From Jimmy Can to Jimmy Can’t in 1 year

One year and nearly three months ago, independent perennial candidate Jimmy Cantrelle was elected to the office of Lafourche Parish President, garnering 55 percent of 22,285 votes, cast by 39.1 percent of the parish’s registered voters.

The fourth time was the charm for Cantrelle, whose message of a need for change appeared to resonate with the participating electorate.

Cantrelle was a viable candidate in many respects, and there was every reason for him to be given the courtesy of a warm welcome. Dismantling the structure of an administration that had held sway over Lafourche Parish for a decade was no doubt a formidable task. While there were some bumps during the process, we had every reason to believe that Cantrelle’s tenure, even if contentious to some degree, would at least meet a threshold for competent government administration.

Unfortunately, such hopes now appear sadly misplaced.

A review of allegations that Cantrelle had inapprioately managed the affairs of his office led in December to a conclusion by District Attorney Cam Morvant that criminal laws had not been violated. But certain acts alleged to have been the work of Cantrelle or his deputies were forwarded to the Louisiana Ethics Board for further review and possibly action. A disclosure by former Parish Administrator Reggie Bagala of Cantrelle’s alleged willingness to trade his support for certain employee health insurance options in return for council approval of raises for two favored employees was distasteful, although determined tacitly legal.

Subsequently Bagala was dismissed from his position, under circumstances that raise uncomfortable suspicion of a payback for his having told the truth about the insurance-related scheme.

In a move unusual even for as historically troubled a body as the Lafourche Parish Council, a vote of no confidence in Cantrelle was passed Thursday night. Bagala was hired by the council to another post. Meanwhile Cantrelle installed Tommy Lasseigne, who resigned from a prior job while under fire from the Council, as the interim administrator. Dismissing Bagala under circumstances that can be currently determined was change not needed. Hiring Tommy 3.0 is a return to the past that is unnecessary as well. Mr. Lasseigne seems to have yet quenched his thirst for the waters of the public trough. Cantrelle appears too willing to assist.

Cantrelle would have had an opportunity to explain himself to Council members Thursday, perhaps, had he bothered to show up.

But he was nowhere to be found.

The people of Lafourche Parish deserve accountability from all of their elected officials, and certainly from their Parish President. Stonewalling will make things worse for Cantrelle, not better. His communications director – one of the favored employees – said Monday that a statement would be prepared. The 39 percent of voters who showed up at the polls, as well as the other residents, deserve to have had a statement the next day.

In a previous editorial we tried to be encouraging, recognizing that politics can be a nasty thing and still wishing the best for Cantrelle and his year-old administration. We said “Jimmy Can” do better, drawing on his imaginative campaign slogan, and invited him to do so.

Now it appears that we were wrong. The most recent events show that Jimmy hasn’t. And that’s one step away from “Jimmy Can’t.”

The parish president responded to some questions through his spokeswoman Caroline Eschette that his absence from the meeting where a no confidence vote was made involved legislative business. This answer is disingenuous.

He also responded to the vote by saying the people of Lafourche Parish and employees “deserve better.”

“History shows a focus on perception and opinion rather than facts,” Cantrelle said in his rebuttal. “In time, facts surface.”

Parish President Cantrelle is correct.

The people of Lafourche Parish and the employees deserve more than the circus that has paraded through parish government over these many weeks.

This has been the parish president’s doing. The council has merely been responsive, and perhaps not responsive enough.

It does not appear that the Parish President appreciates the nature of the crisis unfolding before and around him. It is our hope that he loses the defensive attitude and gets down to business.