[StBernard] Louisiana Federation of Teachers Endorse Foster Campbell

[Westley Annis]

"...We see Foster Campbell as a leader who is willing to take on the
well-heeled powers-that-be," said Steve Monaghan, President of the La.
Federation of Teachers."

Hmmm, does that mean they believe Mr. Campbell will have the gutts to stand
up to a "well-heeled power group" like themselves (the Teacher Federation)
and tell them "no" when they ask for another pay raiser?

As usual, the Teacher Federation will have a double standard..."by all means
stand up to the 'other' powers that be, but not us."

Also, I don't recall in my years working in the legislature Foster Campbell
every doing anything out of the ordinary for teachers.  Walter did what he
could could help theirs and other retirement systems in the state stay
afloat.  I can't help but be curious as to what promises Campbell must have
made to the teachers that will once again go unfulfilled.

But, keep in mind, the La. Teachers Federation (which I believe is primarily
comprised of minority teachers) is NOT the Louisiana Educators Association.
I don't believe that group has yet made an endorsement and the two groups
are often on opposite sides of the political table.

John Scurich

 

-----Original Message-----
LFT endorses Foster Campbell for Governor 

BATON ROUGE - September 12, 2007 - Following a candidate forum, a number of
straw polls, extensive interviews with candidates and examinations of their
platforms and records, the Louisiana Federation of Teachers today announced
its endorsement of Foster Campbell for Governor of Louisiana. LFT President
Steve Monaghan said the Federation will strongly urge the Louisiana AFL-CIO
to also endorse Campbell when labor's Committee on Political Education meets
on Thursday, September 13.

"As a state senator, a member of the Public Service Commission and as a
citizen, Foster Campbell has always put the interests of the people first,"
Monaghan said. "Our executive board's decision to endorse him was unanimous
and enthusiastic."

Each of the major candidates, with the notable exception of Republican Bobby
Jindal, met at least twice with Federation leaders and submitted written
answers to questions posed by the LFT. Congressman Jindal did not respond to
invitations to meet with LFT leadership and he failed to respond to the
Federation's candidate's questionnaire, and therefore removed himself from
consideration for the Federation's endorsement.

The questions asked of candidates, along with their answers, will be posted
on the LFT Web site, http://la.aft.org.

Monaghan said that Campbell's solid, longstanding record of support for
public education gave him the edge, but his reputation as a leader willing
to challenge the status quo and address the problems of working families
also resonated with LFT leadership.


"We see Foster Campbell as a leader who is willing to take on the
well-heeled powers-that-be," said Monaghan. "He is the only candidate with a
legitimate, long-term plan to fund Louisiana's needs and build a stable and
prosperous state."

The LFT president said that while tax relief was a dominant theme of the
most recent legislative session, no plans advanced to replace state revenue
that would be lost to the various tax cutting bills offered by lawmakers.
Therefore, the new governor will likely face over $200 million dollars of
difficult cuts to public services.

"Foster Campbell is the only leader talking about how to pay for the
responsibilities of government, balancing fair tax cuts with an oil
processing fee that can ensure services like education, health care,
transportation, public safety and protection of the environment," Monaghan
said.

Public education is the key issue of the Federation, and Monaghan said that
Campbell's understanding of how the education of our children is affected by
the conditions of our schools, the availability of current textbooks and
other resources was central to the Federation's endorsement. 

"Each of the candidates who spoke to us expressed strong support for public
education," Monaghan said. "But in our long discussions with candidates,
Foster Campbell's history as well as his responses convinced us that he
shares our values and our vision for the education of Louisiana's children
and the challenges that face teachers and public education.

"He has a record as a ferocious fighter for the hopes and dreams of folks
who work very hard every day for very little in a state still mired in hard
poverty with too few opportunities," concluded Monaghan.