Louisiana Voice

Let me see if I have this right.

In Michigan, according to the Gospel of Trump, Abdul El-Sayed is a looming threat to baseball, apple pie and the American way of life.

Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington, D.C. home was raided because of some suspected (but unproven) glitch in her naturalization papers, making her a walking hazard to the fabric of evangelicals everywhere. In fact, the world’s most infamous convicted sex offender/pedophile has deemed her unfit for office and decreed that he is declaring her House seat vacant (even though his expressly prohibited from doing that by a little thing called the U.S. Constitution).

Texas Rep. Chip Roy was a little more explicit when he said of Islamists, “Kill them. Kill them all.”

Yet, Trump appointed DR. MEHMET OZ as administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the agency that oversees medical care for tens of millions of Americans.

Dr. Oz, in case you were unaware, is Muslim.

Trump accepted aa a gift a $400 million 747 BOEING JETLINEER from the Qatari royal family and the entire Trump family has major business ties with Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund INVESTED $2 BILLION with a private equity firm founded by Trump son-in-law “Jared bin Lyin” Kushner.

The Qatari royal family and Saudi Arabian leaders are all Muslim. Every. Single. One.

Keep in mind, if you will, Kushner is one of Trump’s envoys negotiating Mideast peace negotiations, leading one to wonder which side he’s representing.

All that’s rather interesting, especially the obvious hypocrisy practiced by Trump and family.

But now a real bombshell has exploded over the head of Kushner and, by extension, Trump and the what passes for an administration in Washington.

Kushner allegedly accessed a secret Gulf-funded bank account while Dutch spies watched his phone, and moved money to a warlord, a mercenary and a one-time hit man, according to an explosive new book.

Kushners Hacked Phone Reveals Shocking Links to Warlord and Hitman – Chronology

Excerpts from a new book, published in Vanity Fair last week, investigative journalist Matthew Cole wrote that Dutch military intelligence found screenshots of Kushner’s iPhone on a Russian military intelligence server back in 2018, then exploited a flaw in the phone to watch his screen themselves starting in early 2018.

Investigators believe the hacking incident occurred during Kushner’s tenure as a senior advisor, where he played pivotal roles in shaping key policies and international relations.

According to sources familiar with the investigation, the breach reportedly led to the revelation of financial transactions made by Kushner that are alleged to involve payments to individuals linked to organized crime.

The Internet exploded with dozens stories–by AP, Bloomberg, MSN, Israeli Times, The New York Times, Forbes, Vanity Fair, et al–of the newest revelations and the story is still developing. Stand by as new details continue to emerge, as they most certainly will.

Meanwhile, it’s more than a little interesting—and curious—to watch Repugnantcans contort themselves into human pretzels as they condemn Muslims on the one hand and embrace them with the other.

You gotta admit, it’s one helluva October Surprise.

The Louisiana Book Festival is taking place on Halloween from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in front of the Louisiana State Capitol grounds, featuring music, food, children’s activities, workshops, programs, hundreds of authors, thousands of books, and one decrepit old cartoonist, Fred Mulhearn (above). Author Tom Aswell will be interviewed about his book The Dinosaur Club at 9:00 on the 5th floor of the State Library.

Duke Bardwell, the renowned bassist known for his work with Elvis Presley, passed away on October 20, 2024. His musical legacy and contributions to the industry have left a lasting impact on fans and fellow musicians alike. He was a native of Baton Rouge.

1Q08_ECL_Rubb_Jus-E_Unca_Duke.pdf

Duke Bardwell’s Legacy was marked by several significant achievements:

• Musical Career — Bardwell was a prominent bassist who performed 181 shows with Elvis Presley, showcasing his talent on a grand stage. He also was a singer-songwriter for Jose Feliciano and performed on shows with James Taylor, Gordon Lightfoot, Jackson Browne, Loggins and Messina, Tom Rush, and Jerry Jeff Walker. TCB Band – Duke Bardwell – (Bass Guitar)
• Retirement — After a long career, Bardwell retired from live performances but continued to influence music through documentaries and recordings. Elvis Presley Bassist Duke Bardwell Retires From Live Performance as Duke & The King Finds New Audiences on Prime Video – The Enterprise
• Cultural Impact — His journey from a childhood Elvis fan to a professional musician highlights the deep connections within the music community.

