Informed Sources: January-March 2014
January 3rd, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Tyler Bridges – Mayor Election
Past tax issues of candidates: Michael Bagneris had some tax issues from 1984-1990 which he said he could
not afford to pay because he had to pay for his daughter’s health care bills. Danatus King (head of local NWACP) had
some tax issues from 1998-2004 that he did not comment on. There were no past tax issues found concerning Mitch
Landrieu. There was one tax issue with his wife, but Landrieu was open about it.
2. Errol Laborde – Frank Minyard
A short retrospective of retired New Orleans coroner of 40 years retires, Frank Minyard. There was a musical
produced about him, he played the trumpet, and he observed a lot of New Orleans culture for better or for worse
during his time as coroner.
3. John Pope – Higher Education
More than 700 million dollars have been cut from state budget for higher education since 2008 which has
caused state colleges to cut a lot of what they offer. UNO had to cut its daycare, however daycare is not a common
benefit offered by many colleges. Private school Loyola’s enrollment was down 30%, resulting in a 7.5 million dollar
deficit which caused a hiring freeze and a voluntary severance offered to certain employees. However, Tulane college
had a record number of applications.
4. Kathy Finn – New Businesses
New Orleans is the “come back city” entrepreneurially, due to a surge of people and press after Hurricane
Katrina. The abundance of business incubators and innovation competitions in the city is also helping.
5. Tyler Bridges – Art Building
Art building located at Lee Circle is up for auction with three major bidders: Culinary Art Institute, Launch
Pad, and the Louisiana Civil Rights Museum. The city must approve the winner.
6. Errol Laborde - Saints
The Saints have a difficult task ahead of them to win their first road playoff game against the Philadelphia
Eagles.
January 10th, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Gordon Russell—Nagin Trial
Preparation for the Ray Nagin trial has begun with such things as setting up the court room. He has 20+
various corruption charges totaling around 200 thousand dollars. Nagin is the first New Orleans mayor ever to be
brought up on corruption charges.
2. Mike Perlstein—Murder Rates
Although murder rates are lower, it is not a cause for celebration.The murder rate is said to be lowest in 40
years, however that doesn’t take into account per capita. For instance, before Katrina the population was higher,
making 1999 the lowest year for murder rates per capita in Louisiana: In 1999, 32 per 100,000 as opposed to the year
2013, 42 per 100,000. Before celebrating, we should wait to see a consistent trend of lower murder rates as opposed
to a one year anomaly.
3. Dawn Ostrom—Uptown Construction
One Uptown construction project is being done to help the city drain more water in severe down-pours of
rain. Under Napoleon Avenue, the Army Core of Engineers is upgrading from an 18 inch pipe to a box culvert drain
that’s big enough to drive a school bus through. This will significantly improve flooding conditions. There’s also a
street car rail system upgrade taking place.
4. Gordon Russell—Sheriff’s Election
The sheriff’s race consists of Marlin Gusman, Charles Foti, Ira Thomas, and Quentin Brown. Gusman is fighting
to keep his seat as sheriff, while the others attack his practices and point to the corruption that has happened on his
watch. Foti held the sheriff seat for a time before Gusman took over, and now Foti is trying to get it back.
5. Mike Perlstein—Tulane Scholarships
Tulane is accused of giving scholarships to connected insiders; families, people who donate funds, legislators,
etc. They will not release public records and discloser forms, although some have been release by others in
connection.
6. Errol Laborde—Saints
The Saints face a tough battle ahead to win a second playoff game on the road against the number one
ranked Seattle Seahawks.
January 17th, 2014
Time: 28:33
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Jeff Duncan—Saints
Although the Saints lost their playoff game to the Seattle Seahawks, there is sense of optimism amongst the
community for doing so well after a dismal year without their head coach Sean Payton. Under the new defensive
coordinator Rob Ryan, finally seeing the emergence of a good defense is also a cause for optimism. It gives Saints’
fans hope for the future.
2. Stephanie Grace—Mayor Elections
Mayor Mitch Landrieu faces a stiffer race than he probably expected in this year’s election. He’s running
against Michael Bagneris and Danatus N. King. Bagneris is considered the strongest challenger, running on the issue
of crime. However, Bagneris has yet to provide a detailed plan to lessen crime in the city.
