Calling him a "behind-the-scenes leader in the lower chamber," the political news service's Kelly Connelly talks with the Lafayette lawmaker about the upcoming session and why he's running for city-parish president in 2015.
In a story published online Wednesday, LaPolitics says independent-turned-Republican Rep. Joel Robideaux's mild-mannered approach has served him - and the state - well:
First elected 10 years ago, Robideaux has used his mild-mannered politics to move up the leadership ladder, serving first as speaker pro tem before taking on his current assignment as Ways and Means chairman. The gavel grew heavy last year when Robideaux sponsored Gov. Bobby Jindal's tax plan, which was rather unpopular inside the rails and eventually "parked" by the governor. But by responding quickly to his colleagues' fears about Jindal's tax plan, his reputation was strengthened.
Even though he was unsuccessful in his run for speaker in 2012, Robideaux has developed into a behind-the-scenes leader in the lower chamber. In climbing up the House power structure, Robideaux credits being a specialist in two areas most lawmakers know very little about: taxes and retirement.
When he's not in Baton Rouge, Robideaux makes his living as a certified public accountant. With an ever-expanding list of business clients from the Acadiana region, he hopes those relationships will soon help vault him into the next position he's eyeing. In 2015, he plans to run for city-parish president of Lafayette.
The Baton Rouge-based political news service's Kelly Connelly talks with the Lafayette lawmaker about his aspirations to replace Joey Durel, what's ahead for Ways and Means next session, revamping the tax code and why tax amnesty dollars should be classified as recurring revenue.
Read what Robideaux had to say on those topics and more here.