Duke Bardwell and you-know-who performing in concert

The following chapter on Bardwell is excerpted from my 2010 book, Louisiana Rocks: The True Origins of Rock & Roll:

Duke Bardwell, like his siblings, was named for a major university. A brother, Stanford Bardwell, Jr., once served as U.S. Attorney for Louisiana’s Middle District in Baton Rouge. Other siblings included Harvard, Princeton, Auburn, Cornell, and Duke’s twin sister, Tulane. Even his parents, Stanford, Sr., and Loyola, got in on the act.

Duke’s interests were in music and by age thirteen, he had his first garage band, Duke and the Losers. That was 1957, the same time Elvis Presley was emerging as cultural icon. Duke, born in of Baton Rouge on August 19, 1943, got his first road experience in 1960 playing guitar, bass, and trumpet for Lenny Capello and the Dots.

He enrolled at LSU in 1961 and began playing in a pickup band at frat houses. Then the English Invasion hit and overnight, none of the big horn bands could find work – with one exception. Bardwell and friends got together at a local club and did a mix of covers from the Beatles, the Stones, the Animals, and other British bands. People turned out to hear the band, which became the Greek Fountains. Several regional hits ensued, and the Greek Fountains worked the college and club circuit for the next five years.

In 1971, Bardwell signed on as a singer-songwriter for Jose Feliciano and played bass during recording sessions for Feliciano and played behind him on The Tonight Show, The Dinah Shore Show, and Soundstage in Chicago. In 1974, he toured and performed in 181 shows with Elvis Presley and played bass on Elvis’ album recorded live at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis on March 20, 1974.

Greek Fountains co-founder Casey Kelly moved to New York and got Duke a job playing bass with folk artist Tom Rush. This gave Duke a close look at the life of a troubadour singer-songwriter. He performed on shows with James Taylor, Gordon Lightfoot, Jackson Browne, and Jerry Jeff Walker. After Rush, Duke returned to Baton Rouge and formed another band. Duke and his cousin, Luther Kent, were front singers for Cold Gritz and the Blackeyed Peas. The band signed with Lou Adler’s Ode Records in Los Angeles, but the band broke up before its first album was released. Kelly, meanwhile, had his own record deal and was touring with Loggins and Messina, so Duke moved to L. A. and joined Kelly as a duo opening for Loggins and Messina for two years.

The Basement Wall began in Baton Rouge in 1963 as a garage band that played Beatles and Rolling Stones covers. Content with local nightclub and frat gigs, the band was thrust onto the national stage with the addition of guitarist and lead vocalist George Ratzlaff. Performing as far away as Los Angeles, the band soon was the highest-paid cover band in the southern U.S., according to the Louisiana Entertainment Association.

The Basement Wall’s only official release was Never Existed, on the Senate label, in 1968. Additional material was recorded but not released until the compilation The Incredible Sound of the Basement Wall was released by Cicadelic in 1985.

Founding member Terry Bourdier left the band in 1968 and was replaced by Bardwell but the band broke up and Bardwell went on to tour with Elvis Presley.

For the nostalgia aficionados out there: remember when all a Republican had to do to get elected was to say he stood “four-square for Donald Trump and making America great again” or words to that effect?

Funny, but we don’t seem to hear that kind of support of the Pedo-in-Chief this election cycle.

Instead, we’re hearing candidates like Blake Miguez and Julia Letlow vow they are going to hold someone “accountable” when they get to the Beltway. Letlow’s TV ads in particular have taken on a special irony when she boasts she’s going to straighten FEMA out and ensure disaster aid for Louisiana even as Trump announces states are on their own in disaster relief.

To (again) paraphrase an earlier politician, this one Earl Long to Leander Perez, who fought civil rights until the bitter end: “Whatcha gonna do now, Leander, the feds got the A-bomb.”

“Whatcha gonna do now, Julia, Trump’s got the veto pen.”

American history is chock full of examples of political chicanery on the campaign trail but this election cycle has become one of the ugliest campaigns in history with no level too low to stoop for desperate candidates on the low rungs of polling data.