3. Errol Laborde—Council Races
The two candidates running for councilmember at large in Division 1 are Eugene Green and Stacy Head. The
three candidates running for councilmember at large in Division 2 are Ernest “Freddie” Charbonnet, Cynthia Hedge
Morrell, and Jason Williams. The five candidates running for District A are David A. Capasso, Jason G. Coleman,
Stephen Gordon, Susan G. Guidry, and “Drew” Ward. The one uncontested candidate for District B is Latoya Cantrell.
The five candidates running for District C are Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson, Lourdes F. Moran, Nadine Ramsey, Carlos
Williams, Eloise A. Williams. The three candidates running for District D are Joseph “Joe” Bouie, Jared Brossett, and
Dalton R. Savwoir Jr. The three candidates running for District E are James A. Gray II, Andre Kelly, and Cynthia WillardLewis.
4. Tyler Bridges—Landrieu’s Enemies
Many have come out anonymously concerning the mayor’s strong arm tactics to control them. Some people
have even used the word “bullying” to describe his political tactics. They want to stay anonymous due to fear of
retaliation from the mayor. Past supporters of the mayor have been speaking out that they have felt betrayed and
are accusing him of being vindictive when he doesn’t get his way.
5. Errol Laborde—Carnival Ordinance
There are many proposed changes to Carnival rules to help prevent build up along Saint Charles Avenue, such
as ladders being pushed back, having fewer people barbequing, and building shelters. Throwing beads back at
someone on a float will be illegal.
6. Stephanie Grace—Hospitals
The attempt to privatize the two hospitals East Jefferson and West Jefferson have deferred again. The two
sides can’t agree on a single direction they want to go. The decision was handed off to the Parish Council who also
could not reach an agreement, but they voted to seek an audit for a proposal. This leaves one of the most important
decisions the Council has ever had to make up in the air for now.
7. Jeff Duncan—Pelicans
Although the franchise has a new name, newly renovated arena, new mascot, many exciting new players,
they still have been losing. Although they are losing, they still have decent attendance for games, (they were top 12 in
the league for ticket sales,) but they still have room to grow.
January 24th, 2014
Time: 28:32
Host: Errol Laborde
Segments:
1. Stephanie Grace—Mayoral Election
Mitch Landrieu received two large endorsements last week. Micheal Bagneris received endorsements from
police officers. In Louisiana history, since 1954 every mayor that has run for a second term has been re-elected.
2. Gordon Russell—Nagin Trial
The trail is still scheduled for Monday, although there is much speculation that there is a deal in the works.
Signs do not seem to point in that direction though. Nagin is on trial for 21 counts, some include tax evasion, money
laundering, conspiracy, and bribery. Feds are alleging that the mayor allegedly used his political authority in
exchange to gain himself something personal. It is not clear what he did or what was exchanged to the contractors.
The trial is suspected to take up to three weeks.
3. Dawn Ostrom—Airports
Lakefront airport is slowly getting back to pre-Katrina levels. The terminal was redone, and is now open
seven days a week. In early March, a café and a bar will open. Along with the new opening there will be special
events held at the terminal all run by Messina’s catering. They are also increasing hanger space in the airport. New
Olreans International Airport is having an eight hundred sixty two million dollar construction job. Hopefully this will
allow more international travel.
4. Stephanie Grace—Vitter
Vitter set up a group to raise a lot of money, and he’s trying to get more contributions. Vitter is a top-ranking
republican. People give him a lot of credit for building up Republican views. Although Vitter has moved on from his
past scandals, there is a possibility that he could run against another republican, which could bring up his past
mistakes.
5. Gordon Russell—Other Elections
In the sheriff’s race, it looks like Marlon Gusman and Charles Foti could end up in a run-off. There is a lot of
mudslinging about “who was the worst sheriff.” Although it seems like Gusman and Foti will have a runoff, there are
many undecided voters that could vote for the other candidates.
January 31st, 2014
Time: 28:33
Host: Errol Laborde
Segments:
1. Stephanie Grace—Nagin Trial
Two days into the Ray Nagin trial and there have already been some major witnesses. One of the witnesses
was Rodney Williams, who is a lesser-known contractor that has pleaded guilty to bribing Nagin. The next witness
was Greg Meffert, the former tech chief for Nagin. Meffert, who also pleaded guilty to bribing Nagin, revealed emails
containing evidence. He also explained how it was standard practice to use the pin to pin feature of a Blackberry
phone to avoid the messages becoming public record. However, Aaron Bennett, one of the contractors involved who
is not testifying, sent an email to Nagin using city email. Because it was on public record, Nagin replied that he
couldn’t do business with him. The reason Nagin hasn’t been offered a plea deal is because there’s a lot of evidence
against him.
