US Representative Piyush 'Bobby' Jindal -- a Republican and the only Indian-American in Congress -- has announced that he intends to seek the governorship of Louisiana once again next year and oust the Democratic incumbent Kathleen Blanco, who according to leading analysts in the state is vulnerable after her poor performance during and post-Katrina.
In an appeal to his closest supporters and fund-raisers seeking contributions for yet another run for governor, Jindal first thanked them for their support for his re-election campaign for Congress, when on November 7 he won with a thumping majority of nearly 88 per cent -- one of the largest, if not the largest recorded victory in the polls when he bucked the trend where most incumbent Republicans lost.
In his missive of November 15, Jindal pledged, "In Congress, you can count on me to continue to work hard to secure our borders, to deal firmly with foreign threats to our national security, to make tax relief permanent, to repair our local infrastructure, and to bring Louisiana our fair share of offshore royalities."
"But I am writing today with some hard truths. More than a year after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, too much of our state remains in shambles. It is time for new leadership in Baton Rouge. One year from now, Louisianans will choose who will serve as our governor for the next four years. And not a moment too soon."
"Our state needs a governor with a steel-like determination to get the job done, no matter the many obstacles before us. No excuses. No run around. Just helping the people of Louisiana to rebuild their homes, their communities, and their lives," he said.
"As one of my dedicated supporters," he said in the letter obtained by rediff.com, "I wanted you to hear it from me first. I have taken the first step towards another run for governor, reactivating the Friends of Bobby Jindal gubernatorial account."
"In Washington, I hear people parse words and talk in circles all of the time. So I want you to hear it straight from me; I want to run for governor, and I will be working hard over the next several months to see if I can build the support necessary to run a strong, successful campaign," he added.
He then took some hefty swipes at Blanco saying, "Our state faces a serious crisis like never before," and argued that "I just do not see the forward-thinking leadership Louisiana needs coming from the current administration."
"But while our state has fallen on some hard times, our current governor has done one thing very well; raise money for her campaign," he said.
However Jindal wrote, "Please know I will not enter the race for governor to play a political blame game. I will enter for one reason and one reason alone: To rebuild Louisiana into the best state possible -- the best state for education, the best state for high quality health care, the best state for high-paying jobs, and a state government with the highest ethical standards."
Three years ago, Jindal lost to Blanco in a close race by as little as 2 per cent points, after leading up to the final days of the campaign until the Blanco camp launched a blistering negative attack against some of his social and fiscal policies and his tenure as health administrator of Louisiana in the mid-90s.
