Finally, Real Presidential Leadership On Afghanistan.

 President Biden's order for the American withdrawal from Afghanistan was once again an American example of true leadership to a problem originated by some one other than himself.  In the face of criticism by the press, the GOP, the pro-war groups and those who want to see his administration fail, the President told all the "buck stops with him."

And in spite of the  cries from the opposition  about chaos taking place, the President's steady leadership has resulted in a steady evacuation of Americans and Afghans who cooperated with the U.S. over the 20 years of war.  As of this writing over 50,000 people have been evacuated and the effort continues.  The evacuation has been successful even though the Afghan government and its military cut and ran instead of fighting for their own country and protecting their own people.  The negative voices in America have a real problem understanding what is so good about America and how difficult the war was.  Those negative voices have no answer to the problem except another 20 years of American occupation.  President Biden understood the past sacrifice of our troops when he said he would not see another American lose his  life in Afghanistan when the Afghan military failed to defend their own country.  

America now has a President wo understands war, its effects, its limitations and its consequences.  Biden's steady leadership on the issues will be the checks and balance against the noise machine out there who want to see he and the country fail.  The media and negative voices will continue to wrongly describe the withdrawal as chaotic being the result of Biden's policies, but the facts tell us the withdrawal is going well considering the fact that the Afghan government and military has been a no show.

History will give the President a thumbs up concerning his handling of the end of this war and the evacuations.  Make no mistake about it.

This commentary written by Joe  Lorio

The Republican Party Continues Its Assault On America's Health As The Delta Variant Soars.

Trump and the GOP were not satisfied with their irresponsible, mis-information and dis-information during the height of the COVID pandemic of 2020.  So  now the GOP is taking it to a more destructive level in the surge of the delta variant in the summer of 2021.

A number of GOP governors have mandated that schools make it optional if students want to wear masks or not.   And several school boards are fighting back and plan to make masks wearing in school mandatory with some exceptions.  And in fact in Florida, a judge ruled that Florida's governor could not stop schools from mandating masks.  

Then there are those GOP members in congress who continue to fight the recommendations of the CDC and are still giving out mis-information about the vaccine.  And they are still making excuses for those who refuse to be vaccinated or wear a mask to stop the spread of the virus.  The GOP's anti-health position, especially for those in school doing their best to receive an education is so out of step with American values and moral responsibility.  The current death toll from the virus of over 600,000 Americans tell the real story of a GOP out of control and out of touch with their sworn duty to serve the people during a health crisis. 

This is the same GOP who made fun of democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden during the 2020 election when he wore a mask while campaigning and limited his public  rallies to avoid the possible spread of the virus.  Well, the country did well when they elected Joe Biden and rejected Trump  and his party.  And its a good thing that America now has a President who understands the health issue and the nature of the problem and willing to take a stand and fight back against the GOP's destructive attitude and mis-information.

President Biden wants to "build back better."  The GOP wants to continue to destroy.  And that really says it all.

This commentary written by Joe Lorio 

 

President Biden's Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Passes The U.S. Senate.

 The U.S. Senate by a vote of 69 - 30 approved President Biden and the democratic proposal in a bipartisan vote.  Nineteen republicans joined all 50 democrats in voting yes.  Louisiana's U.S. Senator John Kennedy voted against the bill and followed the advise of his idol Donald Trump.  The bill will  now go to the U.S. House along with the democratic parallel bill being considered by the Senate when that bill is completed.  

The legislation is a good bill that will benefit every state, add more volume to the economic recovery and create new good paying jobs.  It is another step for the President and his party's plan and policies to move the country forward for the long term.  It is also another example how to govern and address the issues with real plans and policy and not with failed ideology.  Those 19 republicans who supported the bill came to realize their own party's failure to address Infrastructure the past four years and accepted the President's desire for bipartisan support.

So now the attention will turn to the democratic parallel bill in the Senate and the action by the U.S. House on both bills before they become law.  It is a great time for America and its people to see a President who governs by plans and policies and not by hateful divisive rhetoric and ideology.  Will those 19 republicans continue their participation with the democratic party or will they revert to the same old do nothing party.  Time will give us the answer.

In the mean time, President Biden has a good start on "building back a better America."

Democratic President Joe Biden's Policies Rescue Louisiana's U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy's Sorry Record In Congress As Louisiana's Media Fawns.

 During the 2020 campaign, democrat Joe Biden said he would bring policy and plans to the White House if elected to address COVID and the economic recession to reverse the situation and move the country forward.  And one of those plans was "infrastructure" legislation and was a priority.  The President also  said he would work  with the GOP on the issue.  The President and his party did so and produced a bill  with the support of 17 republican Senators of which Cassidy was one.  The bill will now be voted on soon by the full Senate for passage.

