Cao Down
The bravely flip-flopping Republican congressman from New Orleans, Anh “Joseph” Cao, has inspired a recall petition. The reason: his vote against the economic stimulus package in a district that voted 74-25 for President Obama over Sen. John McCain.
“„The recall effort is ostensibly a response to Cao’s two votes against the $787 billion economic stimulus bill, which passed Congress last week and was signed into law Tuesday by President Barack Obama. But the Rev. Toris Young, one of the leaders of the effort, said the stimulus vote was only the “last straw, ” and that the recall effort had been in the works for weeks. The pastor of Greater Bibleway Missionary Baptist Church in New Orleans, Young identified himself as president of the Louisiana Ministerial Alliance of Churches for All People.
It sounds skimpy, and indeed, the effort will probably fail — it’s hard to collect 100,000 petitions. But a few weeks ago I was talking to some people who knew Louisiana politics and were optimistic that Cao, unconnected to any rival Democratic machines, with a “yes” vote on the stimulus could win the support of some of the old guard black Democratic organizations in his re-election bid. He appears to have sacrified that for … well, I don’t know. Was the Club for Growth planning to run a primary challenger in New Orleans?
