Yesterday, the voters of New Orleans, by a narrow margin, gave Rep. William Jefferson, perennial counter-argument for corrupt or perverted Republicans, his walking papers.
Good. It was past time.
Jefferson's Republican opponent, Anh "Joseph" Cao, may or may not prove to be a decent representative for Louisiana's 2nd District, but he is almost surely doomed to be a one-termer with the district being the most Dem-leaning in the country. He is, as Clancy DuBois put it last night, "won and done."
With that in mind, it's not too early to begin thinking of the opponent we'd like to see face Mr. Cao in two years. Nor is it premature to start brainstorming possible challengers to Sen. David Vitter, whose term will turn over then.
Starting with the 2nd, I would very much like to see a second run by Karen Carter Peterson, currently State Representative for the 93rd District.
Last go-round, she ran a fierce, ethical campaign against Jefferson, only to be torpedoed by Jefferson Parish Sheriff Harry Lee, who galvanized white voters in the district's West Bank neighborhoods against her, because she had criticized Gretna police for stopping people from evacuating New Orleans across the GNO bridge during the flooding after Katrina. You've heard the story, I'm sure.
Lee, who was never known for excessive affection for African Americans, was incensed that Ms. Carter (as she was then known), would speak about the incident to Spike Lee's cameras rather than just quietly muttering to Gretna's police chief and getting ignored. So, while coyly claiming he didn't endorse Bill Jefferson, he sent out 25,000 leaflets to district voters denouncing Carter's comments.
That dampening of West Bank support, combined with Bill Jefferson's legendary turnout machine, doomed Carter's candidacy. In 2010, the landscape will be quite different, with Lee enjoying his rewards in the Beyond, Jefferson gone, and all Orleanians, white, black, East and West, looking at the effects of years wasted without representation in Washington at a time when our city so badly needed it. In 2010, the only stats that are going to be significant are: a +28 Dem district with 64% African American vote. Carter will have a great shot, and I believe she should get it.
As to Mr. Vitter, well, this a tougher nut. The Senate seat will be decided state-wide, and the stats are, of course, quite different. A Dem challenger for the seat will have to have name recognition across the state, a very blue dog bag of policy positions and be able to generate enough excitement and dough to offset what will surely be an onslaught of RNC and NRSC money and mud.
One candidate I see with some daylight before him is state Attorney General Buddy Caldwell, who last year defeated both sitting AG and longtime Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff Charles Foti and Rep. Rodney Alexander's political hatchetman Royal Alexander for the office.
Since his election, Caldwell has proven to be a competent and--more important after Foti's ill-advised prosecution of New Orleans doctor Anna Pou for deaths at Memorial Medical Center during the flood--a non-controversial AG. Caldwell is the only candidate that comes to my mind with the statewide rec and calm probity to offset Vitter's money and ideological advantages in the race.
I would be interested to hear others' ideas about possible candidates for these and other Louisiana races in 2010. While this may seem a bit early, as Mr. Jefferson has yet to clear out his House office, it's always good to remember the wisdom of M. Pasteur:
"Fortune favors the prepared mind."