Moon Griffon Interviews President Trump – 4/30/20

President Donald Trump was this morning interviewed on The Moon Griffon Show.

Listen to the interview here.

LaSalle Parish Joins Mutiny Against Bel Edwards

La Salle Parish Sheriff acknowledges parish-wide “soft opening” scheduled for May 1

By Courtney Cole – KNOE-TV8 Monroe, LA

LA SALLE PARISH, La. (KNOE) – The Louisiana stay-at-home order was extended to May 15, but that’s not stopping one NELA parish from attempting to re-open to the public.

The decision comes after officials claim La Salle Parish has seen a steady amount of cases and no major outbreaks.

Several elected officials, the district attorney, pastors, and other officials met and ultimately decided they will not stop businesses, churches, restaurants, or other operations that choose to open on May 1.

The decision comes after officials claim La Salle Parish has seen a steady amount of cases and no major outbreaks.

Officials are calling it a “soft opening” which will include >several guidelines sanitation, social distancing, and occupancy limits.

Sheriff Scott Franklin was one of the several people involved in the meeting process. He said this is not a forced opening, rather a choice for small businesses and others to get business moving again.

Legislators Rebel Against Bel Edwards’ Tyranny

‘Doing nothing is not an option’: Effort in motion to squash Louisiana’s stay-at-home order

BY Mark Ballard and Sam Karlin – The (Baton Rouge, LA) Advocate

As Gov. John Bel Edwards traded plaudits with President Donald Trump at the White House over how each has handled the coronavirus, a partisan battle erupted back home with a group of GOP lawmakers working to build support for taking the unprecedented step of repealing the governor’s public health emergency declaration.

Incensed by an extension of the state’s stay-at-home order until May 15, and a perceived lack of communication on Edwards’ behalf, a cadre of Republican legislators have been looking at a little-used law to overturn the public health emergency declaration and proclamations that have wreaked havoc in the state’s economy as businesses have closed and more than 350,000 workers have filed for unemployment.

“Members are weighing the different options that they have and this is one of them,” House Majority Leader Blake Miguez, R-Erath, told The Advocate and Times-Picayune.

State law allows a majority in either legislative chamber to overturn the governor’s order and give that authority to local officials, according to a draft circulated by Rep. Alan Seabaugh, a Shreveport Republican.

Edwards had in recent weeks expressed optimism that Louisiana could begin a phased reopening of the economy on May 1, if it met criteria for cases, hospitalizations and other metrics laid out by the White House. He shared that goal with Republican lawmakers last week, according to Rep. Valarie Hodges, R-Denham Springs.

“He said, ‘We’re looking good.’ And that’s what I told my constituents.”

She learned that the order would be extended to May 15 about five minutes before Edwards made the announcement on television, Hodges said.

West Feliciana Defies Bel Edwards’ Orders

West Feliciana to reopen despite governor’s coronavirus order and health experts’ concerns

BY YOUSSEF RDDAD | The (Baton Rouge, LA) Advocate

In a departure from the state’s stay-at-home order amid the coronavirus outbreak, West Feliciana Parish will soon allow diners to eat in at restaurants, worshippers to return to church and libraries and museums to have visitors as long as they limit their capacity.

Parish leaders announced Wednesday they plan to loosen restrictions that have been in place since March. They say the parish is ready to reopen because of its low case count.

“What fits in New Orleans and Baton Rouge doesn’t fit us here,” said Parish President Kenny Havard. “We’re just asking people to use common sense.”

After meeting with restaurants this week, Havard said, they will have the option to resume table service as long as they limit their capacity to 25% and workers wear masks and gloves. People will also be allowed to visit libraries and museums, which will also be subject to similar rules and occupancy limits.

Houses of worship will be allowed to resume services but will be required to follow federal social distancing guidelines, such as wearing masks and remaining 6 feet apart from others.

Stores, banks, restaurants, museums, libraries, churches and all public buildings are also required to post signs warning that people over age 65 and those with underlying medical conditions are especially vulnerable to the virus.

Monroe Pay Cuts

City of Monroe announces weekly one-hour furlough pay reduction for mayor and city employees

By Jonathan Freeman – myarklamiss.com

MONROE, La. — The City of Monroe announced on Tuesday that all city employees and Mayor Jamie Mayo will be temporarily furloughed for one hour each week in order to cut costs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Monroe Fire Department will not be facing a one-hour furlough every week due to their 24-hour work shifts, but their reduction in pay will come from another part of the Fire Department’s budget.

According to the City, this cost-saving measure will save the city over $500,000 during the 2020-2021 Fiscal Year.

