Democrats love to issue mandates, whether it involves useless masks, COVID-19 vaccines, or the car you purchase. This week, the far-left states of California, Massachusetts and Washington issued mandates requiring the purchase of electric vehicles.

In all these states, unless a hefty fine is paid, automakers will be forbidden from selling gasoline powered vehicles by 2035. As usual, the trendsetter in the climate craziness is always California. In 2019, Washington and Massachusetts passed legislation to follow whatever guidelines are enacted by the California Air Resources Board.

The short-term goals for California will be for all 35% of all new vehicles sales to be “zero emissions” by 2026, rising to 68% in 2030. According to former Trump Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Andrew Wheeler, these goals are unworkable. He believes California “can’t get to 35% EVs by 2026 let alone 68% by 2030.”

The impracticability of these standards is no concern for the liberal state leaders, they just want the positive press for taking climate change action. In fact, Governor Jay Inslee (D-WA) wants his state to ban gasoline powered vehicles by 2030. He claims that such moves are a “critical milestone in our climate fight.”

For liberal Democrats, the “climate fight” means that anything related to fossil fuels is evil. It is one reason Biden Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was almost giddy when gasoline prices started rising this summer. She said it made a “very compelling case” for consumers to buy electric vehicles. So, according to progressives like Granholm, just buy an electric vehicle for goodness’ sake. Consumers will help with the “climate fight” and avoid those high gasoline prices.

Unfortunately, Democrats love spouting their platitudes, but they have little regard for the economic conditions facing Americans. In the midst of raging inflation, Democrats are trying to force Americans to buy electric vehicles, which cost, on average, $66,000.

To mitigate these exorbitant costs and encourage more Americans to abandon their “addiction” to fossil fuels, $370 billion in climate change initiatives and a $7,500 electric vehicle tax credit was included in the “Inflation Reduction Act.” This will apply only for electric vehicles “assembled” in North America.

Of course, the major flaw in this scheme is that right after the bill was signed, Ford announced that their “Mustang Mach-E” will cost $8,475 more next year. This is $975 more than the tax savings in the “Inflation Reduction Act.”

Another problem for Americans who want to join the “climate fight,” is that the raw materials used for electric batteries are increasing in cost. The expense of producing materials such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel is increasing due to supply chain disruptions and other issues.

Even more disturbing is that these materials are primarily produced in communist China. It is never a promising idea for the United States to become dependent on our foremost enemy to produce any key material, especially one that is crucial for our automobile industry.

In contrast, for our gasoline powered vehicles, our country does not need to be dependent on China or any other country. This was demonstrated during the Trump administration when America became energy independent for the first time in decades.

In our country, we have at least 264 billion barrels of oil available for drilling. According to a report by Rystad Energy, there is more untapped oil in the United States than any country on earth, including Russia and Saudi Arabia.

It certainly makes more sense, both economically and for national security reasons, to halt the hysterical rush toward electric vehicles. Unfortunately, the Biden administration and Democratic governors are unconcerned about the problems associated with electric vehicles. They want to be known as leaders in the ‘climate fight,” the consequences be damned.

It is not only the “blue states” in our country that are on board with the rush toward electric vehicles. Bank Australia has taken even more dramatic action. Within the next three years, no new loans will be issued for the purchase of gasoline powered vehicles.

This is being done whether customers in Australia want it or not. The bank’s Chief Impact Officer, Sasha Courville, said, “By ceasing car loans for new fossil fuel vehicles, we are sending a signal to the Australian market about the rapid acceleration in the transition from internal combustion to electric vehicles we expect to see in the next few years.”

Since Americans can expect to see such banking mandates and more in our country, it is essential to fight back against such insanity. Fortunately, Texas ended their business dealings with eight financial institutions that were deemed to be “hostile” to companies involved in the production of fossil fuels.

More states need to follow the lead of Texas, otherwise, Americans may no longer have a choice. Soon, you may have to either buy an electric vehicle or walk.