2. Mark Schleifstein—Weather
The frigid weather this week is not a sign that global warming is ending. The major concern with sleet, snow,
and ice in the area is the driving conditions in an area not accustomed to such conditions, hence the closure of roads
and businesses. Public officials have been meeting on new, innovative ways to deal with weather emergencies,
focusing on hurricane season.
3. Stephanie Grace—Mayor
Mitch Landrieu seems to be in good shape in the race against Michael Bagneris and Danatus N. King. Landrieu
got a lot of good press in his handling of the weather emergency.
4. Norman Robinson—Council
Stacy Head looks to be in good shape against Eugene Green for councilmember at large Division 1. Ernest
“Freddie” Charbonnet, Cynthia Hedge Morrell, and Jason Williams are running for councilmember at large Division 2,
where Hedge Morrell seems to be the favorite. David A. Capasso, Jason G. Coleman, Stephen Gordon, Susan G.
Guidry, and “Drew” Ward are running for councilmember in District A, with Guidry favored to keep her position.
Latoya Cantrell is uncontested for councilmember in District B. Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson, Lourdes F. Moran,
Nadine Ramsey, Carlos Williams, and Eloise A. Williams are running for councilmember in District C. Clarkson looks
like she’ll take back her old position. Joseph “Joe” Bouie, Jared Brossett, Dalton R. Savwoir Jr. are running for
councilmember in District D in which Bouie and Brossett may wind up a run-off. James A. Gray II, Andre Kelly, and
Cynthia Willard-Lewis are running for councilmember in District E, and Willard-Lewis is the front runner of that race.
5. John Maginis—Sheriff & Coroner
Quentin R. Brown, Charles C. Foti Jr., Marlin N. Gusman, and Ira Thomas are running for Sheriff. Gusman has
managed to move past the bad publicity from the ill-run jail system and has picked up almost all of the big
endorsements. However, a run-off between him and Foti is still a possibility. Vincent A. Culotto Jr., Dwight McKenna,
and Jeffrey Rouse are running for Coroner. Rouse seems to be the favorite in that race.
6. John Maginis—Senate Race
A new poll is showing a statistical tie between the candidates Mary Landrieu and Bill Cassidy. And another
poll that was taken between Landrieu and new comer to the race Paul Hollis also showed a tie. However, Landrieu is
still considered to be very tough to beat.
7. Errol Laborde—Endymion
The new Pontchartrain Beach float is a seven unit float that had to be tested. So, they rolled it down the
route the night before the Endymion parade to make sure it could make all the turns.
February 7th, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Stephanie Grace - Trial
Nagin testified on the stand for over two days. Nagin insists that he did not bribe anyone and that his sons
were making investments. There are 21 counts in all against Nagin including some accusations of him not reporting
his taxes. Nagin blamed his accountant and others for a lot of the discrepancies. The feeling among most people is
that Nagin will have a very tough time getting out of this. The verdict is anticipated shortly.
2. Errol Laborde – Mayor’s Election
Mayor Landrieu won his race for reelection. It was a very impressive victory; he won in the primary. He got
close to 63.57 percent of the votes including a large majority of the African American vote. The community has really
stood behind him. The election was really about quality of life issues, education and crime. The mayor endorsed a
platform of progress and supported keeping the current police chief Serpas. There is speculation that he wants to run
for governor in the future.
3. Norman Robinson and Stephanie Grace – Other Elections
The Sheriff race will be close until the very end. The runoff is between Charles Foti, Jr. and Marlin Gusman.
Foti got 28.56% of the vote in the primary, while Gusman got 48.93%. It’ll be difficult for Foti to try to close that gap.
It’s a very heated campaign. In the coroner’s race, Dwight McKenna got 48.30% of the vote, while Jeffrey Rouse got
31.80% of the vote. They will be going into a runoff. McKenna has a past, but the numbers seem to favor him. In the
councilmember at large division 1 race, Stacy Head won with 62.26% of the votes. Head has done an excellent job of
overcoming the controversy that has surrounded her in the past. There have been good stories coming out of her
previous District B, and people like and want that for their own districts. There will be a runoff for Councilmember at
Large, Division 2 between Cynthia Hedge-Morrel, who got 44.23% of the vote, and Jason Williams who gained 38.67%
of the vote. In District A, Susan Guidry won with 66.93% of the votes. In District B, Latoya Cantrell was uncontested.
