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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 this current presidency.
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.
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.
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!

Jeff Crouere is a native New Orleanian and is a political columnist, the author of America's Last Chance and provides regular commentaries on the Jeff Crouere YouTube channel and on Crouere.net. For more information, email him at jcrouere@gmail.com

ACADIA PARISH – Shortly before 10:00 a.m. on July 12, 2022, Troopers from Louisiana State Police Troop I were notified of a single-vehicle crash on Louisiana Highway 91 near Arpent Lane in Acadia Parish. The crash took the life of 8-year-old Mazey Guidry of Eunice.
The initial investigation by State Police revealed the crash occurred as Guidry was traveling as a front seat passenger in a 1999 GMC Sierra pickup, south on LA 91. For reasons still under investigation, the driver, 44-year-old Carla Lacombe of Eunice, ran off the roadway to the right. Upon doing so, the pickup began to rotate before impacting a culvert and overturning.
Troopers determined Guidry was unrestrained and was ejected from the vehicle. She was pronounced deceased by the Acadia Parish Coroner’s Office. Lacombe and the rear seat passenger were both properly restrained and suffered only minor injuries. Lacombe submitted a breath sample which indicated no alcohol present and no signs of impairment were detected. Charges are pending and this crash remains under investigation.
With changes to the child passenger laws recent years, occupants under 13 years of age must be seated in rear seat when a rear seat is available. While not all crashes are survivable, proper seat belt usage can greatly increase the chances of surviving a crash by spreading out those forces across the strong bones of the body and preventing ejection. Please be a responsible driver or a responsible passenger and buckle up every ride, every time. For more information on Child Passenger Safety Laws visit: http://www.lsp.org/pdf/LouisianaChild%20PassengerSafetyLaw.pdf
Troop I has investigated 25 fatal crashes resulting in 29 deaths in 2022.

The approval of the Keystone pipeline is back in the news as petroleum interests and members of the Louisiana congressional delegation are calling on the President to get this project moving forward. So is building the pipeline the huge job creator and the economic bonanza for Louisiana that key supporters say it is?
For those readers who have been out of the loop as to what Keystone is all about, here’s a short summery. Canada is proposing the building of a pipeline some 875 miles from Western Canada down to Nebraska, where it would then tie into other U.S. pipelines. More than 830,000 barrels of oil a day would then flow down to the Gulf Coast for refining and exportation. But the U.S. must give approval, since the pipeline crosses international borders.
Sounds pretty good so far. Those opposing the project fear major environmental damage, as the pipeline is being built and maintained. Not so, I say. Remember, Louisiana is crisscrossed by over 10,000 miles of pipeline with only minor environmental problems. I’m not talking about damages that have destroyed large portions of marshlands by drilling for oil and gas. These are the buried pipelines that take refined petroleum up to the east coast.
Right now, numerous petroleum products are being transported to the Midwest and West Coast by rail and truck. There is probably more ecological risk with land transportation than with pipelines. Environmentally, I just don’t see that great a risk. So if there’s little downside, and supporters of the project argue that Keystone is critical to Louisiana’s economic future, what’s the upside?
Louisiana oil executives and some members of congress including Senator Bill Cassidy are touting that thousands of jobs will flow into Louisiana if Keystone is built. They go farther by asserting that gasoline prices will drop at the pump with more oil flowing that can be refined on the Gulf Coast. So is there any validity to these claims from the these oil magnates as well as our members of congress? Absolutely not. None! Zero! It’s all political hype.
Bloomberg BusinessWeek has reported that an eleven-volume report prepared by the State Department concludes the Keystone Pipeline would create (are you ready) 35 permanent jobs. Thirty-Five jobs and not a single one in Louisiana. So the claims of thousands of jobs flooding into the Bayou State are nothing more than a pipe dream.
How about their claims that all this new Canadian oil will actually lower the price of a gallon of gas? Again, not true. What few realize is that Canadian oil, called tar sands crude, is already being imported into the United States, primarily by rail in tank cars, at a rate of more than 3 million barrels a day, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. This Canadian oil is being processed in Midwestern refineries, the largest being the Flint Hills refinery in Pine Bend, Minnesota, owned by the Koch Brothers. Numerous other refineries are spread from Minnesota across the west to Montana.
Most of this Midwestern oil is presently sold to U.S. consumers. So the more oil we keep here in the U.S., the lower the price at the pump. Where will the Keystone oil go? To Texas, to be refined and shipped overseas. That means less oil in the U.S., and a higher price to U.S. consumers.
The bottom line is this. The Keystone pipeline, if approved, will have no bearing on jobs or economic development in Louisiana. It might even cause the price Louisiana consumers pay at the pump to go up. Telling those of us living down here in the Bayou State any differently is just more political smoke and mirrors. If congress wants to approve the project to land a few more jobs in Texas, so be it. But in Louisiana, how about more straight talk and less election distortions and gibberish?

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 look over a list of books he has published at www.thelisburnpress.com.

There is a strong bond between the schools and the community in Erath.
It’s two things that made Dr. Belisa Smith want to call Erath home. She is now more closely tied to both.
Smith, a native of Mississippi, is the new principal of Erath High School. She replaces Marc Turner, who is now an assistant superintendent for the Vermilion Parish School System. Smith previously served as an assistant principal under Turner at EHS.
“I am so honored and blessed to have been selected as principal of Erath High School,” Smith said. “Erath has a long history of success and community involvement.
“I am thrilled to be part of this great school and community.”
Erath High has been a highly ranked school for the past several years, including during Turner’s tenure as well as that of his predecessor, Francis Touchet Jr.
“I certainly have big shoes to fill, but I am looking forward to leading our school to continued success,” Smith said. “Erath High has a long history of success because of past leadership, community, faculty and staff. I look forward to keeping many of the same traditions that make Erath High a great place. I also look forward to making changes where needed so that we can continue to be successful.”
Vermilion Parish Superintendent Tommy Byler said he feels Smith is the right person for the job.
“Dr. Smith has worked with Marc for a long time,” Byler said. “She has been part of Erath’s success. She does have big shoes to fill. That is the case anytime you replace someone who has been there for a long time. She will figure out what works for her and her vision for Erath High. You don’t go in and break what works, but you also go in and figure out how to make it your own.
“I think Dr. Smith will do that.”
She is already taking those steps.
“As the principal, I look forward to building relationships with my faculty, staff and community,” Smith said. “I want to be visible in the school and community and really listen to the stakeholders. I am working to build my team. I will have a new assistant principal and secretary.
“Relationship building is an important key to our success.”
Having been at the school will certainly make for an easier transition for the faculty and staff.
“I do believe the transition of me moving from assistant principal to principal will be a smooth transition for all,” Smith said. “I have been here, so I know and understand the culture of the school. I know my faculty and staff and they know me. Our relationships will look a bit different now, but as a team we laid the foundation for success.”
The foundation of success for Smith began in her hometown of Stringer, Miss. She attended Stringer Attendance Center from kindergarten through 12th grade. After high school, she attended the University of Southern Mississippi, where she received a Bachelor’s Degree in Education.
“I then pursued my Master’s of Education at the University of William Carey in Hattiesburg, Mississippi,” Dr. Smith said, “and eventually completed my Ph.D. in Community College Leadership at Mississippi State University in Starkville, Miss.”
Smith is married to Timothy Smith, with whom she has two sons, Konner, 11, and Thaxtyn, 9.
Family, school and community are important to Smith. She has found a place for all three.
“Erath is certainly a special place,” Dr. Smith said. “My family and I choose to make Earth our home because of the great school system and community support. The success of Erath High starts with the community.”