This time last year, my annual look back opened with villainy. How could it not, when just six days in to 2021, our very democracy came under attack from an enemy within, enabled by far too many politicians who consider themselves patriots but who insisted on looking the other way? I said it a year ago and it still holds: Louisiana Republicans in Congress, with the sole exception of U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, I’m looking at you.
So it was really refreshing in 2022 to see some genuine heroics on display in Congress, from people who had much to lose but who still found the fortitude to stand up to bullying.
The committee investigating that awful day in January 2021 introduced us to a young staffer named Cassidy Hutchinson and others who couldn’t sit by while a bitter, ousted president, unbothered by the violence committed in his name, tried to thwart the will of the voters. Then at year’s end came the unforgettable appearance by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the intended victim in former President Donald Trump’s first impeachment trial-turned-world leader holding the line against Vladimir Putin. May they and those like them be examples to all who serve our state and our country in 2023.
And may that start with U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, of Jefferson Parish, definitely the local to watch on Capitol Hill in the new year. As of now, Scalise is still expected to become House majority leader this week, but count me among those who wouldn’t be shocked to see him elected speaker instead, as the obvious fallback should the hapless Kevin McCarthy come up short. Scalise has better political and people skills than McCarthy, and despite his right-wing message discipline, his good working relationship with incoming Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries could benefit the country as a whole. It sure wouldn’t hurt our area.
Also keep an eye on the independent-minded Cassidy, who bypassed a run for governor to become the ranking Republican on the Senate committee overseeing health, welfare, labor and pensions. Those ranking members willing to work across the aisle — and Cassidy has already proven that he is — can pass important legislation even though they’re in the minority. For Cassidy, this is an opportunity to chip away at shortcomings in our health care system, a longtime interest for the physician by trade, and also finally tackle family and medical leave, which has also long been on his to-do list.
Cassidy’s fellow U.S. Sen. John Kennedy is already making news this year, but mostly because he didn’t even wait to get sworn in to his new six-year term before exploring a run for governor this fall. He’s the leading “who else is out there” name right now, for those desperately seeking someone to block our culture warrior attorney general Jeff Landry from replacing the term-limited John Bel Edwards. Statewide officials such as Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser and Treasurer John Schroder have indicated they’d stand down for him, which suggests just how serious the quest is for an alternative. If I had to bet right now, though, I’d probably put my money on Kennedy stepping back — he’s done it before — and U.S. Rep. Garret Graves of Baton Rouge stepping up to run.
Beyond the open governor contest, the Louisiana race to watch in 2023 will be for insurance commissioner, as the collapse of private coverage is hitting voters where they live, literally. Longtime incumbent Jim Donelon worked hard after Hurricane Katrina to lure companies back into the market. If he and the Legislature can’t replicate that feat this year, watch out for the pitchforks.
And in New Orleans, this time last year Mayor LaToya Cantrell was getting ready to start her second term alongside an aggressive new City Council. I predicted a rocky road for her honor, but never envisioned anything like 2022. Dominated by devastating crime, public works failures, personal scandals and fights with the above-mentioned council, it’s been a true annus horribilis.
That doesn’t mean 2023 will be her last in office, though. Despite the well-organized and well-funded recall drive, the bar to get the question before voters, about 54,000 verified signatures, is just too high, I think.
Cantrell’s best chance at recapturing the faith of the fed-up voters is to hire herself a rock star police superintendent, as Marc Morial did when he lured Richard Pennington from the nation’s capital nearly two decades ago.
If not, I fear we’re looking at a long, dispiriting slog, the likes of which New Orleans hasn’t seen since the second term of Ray Nagin.