Breakfast with Senator Cassidy

On Saturday, July 19th, I had the chance to sit down with State Senator William Cassidy, candidate for Congress in the 6th congressional district. The Senator and I talked over the issues at Louie's near LSU.

Louisiana Conservative: First of all, Good Morning, Senator. I’m glad we got this opportunity to sit down and talk. We’re all looking forward to watching you make this run for Congress. I just have a few questions that are on the minds of a lot of people, starting right off with one of the big “hot button issues” of the day, and that’s energy. On both sides of the aisle there are a lot of questions being asked. Some support drilling off the coast, in ANWR and anywhere that we can produce more oil, while others hesitate to drill, preferring different means. What do you think about this issue?

Senator William Cassidy: We should expand drilling. We should open up areas that are currently closed. The idea that we can encourage some states by revenue sharing is a good idea. Another thing, we also know that we can now drill in environmentally sensitive areas without the same risk of pollution that once existed. After Katrina, the losses that occurred from oil spillage were not from the rigs, it was from storage tanks floating up, it was from old infrastructure that leaked. We’re talking about new areas; we’re talking about newer infrastructure that further minimizes the risk. In a way, that benefits Louisiana. We know that in Louisiana we’re going to supply a lot of those off-shore oil drilling platforms. Our core competency includes building boats for off-shore oil, building rigs, Louisiana people to do the work and to teach others to work on the rigs. So, not only is it good for our country, it’s good for our state.

LC: One of the other areas that people are feeling the energy crunch is in the price of electricity. Another dividing issue here is nuclear energy. Where do you stand on that?

WC: Isn’t it ironic that nuclear energy has become the green energy? No carbon footprints. That’s the interesting thing about it. So, the reality is the regulatory problem with building a nuclear plant is such that it’s not feasible. We’ve got to improve the regulatory environment so that we’re able to build nuclear without pricing it out. We need to invest in it. France? Eighty percent of their electricity comes from nuclear energy. They ship electricity to the surrounding countries. They’ve clearly made a tremendous impact on the consumption of fossil fuels. We should encourage that.

LC: Being a physician yourself, these next two questions, you would seem uniquely qualified to answer. Where, in your opinion, does life begin?

WC: In utero. I’m pro-life. Life begins in utero. In some ways we acknowledge that in our laws, and in some ways we don’t. Clearly this is a problem that society has to work on, and it’s going to be hard; but, I’m an optimistic person and I’m optimistic that even people who are pro-choice say they want to limit abortion, and that shows we’ve won the moral argument. Everyone agrees that it’s not a good thing, now it’s just “how do we stop it.”

LC: The second question is that of our health care system. You hear a great deal about nationalizing the health care system. Is this really a good idea?

WC:I work for a government run health care system. I’ve been doing it for twenty years. It gives me an opportunity to serve people who are uninsured. Having said that, most of the people I treat are uninsured. People vote with their feet and move to the private sector. The private sector has been able to respond more quickly and to meet patient needs more effectively. I am strongly in favor of maintaining a privately run health care system.

LC:Some of the folks that I have talked to are particularly concerned that Congress will not renew the tax cuts that President Bush put into place. Do you feel that they should be made permanent?

WC:The power to tax is the power to destroy. If you raise taxes, you decrease productivity. That’s the bottom line. It’s always fool’s gold. You think that if you raise taxes, you’ll increase government revenue and reduce government deficits. No one likes government deficits. The fact is, though, that you reduce productivity and tax receipts are going to go down. John F. Kennedy put it best, “Times of recession are times that you decrease taxes.” George H.W. Bush did it wrong. Just as we were coming out of a recession, he increased taxes. When he did so, we deepened our recession and he lost his Presidency. So history as a guide, we should not increase those tax rates.

LC:With the reduction of taxes comes the question of spending. If we reduce the rate of tax money coming in, should we not also reduce the amount of money going out?

WC:Absolutely. Earmarks get a lot of attention. It’s kind of like going backpacking with the scouts. My son is a scout. They say, “If you watch the ounces, the pounds take care of themselves.” So with earmarks, it’s a substantial amount of money, but people say it’s a small percentage of the budget. If you’re so conscious that “this is an earmark and we don’t have the money. We have to watch that penny.” If you watch the pennies, the dollars take care of themselves. Or in the federal government you might say, if you watch the millions, the billions will be taken care of. So, we need to be so conscious about it. Not just the earmarks, but the new entitlements, etcetera. If we can’t pay for it, we shouldn’t do it.

LC:Talk radio is very near and dear to my heart, because it’s so close to what I do here. I hear a great deal on talk radio about the “fairness” doctrine. How do you feel about it?

WC:Well the fairness doctrine is obviously a return to a time when the regulated airwaves had to have equal time for different candidates. Clearly that didn’t prevent newscasters from expressing their personal opinion in subtle ways, or presenting a particular candidate in a positive or negative fashion. The fact is, with the diversity of media we have now, the fairness doctrine seems like an old legal doctrine that doesn’t need to apply to the radio waves, or the print media, or the internet. My gosh, if you can’t be on the internet now with your particular viewpoint, then you don’t have any sense of how to use technology.

LC:I just have one more major question for you, and it has been a major issue for several years. Things in Iraq seem to be starting to ease up. How do you feel about what’s going on there, and how it has been handled?

