LaPolitics by Maginnis: Louisiana vs. Alabama, off the field

Published Oct 12, 2012 at 10:00 am (Updated Oct 12, 2012)

A potential settlement of BP oil spill claims is sparking protests from Alabama officials over a deal that could send more money to Louisiana. The Wall Street Journal on Thursday reported that negotiators for BP and the U.S. Justice Department are $6 billion apart, according to its source, on settling all criminal and civil claims by the federal government and five coastal states. But how the deal is structured—balancing Clear Water Act fines under terms of the congressional RESTORE Act against the Natural Resources Damages Assessment process that's governed under the Oil Pollution Act—could make a big difference in how much Louisiana gets compared to other states and how it can be spent.

—It appears that rival Reps. Charles Boustany and Jeff Landry won't be meeting in a head-on debate, at least not in the primary. The fault lies less with either camp than with a lack of coordination between two academic departments at UL Lafayette that were organizing the planned Monday event. The (Lafayette) Independent reports that the Boustany camp was left off of a string of emails between the Landry campaign and the UL communications department. This week, Boustany was surprised to learn that the original plan for a three-way forum, to include Lake Charles Democrat Ron Richard, had been pared down to a debate between the congressmen. Other details of location, moderator and a live TV broadcast also were changed in the interim. In the confusion, organizers canceled the event.

They said it: "This governor has gone from health care to 'we don't care.'" —Rep. Stephen Ortego, D-Carencro, in an interview with Lafayette's KATC-TV

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