In District C, there will be a runoff between Jacquelyn Clarkson and Nadine Ramsey. They were neck and neck in the
primary. It will be a tough race. In District D, Jared Brossett won with 50.17% of the votes. James A. Gray II won in
District E with 53.13% of the vote. In political circles it was thought that Cynthia Willard-Lewis would win, so the
result of the race seems very surprising.
4. Tyler Bridges – Artworks
The Artworks building will become a culinary institute. There is a non-profit board that was given the job of
choosing who would be allowed to buy the failed Artworks building. Originally, it was supposed to be art galleries and
artists’ studios, but it never really got off the ground. 25 million dollars was spent, including tax payers’ money, on
the project. The board chose the New Orleans Culinary and Hospitality Institute to buy the building and to run it. They
hope to start operations in 2016. Delgado, UNO, Tulane are all a part of this development as well as some prominent
restaurateurs.
5. Errol Laborde - Arena
The New Orleans Arena has a new name. It will be the Smoothie King Arena. It is speculated that Smoothie
King is paying 41 million dollars for a ten year naming rights deal. The branding will happen as soon as possible.
February 14, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Gordon Russell – Nagin’s Trial
Ray Nagin was convicted on 20 of 21 counts all related to corruption centered around that he took bribes in
exchange for using his political influence. The one count that the jury did not return a conviction on had to do with a
bribe that was solicited by his sons from one of the people convicted of bribing him. The jury most likely felt that was
not enough evidence to prove Nagin was involved in that one particular charge. The jury deliberated for six and a half
hours which was a very quick verdict decision. At times while he was on the stand, Nagin was annoyed, combative,
and when he was not on the stand he didn’t look worried. It was a mostly white jury with two Asians and one African
American. A lot of documents were projected onto the wall throughout the trial, as proof of Nagin’s wrong doing. The
prosecution seemed very organized and worked very fast. The trial happened very quickly. The defense didn’t provide
an alternate story, and relied more on Nagin’s testimony to tell his side.
2. Stephanie Grace – Nagin Column
Grace has covered Nagin since the beginning of his political career as mayor. She believes that he kind of fell
into this situation with bribes because he was desperate for money. She feels he was more opportunistic rather than
calculating. It’s not clear if he knew that he was doing something wrong or crossing a line because he never cared to
figure out what the “line” was. Now he is under house arrest, and he can go back to his home in Texas. Nagin’s
lawyer said that Nagin can go to church or the grocery while under house arrest but has to get permission from his
probation office to do those things.
3. Errol Laborde – Nagin as mayor
Nagin didn’t accomplish much as mayor. He came from a business world versus a political world. In 2002, he
was very popular because he was a fresh face in politics. The media endorsed him at first with much enthusiasm.
Kimberly Williamson Butler was his first chief administrative officer. They soon had a falling out, and she later went to
jail for contempt of court. Later, she ran against Nagin to get revenge. Appointing her was his first major choice as
mayor, and it turned bad quickly. Even then, people still believed in him. Katrina really broke him, and his “chocolate
city” statement also caused him to lose a lot of his constituency. Deciding to run for a second time was a very bad
decision for him after Katrina, and he was also not doing well financially at the time. Sentencing is set for June 11th on
his birthday.
4. Dawn Ostrom – Aquarium of the Americas
The aquarium will be going through big changes. It is 23 years old. The entrance of the aquarium will be
turned into a great Mayan experience. Instead of a fountain, there will be a big tank full of shimmering fish which will
look similar to a fountain. It’s a 1.5 million dollar renovation, but it has been open during the construction with some
sneak peeks. The new exhibit is scheduled to open March 7th. There will also be improvements to the outside of the
aquarium such as a 90 foot-wide splash area.
5. Gordon Russell – Officer McCabe
All charges against Officer McCabe have been dropped. He had been convicted in the original Glover trial on
the grounds that he had help falsify a police report about the death of Henry Glover. There was new evidence found
that cast some doubt on the government’s case. So, immediately after the first trial, he was granted a second. Now
he’s been acquitted.
February 21st, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Mike Perlstein – Police Shooting
Last weekend a police officer shot and killed a man in the Hollygrove area, and there are conflicting stories
about what really happened. The police versions differ from the statements from witnesses that were on the street.
The police were responding to a shoplifting call. When they arrived, the officers saw a man who they believed
matched the description of the shoplifter. He ran and the police saw pulled out something that looked like a weapon.