In a sign that he is about to announce another presidential campaign, Donald Trump  released a video this week of his awesome Boeing 757 being refurbished. This is the airplane he used to campaign during his successful 2016 election. According to Trump, “Now it has been completely modernized and renovated, and looks GREAT, all done in the Great State of Louisiana, and coming back to the skies in the Fall of 2022, or maybe sooner. Get ready!”

Americans are definitely “ready” for the return of Donald Trump to the White House, especially after 18 months of the worst presidency in United States history.

Under President Trump, gas prices and inflation were low, and the country was energy independent. Trump was able to rebuild our military, keep our enemies in check, fight back against China by instituting tariffs, negotiate four historic Middle East peace deals and provide a measure of border safety as a wall was being constructed.

All this progress was reversed under the administration of President Joe Biden, who is doing the bidding of radical leftists in the Democratic Party. As a result, Biden has implemented “green” energy policies by focusing on renewables and electric cars, while penalizing our domestic oil industry.

He canceled the Keystone XL pipeline, instituted a moratorium on drilling on federal land and offshore, canceled drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve, removed incentives for new drilling, and rejoined the Paris Climate Accords.

These policies have caused record inflation and gas prices and our country is once again dependent on foreign nations for our energy needs. Instead of taking responsibility for his actions, Biden demonized our oil and gas companies and even blasted owners of gasoline stations, even though many of them are small business owners struggling to survive.

Biden is trying to turn the military “woke,” which is certainly a factor in the recruitment problems facing all the branches of our Armed Forces. It is little wonder that our enemies are causing problems once again.

While Russia was quiet during the Trump administration, it has invaded Ukraine on Biden’s watch. In contrast to the improving relationship between the United States and North Korea during the Trump administration, the “Hermit Kingdom” is once again saber rattling and increasing their testing of nuclear weapons.

Iran is getting ever closer to developing nuclear weapons and threatening stability in the Middle East, a region that is facing ever increasing turmoil. Instead of standing up to China, the Biden administration is on the threshold of removing the tariffs instituted by President Trump.

After inheriting a secure border from President Trump, Biden has created total chaos. He immediately stopped construction of the border wall, ended the “Reman in Mexico” policy, and reinstated the horrific “Catch and Release” policies. The result is that over two million illegal immigrants entered the country last year and this record will be easily surpassed this year. The open border has allowed the importation of illegal drugs to skyrocket, contributing to the record number of drug overdose deaths in our country.

While these problems are growing, the Biden administration is curiously out of touch with the concerns of average Americans. As a new poll clearly showed, by a wide margin, the most important issues for Americans are the economy, inflation, gas prices and everyday bills such as groceries. An astounding 63% of Americans rank economic issues as the most important concern for their family.

Despite the outcry from their voters, President Biden and the Democrats are focusing on abortion, gun control, the war in Ukraine, and the January 6 committee. This may be the biggest disconnect in modern American history between a political party and the voters who are supposedly being served.

The same poll showed that 88% of Americans believe the country is on the “wrong track.” No wonder, millions of Americans are clamoring for the return of Donald Trump to the White House.

As evidence, his rally in Anchorage, Alaska on Saturday night was jammed packed with supporters with a huge crowd arriving early. The President’s rallies are always well attended, but this one was especially raucous. He was greeted like a rock star with a three-minute standing ovation. At this point, people are desperate for good news and President Trump is delivering hope that he may return for another presidential run.

The desire for another Trump term is happening despite the relentless campaign from the Democrats, the media, the Deep State, and establishment Republicans to destroy him. He survived an unfair and biased two-year Mueller investigation, two bogus impeachment witch hunts and is now undergoing a show trial, a kangaroo court, known as the January 6 committee.

Despite the best efforts of the Trump haters, most Americans, 62%, have not watched these hearings, even though they have been broadcast multiple times on cable and news broadcast networks.

