Bobby Jindal’s Political Collapse Is Dangerous News For The National GOP

[DonViejo]

Governor Bobby Jindal (R-LA), considered a leading presidential contender in 2016, is suffering a political meltdown in his home state. His approval rating plummeted to 38 percent in a poll last week by the non-partisan Southern Media Opinion & Research, down from 60 percent just a year ago. In an ominous sign for national Republicans, the immediate cause is a sweeping economic agenda with strong parallels to the House GOP’s latest budget.

On Monday, Jindal scrapped his own proposal to eliminate the state’s income and corporate taxes and replace them with a statewide tax on sales and business services. His retreat was a concession to the reality that the proposal was headed towards a humiliating defeat — and taking Jindal down with it along the way. Jindal said in a speech to lawmakers on Monday that the backlash against his plan “certainly wasn’t the reaction I was hoping to hear,” but that he would respect the public’s wishes.

Jindal’s proposal was different than tax plans by national Republicans like Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan in that it planned to scrap income and corporate taxes entirely instead of just lower rates, but the provisions that inflamed the public against it overlap plenty with national GOP proposals. Namely, both plans generated complaints from economists that they would require regressive tax increases on the poor and middle class to secure lower taxes for the wealthy.

Grover Norquist, the intellectual leader of the anti-tax crowd in Washington, had praised Jindal’s plan as “the boldest, most pro-growth state tax reform in U.S. history.” He noted that it was particularly significant, because with Obama positioned to veto anything resembling the House GOP’s budget for the next several years, Louisiana might be Republicans’ best chance to show off their tax ideas on the state level.

more:
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2013/04/bobby-jindals-political-collapse-is-dangerous-news-for-the-national-gop.php?ref=fpa

[LonePirate]

1. TPM should come to Kansas if they want to see Jindal's horrific plan in action

His plan is being implemented in stages. Last year was the first stage by cutting income taxes, even to 0 for some non-wage earners. This year is the second stage involving more income tax cuts and higher sales taxes. More tax cuts are planned for next year. All the while, programs, particularly education, are being gutted and shell games are taking place to move money around to hide the enormous deficits that exist. It's becoming a nightmare here.

[pacalo]

3. I'm sorry that happened in your state.

I think the fact that Jindal believes he has a chance at the presidency was his undoing. That his popularity in LA lasted so long speaks of how politically laid back Louisianians generally are. The more politically ambitious Jindal became & the more national media exposure he got, the less people liked.

[SunSeeker]

4. Awful. You'd think legislators in Kansas would know about the concept of not eating seed corn.

What is going to happen to all those kids whose schools have been gutted? These kids are the future in Kansas. They've just cut their future. And how long are the poor (who have to pay sales taxes at a much higher rate than the rich) and middle class going to put up with this new serfdom?

[elleng]

2. 'Political collapse?'

If only!

[ladjf]

5. Jindal is a serial moron. He releases a steady stream of lunatic political positions.

[bloomington-lib]

6. It's not their plans that are wrong, it's the publics dislike of them that is.

Isn't that what their soul searching committee found out.

[Arugula Latte]

7. Waiting for them to start building "re-education" camps in 3 ... 2 ... 1 ...

[Walk away]

14. That's right! They aren't explaining how good it is that they are bleeding...

Kansas dry. If only they could figure out how to say it "smarter".

[xtraxritical]

8. Jindal's just another clown in the RepubliCON side show. Norquist, who's he exactly?

[DFW]

9. No cause for gloating, I'm afraid

First off, I don't think Jindal ever had a chance. He has a whiny voice, and the racist fringe won't like his ethnic background. He's not African, so they can't parade him around like they did with Herman Cain, and now professor Whatsisname.

Plus they have plenty on the lunatic fringe who are still being promoted by the MSM as "candidate material." As far as I can see, they are presidential "candidate material" the same way that burlap and fine silk are both "material." Rubio, Paul, Cruz, as Bill Gaines used to say, "the usual gang of idiots." And that's not even including any of the lame prospects that haven't even been promoted yet (the media has to make a big deal about SOMETHING after all, and at this point no one misspells "Hillary" any more).

[Thinkingabout]

10. One of these days poor folks are going to have to wake up to the fact Republicans have never had

Their best interest in mind. Just because repubs claim Democrats are for abortion and repubs are not is not a good reason to vote Republican. The is a poor state and has not been helped by passing the right to work law with a promise from the repubs they would have more companies to locate in the state than they would be able to handle. Jindal talked his way into being governor with promises he was going to save the state so much money they would never need for anything. State workers did not make a lot of money when he became governor and now they make less. He gave his staff raises but forgot about the rest. I knew when I heard him speak the first time he was a rat and now lots of others now know.

[Faryn Balyncd]

11. "..but he would respect the public's wishes" - Should anyone else follow this example of democracy?

[yellowcanine]

12. WWGDN (What will Grover do now?) that the "most pro-growth state tax reform in U.S. history"

is history?

[Chan790]

13. ...would it be too much to hope he decides to f**k off?

I've been yelling it at my TV for years every time he opens his yap...but he hasn't complied yet.