James Joseph Whitney Sr.
September 15, 2009
Genevieve D. Carlos
September 17, 2009
Despite his father and older brother holding the Senate District 20 seat before him, Norby Chabert said he will never get used to being called state senator.
“It will always be humbling. This is a sacred trust,” he noted. “Now the work begins.”
Chabert took the oath of office Thursday night at the Houma Municipal Auditorium in front of hundreds of supporters.
In a seven-minute speech, the region’s newest lawmaker vowed to fight for better hurricane protection and overcome partisanship to achieve his goals.
“The levees won’t be raised 15 feet tomorrow. Insurance isn’t coming down soon,” Chabert declared. “But we will fight to get those levees that high, and fight to cut the insurance premiums, and make sure the people that work hard can keep more of their money and give less to (government).
“Partisanship has crept into Baton Rouge and, unfortunately, it has killed legislating in the process,” he added.
The Chauvin Democrat defeated Brent Callais (R-Cut Off) in the Aug. 29 runoff election.
Chabert will complete the term of Reggie Dupre, who resigned June 30 to become the Terrebonne Conservation and Levee District director. The term runs until 2011.
Chabert admitted the two weeks between winning the election and his inauguration have been a whirlwind. He has been traveling back and forth to Baton Rouge meeting with legislative colleagues, including state Senate President Joel Chaisson III (D-Destrehan), who doles out committee assignments to senators.
Chabert’s predecessor Dupre chaired the Senate’s Natural Resource Committee, which proved to be an invaluable benefit to Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes in recent years.
“I’m going to be patient with that. It will probably be a few weeks before we get our committee assignments,” he said. “When there’s a chairmanship open, naturally there is going to be some senators switched to different committees.”
Chabert also met with Gov. Bobby Jindal hours before his swearing-in, which was conducted by Thibodaux native state Supreme Court Justice John Weimer.
The new senator concluded from that meeting that he and Jindal would be “great friends.”
“I now know six governors personally. I’m happy to say I consider each one a friend, including this one,” Chabert said. “We’re going to work well together because we can’t afford to be adversaries.”
While he is only ensured two years in office, Chabert said that would not limit him from championing the issues he cares deepest about: coastal restoration and levee and hurricane protection.
“The people of District 20 elected me to be their voice in Baton Rouge and I intend to do that every day as their state senator,” he emphasized.
Marty Chabert, who held the senate seat from 1992-96, insisted his younger brother has the right temperament to be an effective lawmaker in today’s political climate at the state Capitol.
“He’s very independent, unlike our daddy (Leonard J. Chabert) and I. We were very hardheaded. He listens better,” Marty Chabert said. “He’s going to do fine. He’s a consensus builder. He’ll make friends. He is so bipartisan. That will be a great asset for him.
“That’s how you get around that body, by making friends and making people understand your needs,” he added.
During his inauguration speech, Norby Chabert stressed that the moment was not about him or his family, but the people of Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes.
Still, he had to reflect on how his father would have felt about him carrying on the family’s political legacy.
“He would have been proud, but he was proud of anybody who served,” Chabert said. “He knew we weren’t more special than anybody else, and it’s an honor when people select you to be their voice.”
State Supreme Court Justice John L. Weimer administers the oath of office to state Sen. Norby Chabert (center) Thursday night at the Houma Municipal Auditorium as his mother, Viona, holds the Bible. * Photo by KEYON K. JEFF
