EDITORIAL: Selling our agenda
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Being an advocate for our state is among a governor's most important functions, and Gov. Bobby Jindal surely does not miss a chance to advance our agenda.
During a meeting Tuesday of the nation's governors with President-elect Barack Obama, Gov. Jindal urged him to include Louisiana's recovery agenda in any impending stimulus package.
That's something the president-elect ought to seriously consider. Funding Louisiana's coastal restoration and hurricane protection projects, as Gov. Jindal urged, would help President-elect Obama begin to deliver on his campaign promises to accelerate Louisiana's rebuilding and protect us from future storms.
The governor said officials in the incoming administration made it clear that any infrastructure projects in a stimulus package would have to be ready for construction to have a quick economic impact.
That makes Louisiana's coastal restoration and hurricane protection projects ideal. As the governor said, Louisiana has a slate of projects planned and ready for execution.
During a group session and in a brief one-on-one meeting, Gov. Jindal also asked President-elect Obama to unclog the delivery of federal money approved for rebuilding.
He also urged changes in Medicaid financing to avoid punishing states when post-disaster rebuilding temporarily raises state revenues. That usually trigers a drop in the federal Medicaid match just as the temporary boom wears off, as seems to be the case with Louisiana now.
Tuesday's sessions produced no final decisions. But Gov. Jindal noted this was the first time in the National Governors Association's history that a president-elect met with a large group of governors. We hope that indicates President-elect Obama's desire to craft a stimulus plan that addresses legitimate public needs and has an immediate effect. Louisiana's agenda meets those criteria perfectly.
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