Baker announces resignation from Congress

U.S. Rep. Richard Baker announced this morning he would leave Congress effective Feb. 7 to take a job as head of the Managed Funds Association. Baker, who made the announcement on WJBO, says he may step down before next month. The Baton Rouge Republican has been in Congress since 1986. Less than two weeks ago, Baker said he was being considered for the job as president of the MFA, the hedge fund industry's main lobbying group. Baker is a longtime member of the House Financial Services Committee.

Baker says his decision to leave was not an easy one, but the move will give him more time with his family. According to a report in the Times-Picayune, as head of the MFA, he is expected to get a salary and benefits package worth more than $1 million a year.

Baker's resignation is another blow to the seniority of Louisiana's Congressional delegation. Gov. Bobby Jindal's seat is open, and U.S. Rep. Jim McCrery has announced he will retire at the end of his term. Several names are already being mentioned as possible replacements for Baker. Mike Futrell, a former member of the Metro Council and the House; and Paul Sawyer, Baker's former chief of staff, are potential Republican candidates. Other Republicans who have expressed interest in the race include East Baton Rouge Parish Metro Council members David Boneno and Mike Walker, Livingston Parish Assessor Jeff Taylor, Rep. Hunter Greene and former Rep. Woody Jenkins. Rep. Don Cazayoux of New Roads, a Democrat, announced last week he was running for the seat, regardless of what Baker did. Livingston Parish President Mike Grimmer, Rep. Michael Jackson and Jason DeCuir, a Baton Rouge attorney who ran for the state senate this fall, have said they may be Democratic candidates.

Baker election could be May 3

It could be a quick and concentrated race to choose U.S. Rep. Richard Baker's successor. Gov. Bobby Jindal will set the election date, but Secretary of State Jay Dardenne will recommend the election for Baker's seat be held at the same time as the election for the First District seat, which became open when Jindal became governor. That would mean qualifying would take place in two weeks, Jan. 29-31. The first party primary election would take place March 8, with runoffs set for April 5. The general election would be held May 3. Earlier today, Baker announced his resignation from Congress, effective no later than Feb. 6, to become CEO of the Managed Funds Association in Washington, D.C.

Jindal up and running on first full day as governor

You don’t have to call him governor-elect anymore. In fact, you don’t even have to visit Bobby Jindal’s transition Web site any longer, either. That’s because the Baton Rouge Republican now has claim to the site of the Louisiana governor. True to form, it’s a modern-looking site, not unlike the tricked-out campaign Web site Jindal used during last year’s election. Such a tech-savvy approach has become a hallmark of this powerful political brand, as has Jindal’s attire (the top images on the governor’s official site are of Jindal, sans tie of course). There’s also a video where Jindal makes a personal pitch for ethics reform, an early indication that the governor may be taking his message directly to the public—again—in advance of his Feb. 10 special session. And if you’ve got the time, you can watch Monday’s inauguration on the site as well. Even the first lady has her own page on the state’s server. A new Web site is an easy way to get the administration off to a good start the morning after the inauguration, but Jindal and Co. got down to work at 10 a.m. today, when the full cabinet met together for the first time at the Governor’s Mansion. --Jeremy Alford

Louisiana has third-highest auto insurance rates

Louisiana motorists have the third-highest annual auto insurance rates, according to a report by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. The report, based on auto insurance rates from 2004-05, found that Louisiana drivers paid an average of $1,070 a year for insurance. That was behind only New Jersey ($1,182) and the District of Columbia ($1,113). One spot of good news: The average cost of auto insurance dropped by 1.3% in 2005.

Investor buys Gonzales warehouse site

An investor has paid $1.55 million for a 14.89-acre industrial warehouse site in Gonzales. GW & SK bought the property, near Airline Highway and Interstate 10. The site is currently occupied by Co-Fab, an industrial pipe fabrication company, and includes 3,500 square feet of office space and a 31,500-square-foot warehouse, outfitted with overhead cranes. Troy Daigle of Donnie Jarreau Real Estate represented the buyer, while Don Hanna of Sealy-Falgoust represented the seller, Laupe Inc.

