With all of the face time Gov. Bobby Jindal has been getting lately -- his knee-slapping appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, his explanation of intelligent design as science on Face the Nation, and his PSAs on LPB recounting his fond memories of watching Sesame Street as a kid - he's been quite the busy wunderkind, which might explain why he won't veto the recent pay raise the Legislature voted itself that will double its current salary. There's been a statewide firestorm stoked by Louisiana voters over the lawmakers' pay raises -- fueled by both the left and the right -- and Jindal's repeated refusal to veto it (even though he says he disagrees with it).
Meanwhile, the national media has tended to focus on Jindal's ethics reforms and his chances as John McCain's VP. But a New York Times piece today lays out how Jindal has ignored his own campaign pledge to prohibit state lawmakers from giving themselves a pay raise and how it has affected his base as well as his image as a reformer.
On Friday, the irreverent D.C. gossip blog Wonkette put it another way --
"Bobby Jindal Is A Total Wuss, Everyone In Louisiana Agrees & Hates Him."