The American people are becoming more accustomed to the biased news media and are discounting their non-stop Trump bashing. While the Democrats will continue their campaign to prevent President Trump from running again and may even try to charge him with a crime or arrest him, it will do little to dampen the desire of the American people for him to return.

With Biden’s popularity crashing to a new low of only a 30% approval rating, it is not surprising that he is losing to President Trump in the latest polls.

The American people want a strong economy again and for this country to be safe, both domestically and abroad. President Trump delivered success both domestically and abroad. In contrast, Biden has delivered nothing but failure in every area.

As rally goers noticed on Saturday night, President Trump is a vibrant and energetic man who is in command of his audience. Sadly, Biden is old and frail and mentally incompetent.

President Biden is unable to articulate clearly without making mistakes. His speeches are usually garbled. This is not what the American people want in their President. They want President Trump back!

Both Republicans and Democrats have issues with the power and influence of “Big Tech.” Unfortunately, to derail these mammoth corporations, reckless “anti-trust” legislation, the American Innovation and Choice Act (S. 2992), is moving through the U.S. Senate at lightning speed. It will make whatever problems exist with this industry worse.

This legislation is authored by U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and, if passed, will surely be the centerpiece of her next presidential campaign. Her involvement in promoting such legislation is not surprising, but what is disturbing is that some conservative Republican Senators such as Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, and John Kennedy of Louisiana, have lent their support to the bill.

Klobuchar is a far-left Democrat, and this legislation is pleasing to her progressive supporters. It is astonishing that conservative Republican Senators are helping her achieve a legislative victory that will improve her chances of winning the Democratic Party’s 2024 presidential nomination. It may also help preserve the Democratic Party’s chances to maintain control of the U.S. Senate next year. Thus, working with Klobuchar is the last thing Senate Republicans should be doing right before the midterm elections.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) promised to push the legislation toward passage in the U.S. Senate this month. Schumer realizes that his tenure as Senate Majority Leader has been a complete failure, so he is hoping this legislation will give him a much-needed legislative win. To accelerate the bill’s passage, there have not been public hearings scheduled to give opponents an opportunity to expose the shortcomings of Klobuchar’s bill.

The American Innovation and Choice Act is an unmitigated disaster, which is why the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Americans for Tax Reform, CATO, the American Enterprise Institute, and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), all oppose the legislation. In the view of Jack Howard, the U.S. Chamber’s Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, S.2992 is “ripe with unintended consequences that if enacted into law would exacerbate inflation and damage America’s economy and economic competitiveness for years to come.”

To stop “Big Tech” monopolies, the bill gives vast new powers to unelected far-left federal bureaucrats at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). This moves economic power and decision-making from the competitive private sector to the burdensome federal government. It will enhance regulations that promote centralized planning from government agencies that will be extremely harmful to our economy.

If passed, it is estimated S. 2992 will cost American consumers an additional $22 billion in service costs from online marketplaces. These extra costs would hit at exactly the wrong time for Americans when inflation is raging. U.S. Chamber’s Neil Bradley, Executive Vice President, and Chief Policy Officer, said this legislation “will fuel further inflation, limit choices, and undermine investment in innovation by injecting regulatory uncertainty into the marketplace at the worst possible time.”

Since gasoline has reached an average of almost $5 per gallon nationally and inflation is at a forty-year high, Congress should be focused on doing everything possible to reduce consumer prices.

Unfortunately, this bill will deliver increased costs for online companies Americans use for everything from purchasing groceries to entertainment.

An analysis conducted by the National Economic Research Associates concluded that, if enacted, this legislation would create higher costs for an array of consumers. For example, Amazon Prime users would pay more than $148 annually for the same services. With increased regulation of online platforms, including marketplaces, both businesses and consumers would have to absorb $319 billion in losses of combined technology services. Ironically, foreign based online marketplaces would not face any increased regulation or costs.

The bill will force credit card companies and major retailers to pass on increased costs to consumers at exactly the wrong time for struggling households. In addition, the bill may limit outside investment from venture capitalists in new “Big Tech” companies by up to 20%. This will hamper future growth and innovation.