He was shot four times, and the police did discover a gun at his side. It was later discovered that he was not the
shoplifter. This is the first police shooting under the oversight of the police consent decree. With this degree of
scrutiny, there will probably be changes in training and changes in the policy manual dealing with shootings.
2. Errol Laborde – Jefferson Hospital
Deciding who will operate the two major hospitals, East and West Jefferson, in Jefferson Parish is a huge
decision. After looking at many possibilities, there were three finalists. It seemed like it was going in a good direction.
Now, there’s a division between the West Jefferson and East Jefferson sides as well as the council members. The
three finalists were Oschner, HCA, and Children’s Hospital. HCA was the only public group in the running. Oschner
seemed to have been eliminated. It really came down to Children’s Hospital and HCA. West Jefferson was favoring
Children’s Hospital. There’s been so much bad feeling and so many votes and counter-votes that HCA has just pulled
out. No one is satisfied with this outcome.
3. Jason Berry – Vatican
The latest Frontline looks at secrets of the Vatican. The beginning looks at Father Marcial and The Legion of
Christ which extends from John Paul to Pope Benedict. Then there’s another sequence on the Milwaukee bankruptcy
proceeding and the various people involved with that. Then the documentary looks at the Vatican bank, the question
of gay priests in the Vatican, as well as VatiLeaks and the trial of the papal butler. What this film does is give people a
genuine visual sense of who many of these people are. With the new Pope Francis, we are seeing changes to the
church. He doesn’t live in the Papal Palace. He answers phones for many hours a day. He is a very genuine man, and
has made poor people the center of the church’s mission. The great struggle he is up against is the Vatican’s
antiquated legal system. Pope Francis has even made some changes to the Vatican bank. Another issue facing the
church is sex scandals, and Pope Francis has appointed a commission of eight cardinals to advise and assist him on
this issue. The Pope has the power to institute and dictate changes to the Canon right away. The most important
thing he’s done is instituting a law which states that anyone who is employed by the Vatican can be prosecuted for
money laundering or any form of child abuse with prison sentences. It is a precedent and a very important step
moving forward for the Church.
4. Dawn Ostrom – Future Watch: World Trade Center
The development of The World Trade Center, which was built at the foot of Canal Street in the 1960s, is up in
the air. There were three proposals in November to redevelop that building. The city chose the Dallas-based
Gatehouse Capital Corp. in September. They were supposed to go into immediate lease negotiations with the city.
There were published reports which said that a lease could be signed by the end of 2013’s calendar year. Now both
sides, the city and Gatehouse, say they are not talking to the press. Basically all that is known is that they are in lease
negotiations. All players are hoping that it actually happens. Some of the local partners involved in the proposed
redevelopment plan are the John Besh Restaurant Group and the Bill Hines and Jones Walker Law Firm. It’s supposed
to bring 2,500 new jobs into the city. Neither side will give a timeline for the project.
5. Mike Perlstein – Policeman Reinstated
Travis McCabe, one of the policemen convicted in the Henry Glover case has been acquitted and has now
reinstated on the police force. McCabe’s role was allegedly obstructing justice and lying to a grand jury. New
evidence was presented that showed that he actually told the truth, and so he was acquitted. Not only is he
reinstated, but he gets three years of back pay. From his point of view, he was punished for doing nothing wrong and
went through three years of purgatory. He will be welcomed back by fellow officers. He has been cleared by the law,
and the city had no choice but to bring him back.
6. Errol Laborde – Carnival
There are some changes that are being implemented to Carnival: the Krewe of Freret is returning as a
marching krewe; many West Bank Krewes have moved to New Orleans to parade. There are also some new rules
being implementing such as not having ladders right next to the curb.
February 28th, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. David Hammer – Recovery
This week there was a public meeting that was filled to capacity with people who were very angry because
they received letters from the Road Home saying that they owe Road Home money. Road Home is a program that has
had problems since the very beginning. All of its spin-off programs have had problems as well because they adopted
additional programs dealing with elevation grants. Those were problematic. It’s just been one problem after another.
People who had gone through the difficulties many years ago to get their grants thought they were done with all of
that, but now they’ve received these letters saying they received too much money. Some letters said that people
received insurance money after the fact, and Road Home says that’s duplication of benefits so that money must be
paid back – these sums are up to 20, 30, 40 thousand dollars. Many people are upset about this.
