| Good Morning, Today is the 80th anniversary of the two-hour attack on Pearl Harbor that sunk or damaged 18 US warships, destroyed 188 aircraft, and killed 2,403 American servicemembers. The day that will live in infamy led to U.S. entry into World War II. At the State Capitol, the fight is over the Louisiana Department of Health’s regulations that would require students to be vaccinated for COVID-19 in order to attend school. Though opponents didn’t participate in the rulemaking procedures, they showed up in droves Monday to complain before the state House Committee on Health & Welfare. The committee overwhelmingly voted to oppose the rule. But at this juncture, Gov. John Bel Edwards would need to agree to overturning the addition of the COVID vaccination to the battery of required inoculations, such as for polio, measles, mumps, and rubella. He has said he backs adding the COVID vaccine to the state immunization schedule. In Monroe, a federal district court ruled that a federal agency under directions from the Biden administration had overstepped its authority by demanding COVID vaccinations for millions of healthcare workers and temporarily ended the nationwide requirement. The court’s 34-page injunction will be reviewed by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and perhaps the U.S. Supreme Court. Three out of four public schools and districts showed drops in their school performance scores in the pandemic-plagued 2020-21 school year. Also, schools that relied on virtual learning showed bigger declines than others. Louisiana is poised to receive $101 million as the first installment of federal money from the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The first batch of funds will go towards improving drinking water infrastructure, including replacing lead pipes, removing contaminants, and ensuring rural and underserved communities have clean drinking water. And don’t forget that Saturday is Election Day. Orleans Parish will have runoffs for sheriff and in some city council races. The Secretary of State’s Office predicts 16-18% of the New Orleans voters will participate. Six other parishes, including East Baton Rouge and Iberia, likewise will have local propositions and candidate races. About 30% of St. Tammany Parish voters are expected to turn out to decide whether to authorize a casino to relocate in the parish. Twenty-five other parishes also will have only local propositions on the ballot, including Acadia, Calcasieu, Jefferson, Lafourche, Livingston, St. Helena, St. Landry, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, and Washington parishes. Vernon Parish will have a candidate race and Ouachita Parish has a recall election plus a local proposition. The Secretary of State’s Office predicts a 10% turnout statewide, but 35 parishes won’t have anything on the ballot, including East Feliciana, Evangeline, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, Plaquemines, Pointe Coupee, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Martin, Vermilion, Webster, West Baton Rouge, and West Feliciana parishes. 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 |
