John Fleming and Julia Letlow each made the case during a debate on the Moon Griffon Show that he or she is the most conservative candidate in the U.S. Senate Republican primary. Jeff Palermo has the story.
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2025 was a big year of tourism for Louisiana, but it could have been better. Andrew Greenstein reports.
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The House Appropriations Committee has approved a bill that increase the salaries of statewide elected officials. Joe Gallinaro reports the bill heads to the House floor for further debate.
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A lot of allegations have been tossed around in the US Senate Republican primary. Two of the candidates in the race had to address those during a 90-minute debate on the Moon Griffon Show. Congresswoman Julia Letlow is accused of breaking the law for failing to disclose more than 200 stock trades. Letlow says she did not break federal law as her stocks are handled by a second pary…
Cut 4 (11) “…that’s absolutely ludicrous.”
Letlow and John Fleming are challenging two-term incumbent Bill Cassidy. President Trump has endorsed Letlow, but Fleming, who served in Trump’s administration during his first presidency, says he also has the president’s backing…
Cassidy did not participate in the debate. Fleming and Letlow spent much of the debate trying to prove to voters they are the true conservative in the race. Fleming says Letlow is not a fiscal conservative…
Cut 6 (10) “…cut back spending.”
Letlow accused Fleming of being pro carbon capture and sequestration…
Cut 7 (14) “…time in Congress.”
Fleming says Letlow is not telling the truth as his Congressional record shows he stoon strong against carbon capture and sequestration.
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2025 was another big year for tourism in Louisiana, with 45-million people visiting the state. Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser says those visitors spent big while in the state, generating very valuable tax revenue.
While New Orleans is obviously the runaway leader in terms of cities, Nungesser says the state has been very aggressive in marketing the entire state as a great place to visit.
Louisiana’s tourism numbers in 2025 were bolstered by domestic visitors. Nungesser says foreign travel to Louisiana was down last year, particularly from Canada, which has historically been Louisiana’s largest market for foreign visitors. Nungesser says travel agents in Canada have expressed serious concerns to him on behalf of travelers from their country.
Nungesser says he expects a rebound in foreign travel starting next year, when New Orleans hosts the IPW Convention, which is the travel industry’s biggest convention.
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With May having some of the best weather of the year in Louisiana, the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission is urging you to make an extra effort to watch for motorcycles on the roadway. Spokesman Greg Fischer says motorcycles are more difficult to see on the road than other vehicles.
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Fischer says when motorcycle riders are involved in crashes, the results are almost always more devastating than if they’re in cars or SUVs, since there’s nothing around them to protect them. And while progress is being made, 2024 was still a deadly year for motorcycle riders.
Cut 12 (09) “…lost 93 riders.”
Of course, motorcycle riders need to do their part as well in staying safe. That includes not speeding, not riding in a foolish manner, and complying with Louisiana law by wearing DOT-approved helmets, which Fischer says are proven to save lives, based on numbers from 2017.
Cut 13 (13) “…wearing a helmet.”
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A bill that would significantly increase the salaries of the governor and other statewide elected officials received pushback, but the House Appropriations Committee approved the proposal. The measure would increase the governor’s salary from 130-thousand dollars to 182-thousand dollars starting in 2028. Bruce Reilly, the deputy director of “VOTE,” told committee members that’s a huge raise for a state that has a lot of problems.
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Actually the raise would be 52-thousand dollars, and the other statewide elected officials would also see their pay increase by 41-thousand dollars to an annual salary of 156-thousand dollars.
The bill also provides legislators with additional per diem and the ability to collect a 178-dollar daily stipend when performing legislative duties on days outside of the session. This money would be on top of the 16,800 dollars state lawmakers receive annually.
Rosepine Representative Charles Owen admits the pay is not great to be a legislator, but he can’t vote for this bill.
Cut 15 (06) “…face and explaining.”
Harahan Representative John Illg is the author of the legislation, and he says statewide elected officials haven’t seen a pay raise in 20 years.
Illg says it’s very difficult to hold down a full-time job, plus perform your duties as a state legislator. He’s worried the low pay that state legislators currently receive will keep younger people from wanting to be a state lawmaker.
Cut 17 (07) “…don’t address this.”
The measure passed on an 18-to-4 vote and heads to the House floor for more discussion.