The measure will take effect on May 1, 2020, and is expected to last for seven months but that could change depending on future sales tax revenues.

Since the Mayor’s salary is dictated by City ordinance, the Monroe City Council will vote Tuesday night on an ordinance to reduce the Mayor’s salary by one hour per week.

Chickens. Home. Roost

LSU interim president asks school leaders to prepare for budget cuts

By Holly Duchmann – Baton Rouge Business Report

LSU is bracing for possible cuts of state funding because of the coronavirus, says LSU Interim President Tom Galligan, who has asked school leaders to prepare for some 5% to 10% worth of budget cuts.

Galligan, who spoke this afternoon at the Baton Rouge Press Club’s virtual luncheon, was upfront about the uncertainty facing the school but offered little regarding LSU’s fall classes and upcoming football season.

Though spring commencement has been postponed, it hasn’t been canceled. Like the football season and on-campus classes, the activities will begin when it’s safe to do so, he says. This fall, larger classes may be held online while some of the smaller classes will be held in bigger rooms to allow for social distancing. The campus workforce’s return will be gradual and will occur before fall classes begin.

“We may well face less funding than we would have hoped for and we will react accordingly,” Galligan says. “We were already planning for the possibility of receiving less than we otherwise had. We’ve shifted our financial model over the past 12 or 13 years from being 80% funded by the state to significantly less. Maybe one of the things to come out of it is that we’ll be less adversely affected from this than we would have 12,13 years ago.”

It is an immutable Law of Nature that if the host dies, the parasites have nothing upon which to feed.

ReOpen March in Baton Rouge Today

https://www.facebook.com/Reopen-Louisiana-111296930545758/

City of Crowley Reality Check

Crowley has laid off 15 employees; cut hours for others

KATC-TV3 – Lafayette, LA

The City of Crowley has been forced to lay off 15 city employees and cut hours for others, a release from the Mayor states.

The city is facing a shortfall of more than $1 million and these cuts, as well as other cuts to the budget, have become necessary, Mayor Tim Monceaux says in a statement.

Crowley Police Chief Jimmy Broussard confirmed with KATC that the shortfall is forcing budget cuts at the police department and he is not ruling out layoffs at this time.

Key Edwards Medical Advisor a Shreveport Dentist & Oral Surgeon

The individual that Louisiana Governor Bel Edwards is relying upon for much of his medical advice is a Shreveport oral surgeon and dentist.

Dr. G. E. Ghali is Chancellor of LSU Health Shreveport.

According to a KTBS-TV3 (Shreveport) news report last week, Edwards is in constant communication with Ghali. And almost daily, during the governor’s briefing, there is a reference made of the Shreveport hospital.

According to Ghali’s bio, his practice includes primary cleft repair, cosmetic surgery, and head and neck cancer. Other professional interest are pediatric craniofacial deformities (cleft lip and palate, and dentofacial deformities). Surgical and teaching interests include dentoalveolar surgery, dental implants, cosmetic surgery, head and neck oncology, and trauma.

His degrees include Baylor College of Dentistry, Parkland Memorial Medical Center (Surgery), LSU Medical School, and Emanuel Hospital (Surgery).

However, it appears none of Ghali’s areas of practice or specialties include epidemiology, the study of distributions, causes, prevention, and the control diseases in populations.

Other members of LSU’s leadership team also appear to lack that background.

In a Zack Parker article in The Ouachita Citizen yesterday, Ghali is quoted as saying Louisiana should remain under lockdown through the end of May.

“I think it’s a mistake to open too early,” he said.

Wrote Parker:

If the state of Louisiana does not keep social distancing restrictions in place through May, the state’s residents could suffer from a second wave of COVID-19 infections and deaths, a top state health official who reportedly communicates regularly with Gov. John Bel Edwards says.

More Judicial Layoffs

New Orleans public defenders announce furloughs as officials project $800,000 shortfall

By Matt Sledge – NOLA.com

The Orleans Public Defenders on Monday said they will furlough staffers because the coronavirus shutdowns have drained their revenues, an early sign of how the pandemic could disrupt Louisiana’s criminal justice budgets.

The public defense agency, which relies heavily on revenue sources like traffic camera tickets and costs that defendants pay upon conviction, projects an $800,000 shortfall in the coming months.

In response, the agency plans hour and pay cuts that range from 10 to 30%, with more senior, higher-paid employees taking a bigger hit. Entry-level employees will be furloughed one out of 10 working days.

Chief District Defender Derwyn Bunton said the furloughs could last until at least the end of the fiscal year on June 30, when the Louisiana Legislature is set to unveil a new state budget. The agency will re-evaluate after it has a clearer sense of next year’s state funding.