[StBernard] JINDAL alters strategy of campaign with attacks..

[Westley Annis]

Jindal alters strategy, answers attacks 
By MELINDA DESLATTE 
The Associated Press

VIDALIA, La. (AP) — Bobby Jindal learned a hard lesson four years ago when he left attacks against him largely unanswered and then lost the governor's race. In his new bid for governor, he's changing his strategy — and responding when hit.

Before the Democratic Party even ran the first of several planned TV attack ads against Jindal, his campaign was on the defense, lambasting the ad plans as a misleading smear campaign. When the party's first anti-Jindal ad appeared on television, a point-by-point rebuttal was shipped out by the Jindal campaign.

It's a noticeable change from Jindal's last race for governor, and the Republican congressman acknowledged it is a shift from the way he handled attacks in 2003 from Democrat Kathleen Blanco, who defeated him.

"I'll certainly make mistakes. I'm not going to make the same mistakes. I'll make new mistakes this time," Jindal said at a central Louisiana campaign stop overlooking the Mississippi River in Vidalia. "We're not going to let people distort our record."

On her road to the governor's mansion, Blanco struck at Jindal's record as Louisiana's health secretary, his youth and his tendency to rattle off statistics to make a point. One of her more memorable ads against Jindal said: "Government is about people, and you don't crunch people like numbers."

At the time, Jindal refuted her claims about his record and lamented the tone of the campaign. But he didn't strike back hard, and many political analysts have cited it as a key reason for his loss after leading Blanco in the polls in the days before the runoff election.

Jindal is the front-runner for the Oct. 20 primary election. A recent poll of 600 likely Louisiana voters by Southern Media & Opinion Research showed Jindal with 63 percent of the vote, a formidable lead. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

But Jindal makes a point of saying he's not getting too comfortable to remember he's in a race.

Blanco's not running for re-election, but three other major candidates have lined up against Jindal: state Sen. Walter Boasso, a Democrat; Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, a Democrat; and businessman John Georges, a Republican. Both Boasso's and Campbell's campaigns have criticized Jindal directly.

How far Jindal will go to respond to attacks remains to be seen. Will he respond with similar attacks about his opponents' records? Will he call them out by name? He hasn't yet, and he said last week that he didn't want "to get dragged down into mudslinging."

But his campaign has done a little name-calling for him, in response to the attack ad from the Louisiana Democratic Party. The ad mocks Jindal, says he's treating the governor's race like a coronation and claims Jindal failed to support the military and veterans in Congress.

Chris Whittington, chairman of the state Democratic Party, said the ad campaign is defining Jindal with his own record and words.

Jindal said the ads try to distract from his campaign platforms, and he said he'll respond to clear up accusations about his record.

His campaign, however, is more direct, issuing statements calling the first ad deceptive and insulting to Louisiana voters. Campaign manager Timmy Teepell issued a harshly worded statement saying "Democratic party bosses in Washington" were involved in the ad campaign.

"The clowns who have been feeding at the government trough are growing increasingly desperate," Teepell said in the statement.

The words aren't Jindal's directly, but they're on his campaign letterhead — and they're a lot tougher than the campaign's words four years ago.

Jindal sliding — or smart?

By MICHELLE MILLHOLLON <http://www.2theadvocate.com/opinion/mailto:mmillhollon@theadvocate.com> 
Advocate Capitol News Bureau

At a Baton Rouge gubernatorial forum on May 23, Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, state Sen. Walter Boasso and New Orleans businessman John Georges faced a crowd of petrochemical businesspeople — while the front-runner was a thousand miles away.

U.S. Rep. Bobby Jindal — widely perceived to be leading the Oct. 20 race — loomed large over the gathering in a prerecorded video. The Kenner Republican offered his regrets that voting duties kept him on Capitol Hill.

Two months later, Jindal once again cited congressional obligations in declining to attend a Louisiana Municipal Association forum in Monroe.

It later came to light that Jindal voted only once in Washington on the day of the forum. He cast a vote in favor of early adjournment.

The U.S. Congress did not adjourn. Jindal apparently did. He missed the next 22 votes, which included key energy issues, according to the U.S. House of Representatives’ roll call vote record.

On Aug. 13, Campbell, Boasso, Georges and other candidates attended a Lafayette forum sponsored by Every Child Matters in Louisiana and the National Head Start Association.

Jindal was a no-show.

This time, he was shaking hands in Slidell, Mandeville, Franklinton, Amite and Hammond, as part of his statewide bus tour.

The Louisiana Democratic Party is taking Jindal to task by criticizing his voting record and by highlighting his absence at campaign forums. The party recently launched a $600,000 ad campaign aimed at tarnishing Jindal’s golden boy image. The party wants voters to come to the conclusion that Jindal has something to hide.

An argument can be made that Jindal does not have to participate in forums because, some say, he is poised for an easy win in the primary.

Avoiding a runoff is tough in a statewide race. But just three years ago, U.S. Sen. David Vitter showed it can be done.

Jindal isn’t the only elephant in the room for the Louisiana Democratic Party.

The party is divided between backing Campbell, a Bossier Parish resident with limited funds, and Boasso, who only became a Democrat in April — after deciding to run for governor. The division has the party attacking Jindal without being able to offer a definitive alternative.

Roger Villere, chairman of the Louisiana Republican Party, said Jindal will participate in forums after  the oficial sign-up  in September.

With nine weeks before the Oct. 20 primary, it is still early in the campaign, Villere said.

Jindal shares that sentiment. He said in a telephone interview Friday that he will participate in forums after qualifying. Right now, Jindal said, he is focusing on meeting with voters by touring the state. The time for participating in forums will come after he has unveiled where he stands on key issues, he said.

As for the Democratic Party’s ad campaign, Jindal said the commercials are designed to detract from his lead in the race.

“I am disappointed. I do think the voters will see through it,” he said.

Shreveport political analyst Elliott Stonecipher said the masses may not even be aware that Jindal is skipping forums.

Former Insurance Commissioner Jim Brown said Jindal is opening himself up for criticism from other candidates, newspapers and good-government groups. However, Brown also sees the wisdom in Jindal’s strategy.

“I think he feels like if he is at the debate, it becomes a full-fledged debate,” said Brown, who now hosts a New Orleans talk radio program that Jindal visited last week.

Brown’s theory is that Jindal is the star of this gubernatorial campaign and his luster attracts the media like a magnet. By skipping debates, Jindal lessens TV stations’ interest in the forums and the possibility of his opponents getting free airtime, Brown said.

Villere, for one, is not urging Jindal to RSVP to candidate forums. He wants Jindal to stay on the campaign bus motoring from one small town to the next.

“I think Bobby’s running a smart race. &hellip He’s getting his message out,” he said.