Political Analyst Looks At What Passed And What Did Not In Regular Session

Political analyst Clancy Dubos says Governor John Bel Edwards had a hard time getting key pieces of his legislative package through the legislature, like the bills for equal pay for men and women and increasing the minimum wage.

“Equal pay and minimum wage, big economic issues for his political base just did not get the traction. They made it farther than they’ve made it before, but it ran into a road block in the House of Representatives,” Dubos said.

Dubos says there were some victories for the governor. He says the budget lawmakers passed is close to the one he first proposed. Also, a bill that increases the age to 18 for which a person can be tried as an adult was approved.

“That was a very important bill, and it’s one that the governor pushed as well. So that’s one that he can put into his win column, and I think he supported the medical marijuana bill, not as forcefully as he did some of the others, but that’s a big change as well,” Dubos said.

Dubos says the governor is feeling pressure to veto a bill that gives patients the ability to see a physical therapist without a doctor’s referral. He says a strong majority of lawmakers voted for the bill, but Edwards is hearing from the opponents of the measure.