Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is a desperate man willing to go to desperate measures to get some desperately wanted press for his anemic presidential bid. So on Thursday, Jindal
penned a New York Times op-ed saying that under no circumstances would he back away from his state's "religious freedom" bill. All those other governors like Indiana's Gov. Mike Pence and Arkansas's Gov. Asa Hutchinson are just wimps who gave into "radical liberals" and "left-wing activists."
Actually, Bobby, they may have prioritized saving the economy of their states and the jobs of all the citizens who reside there, which seems a worthy enough goal. So here's a few points Jindal may want to keep in mind:
- Tourism is one of Louisiana's biggest industries, bringing in a record $11.2 billion to the state in 2014.
"Tourism and hospitality was Louisiana's fastest growing job sector in 2014 with 223,000 Louisianians employed in the industry."
Jindal can check in with Gov. Pence about trying to repair the state's image problem in the wake of their "religious freedom" debacle.
- IBM doesn't seem too pleased about the situation.
IBM Senior State Executive James M. Driesse wrote a letter to Jindal expressing "strong opposition" to Johnson's Marriage and Conscience Act. Driesse warned that "a bill that legally protects discrimination based on same-sex marriage status will create a hostile environment for our current and prospective employees, and is antithetical to our company’s values. IBM will find it much harder to attract talent to Louisiana if this bill is passed and enacted into law."
- Risking the economy of your state in a desperate effort to boost your own presidential ambitions might not be the smartest move.
Conservative CNN pundit Ana Navarro may have summed up Jindal's NYT op-ed best:

Bobby Jindal so wants to draw attention to himself and be part of the conversation...any conversation.
http://t.co/...
— @ananavarro
In summation, governor, even if you get a bunch of attention by vowing to throw yourself into the fire pit, you still threw yourself into the fire pit. Hopefully, Jindal won't take Louisiana's economy with him.