Republicans have good reason to be upset at “Big Tech” for their horrendous censorship of conservative content. However, this bill does nothing to limit those practices. Instead, it punishes success, harms consumers and businesses, and gives the FTC tremendous new powers. Increasing costs for “Big Tech” is not wise in an inflationary environment when consumers are facing historic price increases.

Breaking up the “Big Tech” corporations will not solve the problems that our economy faces with surging inflation, foreign energy dependence, baby formula in short supply and bare grocery shelves. This bill will only make our problems worse as our online choices will be limited, more complicated, and costlier. In fact, some of our dependable services may be eradicated because of this bill.

Innovation will be hampered; new products will not be introduced as quickly and small businesses which rely on partnerships with “Big Tech” to sell their products online will be devastated and potentially will close if this bill becomes law.

While Republicans are rightly upset with “Big Tech” for their egregious censorship of conservative commentary, they are even more angered by the actions of a far-left Congress and our federal government. According to a poll conducted by Echelon Insights, 67% of conservatives are opposed to Congress regulating online activities.

This opposition is well founded for the federal government has a long history of harming private businesses by enacting onerous regulations. Reacting to the demands of consumers, private businesses, not the federal government, are best equipped to make needed adjustments to their services and products.

Our “Big Tech” industry is driving tremendous economic growth and is fostering the work of countless small businesses in our country. Online activity has become a part of almost every business and this trend only accelerated during the pandemic. It also impacts the lives of Americans in how we communicate, shop, socialize and entertain ourselves.

All conservatives must oppose governmental efforts to empower federal agencies and hamper consumer economic activity. Let us not create any additional costs for the already suffering American consumer.

The major problems in our society today are rarely addressed when Congress tries to “take action.” In the quest to solve a dilemma in our country, Congress creates more bureaucracy, more spending, and more debt.

Congress doesn’t resolve problems; it often makes them worse. Usually, the best thing for Congress to do is nothing. Therefore, Americans are safest when Congress is in recess.

With this track record in mind, it is frightening to consider the prospect of Congress solving various issues with “big tech.” An unwieldy piece of legislation has been introduced by a bi-partisan group of United States Senators, including Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tom Cotton (R-AR). It is titled “The American Innovation and Choice Online Act.”

Conservatives know that “big tech” censors right leaning opinions on a regular basis. There is a clear and consistent bias against conservatives. Unfortunately, this legislation does nothing to correct this issue, which is a violation of the 1^st Amendment.

In contrast, the legislation limits the way technology platforms can deliver services such as same-day shipping or using a smartphone to locate a family member. During the pandemic, millions of Americans became reliant on the technological conveniences that will be targeted by this legislation. In a challenging economy, with runaway inflation, Congress should not be limiting the ways Americans can save time and money.

The legislation also limits the ability of technology companies to “self-preference,” which is a sales tactic that has been used by retail outlets for decades. In essence, “self-preference” is a way for technology companies to offer consumer and product promotions. Congress should not be involved in regulating the way technology companies offer promotions for veterans or any other group of Americans.

The bill will also punish small businesses that have partnered with big tech companies like Amazon, Etsy, or Apple. These small operators need the partnerships to increase their sales and stay in business. They do not need Congress creating more headaches and hurdles for them to succeed.

What is most disturbing about the bill is that, if passed, it will transfer power from the private sector to the radical bureaucrats in the Biden administration. Just recently, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki called for Spotify and other audio streaming apps to “continue doing more” to censor unwanted opinions. This was started when Psaki and other Biden officials criticized podcaster Joe Rogan as spewing “misinformation.” In contrast, millions of Americans enjoy listening to his commentary and interviews and find his program both entertaining and useful.

Americans should make their own decisions about what programs to enjoy online, not the government. A very troubling aspect of this bill will be that it will increase the power of far-left Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan. One of her objectives has been to “reduce wealth inequality,” through regulation and other government actions.