2. Rebecca Catalanello - Coroner’s Race
There hasn’t been a runoff for Coroner in a very long time. This runoff is between Dwight McKenna and
Jeffrey Rouse who are fighting to replace Frank Minyard who has been in that office for forty years. He had declared
to run this year, but stepped aside before Christmas and said he was supporting Jeffrey Rouse. He is a 39-year-old
forensic psychiatrist. He has worked in the coroner’s office for 12 years. Some things he wants to implement if
elected would be: videotaping all autopsies, having in-custody deaths investigated by an independent forensic
pathologist, and he doesn’t believe that the office should be elected. This is McKenna’s third run for this office.
McKenna’s states that he is a surgeon, and he knows the human body and can properly diagnose trauma in death
investigations. He is less specific in terms of details of what he wants to do because he doesn’t know the inner
workings of the office. But he plans on making big changes including opening some of the controversial death
investigations.
3. Sabrina Wilson – Admiral
Fox 8 News just ran a story about New Orleanian Rear Admiral Stephen Rochon. After retiring from the Coast
Guard, he was asked by the White House to become the Director of the Executive Residence and White House Chief
Usher. The Chief Usher runs the White House day to day and is a very prestigious and important job. He was hired
under George W. Bush, and he got to meet Queen Elizabeth and Pope Benedict. He was the first African American to
be appointed as Director of the Executive Residence and White House Chief Usher. He was also asked to be a
consultant on the film “The Butler.”
4. David Hammer – Nagin Trial
The role that the media played in this investigation and trial was huge. Gordon Russell really got things rolling
in 2007 by really looking what was going on in Nagin’s technology office. That is where the investigations at the
Federal level really began to take off. You can see that in some of the text messages and emails that were presented
during the trial, the mayor was concerned about who was talking to Gordon and the media. He was concerned about
keeping things quiet. Lee Zurik also played a role when he requested the mayor’s calendar, and it came back all
blacked out and empty. He fought that in court and got the real non-redacted calendar.
5. Errol Laborde – Satirical Floats
This is the golden age of satire in Carnival. There are several Krewes that use satire such as Chaos and
Le’Krewe d’Etat. The two people who were satirized the most this year were Ray Nagin and John Georges.
March 7th, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Stephanie Grace – Flood Insurance
The House of Representatives came together to pass a fix to the waters act, which would have increased
flood insurance rates had they not agreed to the fixes. The bill still has to go to Senate to be passed, but it has wide
support and should pass.
2. John Maginnis – Legislator
The governor’s big issue this year is workforce development, but he will be keeping a close eye on the
lawsuits brought up against the oil and gas companies by the Southeast Flood Protection Agency. There’s mixed
feelings on the issue between environmental concerns and suing companies that supply our state with many jobs.
3. Dawn Ostrom – Future Watch: Riverwalk
The Riverwalk will be undergoing its biggest changes since its opening in 1986. The Howard Hughes
Corporation will be turning it into the Outlet Collection at the Riverwalk. It will be opening sometime in late spring or
early summer. It will bring the first ever Neiman Marcus store to Louisiana as well as a mix of local and national outlet
stores and restaurants. The space will be enlarged and operating hours will be extended.
4. Errol Laborde – Auditorium
Mayor Mitch Landrieu was asked about the status of the municipal auditorium re-opening, and it seems to be
in the works, but it doesn’t seem to be any rush on the project.
5. Stephanie Grace - Elections
Sheriff runoff election between Charles C. Foti, Jr. and Marlin N. Gusman, with Foti having the upper hand.
Coroner runoff election between Dwight McKenna and Jeffrey Rouse, Rouse is gaining momentum with
endorsements, the biggest being Mayor Landrieu. Councilmember at large, division 2 runoff election between
Cynthia Hedge-Morrell and Jason Williams, Hedge-Morrell is getting the big endorsements, also with Mayor Landrieu
backing her; both candidates have some baggage and are running ugly adds against each other, with Williams having
unpaid taxes and Hedge-Morrell with unpaid water bills and a speeding ticket. Councilmember district C runoff
election between Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson and Nadine Ramsey, with Mayor Landrieu behind Clarkson and
Congressman Cedric Richmond behind Ramsey is going to be a toss-up. The Audubon Commission is pushing hard to
get a 50 year millage approved called Audubon 4.20 Mills.
