun John Wayne, won the 3rd Congressional District seat. Republican Mike Johnson won the 4th District seat as expected.
Unrest around the world hasn’t abated during 2016, and the nation is on pins and needles worrying about how Trump is going to deal with national and major international problems. He has already shown signs it won’t be politics as usual.
Keep your fingers crossed and say your prayers. We could be in for a wild ride in 2017.
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