These government agencies already wield too much power, it would be unwise to give them more power to regulate and thwart commerce.

Along with limiting services and increasing burdensome regulation, the bill will likely lead to higher prices for Americans. During an inflation surge, it is exactly the wrong time to pass legislation that will create fewer choices and higher prices for consumers.

Americans do not need our government picking the “winners and losers” in the private sector. Americans need the federal government to stay out of the private sector with as little regulation and interference as possible.

There is legitimate concern about the actions of some big tech companies. Some argue that these companies have become too powerful. However, the best way to combat that issue is through encouraging competition in the private sector. Our free enterprise system, if allowed to operate, always rewards companies that provide innovation and customer service.

Our country’s main problem today is a lurch toward more government and more socialism at the expense of our capitalist economic system. This bill will just be another attack on capitalism, which has served our country very well since our founding 246 years ago.

American consumers need more choice and better value and less central planning from our federal government. Our country needs an economic system that allows businesses to grow and prosper, not be punished for their success.

Before the next congressional vote, we must urge Louisiana Senators Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy to thoroughly examine this bill’s negative ramifications for American consumers. While the legislation may have good intentions, the unintended economic consequences for the American people will be both significant and adverse. Especially at this perilous time, any bill that does further damage to the economic standing of Americans must be defeated.

The left-wing policies of President Joe Biden have delivered untold suffering for millions of Americans, resulting in horrific approval ratings. Biden has been an utter failure at home and abroad. Of all his failures, his insane energy policies have caused the most financial harm to Americans.

As noted by House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, Biden and the Democrats are committed to a “radical Green New Deal agenda.” Under President Donald Trump, gasoline prices were below $2 per gallon and the United States became a net exporter of petroleum for the first time since 1949.

Once Biden became President, the Keystone XL pipeline was halted, and a moratorium was issued on new federal drilling leases. He ended all drilling leases in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Reserve (ANWR) and eliminated an array of tax incentives for the oil and gas industry.

He also announced plans to convert the federal government’s fleet of 650,000 vehicles to all-electric. Combined, these policies placed our country in an extremely vulnerable position, as the war in Ukraine has exposed.

Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, gasoline prices have skyrocketed 47 cents per gallon, reaching the highest level since 2008. Average gasoline prices have now surpassed $4 and are racing to surpass the historic record of $4.11 per gallon.

This is catastrophic for the American economy and will lead to an even greater inflation rate, which is already at a four-decade high. In January, consumer prices surged 7.5%, with major increases in food, electricity and shelter contributing to most of the gain. With gasoline prices now exploding, Americans will experience even higher inflation in the future.

Unfortunately, American wages are not keeping pace with the surging inflation rate, so the average American is falling further behind economically. A recent Labor Department report showed that wages increased 4% in the last year; however, the inflation rate is at 7.5% and rising.

As the Biden administration tries to exert even more economic pressure on the Russians, there are ongoing discussions with other countries to ban the importation of Russian oil. United States Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said, “we are now talking to our European partners and allies to look in a coordinated way at the prospect of banning the import of Russian oil.”

If this ban is enacted, it will surely inflict economic pain on the Russians. However, it will also lead to even higher energy costs for Americans, as we import 3.5% of our oil and 21% of our gasoline from the Russians.

Under President Biden, the United States has become an energy dependent country once again. We import oil from Canada, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia. Nigeria, and Iraq, among other countries. It is outrageous that the United States is dependent on any authoritarian, socialist, or corrupt country for our energy needs.

With our vast energy resources, the United States should not be importing one drop of oil. We must stop sacrificing jobs and economic opportunity at the “green” altar of climate change.

The Biden administration’s record has shown that pursuing “green” energy and thwarting the production of more domestic oil and gas leads to higher prices at the pump and more dependence on foreign oil.

While these policies are pleasing to far-left “squad” members like U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), they are painful to working class Americans who must commute to work, buy their groceries, and try to provide for their families.