Cassidy's support for the bill has been the subject of commentary in the New Orleans Advocate who has praised the Senator for disregarding other GOP opposition to the bill.  Cassidy himself wrote an opinion column in the Advocate dated 8/9 about the subject matter that turned out to be a self serving statement.  Tyler Bridges wrote a long article about Cassady that was flattering on the same day which was silent on Cassidy's many failures during the Obama and especially during the Trump administration.

As a U.S. Senator representing Louisiana Cassady showed little character or courage during the Obama and Trump administration.  It took a democratic administration and Biden's proposed "infrastructure" plan to rescue Cassidy's failed past.  Cassidy followed Mitch McConnell's lead when he pledged to oppose President Obama's legislative agenda and then the last 4 years supported the corrupt Trump administration.  During those years Cassidy being a doctor promised health care legislation and voted to kill the Affordable Care Act that would leave millions of Americans without health insurance.  Cassidy and his party failed to pass their bragged about health care plan.  He also supported Trump's partisan tax cuts under the reconciliation process with out any democratic votes.  Neither Cassidy, McConnell or Trump introduced or even debated immigration reform legislation, infrastructure or DACA during those 4 years even though it was billed by the GOP as a priority.  They just kicked the can down the road to the next administration.  Maybe that is the reason Cassidy is supporting Biden's infrastructure legislation.

Cassidy voted against impeaching Trump the first time even though it was as serious as the second impeachment he voted for because it was about Trump using a foreign government to interfere with a U.S. Presidential election.  The difference was Trump was out of office when the vote was taken for the second impeachment and still in office during the first impeachment.  That was a lack of courage on Cassidy's part allowing Trump to intimidate his vote.

Cassidy also voted against President Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID relief program that the U.S. Labor Department reported contributed greatly to the economic recovery and job creation this year.  He is also on record as opposing the President's proposed $3.5 trillion parallel package that will move along side the infrastructure bill.  Cassidy calls the $3.5 trillion reckless in his 8/9 opinion column but is silent about the fact that in fiscal year that ended 9/30/20 Cassidy and his party set two spending records.  Total federal  spending was $6.5 trillion and the federal deficit came in at $3.1 trillion.  The previous spending record was by the Trump administration also and the previous single year budget deficit was by another republican President George W. Bush when the deficit came in at $1.4 trillion in his  last fiscal year.  

Unlike Trump and past GOP administrations, President Biden's legislative proposals  are paid for.  Trump's tax cuts were not and financed by deficit spending to the tune of $1.5 trillion.  That did not bother Cassidy or the GOP at all because those that benefited from the tax cuts the most were corporations and the wealthy, the same ones who contribute the most financial support to the GOP.

Senator Cassidy's support of the President's legislation is the right position to take but it does not erase his past position of opposition when he had an opportunity to produce for the state and country.  So time will tell if the real Senator Cassidy has character or courage in the future.  Or will his past come front and center once again.  But it is safe to say as of this writing that former U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu produced more positive legislation for Louisiana and the country than Senators Cassidy or Kennedy has produced combined.  As for Senator Kennedy, he  is taking up that old science course some teach in Congress, TIME AND SPACE.

This commentary written by Joe Lorio 

The Economy, Job Creation and Unemployment For July 2021.

 The U.S. Labor Department reported the economy added 943,000 jobs in July and the unemployment rate came in at 5.4%, down from June's 5.9%.  The unemployment rate in January 2021 when Trump left office was 6.3%.  The Department also reported that the economy also added 119,000 more jobs in May and June than they originally reported.  So in President Biden's first full six months in office (Feb. - July) 3,987,000 jobs have been added to the economy which averages 664,500 per month.

The Department also reported:  (a)  The Hotel, leisure and restaurant industry that had been slow to add jobs, led job creation in June and July and has come back strongly those two months.  (b)  Hourly wages increased in July 4% over the same period of  last year.  (c)  Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID stimulus was driving the job market and economic recovery along with COVID vaccinations and the opening up of business activity.  (d)  The GOP governors cancellation of unemployment benefits in their states had very little effect on the job numbers.  (e)  The economy is in a strong position but still may be affected if the COVID delta variant causes another "shutdown."

The bottom line is job creation and the economy is still uncertain because of COVID which makes Biden's infrastructure legislation along with his parallel legislation more important for congress to pass in order to keep the economy working with better paying jobs.  Policy and plans to take on the issues are needed now more than ever before and the Biden administration is doing its part to build back better with an economy that works for all and for the long term.

