Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards (D-LA) has shrugged off responsibility and is now threatening to punish Republicans due to his lack of leadership
June 27, 2017
The ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Governor
Governor Edwards has shrugged off responsibility and is now threatening to punish Republicans
While Governor John Bel Edwards tries to pin his “epic failure” of a legislative session on Republicans, important issues facing Louisiana are going unsolved due to his lack of leadership. This last week, Edwards has begun threatening Republicans:
The Advocate: “Will Gov. John Bel Edwards punish uncooperative Republicans for thwarting his initiatives?”
Associated Press: “… Gov. John Bel Edwards is trying a new tactic for the next round of tax negotiations, telling GOP leaders to get behind a plan or get ready for the slash-and-burn budget cuts that come with inaction. … Edwards did little to build consensus for task force suggestions ahead of the legislative session, and he introduced a new business tax that hadn’t been vetted by the study group, that muddied the tax debate and that went nowhere.”
LA Politics: “The problem for Edwards is that he needs the House and Senate to support the creation of new revenue, which his administration has found to be challenging at best over the past two years, particularly in the House. Perhaps that’s why Edwards has been telling reporters lately that he may just skip another special session, thus allowing drastic budget reductions to take hold, if the House doesn’t start to coalesce around a revenue plan.”
If Edwards forces these “slash-and-burn budget cuts” and uses his veto to punish those who disagree with him, he alone bears the blame for inability to reach consensus and uphold the responsibility and leadership that the governor’s office requires.