As gas prices have soared, Biden has refused to retreat from his “green” agenda, but he did authorize the release of thirty million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Supposedly, this will mitigate the economic damage from rising oil prices; however, it is a mere band-aid.

Daily, Americans use over 20 million barrels of oil. Thus, Biden’s decision is not enough to cover two days of American oil consumption.

The genuine answer to this dilemma is to return to the Trump energy policies. According to Scalise, “President Biden should immediately reverse his devastating policies that are causing gas prices to skyrocket and are giving Putin leverage against the rest of the world and return to the policies that were working under President Trump to create American energy dominance.”

To deal with these problems, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced the Energy Freedom Act on Friday. The goal of the legislation will be to “make America energy independent again by accelerating federal permitting for energy projects and pipelines, mandating new onshore and offshore oil and gas lease sales, approving pending LNG export licenses, and generally speeding up solar, wind, and geothermal development.”

According to Cruz, America became energy dependent again “Because on day one of his administration, President Biden issued illegal and hostile orders aimed at American oil and gas producers, which have increased energy prices and directed profits to other oil exporting countries.”

While adversarial countries such as Iran and Russia raked in billions of dollars, our oil and gas industry suffered. Cruz believes that, if enacted, his bill will “create new jobs” and “lower energy costs.”

Ironically, the increased reliance of foreign oil has led to more environmental damage since other countries do not produce energy in environmentally friendly ways. Thus, expanding energy production in the United States is good for the environment. As Cruz notes, “modern energy production in the United States is far cleaner” than in any other country in the world “by every measure.”

The bill will reduce permitting red tape, prevent Biden from stopping lease sales and will end “the presidential permit requirement for cross-border energy projects.”

The United States needs to unleash our energy industry to benefit consumers, restore our economy and reduce our dependence on hostile countries. It is imperative that the needs of average Americans be placed above the demands of the radical climate change fanatics, who dominate the Biden administration.

In the November elections, Republicans must run on a platform which includes energy independence. After paying $4 per gallon for gasoline, voters will be receptive.

Polls show that Americans are angry with the radical agenda of the Biden administration. Some political analysts believe that Republicans will sweep to victory in the 2022 midterm elections. Sadly, none of this will be possible without election reform.

The will of the people will only be expressed if there are free and fair elections in this country. Most Republican activists are convinced that the 2020 election was stolen from President Donald Trump. The media, Democrats and establishment Republicans call this claim the “big lie.”

Thus, we are to believe that Democrat candidate Joe Biden, a man who held almost no rallies and spent most of the presidential campaign in his basement, generated a historic vote total of eighty-one million in the 2020 election. In the campaign, Biden attracted only a few thousand people to all his public events, whereas President Donald Trump attracted two million people.

While Trump had enthusiastic supporters, Biden was supported by voters who were motivated by their hatred of the President. In the campaign, Biden displayed obvious signs of mental decline. During the first year of his presidency, Biden’s mental incapacity has grown significantly. Unfortunately, our country is stuck with a mentally incompetent and potentially fraudulent President.

Such a disaster must be rectified. It will start with a massive outpouring of outraged voters in the 2022 midterm elections. To make sure this surge of voters is accurately registered in this upcoming election and all future elections, there must be zero tolerance for voter fraud.

In the past year, approximately twenty states have passed election reform legislation. In Louisiana, we must join this movement and take steps to guarantee our elections are clean. Unfortunately, several strong election reform bills were vetoed by Louisiana’s liberal Democrat Governor John Bel Edwards after the last legislative session. One election bill that was signed by the Governor was Senate Bill 221. If the bill were really a major step toward election reform would Edwards have signed it?

The bill created a commission that will make new voting machine recommendations to Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin, who will make the final decision. The new voting machines in Louisiana will have to create an auditable paper voting record and cannot be connected to the Internet.

The problem is that the ultimate decision will still be made by Ardoin, a former lobbyist, who assumed the position of Secretary of State after sexual harassment allegations forced his predecessor to resign.

