News roundup: Jindal on Romney VP pick: 'It's not about the vice president' … Chabert absorbs budget cuts without closures, layoffs … Louisiana leads U.S. rig increases on the week

Published Aug 10, 2012 at 2:00 pm (Updated Aug 10, 2012)

Hype and hyperbole: As the entire political establishment awaits word of Mitt Romney's running mate, CNN wonders in a blog post if one potential pick—Gov. Bobby Jindal—is blowing off its importance and potential impact. When asked by CNN on Thursday if he's awaiting word from the Romney campaign on whether or not he'll be picked, Jindal deflected the question—then intimated that the selection itself won't amount to much. "This election is not about Joe Biden. It's not about the vice president. It's about the two guys running at the top of the ticket," Jindal says. Read the full story here.

Under the knife: Houma's Leonard J. Chabert Medical Center will scale back on overtime and elective surgeries and delay remodeling projects to absorb a $3.7 million budget cut, The (Houma) Courier reports. The hospital won't have to close departments or lay off any employees, but the move will still have an impact on patient services, says Chabert CEO Rhonda Green. Green says the hospital plans an overall reduction in operations as a result of the cut. The full story is here.

Something's coming up: The number of rigs actively exploring for oil and natural gas in Louisiana rose by four this week to 122—the greatest gain of any major oil- and gas-producing state in the nation—Houston-based oilfield services company Baker Hughes Inc. reports today. However, that's still 48 rigs fewer than the Baker Hughes count for Louisiana during the same week a year ago. The U.S. rig count increased by one to 1,931, down from 1,959 a year ago. You can access the complete report here.