Talk Louisiana

EBR Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome on the prospect of the Village of St. George, crime and other issues in her third year in office. Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser on Bayou Country Superfest, tourism numbers and his personal travel. Cindy Hardy, Mother of Laine Hardy, the Livingston Parish singer who is this year’s American Idol winner.

Advocate columnist Ed Pratt opines about life in Baton Rouge north of Florida Blvd. Councilman Matt Watson comments on the prospect of the Village of St. George. Washington Post investigative political reporter Michael Kranish discusses his book about the little known story of cyclist Major Taylor.

Benjamin Clapper, Executive Director of Louisiana Right to Life, and onetime lawmaker Melissa Flournoy, also former head of Planned Parenthood in Louisiana, exchange views on the 2019 Louisiana Legislative session with issues of abortion, the death penalty and the Equal Rights Amendment have taken center stage. Sports Illustrated former editor Kevin Cook unveils his new book, “Ten Innings at Wrigley, the Wildest Game Ever” about the Phillies 23-22 win over the Cubs on May 17, 1979, 40 years ago today.

Conservative Commentator Michael Medved, who is renowned as a radio host, author, columnist and film critic, comments on America in the Age of Trump. Mark Ballard, Capital Bureau Chief for The Advocate, recaps legislative action this week on hot button issues of abortion and the death penalty.

Alex Martin, Global Writing Chief of the Wall Street Journal and New Orleans native, recalls his years at the Times-Picayune and reflects on the acquisition of the newspaper by the Advocate. Father Don Kirchner and coordinator of the Spanish Apostalate in Baton Rouge, Julia Scarnato, discuss the rising number of Hispanics in the community. John Steinman, host of Deconstructing Dinner, the internationally syndicated radio show, talks about the power of food co-ops. Fred Rosenfeld, first team president of the New Orleans Jazz, compares his acquisition of Pete Maravich in 1974 to the New Orleans Pelicans receiving the first pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, destined to be Duke superstar Zion Williamson.

LSU Political Science Professor Wayne Parent joins us on his last day at the Ole War Skule after 37 years as a professor and former chair of the department. Parent is considered one of the most prominent observers and analysts of Louisiana politics and is the author of “Inside the Carnival". Former NASA historian Roger Launius remembers the first Astronauts to land on the Moon with the anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission two months away. Launius’ book is “Apollo’s Legacy.”

Congressman Mike Johnson, Republican from Shreveport and member of the House Judiciary Committee, says his Democratic colleagues are off base in seeking to question witnesses detailed in the Mueller Report. Barry Weinstein, Rabbi Emeritus in Baton Rouge, recaps his dramatic recovery from an aortic aneurysm three years ago and examines lack of religious tolerance in the current age. Author and former NYPD police officer Joe Ested recaps a criminal attack against an inmate in the Ascension Parish Jail, resulting in the firing of a corrections officer and resignation of the warden. Laura Schroff discusses the unlikely friendship between a New York sales executive and a homeless eleven year old boy.

Rev. Jacqueline King of Haughton, formerly pastor of First United Methodist Denham Springs, comments on Millennial love for Harry Potter. Loyola University Law Professor Bill Quigley on the failed effort to stop the death penalty in Louisiana. Deborah Sternberg updates the Young Entrepreneur’s Academy.

Daniel Okrent, one of America’s most celebrated journalists with top positions at the New York Times and Time Magazine in his varied career, reviews America’s history of immigration in “The Guarded Gate.” Okrent says Adolph Hitler was inspired by junk science in the U.S. during the 1920s which produced a harsh national anti-immigration law and caused some to espouse a flawed theory of eugenics. Okrent is also the inventor of Rotisserie League Baseball and discovered the game’s best known sabermetrician Bill James. Advocate Capitol Bureau Chief Mark Ballard looks at a week at the Legislature which saw trial lawyers win a round over insurance interests and much buzz about the Advocate purchasing the Times-Picayune. Kevin Glass, Vice President of Communications for the National Taxpayers Union, analyzes the issue of net neutrality and the Save the Internet Act.

Louisiana Democratic Party Executive Director Stephen Handwerk on the election of 2019 with Gov. John Bel Edwards seeking re-election but other statewide races seeing few Democrats challenging GOP incumbents.

