Longtime Plaquemine bank moving into Baton Rouge

First Financial Bank & Trust is set to open a branch on Jefferson Highway in December. The location next to the Bocage Village Shopping Center will be the second branch for Plaquemine-based First Financial. "To keep the momentum going, we must evolve and grow," says Danny Strickland, president and CEO of First Financial. Plans are to hire about five people at the branch. First Financial, which was founded in 1915, has about $56.5 million in deposits.

LaPolitics by John Maginnis: How high up will EBR probe go?

A federal investigation of bribery focused on state and city courts in East Baton Rouge Parish has quickly secured four guilty pleas while raising questions and spawning rumors of how high up the probe will go. So far, the chief investigator of the local public defenders office, an assistant city attorney and two police officers have pled guilty in federal district court. Documents mentioning bribery of "other court officials" have the courthouse buzzing over whether any local judges will be implicated. U.S. Attorney David Dugas says the probe, dubbed Operation Illegal Motion, has been going on for two years.

—After the U.S. House of Representatives votes on its health care reform bill on Saturday, the last Louisiana vote in doubt will be Sen. Mary Landrieu's. The Senate vote, though, won't happen soon, as Democrats now do not expect it take place until early next year. Key to Landrieu's support of the bill is what form a government-run plan, the public option, takes. The alternative she is working on is a trigger mechanism that would only allow the public option in states where the private market does not provide enough affordable plans from which citizens may choose.

—With less than six weeks to complete its final report, the state Streamlining Commission will start voting on recommendations on Monday. Some of the bolder ideas put forth by Treasurer John Kennedy and the Mercatus Center of George Mason University have met strong resistance within the commission and state government. Kennedy points out that many of the recommendations that are expected to pass are ones the Jindal administration is already implementing. Even if all those reductions are made, he doesn't see that coming close to the $802 million in recommended cuts the governor has asked for. "I'd rather see us devote our time to things the administration isn't already doing," he says. Depending on what the commission does or doesn't do, Kennedy said he might write a minority report.

(John Maginnis publishes LaPolitics Weekly, a newsletter on Louisiana politics, at LaPolitics.com.)

Saints now favorite to win the Super Bowl

How times have changed. Las Vegas oddsmakers have made the New Orleans Saints favorites to win the Super Bowl. The Times-Picayune says the Saints are 3-1 favorites to win the game, better odds than the Indianapolis Colts, who are 5-1. The Saints, who are one of two undefeated teams, started the NFL season at 20-1 odds. "No team has proven themselves more in bettors' eyes when it comes to futures this season than the New Orleans Saints," Bodog Sportsbook manager Richard Gardner told the newspaper.

U.S. jobless rate tops 10% for first time since ’83

The unemployment rate has surpassed 10% for the first time since 1983 — and is likely to go higher. Nearly 16 million people can't find jobs even though the worst recession since the Great Depression has apparently ended. Many economists worry that persistently high unemployment could undermine the recovery by restraining consumer spending. The Labor Department says the jobless rate rose to 10.2%, the highest since April 1983, from 9.8% in September. The economy shed a net total of 190,000 jobs in October, less than the downwardly revised 219,000 lost in September, but more than economists expected. The jump in the jobless rate reflects a sharp increase in the tally of unemployed Americans, which rose to 15.7 million from 15.1 million. The net loss of jobs occurred across most industries, from manufacturing and construction to retail and financial. That tally is based on a separate survey of businesses. Economists say the unemployment rate could climb as high as 10.5% next year because employers remain reluctant to hire.

Ida downgraded to tropical depression

Ida continued to drench Central America as a tropical depression today, but forecasters warn the late-season storm has some chance of regaining strength and heading toward the U.S. At 9 a.m., Ida was located about 55 miles west of the Honduras-Nicaragua border, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Maximum sustained winds remained near 35 mph, and the depression was moving north near 7 mph. This general motion was expected to continue today, with a turn to the north-northwest expected Saturday. According to the NHC’s five-day forecast, Ida was expected to brush past the Mexican resorts of Cancun and Cozumel on Saturday as a tropical storm before emerging into the southern Gulf of Mexico. Ida was expected to be west of Key West, Fla., and south of Pensacola, Fla., at 7 a.m. Tuesday before turning toward the northeast later Tuesday or Wednesday. On the forecast track, Ida would threaten the Florida Peninsula on Thursday or Friday as a tropical storm or an extratropical storm. Click here for the NHC Web site.

Are you the Fittest Exec in the Capital Region?

Think you are more fit than your peers? Business Report has launched its second Fittest Execs competition, in which Capital Region business executives compete in four categories (men 44 and under, men 45 and over, women 44 and under and women 45 and over). The competition is open to executives (C-level, president, vice president, owner, partner, executive director or retired executives) and mid-level managers. In addition, companies with a minimum of five participants are eligible for a team competition. Fitness appraisals will take place at Bally Total Fitness Baton Rouge through Nov. 20, with the results to be announced in the Dec. 29 issue of Business Report. The deadline to enter is Nov. 16. Click here to register or for more information.

Poll: Make cuts to restore lakes

Fifty-three percent of people who responded to a Daily Report poll say LSU, the city-parish and BREC should make budget cuts in order to pay for the restoration of the six lakes near LSU and City Park. Forty-one percent were against making the estimated $16 million in cuts to pay for the project and 6% were undecided. Nearly 1,150 people participated in the poll. Local partners have balked at the cost of restoring the LSU lakes.

Today's question: Who will win Saturday's LSU-Alabama football game?

Aunt Sally's Pralines reap sweet rewards

Aunt Sally's Pralines has been chosen as one of the most influential new products of the year by the National Confectionary Sales Association. Among the top three award recipients in the non-chocolate category, the New Orleans-based confectionary was honored for their "Lite" pralines, as well as the new "caramel pecan chewy" and "sugar and spice" varieties—the latter of which is made with McIlhenny Tabasco sauce. The praline shop was the first business in the French Market to reopen after Hurricane Katrina, and made pralines for rescue and aid workers. The NCSA praised the company for forging ahead with new ideas even while the city was still recovering. Also this week in 225 Dine, learn where you can indulge in a leisurely Cantonese-style Dim Sum dinner and find some great pies to satisfy your sweet tooth. Read the newsletter here.

News roundup: Waldenbooks plans to close nearly 200 stores ... Small businesses see steep rise in insurance costs ... AT&T completes Centennial deal

Getting smaller: About 200 Waldenbooks stores across the U.S. are set to close in January, bringing the number of the mall-based bookstores to about 130. Borders Group, which owns Waldenbooks, says this is part of a strategy to operate a smaller company that complements its freestanding Borders bookstores. Plans are to close the Waldenbooks stores in Alexandria and Bossier City.

Paying more: Small businesses are seeing insurance premiums go up an average of 15% for 2010, double the rate of last year's increases, reports the New York Times. The hike is due to the continuing rise in medical costs and speculation that insurance companies are raising premiums to get ahead of any federal health care legislation that could cut into profits. Small employers are at a disadvantage since they don't have the negotiating clout that big companies have.

Talk to me: AT&T has completed its $945 million purchase of Centennial Communications, expanding its coverage across rural Louisiana. AT&T will pick up about 893,000 customers in the South, Midwest and Puerto Rico and will start selling its products in nearly 100 former Centennial stores. As part of the deal, AT&T has agreed to sell off Centennial assets in Iberville, West Feliciana, Beauregard and DeSoto parishes, Lafayette and Alexandria. Verizon is set to pick up some of those assets.