'Little Chenier’ to open Friday at B.R. theater

Little Chenier: A Cajun Story will open Friday in movie theaters across Louisiana, including the Celebrity Grand Cinema 8 on George O’Neal and Jones Creek roads. A portion of the profits from ticket sales will benefit Rita Remembered, a nonprofit established to aid victims of Hurricane Rita. One month after filming wrapped, the hurricane devastated the southwest Louisiana coastline, virtually wiping out the community in which the movie was filmed. Writer/director and Lake Charles native Bethany Ashton Wolf’s movie footage is the last look at Little Chenier before it was destroyed, leaving most of its inhabitants homeless. “It is very important to us that we give something back to the community which opened its arms to us and embraced the cast and crew as their own, even after the tragedy of Hurricane Rita,” Wolf says. Little Chenier is the story of a young man who lives a simple life on a houseboat in the Louisiana bayou with his mentally handicapped brother until one is accused of a crime in the small town. The film stars Johnathon Schaech (That Thing You Do), Fred Koehler (Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood), Tamara Braun (General Hospital), Jeremy Davidson (Windtalkers), Clifton Collins Jr. (Capote, Traffic, Tigerland) and Chris Mulkey (Broken Trails, Twin Peaks).

Mann looks at Clinton-Obama spat

An op-ed by Bob Mann, a chaired professor at LSU's Manship School of Mass Communications and a 225 magazine contributor, looking at the spat between U.S. Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama was published in today's Boston Globe. The disagreement centers on Clinton's suggestion that former President Lyndon Johnson played a bigger role in getting civil rights legislation passed than the Rev. Martin Luther King. But Mann, who recently wrote a book about how Congress passed civil rights laws in the 1950s and 1960s, says the argument is pointless and used an analogy Boston football fans will recognize. "Who is more responsible for all those New England Patriots touchdowns this season—Tom Brady or Randy Moss?" he says. "The answer, of course, is that both men, and other team members, played essential but unique roles in their team's success." Read Mann's column here.

USA Today looks at Katrina volunteers who stuck around

USA Today has a report on some of the volunteers who came to help with the Hurricane Katrina rebuilding effort and ended up staying in metro New Orleans. John and Mary Mueller left their five-bedroom home in Florida and are spending two years living in a FEMA trailer in St. Bernard Parish. "Living here has really given us an appreciation for what we have. I challenge anyone who thinks their life stinks to come and live in a FEMA trailer for a year," John Mueller says. "That'll give you some perspective." Officials say they don't know how many volunteers are staying long-term in the New Orleans area, but an official with the United Methodist Church estimates 3,000 out of 42,000 volunteers who passed through their doors have stuck around. Read the story here. For a companion story about how New Orleans is adding residents who want to be part of the rebuilding, click here.

Real Estate Weekly has news on home sales, casino project

Real Estate Weekly is out with news about how 2007 ended up for Capital Area home sales, a new development next to Hollywood Casino, downtown condos and the latest columns from Brian Andrews and Tom Cook. To read the newsletter, click here.

Poll: Fans think ticket increase is too much

Most of the people who responded to a Daily Report survey say they don't agree with plans to raise LSU football ticket prices. Forty-four percent of the people who responded to an online poll say the proposed increase is too much. Twenty-eight percent say they don't care, because they couldn’t afford tickets before the proposed increase. Twenty percent say they agree with the hike, because it's going for the best college team in the land. And 8% say they don’t care because they're still on a high from last week's BCS championship. Nearly 2,300 people participated in the survey. The proposed hike, which would raise some season-ticket prices by as much as $450 over the next three years, goes before the LSU Board of Supervisors on Thursday.

Today's question: What's your reaction to Rep. Richard Baker's decision to leave Congress and take a job with the Managed Funds Association?

News roundup: Forum members to hear about 'Driving Louisiana Forward'; Shaw expands credit line; Loop meeting set for Thursday

Speaker set for monthly lunch: Jennifer Marusak, the spokeswoman for the “Driving Louisiana Forward” campaign, will be the guest speaker at Forum 35's monthly luncheon, which will be held noon Friday at Juban's Restaurant. “Driving Louisiana Forward” is an effort to improve the state transportation system and set up a long-term funding system. Admission is $15 for Forum 35 members, $20 for nonmembers. For more information or to register, click here. More money to spend: The Shaw Group announced today it has extended the amount of money it can borrow under its current credit agreement from $850 million to $1 billion. The company says the increased borrowing power will mostly be used for letters of credit to support business growth. Shaw says it's been given lender approval to borrow up to $1.25 billion. More traffic talk: The executive committee of the Baton Rouge Loop implementation plan team, comprised of the presidents of the five affected parishes, will meet at 10:30 a.m. Thursday in the Metro Council Chambers. The committee will hear updates on funding and refinement of potential corridors. More information is available at brloop.com.