National Federation of Business State Director Dawn Starns reviews measures to raise minimum wage and provide equal pay under debate at the Louisiana Legislature. Former Louisiana Senator and Representative Ben Bagert, a New Orleans lawyer, defends Attorney General William Barr’s handling of the Mueller Report. Actor David A.R. White on his appearance in Baton Rouge for the Salvation Army.

Darryl Gissel, Chief Administrative Officer for Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome, comments on issues that are permeating in the mayor’s third year at City Hall, including city finances, traffic, crime, police pay and the prospect of the Village of St. George. Robin McCullough-Bade, Executive Director of the Interfaith Federation of Greater Baton Rouge, and Baton Rouge Islamic Center leader Emad Nofal discuss attacks on religious congregations in America.

State Representative Pat Smith of Baton Rouge on a busy docket at the Legislature and her quest to become a state Senator. Lamar White of the Bayou Brief comments on the acquisition of the Times-Picayune by John Georges, the Louisiana governor’s election and a collision in the Beltway over the Mueller Report.

State Representative Royce Duplessis and Peter Robins-Brown, Communications Director for the Power Coalition for Equity and Justice on House Bill 422, which would repeal the state preemption of local control of minimum wage and family and sick leave policies. Mark Ballard, Capitol Bureau Chief for the Advocate, notes that social issues remain vibrant in the Legislature and Ballard assesses the Louisiana Senate reaction to Attorney General Bill Barr’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee of which John Kennedy is a member. Jason Baumann of the New York Public Library reflects on the 50 year anniversary of the historic Stonewall uprising.

Advocate Editor Peter Kovacs comments on the Pulitzer Prize won by the newspaper last month on the sixth anniversary of the change of ownership of the state’s largest newspaper. Conservative Activist, Colonel Rob Maness, surveys the national and local political landscape with Attorney General William Barr testifying before Congress and the Louisiana Legislature weighing the merits of capital punishment.

Businesswoman Beverly Brooks Thompson talks about her quest to succeed Dan Claitor in the Louisiana Senate. Claitor is term limited with two GOP House members, Steve Carter and Franklin Foil, vying for the post in the October 12 primary. Thompson is a Democrat who helped spearhead the Forever LSU Campaign which raised almost 800 million dollars for the university. Glenn Guilbeau, LSU beat writer who works for the USA Today Network, surveys new allegations of wrongdoing against embattled LSU Basketball Coach Will Wade. Author Thomas Lockley discusses his book, “African Samurai,” a true story of a legendary black warrior in feudal Japan.

Political strategist Mary Patricia Wray and LSU-Shreveport Political Scientist Jeff Sadow examine the politics of the Equal Rights Amendment in the Louisiana Legislature. Last week, a Senate panel advanced the measure on a party line vote 47 years after the Louisiana Senate approved ERA on a 25-13 vote. The Louisiana House killed the measure in 1972. Dr. Fiona Citkin, a Fulbright scholar from Ukraine, reflects on immigration in America. Her book “How They Made it in America” focuses on women who immigrated from 16 different countries, including Ivana Trump from the Czech Republic

Veteran Associated Press Reporter Beth Gardiner comments on her book “Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution.” Gardiner says research shows that air pollution prematurely kills seven million people every year. Jan Moller, President of the Louisiana Budget Project, discusses issues of importance at the State Capitol: Medicaid Reform, Minimum Wage, Equal Pay and the Equal Rights Amendment. We go to the vault for an interview with Jazz legend Pete Fountain and Public Relations giant Gus Weill on the day that New Orleans trumpeter Al Hirt died. Hirt’s death was on April 27, 1999 at 76. He and Fountain played at the original New Orleans Jazz Fest in 1970.

Fabled Political Consultant Raymond Strother chimes in on the announcement that Joe Biden will run for president, the fallout from the release of the Mueller Report a week ago today and 20 years since the death of New Orleans trumpet legend Al Hirt. Mark Ballard, Capitol Bureau Chief for The Advocate, reflects on sports betting prospects in the Legislature, the admission by Senator Karen Carter Peterson of her gambling addiction and budget maneuvering during the session.

