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Is Louisiana Ready for a Renaissance?

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By Sean Pavone @ Shutterstock.com

After making many important reforms under former Gov. Bobby Jindal, Louisiana has suffered under nearly eight years of mismanagement at the hands of current governor, John Bel Edwards. Now Edwards is exiting the governor’s mansion, and the state has a chance for a renaissance. You read recently about the election of Jeff Landry as Louisiana’s next governor and his plan to make the Pelican State the nation’s next constitutional carry state. Another way Landry will vastly improve the lives of Louisianans is the expansion of Louisiana’s school choice program. Corey DeAngelis explains in The Wall Street Journal:

Louisiana was once a pioneer in school choice. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, New Orleans rebuilt its schools as an all-charter system. The state enacted a private-school voucher program in 2008, when Bobby Jindal was governor—one of the first states to establish private-school choice statewide.

But Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, has stood in the way since he took office in 2016. Last year he vetoed two bills that would have allowed all families with children who weren’t reading at grade level or had special needs to take their state-funded education dollars to schools of their choice.

This year the Republican-controlled state House passed an even more expansive school choice proposal—one that would be available to all families, regardless of need—by a 61-37 vote. Although the bill had bipartisan support, it takes two-thirds of each legislative chamber to override a veto. The Senate never took it up.

But Mr. Edwards is term-limited, and on Saturday the state elected Republican Jeff Landry, a school-choice supporter, to succeed him. Mr. Landry received nearly 52% of the vote in a 14-candidate open primary. He takes office in January.

Action Line: Louisianans—and all Americans—deserve politicians who work for solutions to the problems they face, not those who favor constituencies that donate the most money. If your politicians aren’t treating you with that level of respect, it’s time to look for a better America. Start your search with Your Survival Guy’s 2023 Super States. Click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter, and be one of the first to receive updates to my Super States map.

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E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

E.J. Smith is Founder of YourSurvivalGuy.com, Managing Director at Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd., a Managing Editor of Richardcyoung.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Youngresearch.com. His focus at all times is on preparing clients and readers for “Times Like These.” E.J. graduated from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with a B.S. in finance and investments. In 1995, E.J. began his investment career at Fidelity Investments in Boston before joining Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd. in 1998. E.J. has trained at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH. His first drum set was a 5-piece Slingerland with Zildjians. He grew-up worshiping Neil Peart (RIP) of the band Rush, and loves the song Tom Sawyer—the name of his family’s boat, a Grady-White Canyon 306. He grew up in Mattapoisett, MA, an idyllic small town on the water near Cape Cod. He spends time in Newport, RI and Bartlett, NH—both as far away from Wall Street as one could mentally get. The Newport office is on a quiet, tree lined street not far from the harbor and the log cabin in Bartlett, NH, the “Live Free or Die” state, sits on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. He enjoys spending time in Key West (RIP JB) and Paris. Please get in touch with E.J. at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com To sign up for my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter, click here.
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