Louisiana Politics: Longest-serving legislator is taking his leave

The end of a legendary era has come to a close with Senate President John Alario’s decision to not seek re-election. Alario’s tide floated many boats, and there are no doubt a few government relations professionals (and maybe gubernatorial candidates) rethinking their strategy for the next term.
From a purely political perspective, this news will put to rest the rumors that Alario was going to somehow bubble to the surface for next term’s race for speaker. His absence next year will also undoubtedly help kick off a number of story-lines about the next Legislature marking a transitional moment in the Capitol’s recent history.
As far as local politics, his bow increases the chances that his son, Chris, may consider a run for a justice of the peace post in Jefferson Parish.
Winning as a Republican in the Dem-Heavy HD 83, which Alario was sworn into in 1972, was going to require some work, although few thought the Senate president could lose. It has a Democratic registration of nearly 60 percent and a black population of 57 percent. Alario previously said he intended to run as a Republican if he ran at all.
Alario’s move naturally opens up the seat again, with Rep. Robert Billiot term limited. Kyle Green Jr., whose father served in the House, is “strongly considering” a bid. Green lost to Billiot in the 2015 runoff by 294 votes and friends say he has already identified a few healthy sources for fundraising.
James C. Simmons Jr., a former sheriff’s captain, and Donald Jones, a former parish councilman who has run for legislative seats in previous cycles, were both said to be eyeing the seat, even if Alario qualified. Local politicos now expect Jones to run for a parish-level position and Simmons to stick it out.

Political History:
The governor and the pirate
No matter your age or at what point you became acquainted with the colorful history of the Bayou State, it is almost certain that you’ve heard the names of William C.C. Claiborne and Jean Lafitte.
In fact, you don’t have to look much further than a map. After all, Claiborne has a state building and a north Louisiana parish named after him, while Lafitte’s name can be found on a National Park and a small hamlet in Jefferson Parish. However, despite their legendary status, the two clashed in one of the most infamous tales of political power, popularity and influence in the state’s history.
William C.C. Claiborne was a native Virginian who had become active in politics after moving to the developing new state of Tennessee. According to historian Jack McGuire in Louisiana Governors: Rulers, Rascals and Reformers, Claiborne had been an asset to Thomas Jefferson’s political campaigns and was rewarded with an appointment to Louisiana’s territorial governorship. After the Bayou State officially entered the Union in 1812, Claiborne became the first popularly elected governor.
Jean Lafitte and his brother Pierre were French-born smugglers who had brought their particular brand of business to the West Indies before settling in Louisiana in 1804. Once ensconced in the state, they set up a base of operations in Barataria Bay and began steadily raiding ships off the coast. The Lafittes would then sell whatever goods they captured at marketplaces in New Orleans, with their low overhead cost allowing them to have the cheapest prices in the city.
According to Lyle Saxon’s book, Lafitte the Pirate, the brothers’ criminal behavior was well known within New Orleans. But both the citizenry and the authorities were too busy buying their products at bargain prices to worry about the finer points of the law.
However, when an ambitious group of militia attempted to stop the Lafittes from seizing a ship, a gunfight ensued and a soldier was left wounded. Gov. Claiborne, who had already been irked by the blatant lawlessness of the pair, issued a proclamation on Nov. 13, 1813, calling for the arrest of Jean Lafitte. The governor also offered a $500 reward for whoever turned the pirate in.
The next day, Saturday, Lafitte went into New Orleans for his normal business transactions and did not alter his routine despite the posters all over the city calling for his capture. “The Creoles could not but admire his indifference to danger,” Saxon wrote. “When he was seen perusing the proclamation and smiling, they were amused by his nonchalance.”
On Monday morning, New Orleanians awoke to find new proclamations all over the city next to Claiborne’s. Lafitte had virtually copied the language of his own arrest warrant, but instead offered a $1,500 reward for whoever would arrest Gov. Claiborne and bring him to Barataria.
They said it
“It’s a young man’s game. If they gave me enough money to leave, I would.” —Don Beaulieu, who lives near the Rigolets, on dealing with coastal challenges, in the Christian Science Monitor
“How can I move — trick — somebody into buying this death house?” — A Reserve resident, on living near so-called “Cancer Alley,” on CBS News
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