Louisiana Family Forum Executive Director Gene Mills reviews legislation to allow sports betting in Louisiana. University of Kentucky Law Professor Joshua A. Douglas makes the case for more access to voting in America and the stopping of gerrymandering.

Louisiana Parole Project Executive Director Andrew Hundley comments on criminal justice reform in the state. Conservative Commentator Quin Hillyer, former top aide to Congressman Bob Livingston, sounds off about the Mueller Report. Washington Post Editorial Board member Charles Lane discusses his book “Freedom’s Detective, the Secret Service, the Ku Klux Klan and the Man Who Masterminded America’s First War on Terror.” The work focuses on Hiram Whitley, who as head of the Secret Service chased down the KKK.

LSU Professors Nancy Isenberg and Andrew Burstein on the cult of personality and U.S. Presidents dating to John and John Quincy Adams. Their book is “The Problem with Democracy.” Dr. Steven Gundry, Director of the International Heart and Lung Institute in California, discusses his book “The Longevity of Paradox, How to Die Young at a Ripe Old Age." Alexandria native Faye Williams, head of the National Congress of Black Women, assesses calls for impeachment of the president and the impact of music depicting women with vulgarity.

Investigative Reporter Dan Moldea, the journalist who exposed the sex scandals of Newt Gingrich, Bob Livingston and David Vitter, comments on the release of the redacted 448-page Mueller Report. Board members Greg Davis and Linda Johnson of the T.M. Landry College Preparatory School in Breaux Bridge assess the investigation into the small private school that gained national attention for sending underserved black students to elite colleges nationwide.

Stephanie Riegel of the Baton Rouge Business Report on the hiring of Scott Woodward to replace Joe Alleva as Athletic Director at LSU. Riegel and Fairleigh Jackson of Preserve Louisiana comment on the fate of the iconic Crawford House in Baton Rouge. Mark Ballard of the Advocate comments on Louisiana reaction to the release of the Mueller Report and the Advocate winning its first Pulitzer Prize.

Former Louisiana lawmaker Elbert Guillory, an Opelousas lawyer and head of Minority Outreach for the State GOP, talks about the three church fires at historically black churches in his parish of St. Landry, assesses the comeback of Tiger Woods and the prospect for re-election of Gov. John Bel Edwards and President Donald Trump. Ameen Walker of First Financial Tax and Accounting Services surveys the winners and losers at the tax deadline under the tax reform measure signed by President Trump.

Lieutenant Gov. Billy Nungesser on a huge month for tourism in Louisiana and the ninth anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and BP oil spill. Chris Meyer, CEO of New Schools for Baton Rouge, assesses charter schools in Baton Rouge and the hunt for new superintendent of schools.

Democrat Eddie Ashworth and Republican Scott Wilfong exchange views of the political landscape exactly six months before the Oct. 12 primary. Music Critic John Wirt looks at Blues Fest in Baton Rouge and the French Quarter Fest in New Orleans. Author Lisa Wingate talks about her appearance at the Main Library tomorrow night and her book about a notorious scandal in wich the director of Memphis adoption agency kidnapped and sold children to wealthy families across the nation.

Former Trump Administration official George Papadopoulos on his status as the first person convicted in the Mueller probe. His book is “Deep State Target.” Capitol Bureau Chief Mark Ballard on the opening of the Legislative Session and an election six months from the October primary. Trumpeters Brian Shaw and Wayne Bergeron preview their concert with the LSU Jazz Ensemble. Legendary cartoonist Cathy Guisewite talks about her 34-year run as one of the nation’s most published cartoonists and her latest work of essays about the challenges of womanhood.

Racheal Hebert, President and CEO of Sexual Trauma Awareness Response, comments on five members of the Louisiana U.S. House delegation voting against renewal of the Violence Against Women Act, which passed the House by a 263-158 margin. Congressman Cedric Richmond was the lone member of the state delegation to vote for the measure. Stephanie Grace, editorial writer of the Advocate, discusses her column about Louisiana U.S. Senator John Kennedy. Grace took the senator to task for remarks about the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. Kennedy said “It must suck to be that dumb” in reference to an effort to retrieve tax returns from President Trump.

