Political talk show host lands in Red Stick

Body

By Jeremy Alford
Mitch Rabalais
LaPolitics.com
Moon Griffon, the fiery and sometimes controversial radio host, is bringing his brand of conservative punditry back to Louisiana’s capital region after several short, unsuccessful runs in the premier Bayou State market over the past decade or so.
“I’m tickled to death,” he told LaPolitics. “We think that we need to be there. I feel like our program talks more about what goes on in Baton Rouge, at the Capitol and in the governor’s office, more than anybody else.”
While most episodes will be pre-recorded in Griffon’s studio in Lafayette, he will be traveling to Baton Rouge about once a month for live shows from the studios of WJBO Newsradio.
As political activity increases, such as during election cycles, so could the frequency of the live shows, said Griffon.
“During session, we might come do a program every Saturday,” he added.
Capitol-area listeners to Griffon’s show can expect a healthy diet of guests from the hallways and committee rooms. Public Affairs Research Council President Robert Travis Scott was a guest, for example, on the show’s first live episode.
“We will have Republicans, Democrats, people that don’t like me and people that do. They are welcome to come by,” he said.
Q&A: Moller on the ACA
— LaPolitics: We recently saw a federal judge in Texas make a ruling declaring the federal Affordable Care Act unconstitutional. There has already been sone talk about bills being filed for the next session of the Louisiana Legislature. Do you think we are going to see an engulfing debate?
— Louisiana Budget Project Director Jan Moller: “Well, Medicaid was always going to be a big issue because it covers so many people in this state. So many people, by virtue of income or disability are dependent on that program to access healthcare. It obviously is the most expensive program in state government. The coverage that more than half a million people in Louisiana depend on is being threatened by this judge’s ruling. So absolutely it is going to be a huge issue and hopefully this ruling will be a wake up call to those who take the program for granted. The expansion of Medicaid has been one of the great public health success stories in Louisiana. We have an uninsured rate in our state now that is below the national average. This ruling threatens to undo that, and think efforts will be made to protect the gains that have been made.”
— LaPolitics: What are some of the other things that we will see out of the Budget Project over the next year?
— Moller: We’re still looking at that. We’re going to continue to do research on the budget, on revenues. Obviously, the tax compromise from 2018 is far from perfect, but I think we have some stability in our budget for the first time in over a decade. We hope the Legislature doesn’t squander some of that by trying to cut taxes. So we will be very vigilant on that front and we’re going to be looking for policies that help low income working families get ahead. That’s what we do every day.
Your Political History: Hattie & Huey
This month marks the 87th anniversary (January 12, 1932) of Hattie Caraway of Arkansas becoming the first women ever elected to the United States Senate — an accomplishment that was greatly aided by then-U.S. Sen. Huey Long.
Caraway was actually the second woman to serve in the Senate, having been appointed to the seat when her husband Thaddeus Caraway died in office. According to congressional archives, her first remark upon entering the upper chamber was, “The windows need washing!”
As a temporary appointment, she had to immediately begin running in a special election, for which the Arkansas political establishment wanted someone else to win.
Enter the Kingfish.
Long, who at the time was mounting an upstart presidential bid, was eager to prove his prowess outside of Louisiana. So he secured a fleet of vehicles and relocated dozens of state employees (from Louisiana) to launch a canvassing operation. Long gave nearly 40 speeches in Arkansas that election cycle with Caraway at his side.
“We’re out here to pull a lot of pot–bellied politicians off a little woman’s neck,” Long told Arkansas voters during the 1932 cycle. “She voted with you people and your interests in spite of all the pressure Wall Street could bring to bear. This brave little woman senator stood by you.”
Caraway cleaned up in the primary, garnering about 45 percent in a seven-candidate field. And then she won in the runoff by a landslide.
They Said It
“The industry has created a kind of cartel to divide the market share and fix prices.”
—Attorney General Jeff Landry, on a lawsuit over generic drugs, in The News-Star
“You know, we’re in uncharted waters in so many ways.”
—Congressman Mike Johnson, on the current state of Republican politics, in The Hill
For more Louisiana political news, visit www.LaPolitics.com or follow Jeremy Alford on Twitter @LaPoliticsNow.