WHO RUNS THE STATE WHEN THE GOVERNOR IS AWAY?

Wednesday, June 28^th, 2023

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

 

            WHO RUNS THE STATE WHEN THE GOVERNOR IS AWAY?  

                                                                     

      Who is in charge in the Bayou State when the Governor is out of the country? Most observers would say that it would be the Lt. Governor.  But Governor Edwards is in England, and Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser is in Australia. 

      A spokesperson for Edwards said the Governor is always in charge. Apparently, the mindset is that Governor Edwards is always available by phone or email, so he never really is “away.” Not so says the Louisiana Constitution, where clear language states: “When the governor is temporarily absent from the state, the lieutenant governor shall act as governor.”

     The most recent constitutional convention, which was held in 1973, was called by the Louisiana legislature to update and rewrite the state’s founding document. I was a co-author of the legislation creating the convention, and I also served as an elected delegate for the one year undertaking to draft a new constitution. With little controversy, the convention overwhelming adopted the provisions that put the lieutenant governor in charge when the governor is out of state. The intentions of the delegates were quite clear.

     In 1973 there were no cell phones, but landlines, of course, were abundant. However, Louisiana had experienced numerous blackout problems during hurricanes. Phone lines went dead during the storms and the delegates to the constitutional convention wanted provisions that, under emergency conditions, someone on the state level would be physically in charge. They had the savvy and the foresight to see that regardless of communication breakdowns, Louisiana would be best served by an onsite governor during an emergency.

     Granted, communication systems have become much more sophisticated today, but the importance of the provisions still applies. No better example can be found than the Katrina experience. Cell phone and Internet service failed, and local television and radio stations were off the air. An absentee governor would not have been able to communicate to first responders, the state police or the National Guard. No matter how electronically “tuned in” an out of state governor might be, the delegates felt that a major emergency needs “hands on” leadership. And they were right.

     Was another statewide official ever called on the issue of an executive order from the Governor’s office? Yes. On several occasions, I filled the role as Governor to deal with an anticipated emergency. I was elected Secretary of State in 1979, and the office is second in line to the Governorship behind the Lieutenant Governor. On several occasions, both then serving Governor Dave Treen and Lieutenant Governor Bobby Freeman were out of the country and I got the call.

     The first time was in the fall of 1980. I had been in office for a little less than a year, and I was attending a national convention of Secretaries of State in Atlantic City. My wife was along, and we had tickets for one of the final concerts of Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. This was a big deal back then, and an event my wife and I did not want to miss.

     Late in the afternoon before the concert, the phone rang.  The Governor’s executive counsel, Sonny Mouton was on the phone along with then Commissioner of Administration Bubba Henry. They quickly told me that both the governor and the lieutenant governor were out of the country, and they needed me to get back to Louisiana immediately to call a much-needed special session of the legislature. “I’d be glad to,” I told them, “first thing in the morning.”

     No, they told me—the call had to be signed by midnight. What a dilemma.  Either Frank, Dean and me hangin’ out (well, sort of), or back to Louisiana on a late flight. I reluctantly opted to skip the concert and fly back to New Orleans. A State Police helicopter met me on the Delta runway, and I signed the needed document minutes before the midnight deadline.

     Should the law be changed to have the governor in charge at all times?  There are pros and cons, particularly in a state that is as disaster prone as Louisiana. Right now, a succession of who is in command is the law. So when Governor Edwards travels outside the country, the law says he should have someone looking over his shoulder. Whether he likes it or not.

Peace and Justice

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at http://www.jimbrownusa.com. You can also listen to his regular podcast at www.datelinelouisiana.com.

 

 

 

 

IN DEFENSE OF DUMB COUNTRY LAWYERS!

Saturday, June 24^th, 2023

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

 

IN DEFENSE OF DUMB COUNTRY LAWYERS!

 

I have a confession to make. And former President Trump is not going to like it.  I’m a southern country lawyer. Darn proud of it.  In the President’s words, I may be a “dumb southern country lawyer.”  I just hope the President Trump does not have a sneering contempt for all of us Louisiana lawyers who cut our teeth practicing law in the rural areas of the Bayou State.

If you are unaware of the Trump’s supposed pot shots at those of us who ply our trade in the more pastoral boroughs of the state, The Washington Post’s Bob Woodard wrote a “tell all” book entitled “Fear: Trump in the White House.”  Woodward you recall was the reporter who dropped the bombshell on the Nixon White House back in 1972, and was portrayed by Robert Redford in the film, “All the President’s Men.”

 

Woodward writes of many revelations claiming he received insider information from current White House operatives who listen to the former President on a daily basis.  And, according to the book, Donald Trump makes it clear there is no love lost between him and his first Attorney General Jeff Sessions. He is quoted as saying that: “This guy is mentally retarded. He’s this dumb Southerner. . . . He couldn’t even be a one-person country lawyer.”

Now I’m reading this to mean that “a one-person country lawyer” is about as simple and elementary as you can get if legal guidance is required.  No real talent or expertise necessary.  Just a little folksy off the shoulder opinion will do.

Do you have to be an Ivy League barrister to have the knowledge and expertise to make sound and compelling legal decisions?  It’s a fact that all but one the current members of the U.S. Supreme Court attended either Harvard or Yale.  But maybe that’s part of the problem with a number of questionable high court decisions.  As Alabama law professor Ronald Krotoszynski wrote recently, “Are an attorney’s perspectives and capabilities “defined by the three years he or she spent in law school? Shouldn’t professional experience and judgment matter too? “

I graduated from Tulane Law School back in 1966 and moved to the rural town of Ferriday, Louisiana with a population of 5000.  There were a few other lawyers in the surrounding parishes, most of who graduated from LSU.  No specialized legalese in these rural courthouses.  Lawyers had to know a good bit about all phases of the law, both criminal and civil.

I handled civil cases ranging from divorces and small claims and stood toe to toe with big shot eastern attorneys representing General Motors and a number of major oil companies.  On the criminal side, I was often appointed by the local judge to represent a cross section of those accused of robberies right up to capital cases. Many readers will remember the notorious Jim Leslie murder case that happened in Baton Rouge back in the 1970s.  Leslie’s killer was gunned down in Concordia Parish and I was appointed to defend this killer. I can tell you the whole sorted story.

Here’s my point.  Country lawyers, particularly in the South, rarely take a narrowly defined career path. Sure, an attorney has to know the law.  But there also is a need to comprehend the practicalities of how the law should be applied and how such application affects and impacts the average citizen.

I’ve come across a number of outstanding lawyers who graduated from Tulane, LSU and Southern law schools. They often have both solid legal aptitude and a good bit of plain old common sense.  Our judges, by and large, stack up with barristers anywhere in the country, and we certainly have the legal talent that is qualified to stand shoulder to shoulder with any justice presently on the U.S. Supreme Court.

So give us a break Mr. President.  We might surprise you down here in the deepest of the deep southern states. Yep, some up north may call us dumb southern country lawyers.  But I have worked with many Louisiana attorneys, particularly in smaller towns, that can go eyeball to eyeball with any Ivy Leaguer. Simply put Mr. President, we wear our southern country lawyer title proudly.

 

Peace and Justice

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at http://www.jimbrownusa.com. You can also listen to his regular podcast at www.datelinelouisiana.com.