University of Louisiana System President Jim Henderson assesses funding for higher education in Louisiana as college leaders hold a rally at the State Capitol. LSU Manship School Director of the Public Policy Research Lab Michael Henderson provides information on voter opinion of the Louisiana economy and a potential gasoline tax increase. Henderson also unveils polling indicating strong support for minimum wage increases. Fairleigh Jackson of Preserve Louisiana previews an April 11 event, “How Juke Joints Shaped the Blues.”

University of Houston Law Professor David Dow on his novel about the death penalty and a move from the Louisiana Legislature to abolish capital punishment in the state. Robert Travis Scott, President of the Public Affairs Research Council, comments on the opening the Louisiana Legislative Session. Tyler Kepner, Baseball writer for the New York Times, details his book about the art of pitching and the ten pitches that have dominated the history of the national pastime.

Republican Rob Maness and Democrat Dayne Sherman exchange views on state and national politics. Former Assistant Secretary of State and Assistant Defense Secretary John Kirby comments on classified communications. Su King of the Baton Rouge Concert Band on Sunday’s concert as part of the Ebb and Flow Festival. Singer Carson McHone previews her appearance at Zeeland Market.

Advocate Investigative Reporter Bryn Stole analyzes the saga of suspended LSU basketball coach Will Wade. Mark Ballard, Capitol Bureau Chief of the Advocate, comments on the upcoming regular legislative session and discusses votes likely to come from the Louisiana delegation in the U.S. House on taking gun rights away from those convicted of domestic abuse and the Democratic majority request for six years of presidential tax returns. Lulu Roman of Hee Haw fame on her appearance this weekend in Livingston Parish.

Former State Lawmaker Erich Ponti, who heads the Louisiana Coalition to Fix Our Roads, comments on the prospect of the Louisiana Legislature embracing a boost in gasoline taxes during an election year. WRKF Station Manager Paul Maassen discusses funding for Public Radio in Baton Rouge as the station approaches its 40thanniversary of broadcasting to South Louisiana. New Orleans Author Samantha Downing reflects on overnight recognition for her first published novel “My Lovely Wife.”

Mike Bertaut, Chief Health Care Economist for Blue Cross Blue Shield Louisiana, reviews possible changes to the Affordable Care Act, now nine years old. What will happen to public health care in Louisiana if Congress or the courts strike down Obamacare? Bertaut notes that 53 percent of state residents are recipients of Medicaid or Medicare benefits. Actor and singer John Schneider discusses his life in Livingston Parish which includes a flood and bankruptcy. Schneider remains active and in Louisiana despite his recent challenges.

WAFB Morning Show Host and Crime Stoppers Reporter Matt Williams comments on the prospect of Village St. George. Sportswriter Ron Rapoport on the baseball legacy of Chicago Cubs great Ernie Banks. Clive Thompson of the New York Times discusses his book “Coders, The Making of a New Tribe and the Remaking of the World.”

LSU Scientist Gabriela Gonzales on her finding in 2015 at the LIGO Observatory that confirmed Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. Stanford Psychology Professor Jennifer Eberhardt discusses her book, “Biased, Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think and Do”.

LSU Manship School Professor Bob Mann previews his forthcoming biography of Ronald Reagan. Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie comments on the struggles of veterans who have an all-time high rate of suicides. Mark Ballard, Capitol Bureau Chief of the Advocate, on the prospect of a parish wide vote on the fate of the Village of St. George.

Tulane University Professor Richard Marksbury details negotiations with New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell on the future of four Confederate Era monuments removed last year from the landscape of the Crescent City. Attorney Mike Wolf and LSU-Shreveport Political Scientist Jeff Sadow assess the Barr Report, the Age of Trump and the Louisiana governor’s election. Baton Rouge Magnet High School teacher Kim Denson on the 20th Annual Geo Journey at the school. American Red Cross Senior Vice President Trevor Riggen on Red Cross Giving Day.

Jan Kasofsky, Executive Director of Capital Area Human Services, details the opioid epidemic in Baton Rouge. Cecile Richards, former President of Planned Parenthood, previews her book “Make Trouble, Stand Up, Speak Out and Find the Courage to Lead.” Lamar White, Publisher of Bayou Brief, comments on the candidacy for governor of Congressman Ralph Abraham and the reaction in Louisiana to the report from Attorney General William Barr related to the yet unreleased Mueller Report.