And as Politidose pointed out in commentary many times, precedent tells us democratic administrations have a better record at governing.

This commentary written by Joe  Lorio

The LSU Tigers and The New Orleans Saints: What Will The 2021 Season Bring?

 This writer believes both teams face problems of the unknown type and there fore the pundits predictions should be taken with a grain of salt.  The fans should just try and enjoy the season as much as possible and be objective in their thoughts at the end of the season.

The LSU Tigers:  Despite winning the national championship two years ago with a undefeated season the Tigers have not been a consistent winning team for many years.  They have made the BCS playoffs only once since it began 7 years ago.  Last season's break even record was a serious drop off in performance and now LSU starts off a new season with a new defensive co-ordinator, a new offense co-ordinator and a new defensive line coach and no one really knows how their coaching abilities will play out.  Then there is head coach O, who in this writers judgement did a poor coaching job last season.  Any one who follows the Tigers don't have to follow the x's and o's to get a feel for the season or discuss players abilities.  So my advise to LSU fans is enjoy the season, don't go over board on your predictions and just be happy if the season ends like you think it should.

The New Orleans Saints:  The Saints made the play offs the last 4 straight years but were eliminated all 4 times.  And it took place while Drew Brees was at quarterback.  This season with Brees gone puts the Saints in the position of having a quarterback that has no experience as a Saints starter for a full season.  And the Saints still has a head coach unwilling to put down the cheat sheet and allow his offensive co-ordinator to call the plays.  This writer believes Payton needs to pay more attention to what is taking place on the field.  Saint fans will probably not enjoy this season and what is to come.  The real question is how effectively will the Saints new starting quarterback be.  The answer is not available yet but this writer does not feel positive about the situation.

But there is a way for LSU and Saint fans to be objective about the future direction of both teams.  For LSU, will this be the season that begins a consistent winner that makes the BCS play offs consistently and there fore have a shot at a national championship more often than in the past.  (Like Alabama and Clemson has been in the last 10 years)  The answer will be known at the end of every season.

For the New Orleans Saints:  The Saints have not played in a Super Bowl with Drew Brees at quarterback in the last 12 years.  Can the new starting quarterback and a new offense bring the Saints any closer to a Super Bowl appearance in the near future or the next 12 years.  The question will be answered in time regardless what the pundits are predicting.

The bottom line is the fans can predict the future by being objective and be more accurate than the pundits who  are long on hype but short of being objective.

This commentary written  by Joe Lorio

SEC Expansion: A Prescription For A Weaker Conference.

 The powers to be of the SEC invited the University of Oklahoma and  the University of Texas to join the already crowded 14 teams in the SEC.  And the powers o be at those two universities accepted the invitation according to a report in the New Orleans Advocate of 7/31.  Those who support the expansion to 16 teams talk in terms of a more powerful and Profitable SEC.  (Notice they left out the word COMPETITIVE)   

This writer believes previous expansions in pro sports and college sports has produced a weaker and less competitive Conference, Division and etc.  How can those who support expansion justify such a move when they acknowledge that the present SEC is the most competitive and financially well off conference in college sports.  Simply put, they worship the almighty dollar of college sports and ignore competition and the real part it plays in sports.  A good example is how the almighty dollar failed to investigate the latest LSU sexual harassment scandal properly and make its findings public.  It took a report by USA today to break the real story.

The SEC's proposed expansion comes at a time when the BCS is considering expanding the number of teams in its annual playoff system.  It is another move that will weaken  the present play off system of 4 teams in favor of weaker teams.  As a result of expansion in the NFL, at the end of every regular season only 34 or 35 percent of the teams  end up with a winning record.  Does any one really believe that is a competitive league?  And to top it off, all teams belong to a college football draft which the NFL said would bring parity to the league.  Yeah, right.

If the SEC expansion becomes a reality, the conference will  be weakened and less competitive.  It will not show  up  immediately, but one can bet, because of precedent, it will surely take place.  The dollar people will have their way, but competition in sports will decline .

This  commentary written  by Joe Lorio

  

 

Good News On The U.S. Economy and The Second Quarter GDP

The U.S. Commerce Department reported that the GDP for the second quarter (April-June) grew at a solid 6.5%  annual rate and that the total size of the economy has now surpassed its pre pandemic level.  That adds to the first quarter GDP that was 6.3%.  Those numbers are a reminder that for the year 2020 the GDP contracted at a -3.4% rate.  So the nations economic well being has improved for the first 6 months of the current year.

