Landrieu Lands in Shreveport

I heard Louisiana’s senior Senator, Mary Landrieu, speak on a variety of topics this afternoon. Naturally, Katrina/ Rita recovery dominated her remarks to the Rotary Club of Shreveport.
She is touting a plan for the state to acquire a share of federal earnings from energy businesses working off the Louisiana coast. The money would be used to rebuild the levee system in and around New Orleans, as well as for coastal restoration. She compared Louisiana to Wyoming, saying that state generates $1.8 billion in energy funds annually, and gets $900 million back. She said Louisiana’s coastal waters generate many times that, but our state gets zero back. She said Louisiana needs about two billion dollars to get south Louisiana restoration going, which is about half the money the U.S. is spending on the War on Terror in an average week.
Showing a wry sense of humor, she said that if the erosion isn’t stopped, Shreveport could soon have its own coastline to worry about. She was also quick to point out that north Louisiana projects will not be forgotten, and will in fact remain a priority. I’m not sure I believe that, but it’s okay. One would have to be essentially soulless not to understand that New Orleans and Lake Charles need an extraordinary amount of attention, and that it will be that way for a long, long time.
Landrieu did assure us that I-49 construction (north and south) and the still-proposed I-69 (NAFTA Highway) remain high priorities. That, I believe.
She was asked directly about her concern over a Middle Eastern company controlled by the United Arab Emirates taking control of U.S. ports, including New Orleans. At that moment, she became emphatic, saying “That’s not going to happen.”
She was warmly received, which was slightly surprising given the preponderance of conservative thinkers in that particular gathering. She was quick to spread credit around, mentioning Republican U.S. Representative Jim McCrery at least twice, singling him out for praise. She talked of the Louisiana Congressional delegation presenting a united front in DC on may issues important to the state.
I know she has her detractors, but I’m not sure what all the hubbub’s about. We have a nice balance of representation. A young Republican, David Vitter, occupies Louisiana’s other Senate seat. Landrieu, a middle-aged Democrat, has earned her stripes on Capitol Hill, and that can’t hurt as our state tries to recover from one of the worst natural disasters in recorded history. An unfortunate moment occurred during Landrieu’s introduction. She was referred to not as Louisiana’s senior Senator, but at its “senior citizen.” She graciously and deftly diffused the situation by admitting up front that she does now, in fact, have an AARP card.
Politics aside, Landrieu exudes confidence and a certain charisma. She clearly loves Louisiana and is doing her dead-level best to muster optimism about our recovery. Her trip to the Netherlands to study the system of levees and docks was somewhat controversial, I suppose. But, listening to her justify the trip, it makes perfect sense to me.
She’s touring the state, and has been slightly hampered by a persistent fog hanging in the air everywhere she goes. While that was literally true today, there has to be a metaphor in there somewhere. So far, I haven’t seen anything to scare me away from allowing Landrieu to carry the lamp that leads us down the road to recovery.

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