Tim's right.  It can still be said that this is a result of Jefferson's maneuvering.  Of course it could also be said that Carter should have called his bluff and agreed to the teleconference.

In other words.. the candidates are back to arguing about who's ducking the debate... which is where we were two weeks ago.

Obviously the late vote on this bill is part of the reason Jefferson couldn't make the debate.

It should be pointed out that he was offered the opportunity earlier in the week to participate via teleconference and declined that as well.

Tim,

Thank you for telling this story.  I'm sure you've heard more than a few people here half-seriously throw the word "secession" around down here and I think you've captured the essence of the experience that leads us to talk that way. Ray Nagin.. clown that he is.. must have shocked some folks in Peoria this week when he stated in the USA Today that the feds have essentially abandoned us.  I'm sure you'll agree that anyone who spends any time here with his eyes open might be inclined to consider the mayor's words an understatement.

I, like many voters in this district, have little faith that Karen Carter has any more potential to advocate effectively for Louisiana in Washington than does Dollar Bill.  This race has always been a dismal street fight between thieves over the remains of our battered city.

What Louisiana needs is for Washington to accept responsibility for the federal flood that laid waste to its best city.  That responsibility can only be remunerated by a commitment to provide the protection originally promised.  One important step toward such atonement lies in the hands of Congress this week as it.. hopefully... takes up the issue of offshore oil revenue sharing.  The revenue promised to Louisiana through a bill currently being considered would go toward restoring our vanishing coastline.  The Louisiana coastal wetlands are not only a critical barrier against the storm surge driven by hurricanes.. but also an irreplaceable national economic and environmental treasure.  (I reccomend Mike Tidwell's "Bayou Farewell" for anyone looking for more on the shocking loss of southern Louisiana to the sea) It is my hope that your excellent reporting on the plight of New Orleans will convince more Americans of their responsibility to make whole a people who so recently believed themselves to be their countrymen.

Whoaah there, cowboys.  Jefferson continues to out hustle Carter on the ground in key ways.  This week there was a heated public meeting conducted by HUD and the Housing Authority of New Orleans where displaced public housing residents loudly protested the planned demolition of most of the city's still very livable housing projects.  Dollar Bill made a point of being there... pandering away.  KC was nowhere in sight.  This kind of thing is what voters care about in NOLA.  Jefferson is working the pertinent issues much harder than Carter is.

Exactly!

Actually the dynamics here are only a faint echo of what was going on in the mayoral election.  If you're interested in that, check out the April and May archives of the NOLA bloggers Tim links to.  Really crazy stuff there.

You're right.  Nagin was not far from the truth.  Unfortunately he was also in the pocket of the conspirators he was declaiming... and as such a puppet of that conspiracy

Most are extremely unenthusiastic about both candidates.  One is the scion of a local political machine who brings.. um.. questionable credentials to the office, while the other is... well.. Dollar Bill.  Adrastos breaks it down pretty well right here.

Should mention.. there is a comprehensive list of over 100 Louisian blogs at the NOLA wiki which you can see via the following link.

http://thinknola.com/wiki/List_of_New_Or leans_bloggers