Political strategist Mary Patricia Wray and former Louisiana lawmaker Troy Hebert square off on the Mueller Report and the governor’s election six and one half months away. World renowned physician William Li comments on his latest work “Eat to Beat Disease, The New Science of How Your Body Can Heal Itself.”

LSU basketball great Rudy Macklin on the documentary about him and LSU’s prospects in the NCAA Tournament. Singer Grant Peeples on his performance at the Dyson House. John Atkinson, CEO of the Idea Village, previews New Orleans Entrepreneur Week. GOP Political Consultant Roy Fletcher comments on the feud President Trump has with the late U.S. Senator John McCain.

State Representative and former LSU Associate Athletic Director Steve Carter comments on his latest push for a road tax and LSU opening the NCAA Basketball Tournament at Jacksonville against Yale. Advocate Bureau Chief Mark Ballard analyzes the friction between former Board of Regents Chair Richard Lipsey and LSU President King Alexander. Lipsey is calling for the firing of Alexander and LSU Athletic Director Joe Alleva. Theologian Serene Jones comments on her prescription for peace in a fractured world.

Former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu looks back a year to his decision to remove four Confederate Era monuments from prominent places in the city. Vastine Stabler of Swine Palace Theatre previews the opening of “Airline." Sportswriter Glenn Guilbeau examines the Will Wade controversy as LSU preps for its Thursday NCAA Tournament game vs. Yale.

Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser talks tourism, Confederate monuments, and Feed Your Soul. LSU Manship School professor Judith Sylvester and a few of her students discuss the campus smoking ban and the rise of the e-cig.

Pastor Brady Whitton of First United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge comments on recent votes by the Church against same sex marriage and gay clergy. Melinda Deslatte of the Associate Press previews this week’s annual Gridiron Show. The oldest show of its kind outside of Washington D.C. will be the showcase for laughs at the expense of many Louisiana newsmakers.

Former State Lawmakers Ben Bagert, a Republican from New Orleans, and Melissa Flournoy, a Democrat from Shreveport, square off about their views on state and national politics. Thursday, the U.S. Senate voted 59-41 against the emergency order from President Trump to build a wall at the Southern border. Louisiana’s Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy were among 41 Republicans taking the side of the President while a dozen GOP Senators voted with 47 Democrats voting against the order. Former University of Louisiana-Monroe Professor Samuel Mitcham, a historian and author of 40 books, discusses his latest work about German military leader Erwin Rommel, a complex figure from World War II. Major General Mitcham was a U.S. Army helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War.

Advocate Capitol Bureau Chief Mark Ballard on the academic scandal at America’s top colleges, the slim prospect of Congressman Steve Scalise entering the governor’s race and the politics of the death penalty in Louisiana. Financial advisors Brian Low and Fred Dent assess market conditions in the first quarter of 2019. Is the stock market a safe haven with rising interest rates and a dramatic rise in deficit spending? Musical prodigy James Linden Hogg comments on his passion and talent on display a few weeks ago at a sold out Manship Theatre.

LSU History Professor Zevi Gutfreund on the volatile issue of immigration. Gutfreund’s book is “Speaking American” which brings debates over border security to a broader context of questions about language, citizenship and what it means to be an American. Musician Andrew Finn Magill on his performance Thursday at Highland Coffees. Magill is a fiddle player and violinist based in Asheville, North Carolina. New York Times Reporter Matt Richtel, a Pulitzer Prize winner, on his latest work which examines our immune system.

Louis Reine, President of the Louisiana AFL-CIO, surveys the legislative stomach for pay raises for teachers and boosting the minimum wage. Hannah Cox, National Manager of Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty, talks about those positioned on the right side of the political spectrum who are calling for the abolishment of capital punishment in America. Professor Laurie Helgoe, a clinical psychologist, talks about her latest work: “Fragile Bully, Understanding Our Destructive Affair with Narcissism in the Age of Trump. Mitchell S. Jackson discusses "Survival Math", his memoir detailing the systemic forces of race and class that shape the lives of African Americans.