Good Morning, Catching most people’s attention, of course, is LSU and Coach Ed Orgeron parting company at the end of the football season after two lackluster seasons, and who will take his place. But politics continues. Legislators are launching a statewide tour Wednesday to hear from the public about who they want included in the districts from which voters elect congressmen, legislators, and other posts that run government. A coalition of major civil rights organizations, both national and state, are demanding that Louisiana legislators redraw election districts to increase the chance that a second Black person can be elected to Congress. They submitted seven different plans for Congressional District 5, currently represented by U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow, R-Start, largely to show how easy making minor alterations in district lines would switch the White and conservative majority to one where Black people hold a bare majority and thereby have a better chance of electing a less conservative candidate. The Bond Commission is scheduled to go political Thursday in demanding the nation’s largest bank, JP Morgan Chase, disclose its gun policies and to discuss a complex financial transaction that could decide the future of the Saints in the face of anti-New Orleans feelings among some of the commission’s members. Gamblers are waiting for the announcements of the first casinos to be allowed to handle wagers on sporting events. The Gaming Control Board, which regulates gambling in Louisiana, is meeting Thursday. At the same time, vetting of the first applications, which was slowed by Hurricane Ida, is nearing completion. The Louisiana State Police then can recommend which applications to accept and thus allow Control Board Chair Ronnie Johns to sign the paperwork for a casino to open on-premises, in-person sports betting. That’ll be the first step in a plan that eventually will allow sports betting on smart phones, computers and in many restaurants and bars. The family of a prominent Democratic state senator is coming under close scrutiny for landing lucrative debris contracts, picking up wreckage left by Hurricane Ida. The father of state Sen. Gary Smith Jr., D-Norco, filed an ethics disclosure for debris-staging contracts in St. Charles Parish that are worth more than $105,000, the first such disclosure anyone has made to the state Board of Ethics in six years. Three different governmental entities – the state Department of Transportation and Development, Jefferson Parish and St. Charles Parish Schools – are using a site owned by Smith family members to stage debris before it is hauled off to landfills, records show. Debris removal is typically one of the most expensive parts of hurricane recovery for the government. As always, check throughout the day for the latest Louisiana political news at theadvocate.com/politics or NOLA.com/politics and on Twitter at @MarkBallardCNB, @tegbridges, @samkarlin, @blakepater, @WillSentell. Here are a dozen articles, commentaries and editorials that will catch you up for the week to come. One last item: Thank you to our subscribers. Your support means a great deal to us. If you're not yet a subscriber, we’ve got a special offer you can check out here. – Mark Ballard |