Various items

It looks like Mike Walker will be the next Mayor Pro Tem. Mike has done a good job of providing leadership to all of the new council members and they will reward him by making him the next Mayor Pro Tem of East Baton Rouge.

Bones Addison is the odd man out. Bones is spending more time in Florida and Chicago with the Obama transition team than he is in Baton Rouge. Bones told a friend of mine that with the election of Obama his business has increased ten times. Bones is in tight with the Obama team and Jessie Jackson. It appears that Bones has very little interest in the Metro Council. Last Thursday there was a retreat for the new Metro Council, Bones only showed up to take the official picture of the new council with the mayor and then he left. I have not heard anything official but makes me wonder if Bones is lining up for some appointed job with the Obama administration. My personal opinion is I would not put money on Bones completing his term of office.

This new Council has a very good working relationship and they are determined not to fight among themselves. It will be interesting to see how long this last.

Ronnie Edwards, Donna Collins-Lewis, C. Denise Marcelle, and Tara Wicker are natural allies and old Friends. I would expect that they will vote together most of the time. If you want something past in the Metro Council you better have the girls on your side.

The Parish of East Baton Rouge is getting geared up to be in the Obama Economic Stimulus line this February. I talked to someone in the Mayor's office and I was told that the mayor believes that President Elect Obama first actions as president will be to have an economic stimulus package that will include infra-structure improvement for cities. The Mayor wants to be in that line for money early and is now drafting a request. I was not told what kind of infra-structure improvements the Mayor will ask for, but I hope that he is asking for money for Baton Rouge's aging sewer plants and bridges.

AGENDA

FINANCE AND EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
2:30 P.M. Room 348

Item 23:
Authorizing the Mayor-President to enter into a cooperative endeavor
agreement and professional services contract with the Greater Baton
Rouge Economic Partnership, a non-profit affiliate of the Baton Rouge
Area Chamber, for the term of one year to act as the City-Parish’s
Economic Development Department, so as to effect a professional
business development program that will provide quality job growth and
increased economic opportunities for the City-Parish, and to appropriate
the sum of $500,000 for the funding thereof. By: Mayor-President.

On the East Baton Rouge Metro Council Finance and Executive Committee agenda for the meeting on November 19, 2008 item 23 authorizes the city to renew its contract with the Baton Rouge Area Chamber.

This contract is for "a professional development program that will provide quality job growth and increase economic opportunities for the City-Parish."
The City of Baton Rouge will pay the Chamber $500,000.

My question is shouldn't this already be the mission of the Chamber and why does Baton Rouge have to pay $500,000 for these services?

If the Chamber is acting as the economic arm of Baton Rouge and being funded by tax payers, why does the Chamber have a political PAC (FuturePAC) that is active in City-Parish political campaigns?

The new Metro Council elect was almost entirely supported by the Chamber's PAC, of the 12 members 10 were endorsed by FuturePAC. the only newly elected members that were not supported by the Chamber was Bonds Addison and Smokie Bourgeois.

FuturePAC donated $5000 to all of the candidates they endorsed for the primary election. For those candidates that was in a runoff they donated another 5 grand to those candidates. After the primary they also donated money to two new candidates that were not endorsed originally. In district 7 FuturePAC donated $5000 to Denise Marcelle after Isaiah Marshall did not make the runoff. In district 6 FuturePAC originally endorsed Martha Tassin and in the run-off they donated $5000 to Tassin campaign but hedging their bets they also gave Donna Collins-Lewis $3000 for the run-off.

The problem I have is that the Baton Rouge Chamber is active in getting Metro Council Members elected with FuturePAC and then it contracts with the City-Parish to the tune of $500,000. To me it just doesn't seem right.

I feel that any Council member who has received money from FuturePAC should reuse themselves from any vote that affects the Baton Rouge Chamber.

Informational links:
Who FuturePAC endorsed originally: http://www.brac.org/site.php?pageID=58&newsID=793
Who FuturePAC gave money to for the primary: http://www.ethics.state.la.us/cgi-bin/la98/forms/PAC990133/15283/202E-3
Who they gave money to for the runoff: http://www.ethics.state.la.us/cgi-bin/la98/forms/PAC990133/15906/202E-3

Bones Addison on the Rise

It is my understanding that Bonds is contacting fellow Metro Council Members for their support for the Mayor Pro-Tem job. As usual in Baton Rouge politics he is turning it into a black white issue.

I was hopping that Baton Rouge Metro Council would get past the black white issue. I was hopping that we would see the fulfillment of Dr. Martin Luther King dream that a person would not be judged for the color of their skin but the content of their character. Call me a dreamer.

The council is now evenly divided with 7 whites and 5 blacks, 5 women and 7 men, 6 democrats and 6 republicans. Either they can work together and get thing accomplished our they can spend the next four years fighting. It is their choice.