In the past, political tricks were little more than pranks like with Dick Tuck signaled to a train engineer that Richard Nixon was finished with his whistle-stop address and the train should disembark—even though Nixon in reality was barely into his speech.

Earl Long said his opponent, Sam Jones, fell into the mud with a bunch of pigs. Someone walking past, claimed Long, said, “’You can always judge someone by the company they keep,’ and the pigs got up and left.”

And then there was George Smathers when he challenged incumbent congressman Claude Pepper in the 1950 election. Without lying or slandering Pepper one time, he told a crowd that Pepper was a “shameless extrovert,” who “practiced celibacy before marriage,” practiced “nepotism” with his sister-in-law, “matriculated” with women in college, that his sister was “a thespian” and his brother “a practicing homo sapien.”

It’s not known for certain how that impacted the election, but Smathers defeated Pepper.

In the 76 years since that legendary declaration, things have taken a dramatic downward turn in terms of civility and decorum as evidenced in two political races in Texas and Ohio. What is occurring in those two states goes far beyond basic human decency. They also manage to paint the entire Republican Party with the broad brush of desperation.

In case you live under a rock, a brochure has been popping up in mailboxes in Texas which purports to be from a trans rights group—just two weeks before the Nov. 3 election for senate and governor–that just happens to have Democrats currently leading in each race.

That, folks, is not an “October surprise,” it’s an October hit-job and it has Texas Attorney Gen. Ken Paxton’s fingerprints all over it—All. Over. It.

First of all, the leaflets which claim to be a resource guide for transgender and LGBTQ+ youth are the product of a Wyoming company named the Transgender Education Network of Texas (TENT) and even link to its website and features guidance on restrooms, pronouns, student clubs and legal emancipation from parents. TENT has denied any involvement, calling it a political attack meant to coincide with the beginning of early voting. The facts appear to be on TENT’s side.

That’s about as transparent as a window pane and anyone who knows anything at all about Paxton knows he’s about as straight an arrow as a barrel of chains. He’s never met an ethical violation he didn’t like and he sure as hell never met Will Rogers.

Second, the company that sent the brochures out was formed in Sheridan, Wyoming, according to The Sheridan Press, which said the address of the LLC filing is linked to nearly 300,000 limited liability companies according to a story in Wednesday’s online edition of THE CHRISTIAN POST. That alone should raise a few eyebrows.

Third, why would TENT shoot itself in the foot by sending out these mailers at this particular time, torpedoing the campaign of Democrat James Talarico who already leads in the polls?

There’s only one explanation: Paxton is desperate that he might finally have to actually find a job after the election and that desperation is forcing him to take drastic measures.

Then there is Ohio. Boy, is there Ohio.

That’s the state where Amy Acton, the Democrat, has been ambushed by Republican Vivek Ramaswamy who, at this point is more like Rama-smarmy.

Acton’s mother, whom she has had no contact with for nearly half-a-century, suddenly is qualified to speak of her daughter’s qualifications in a worse-than-disgusting TV ad–approved by Rama-smarmy, no less.

In the ad, mom calls daughter a liar but the records say otherwise. She claims her daughter is lying about having been raped at age 12 by her stepfather or that the family lived in a tent for a year. The records show beyond doubt that both are true and that mom was little more than a pedophile protector, a trait she has in common the Republican members of Congress, the Department of Justice and a majority of the Supreme Court.

Of course, it comes as no surprise to anyone that the Pedo-President has endorsed Rama-Smarmy.

Only a bottom-feeding guttersnipe would choose to launch such a personal and reprehensible attack ad two weeks before an election. Moreover, it smacks of the desperation Republicans must be feeling in the knowledge that many of them are on extremely thin ice for the sin of unquestioned loyalty to a tyrant, a demagogue, a traitor. The Republicans who have blindly supported Trump are, by extension, just as guilty as he. And that includes all but two of Louisiana’s congressional delegation, Troy Carter and Cleo Felds being the only exceptions. Not one of the remaining six (four House members and both senators) can wash the stench of Trump off themselves with a gallon of bleach.

To paraphrase Benjamin Franklin, “He who sacrifices [honor] for security deserves neither.”