6. John Maginnis – Governor’s Race
With Republican Senator David Vitter’s announcement to run for governor, it has put somewhat of a freeze
for more candidates to get into the race on the Republican side. But Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne is still in. State
Treasurer John Kenedy and Scott Angelle will also possibly join the race. There is still a lot of movement on the
Democratic side. State Representative John Bel Edwards has announced he will run. Businessman Jim Bernhard is
reported to be running and will have a lot of funding. There’s the possibility of Mayor Mitch Landrieu deciding to run
for governor, however he would have to leave the Mayor’s office before his term is up. But we still have plenty of
time until the elections in November 2015.
March 14, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Mike Perlstein—Gangs/Crime
With new charges and ties to gangs in the Mother’s Day shooting case, the Federal Investigators have
stepped in and taken over the investigations; State charges have been dropped for new Federal charges. The two
suspects in the shooting, brothers Akein and Shawn Scott, are now being tied to former Federal drug and firearm
charges that have already been issued on their brother Travis Scott prior to the Mother’s Day shooting. The brothers
are all believed to be a part of a gang (the Frenchmen and Derbigny gang) that runs a drug-dealing operation. This all
falls under an even larger federal investigation set up to crack down on gang activity in New Orleans.
2. Kathy Finn—Housing
Analyses showed in the metropolitan area a 4% jump in housing prices in 2013 compared to 2012, and
Orleans Parish had an 8% increase. Homeowners are now more inclined to put their houses up for sale now.
3. Stephanie Grace & Errol Laborde —Elections
Stephanie: It looks like Marlin N. Gusman will be re-elected as Sheriff over Charles C. Foti, Jr.
Errol: Dwight McKenna is leading by 49% in the primary against opponent Jeffrey Rouse. However, it’s not impossible
for Rouse to pull off a win. It will be 40 years since New Orleans has had a new coroner. The Councilmember at large
division 2 runoff election between Cynthia Hedge-Morrell and Jason Williams has people trying to get women on
Hedge-Morrell’s side by attacking Williams for defending clients with charges of abuse of women; women are the
majority of voters in Orleans Parish. Former Mayor Marc Morial has been pushing hard for Hedge-Morrell. However,
both candidates come into the race with minor issues of their own.
Stephanie: In the District C runoff election between Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson and Nadine Ramsey; Clarkson comes
in as a prior councilmember for district C and strong support from Mayor Mitch Landrieu, but it’s still a neck and neck
race. The Audubon 4.20 Mills renewal will be up for vote; the Audubon Institute is running a strong ad campaign.
However, the issue is gaining some attention amongst some in the community. Although, they love the Audubon
Institute, they feel that 50 years is a very long time for something that no one is really sure how the money will be
used.
4. Mike Perlstein—Darren Sharper
Darren Sharper has had a steep fall from fame and glory with an arrest and 9 different rape allegations, 11
drugging’s across the country in 5 cities. He is accused of slipping drugs to women and sexually assaulting them while
unconscious all within a 5 month timeframe. He is currently being held in a LA County jail while awaiting trial.
5. Stephanie Grace—Bobby Jindal
Bobby Jindal has been out giving speeches across the country throwing out issues and some claim he’s trying
to gain momentum for a Presidential campaign. However, nothing he does seems to be gaining any traction. Jindal
has been denying any Presidential hopes until an interview recently with Politico Magazine where he admits, “of
course I think about it.”
March 21, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. John Maginnis - Legislature
The legislative session has been going on for two weeks now. The first week the main issue was parents very
angry about the common core issue. Many parents have a problem with these new educational changes and
implementations. The business community is very much behind the common core changes in education, and the
governor is caught in the middle of these two groups on the issue. Next week, there will be much talk about pay day
loans during the session.
2. Gordon Russell – Elections
It was an interesting election. There will be 3 new faces on the council. Two of which are Nadine Ramsey and
Jason Williams, who both won their elections by very large margins. There’s another new member on the council who
was elected in the primary. His name is Jared Brossett. There will be a new coroner for the first time in four decades.
It’s been a very troubled office and has taken a lot of criticism over the last few years. Jeff Rouse won that election.
The Audubon Park mil was going to raise people’s taxes, and there were no specifications on how the Audubon
Institute would use the money. It did not pass.
