LaPolitics by Maginnis: Pollster says governor needs to 'allay fears'

So far, it is Gov. Bobby Jindal's popularity that is bearing the brunt of adverse public reaction. Southern Media's annual issues poll released this week put Jindal's approval rating at 51%, down 13 points since last year. Sixty-eight percent of respondents opposed further budget cuts, with 89% opposed to more hospital cuts. In a prepared statement, Jindal says he pays no heed to polls in making the "tough decisions" he was elected to make. Politically, in that he can't run for governor again for seven years at the earliest, the timing is right to begin a long-term integration of public and private health care delivery. In the short term, Southern Media pollster Bernie Pinsonat believes Jindal would do well to "allay the fears" of citizens, who have heard worst-case scenarios, by stating that public hospitals will remain open and that quality care will be maintained through the partnerships.

—No Louisiana Supreme Court candidates are advertising on Baton Rouge TV yet, but a PAC formed by environmental lawyers and landowners is stating its case on the air and may get directly involved in the election. The Clean Water and Land PAC is running two commercials, one calling for the complete cleanup of oilfield sites and another warning of the threat to Baton Rouge drinking water from industrial use. The PAC's involvement suggests that the oilfield legacy lawsuit issue, on which oil and gas interests prevailed over lawyers and landowners in the legislative session, could be moving on to the state's high court, which has on its docket an oilfield contamination case from Vermilion Parish.

They said it: "I forgot where we were. Must be those cookies that (Rep.) Henry (Burns) brought." —Revenue Study Commission Chairman Joel Robideaux, R-Lafayette, following discussion of taxing marijuana

(John Maginnis publishes LaPolitics Weekly, a newsletter on Louisiana politics, at LaPolitics.com.)

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