2008 Louisiana Senate Debate between Mary Landrieu & John Neely Kennedy: on Government Reform


John Neely Kennedy: No pay-for-play; campaign contributions notwithstanding

Landrieu questioned why Kennedy would take more than $350,000 in campaign contributions from businesses and individuals who had projects before the Bond Commission, which Kennedy chairs.

Landrieu suggested that was an impropriety since Kennedy can decide what projects appear on commission agendas each month. “There’s a lot of talk around Louisiana about how you get on the agenda,” Landrieu said.

Kennedy denied any pay-for-play suggestions, and he said he was glad to compare his record to Landrieu’s campaign contributions, which he said include $300,000 from Wall Street firms and more than $200,000 from executives with collapsed mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. “Sen. Landrieu criticizing my fundraising is a little bit like being called vain by Donald Trump,” Kennedy said.

Source: 2008 Louisiana Senate Debate by Associated Press on NOLA.com Oct 16, 2008

Mary Landrieu: I have delivered for Louisiana; send me back for more

In past debates Kennedy opened by aligning himself with John McCain, but [in this debate] he described his ideas for re-establishing economic stability in the financial markets and the US economy, an attempt to take control of an issue widely considered a drag on GOP candidates nationwide. “I know many of you are scared. Don’t be. Be concerned, be angry, but don’t be scared,” Kennedy said. “We will survive this economic crisis.”

Landrieu, meanwhile, continued to push herself as a centrist senator who works across party lines and has brought home billions of dollars in aid to Louisiana during her 12 years in Congress, particularly since the blows of hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. “Send me back to continue to fight for you, to deliver for you,” she said.

Source: 2008 Louisiana Senate Debate by Associated Press on NOLA.com Oct 16, 2008

  • The above quotations are from 2008 Louisiana Senate Debate between Mary Landrieu & John Neely Kennedy.
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Candidates and political leaders on Government Reform:

Retired Senate as of Jan. 2015:
GA:Chambliss(R)
IA:Harkin(D)
MI:Levin(D)
MT:Baucus(D)
NE:Johanns(R)
OK:Coburn(R)
SD:Johnson(D)
WV:Rockefeller(D)

Resigned from 113th House:
AL-1:Jo Bonner(R)
FL-19:Trey Radel(R)
LA-5:Rod Alexander(R)
MA-5:Ed Markey(D)
MO-9:Jo Ann Emerson(R)
NC-12:Melvin Watt(D)
SC-1:Tim Scott(R) 		Retired House to run for Senate or Governor:
AR-4:Tom Cotton(R)
GA-1:Jack Kingston(R)
GA-10:Paul Broun(R)
GA-11:Phil Gingrey(R)
HI-1:Colleen Hanabusa(D)
IA-1:Bruce Braley(D)
LA-6:Bill Cassidy(R)
ME-2:Mike Michaud(D)
MI-14:Gary Peters(D)
MT-0:Steve Daines(R)
OK-5:James Lankford(R)
PA-13:Allyson Schwartz(D)
TX-36:Steve Stockman(R)
WV-2:Shelley Capito(R) 		Retired House as of Jan. 2015:
AL-6:Spencer Bachus(R)
AR-2:Tim Griffin(R)
CA-11:George Miller(D)
CA-25:Howard McKeon(R)
CA-33:Henry Waxman(D)
CA-45:John Campbell(R)
IA-3:Tom Latham(R)
MN-6:Michele Bachmann(R)
NC-6:Howard Coble(R)
NC-7:Mike McIntyre(D)
NJ-3:Jon Runyan(R)
NY-4:Carolyn McCarthy(D)
NY-21:Bill Owens(D)
PA-6:Jim Gerlach(R)
UT-4:Jim Matheson(D)
VA-8:Jim Moran(D)
VA-10:Frank Wolf(R)
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Page last updated: Dec 01, 2018