In two previous failed attempts, critics, including voting machine vendors, have maintained that Ardoin tried to steer a multi-million-dollar new contract to Dominion Voting Systems, which is paid by the state to maintain all our old voting machines.

In the last election, many Trump supporters raised questions about the safety and integrity of the Dominion voting machines. In response, Dominion has tried to bludgeon their critics by filing lawsuits against them totaling $1.3 billion.

One Dominion critic is renowned election analyst Colonel Phil Waldron, who was invited to testify before the Louisiana voting commission. Waldron has asserted that the President of a communist Chinese bank is on the board of directors of a private equity firm that owns Dominion. He also has stated that the only company with access to the codes and testing for Dominion is based in Shenzhen, China. While Dominion has rejected these claims, they certainly merit further investigation at a minimum.

Dominion machines have been primarily used in Louisiana for many years. Their machines are also used in over twenty states, including all the battleground states that Biden won in 2020.

With such controversy about Dominion voting machines and software, how can Louisiana voters have full confidence in our elections? At a minimum, all foreign influence must be removed from Louisiana elections. It is imperative that a full-scale and independent audit be conducted. For complete confidence, voting should be done on hand-marked paper ballots that are scanned. There must be no opportunity for any outside influence or hacking of our election results.

The Secretary of State does not support such reforms. He strongly defends the conduct of his office and the integrity of the vote in Louisiana with our Dominion machines.

Many Louisiana residents disagree with Ardoin and believe the 2019 gubernatorial election results were suspicious. In my view, after the 2020 presidential race, all election results should be viewed with suspicion.

Based on my research, which I outlined in several articles for The Hayride, Louisiana voters have a right to be concerned. As an example, I raised questions about vote totals in recent elections in selected precincts in Jefferson Parish.

This generated a furious response from the Secretary’s political operative John Tobler, who made a variety of personal attacks against me. Tobler is a long-time political consultant who has served in a variety of state government jobs and now works for Ardoin as a political adviser.

Instead of spending his time on the state payroll attacking a commentator raising questions, it would be a better use of his time to provide the voters of Louisiana with elections that were beyond reproach. Instead, Tobler doth protest too much.

In his most recent response to my series of articles on questionable election numbers in our state, Tobler points to election “stats,” and further, he argues that he and his boss are doing, “a damn good job of keeping our elections clean.”

Really, the “stats” show that? According to a recent U.S. Census report, there are 383, 997 residents in Orleans Parish. The census also says 20% are under eighteen, so they cannot legally vote, which leaves approximately 307,197 adult residents.

If 5% of this total are illegal aliens or undocumented migrants, and the figure is probably much higher, this leaves us with a total of 291,837 voting age residents of New Orleans.

Let us estimate another 2%, an extremely low estimate, are former felons who have not done the paperwork required to reestablish their right to vote. This leaves us with a total of 286,000 non-felon, legal adult residents who can register to vote.

If 60% of these individuals registered to vote that would yield 171,600 registered voters in Orleans Parish. If 70% of them registered to vote that would be 200,200 registered voters. If 80% of the eligible legal adults registered to vote that would be an exceedingly high percentage, unrealistically high, and it would result in 228,800 registered voters.

So how many registered voters does the Secretary of State claim are legally registered to vote in Orleans Parish? He claims there are 273,640 registered voters in the parish. What?! This is an astounding 96%!

Who in his right mind believes 96% of the eligible citizens in Orleans Parish are legally registered to vote? No one, that’s who.

Mr. Tobler, you declare that you and your boss are doing “a damn good job of keeping our elections clean,” but we have problems galore. We cannot completely trust the voting machines, nor can we trust the voter rolls.

Mr. Tobler, instead of constantly patting yourself and your boss on the back and attacking me, wake up, do your job, and give the citizens of Louisiana honest vote counts.

Stop spending your time and taxpayer money trying to convince us that we have honest vote counts, when the “stats,” as you like to call them, show the opposite.