3. Errol Laborde and Marcia Kavanaugh – Informed Sources History
Informed Sources is celebrating its 30th year anniversary this year. There was a very popular show on WYES
called “City Desk” where a staff of reporters from the daily newspaper discussed local issues. “City Desk” had ended,
and Errol was yearning to bring back a summary news show. Marcia Kavanaugh wanted to start a show at WYES. It
was first supposed to be called “Reliable Sources” but was later changed to “Informed Sources…” The original theme
song is still used today. At first, people involved in the creation of the show feared that there wouldn’t be enough
talking to fill the half hour show.
4. John Maginnis – Edwards
30 years ago there was talk about Edwin Edwards on “Informed Sources,” and today we are still talking about
him. He has announced he will run for Congress in the 6th district. Is he a serious candidate or is he doing this for a
lark? The district is a very conservative one, and he’ll be running against some republicans that would likely beat him
in a runoff.
5. Errol Laborde - Stories of the last 30 Years
There have been a few topics that have been discussed a lot during the last 30 years. The topics include: The
World’s Fair; the run-off between Duke and Edwards; Feds and indictments, especially during the age of Jim Letten
when the DA had a lot of success; street crimes such as the Mother’s day shooting that a whole show was dedicated
to talking about; critical elections such as the election of Mike Foster, Bobby Jindal, and many others; the Saints big
Superbowl season; Katrina’s wrath; and the recovery after hurricane Katrina.
March 28, 2014
Time: 28:30
Host: Marcia Kavanaugh
Segments:
1. Tyler Bridges – Journals
The New Orleans Advocate is trying to publish legal notices. As of right now, they cannot. Owner of the New
Orleans Advocate, John Georges, has spoken to several legislatures who are sponsoring legislation that would allow
the New Orleans Advocate to compete for these contracts. Right now, state law says that a newspaper cannot
compete to publish the legal notices until it has been around longer than five years. The Times Picayune is the entity
that has most of the contracts as of right now. They have hired lobbyists to oppose this legislation before the state
legislature in Baton Rouge.
2. Stephanie Grace – Governors
A gathering of governors past happened this past week at Loyola University. The past governors seem to get
along great. Edwin Edwards, Kathleen Blanco, and Buddy Roemer were in attendance. All of the governors had very
different outlooks, but they seemed to get along great and have a lot in common on their views on politics today.
Free from the political pressure, they were very blunt about certain issues that many politicians seem to dance
around these days. All three of them endorsed the levee board lawsuit that very few politicians have embraced. The
current governor is strongly against the lawsuit. The other governors were very supportive of Blanco and what she
had to do and deal with during hurricane Katrina.
3. Dawn Ostrom - Future Watch: Port
The future of the port is looking bright. The Port of New Orleans has just made a representative agreement
with a port in India. They will have a representative office opened there. The goal is to increase between here and
India. We import a lot of steel from India. The port has also signed a memorandum of understanding with the port in
Lithuania. This allows there to be an exchange of information between the two ports: how our port operate and how
we connect to the rails and finding out how their port operates. This allows us to find out the best practices to
establish and to share that information back and forth. The Port of New Orleans also has other representative offices
in many different countries.
4. Errol Laborde – Airports
The New Orleans airport is misunderstood. A lot of people see other airports that are much bigger and
wonder why New Orleans airport isn’t like that. Mainly, New Orleans airport isn’t a hub airport. To be a hub airport
there needs to be a lot of land. We have an origin and destination airport. The new improvements to the airport are
really nice. Last year, our airport showed growth in the number of people coming in and out, whereas other airports
showed a decrease. There are more and more non-stop flights coming out of the New Orleans airport. However,
there is a lack of international flights.
5. Tyler Bridges – Prisons
Louisiana has the highest incarceration rate in the country per capita. Trying to reduce the incarceration rate
has been an issue, but now groups on the right are joining with groups on the left and trying to pass legislation that
would lower the incarceration rate. There is a Senate bill sponsored by Democrat JP Morrell and conservative
Republican Robert Adley which would decriminalize marijuana possession on the second and third possession and
would turn it into a misdemeanor.
6. Stephanie Grace – Councilman
James Gray has recently been re-elected to represent District E. The Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board
isn’t very happy with him. These accusations have to do with his role as a private attorney not as a councilmember.
The Board has recommended that he be disbarred or lose his license for at least three years. The allocations have to
do with how he represented his clients. There are four cases that were looked at. The argument is that he did not
represent his clients well. He took money and didn’t return it. He didn’t file things he said he was going to. And he did
not cooperate with the investigation on the matter. He is a very politically successful man, and what he says now is
that he is not practicing law to make a living anymore. James Gray states that this will have no effect on his public
duties.