La. gov candidate switches to Democrat

[oberliner]

BATON ROUGE, La. - A Republican gubernatorial candidate switched parties Thursday, adding a Democrat to race that some of the party's biggest names have decided to skip.

State Sen. Walter Boasso had previously announced he was running for governor but had long complained that the state Republican Party gave all its support to U.S. Rep. Bobby Jindal (news, bio, voting record) for the fall election.

Boasso said the switch was a practical move: Without support from Republicans, he decided that his government reform ideas will get more attention if he runs as a Democrat.

"It's going to give me a platform, to let me be heard," Boasso said in an interview. "Regardless of party affiliation, everybody's in search of a leader, a leader with vision. I got into politics to make a difference, and we're going to make a difference this November."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070426/ap_on_el_gu/louisiana_governor_s_race;_ylt=AmCRjXX68sl_G2VXFlDcD.KyFz4D

[youngdem]

1. Boasso is NO Democrat.

Folks, we need to back a third party candidate in Louisiana to show our disgust with two hand puppets on the same master.

T. Lee Horne III should get your consideration in this regard. He is a libertarian, but not hard core. He is a nice man with no agenda. I've met him several times. Nice, nice guy. He travels the state in an old RV visiting festivals, moose lodges and the like, talking to people. NO entourage, no corporate donations, no lobbyists, no PR person.

He won't win, but you can show your disgust with this bullshit choice between Boasso and Jindal by voting for Mr. Horne, and showing that Boasso cannot take a Democratic vote for granted just because he has a D after his name.

[papau]

2. LOL- Boasso was a "lifelong" Dem in the 90's - two switches in 10 years! :-) He is a nice guy

but very pro-business for his local area - not sure that is all bad. But solid ethics - which separates him from the GOP.

The Democrats actually asked him to change back to Dem and run as a Dem. He has done an awful lot via private charity work, but I wish he had said more about his stand on government programs .

This is old - he announced February 6, 2007 - and faces the GOP hero Bobby Jindal, plus Public Service Commission Democrat Foster L. Campbell, and libertarian T. Lee Horne III.

[Bucky]

6. But seriously, no politician has jumped parties twice in a career...

...well, unless you count Winston Churchill.

[LeftishBrit]

8. Yes, Churchill, and there've been less well-known ones

E.g., sticking to the UK, Humphrey Berkeley who started out as a Tory MP. He was one of the key figures in the law that decriminalized homosexuality in the 60s; and, as that might suggest, was on the extreme left of his party. He finally switched to Labour because of Tory support for the Vietnam War. He later left Labour for the Social Democratic Party when this was founded; but when the SDP decided to merge with the Liberals (becoming the Lib Dem Party that we have now), he switched back to Labour. That is quite a few party-switches!

That is an example of a fairly sensible, independent person having difficulty with our party system. There have also been some real nutters who kept switching or even starting new parties. E.g. Robert Kilroy-Silk, sometimes known as Killjoy-Slick, started as a Labour MP, but left to join UKIP when it was founded, and became a Euro-MP on that party ticket (a bit of a contradiction in terms in itself, given that UKIP's main platform is opposition to the UK being part of the EU!) He then got pissed off when they didn't want him as their leader, and started his own splinter party called Veritas, which did disastrously in the 2005 election. He was then challenged for the leadership, and resigned before he would have been deposed. He then switched to 'Independent' in the Europaean Parliament, but remains a member of the Veritas Party; much to the displeasure of some (both?) of the other members of that party.

[SoxFan]

3. Good old Louisiana

I lived in NOLA for a few years in the 1990s and never managed to wrap my head around the weird, not-really-partisan political system down there. I remember the 1995 gubernatorial election where you had Democrats Mary Landrieu, Melinda Schweggman and Phil Preiss plus Republican Buddy Roemer all chasing the same suburban reform voters, Landrieu trying to hold on to some African American votes that were sliding to Cleo Fields, and Mike Foster piling up the "bubba" conservative vote once David Duke and Harry Lee were out of the way.

Only Louisiana could come up with a 350 pound Chinese redneck sheriff...

[Craftsman]

4. LA is the only state I know where if you aren't a little corrupt

teh electoriate is worried. The wonder what you are hiding.

[KingofNewOrleans]

5. Edwards--Now more than ever

Alot of Mardi Gras crews had fun with the idea of bringing back Edwin Edwards and the "era of competent corruption"

Boasso is relatively inoffensive for a DINO. Far less likely to pander to the fundies as Jindal does.

[Jack Rabbit]

7. The player to be named later

I guess this make Boasso the player to be named later in the deal that sent Michael Bloomberg to the Republicans.