WC:Wow. It’s interesting. The Democrats have been saying that the surge wouldn’t work. The surge clearly has worked. Now they’re saying we were wrong on that, but we’ll be right on the next step. Whatever your feelings about the beginning of the war, the fact is; we’re in there now, and the surge worked. Also, I saw in the paper this morning that President Bush is announcing a plan for ultimate troop withdrawal. We’ve done that while stabilizing the country and theoretically bringing its oil supply back online for the short term future. If we’re successful, what will emerge is a country that is a bulwark against terrorism. So, our troops should be home as soon as possible, but not a day too soon. The surge has worked, and to say that we’ll have the troops home in six months no matter what is a foolish policy.

LC:Senator, I really appreciate you time today, it has been an honor and a privilege.

WC:Thanks, I enjoyed it.

The One-Eyed Jack.

I don't know about you, but I've always enjoyed a good game of cards. I remember, as a child, playing cards with my cousins, we liked to use a lot of wild cards when we played. Our favorite was to use the one-eyed Jacks. There's something mysterious about the Jack of Spades and the Jack of Hearts. They showed the world one aspect, but what were they hiding on the other side? It occurs to me that we've a pair of one-eyed jacks representing our area even now in Washington. Both Congressman Don Cazayoux, affectionately know on Louisiana Conservative as "Coullion", and Senator Marie Laveau, I'm sorry, I meant Mary Landrieu, are showing us one face, but what are they hiding? They both have been talking a good game about energy independence. They both verbally advocate drilling and refining our own oil here in the United States. They both talk about doing what is best for Louisiana and standing up to party leadership. Is that what they are really doing?

Let's examine first the record of Congressman "Cash-in-on-you". We talked before the election about his claims of fiscal conservatism. We talked about his record in Baton Rouge stating otherwise. We also mentioned that he would never be able to stand up to the overwhelming force of his own party. His record shows that he as not. Out of the first 100 votes he cast in the House, his voting record shows that he has walked in steady, lock-step rhythm with Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic party. This "Blue dog" Democrat was quickly brought to heel. In a conversation that I had with his office, they assured me that he was in favor of drilling, and refining, here in the United States. They said that he would lead the fight to drill here in American, to open up ANWR and the OCS. When the chance came for him to lead, he marched right up to Pelosi and made sure he got the last word. Tragically, it was "Yes Ma'am."

What about Senator Laveau? The New Orleans voodoo queen of the Senate had her chance to shine as well. According to Washington insiders, she was offered an opportunity to cast the deciding vote that would have expanded domestic energy exploration by lifting the moratorium on oil shale development. Landireu, a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, instead voted no according to the Rocky Mountain News at the request of the committee chairman, Democratic Senator Ken Salazar. In her own words she said this: "Sen. Salazar asked me to vote no. I did so at his request."

Let's look at the impact these two could have had on Louisiana. Here in the state, we have sixteen of the nation's oil refineries, including Exxon Mobil's Baton Rouge refinery and Placcid refinery in Port Allen. These sixteen refineries process an average of 2,945,800 barrells of oil per day according to Wikipedia. Oil is a major portion of the Louisiana economy,and the lifeblood of Baton Rouge. If you do not believe me, just ask any of the friends and neighbors that you have that work for Exxon or Placcid. They'll tell you how important it is to their job. What would these additional oil revenue do for the economy of our area? What about for our state? How nice would it be to pay less at the pump? These things aren't happening right now thanks to the care and devotion of our national Democratic Party.

This is just one issue. One that can be resolved this November by making a change in who we send to Washington. Ladies and Gentlemen, we are on the verge of some great things in this state, and we have a chance to spread that momentum into our nation's captial. Let's get "Cash-in-on-you" and Senator Laveau out of our nightmares, and out of our Congress. Let's discard the one-eyed jacks.

What's Not to Love?

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights; that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

Two hundred thirty two years ago, these words were adopted by the Continental Congress, declaring boldly, not just our independence, but the rights of all mankind. The United States of America, from its inception, has been innovative and bold. There was greatness in the words written by Thomas Jefferson so long ago. That greatness has carried on in the history of this country. The freedom guaranteed by that founding document has been defended by an unbroken line of heroes that have stood on the battlefields of America, Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and all over the world.

Our leaders have stood before the world as statesmen that changed the world, declaring the values and ideals of this American nation. It was these United States that demonstrated that a people oppressed can rise up and defeat an empire. It was these United States that showed Imperial Japan that sleeping giants can awaken. It was these United States that stood before the Third Reich and proved that evil would not be tolerated in the world. We have stood strong in the face of evil, liberated those under the thumb of dictators, commanded an “evil empire” to “tear down this wall” and seen the blessed light of liberty glowing brightly as the wall came tumbling down.

What is it about America that leads us to such greatness? I have always believed that it is not merely the rights and freedoms that we have founded our nation on, but the acknowledgement from whence they came. The “blessings of liberty” are in fact God given. God bless America is not merely a slogan, but a citation of source. We are one nation under God. As a people, we lose sight of that fact, or, more honestly, we ignore that fact at times. Still, the truth of it cannot be underestimated. Our first President, George Washington, so truthfully stated, “It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the Bible.”

It is not only the source of our blessings that makes us great, but the source of the government’s mandate. The very foundation upon which our Constitution was built, “We the people.” What makes America great, quite simply is, Americans. Take a look around you today, as we celebrate. That great struggling mass of individuals forms the tightly woven fabric of our nation. Some of them have fought and bled for us on foreign soil. Some have stayed home and shouldered their own burdens, but all have contributed something into our great nation. Let us never forget that we all have a duty to make this system work.

America is still the greatest country in the world. No matter what some would tell you, this country is as strong as the base of a pillar, upon which is lain the world. Though some would gaze at us in loathing, jealousy or spite, our greatness is undeniable. Let each American voice, today raise up the virtues of this great land of ours, and LET FREEDOM RING!