The Commerce Department also reported that (1)  Consumer spending and business investment surged in the quarter.  (2)  Underpinning the recovery have been trillions in federal money and that consumers will continue to spend.  (That GDP for the year 2021 should grow at a robust pace of 6.5%.  The numbers tell us the Biden Administration has done a good job with the economy so far and it is now important for the administration infrastructure plan to become law with his parallel American Rescue Plan to keep the economy and jobs moving forward for the long term  It is even more important now because of the threat of another shutdown due to another virus outbreak.  

As a nation we can not afford to sit back on what has been accomplished over the first 6 months of 2021.  There is more that has to be done and the President is right to keep his focus on the long term health of the economic recovery and do what is necessary to sustain economic growth.

In a separate report the U.S. Labor Department reported that wages and salaries of workers in the private sector increased 1% in the second quarter to go along with the 1.1% increase in the first quarter.  It was the second largest increase in over a decade.  The 2.1% increase in wages and salaries for the first half of 2021 was higher than the 1.4% increase in the second half of 2020.

And once again it is a democratic administration that is moving America forward out of the economic recession that began in February 2020.  And for those who follow the facts, it was predictable.

This commentary written  by Joe Lorio

 

 

Governor John Bel Edwards Veto Of Bad Legislation Stands.

 The special session of the Louisiana legislature failed to over ride Gov. Edwards' veto concerning the carrying of concealed weapons and transgender rights.  The democratic governor stood tall  with his veto of the harmful legislation and received enough votes in the state house to sustain the veto.  The governor's leadership spoiled the republicans attempt to satisfy their base with their divisive tactics.

Louisiana does not need more guns on the streets and in the hands of those who attempt to do harm.  Law enforcement people across the state opposed the gun measure and rightly so.  The transgender issue was an attempt to discriminate against certain people and governor Edwards realized just how harmful both measures would be to the state and its people.  The republican's liberal stand on gun safety and their many attempts to support discrimination is documented over the years.

Governor Edwards is in the right position at a time of republican extremism both in state and at the federal level and has guided the state out of the pandemic at its worse hour, reversed the trend of deficit spending and debt and the malaise of the Jindal years.  His leadership has confused the so called conservative opinion writer Garey Forster and Forster takes it out on his own republican party in an opinion column dated 7/20 in the  New Orleans Advocate. 

In  his opinion column Forster takes aim at his own party for not standing up to Edwards since his election in 2016.  He calls Louisiana a blue state even though Trump won the state twice by  wide margin.  Forster said in his column he wants to see the republicans stand up and over ride the governor's veto.  

The real problem for Forster, the state GOP and the national GOP is they do not govern with policy or plans.  They govern with an extreme ideology of division with an anti-American attitude and there fore fail on the issues facing the state.  In other words they fail at governing.  The legislation the republican controlled chamber passed that Edwards vetoed was a good example.

The bottom line is Governor Edwards is so much more competent than any republican state legislator, republican opinion writer or any republican who tries to define himself as  leader.   The people of Louisiana my have voted for Trump twice, but enough voters with courage decided a democrat would be best to lead Louisiana and its people.  And that really says it all.

This commentary written by Joe Lorio 

Louisiana Approves Its Own Infrastructure Legislation.

Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards signed into law a transportation bill on infrastructure that would increase state aid for bridges and roads approximately $300 million a year.  The new funding will help make a new Mississippi River Bridge in Baton Rouge a reality that is needed and overdue.  The state finally became serious on the needs concerning infrastructure as President Biden made an issue on the subject on the federal level during the campaign and his short time in office.

We do know from reports from the state's legislative office the state needs approximately $14 billion to bring infrastructure up to par and is a great example how the issue has been ignored.  The approved legislation represents the largest state investment in transportation since 1984 according to reports and guess who was governor of Louisiana in 1984?  Well it was another democratic governor by the name of Edwin Edwards.  

So after eight failed years under governor Bobby Jindal, the state continues to move forward for the benefit of the people and the state.  Balanced budgets and some surpluses has brought stability to the state's fiscal health.  No more special sessions for the state legislature that took  place so often under Jindal to cut spending to balance budgets that were declared to be balanced when they first passed.

The election of John Bel Edwards came at the right time to bring leadership back into governing.  And Edwards had the character and courage to lead the state out of the grips of a pandemic and ignored the republicans in the state legislature who wanted the governor to open up the state at a time when the virus was still raging.

And once again, it is a democratic administration in the state that leads Louisiana and its people forward for the greater good and progress.

This  commentary  written by Joe Lorio