Rep. John Bel Edwards needs to be authentic and tell voters who he is, says Business Report Published Rolfe McCollister in his latest column.
“Is he the liberal, union champion, big government entitlements advocate and House Democratic Caucus chairman—or is he the pro-life, pro-gun, Southern Democrat and West Point grad who is ashamed to stand with his party, the president or Hillary Clinton?,” McCollister wonders. “On one hand he panders to the teachers unions, pushes more government programs and brags in front of minorities about how he stands up to the ‘powers that be’ when no one else does—and then he runs and hides when Hillary Clinton comes to town and also runs a TV spot for his campaign that never mentions he is the only Democrat in the race.”
Noting that Edwards is chairman of the House Democratic Caucus and toes the party line, McCollister wonders why he doesn’t “stand up” as a proud Democrat?
“Why is he trying to fool voters?,” McCollister writes.
And while Edwards is working hard to mask his true colors, McCollister says, one of his leading Republican challengers, U.S. Sen. David Vitter, has begun showing his as his poll numbers drop and his TV advertising campaign kicks into high gear.
“Negative advertisements are starting to flood the television airwaves, with Vitter and the super PAC that supports him going after Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle and Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne,” McCollister writes. “He is throwing low blows and cheap shots using the ‘liberal’ tag and an Obama photo as his worn-out weapons—the same ones he used against U.S. Rep. Charlie Melancon in 2010—to obscure his own lack of character and values. Dardenne and Angelle don’t deserve this—but I am sure Vitter’s scurrilous ads have not surprised them.”
Vitter may be forgiven for his past “sins,” McCollister says, but he is still “mean-spirited, vindictive and threatening to people—not your ‘humble servant leader.’”
As a conservative Republican, small business owner and Louisiana native, McCollister says he must speak out against Vitter.
“I shared previously in this space my views on why Vitter is not right for Louisiana (“David Vitter and the elephant in the room”). Others are seeing that, too, and his support is falling,” McCollister writes. “Now he will try to destroy his opponents with all the money he has raised. Vitter running sleazy attack ads only reinforces his mean and nasty reputation.”
Read the full column, in which McCollister also calls on BREC officials to have the guts to close the Howell Park Golf Course in north Baton Rouge—which is among the underused BREC golf courses that contribute to a $1 million loss in tax dollars every year—and not bow to the pressure from some golfers to keep the course open. Send your comments to editors@businessreport.com.
