LOUISIANA

“Piecing together a solution to the state’s financial mess is the primary agenda for lawmakers returning to Baton Rouge.” – WWL-AM

“As dire as the budget situation is this year, it would seem that they would have to make lasting fiscal changes. Some people are doubtful, though. It is an election year for legislators. Gov. Jindal has largely checked out, but he won’t want anything to pass that could besmirch his uber-conservative credentials.” – NOLA.com

“Louisiana is facing its toughest state budget challenge since the 1980s oil industry depression. Required by law to construct a balanced budget, the Legislature is seeking ways to close a $1.6 billion gap between expected general fund revenue and the initial estimate for spending in the 2016 fiscal year. This report reviews the decisions and circumstances that created Louisiana’s chronic and compounding budget sustainability problem.” – Public Affairs Research Council

“During the past seven years under Gov. Bobby Jindal, the Louisiana Legislature has cut taxes repeatedly for individuals and favored companies. Don’t expect that to happen this year. Facing a massive $1.6 billion deficit that threatens the future of the state’s colleges and universities, lawmakers have filed dozens of bills that would raise more revenue.” – Baton Rouge Advocate

“Nearly two weeks after Baton Rouge General Medical Center shut down its Mid City emergency room at its Florida Boulevard campus, the area’s other major hospitals have seen an increase in patient volume. But so far at least, the high-profile closure of the ER—which many uninsured patients in Mid City and North Baton Rouge have relied on for years—has not created the kind of catastrophic situation some had feared.” – Baton Rouge Business Report

“Warrants have been issued for the arrest of Mark Knight on the charge of Racketeering and for Russell Manual on the charges of Criminal Conspiracy, Possession of Cocaine, Possession of Lortab, Possession of Methadone, Extortion and Intimidating a Witness. This matter remains under investigation and further arrests are possible.” – KATC

“This is not the first time Trey Cook has spent long days knocking on door after door. In college, he hawked educational books and Bibles over a long summer. But now, he and his wife, Patty, have a more personal cause, lobbying their neighbors about an idea: creating the city of St. George.” – Baton Rouge Advocate

“Sen. David Vitter, R-La., is using Hillary Rodham Clinton’s announcement Sunday (April 12) that she’s running for president as an opportunity to fund-raise for his gubernatorial run. In an email message to supporters Sunday, Vitter noted he was one of only two senators to oppose her confirmation as secretary of state in 2009.” – NOLA.com

“Breitbart News recently had the opportunity to talk with Louisiana Governor and presidential hopeful Bobby Jindal (R) about guns and gun rights. He explained that ‘the left are bullies‘ opposed to armed citizens and religious liberty.” – Breitbart

“Before the question about Jordan Mickey and Jarell Martin was even finished, Shaq jumped in with an answer. The two former LSU basketball standouts aren’t ready for the NBA draft despite leaving school early, Shaq told Culotta & The Prince on 104.5 FM ESPN in Baton Rouge on Monday morning.” – Baton Rouge Advocate

NATIONAL

“The suspense is over. Hillary Clinton is running for president. Gird yourselves for a grim forced march to a Democratic coronation.” – National Review

“The Clintons rightly sense that the one-percenters in certain fleeting moments feel awfully bad about their privilege. Thus they will feel much better about indulging their endless material appetites, if they give large tax-deductible contributions to the spread-the-wealth, help-the-helpless shtick of elite Democrats. The lifestyles of Hill and Bill over the last two decades reassure wealthy liberals that it is OK to wallow in the material good life as long as you pay occasional penance for such indulgence — and there is no better atonement than helping Hillary Clinton out in 2016 to speak truth to power.” – Victor Davis Hanson/PJ Media

“For months Clinton has run a front-porch campaign — if by porch you mean Boo Radley’s. Getting her outdoors is hard enough; when she does get out it’s often to give paid speeches to people who look just like her: educated, prosperous and privileged. Needing desperately to connect with the broader public, she opts for the virtual reality of a pre-taped video delivered via social media. Go figure.” – Salon

“A source sends along these photos from Brooklyn today of anti-Hillary Clinton signs everywhere. Clinton is expected to announce her presidential campaign later today. The campaign’s headquarters are located in Brooklyn. The signs appear to be a riff on a group of supporters calling certain words often used to describe Clinton as sexist. Words such as ‘secretive,’ ‘ambitious,’ and ‘entitled.'” – Weekly Standard

“Sen. Marco Rubio on Monday took on Hillary Rodham Clinton in his first words as a presidential candidate, telling top donors he is running for the Republican nomination because the 2016 race for the White House should be about the future, not the past.” – Yahoo! News

“U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida will announce tonight in Miami that he is a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016. As far as articulate goes, he is its very soul. He’s not only the best orator of this cycle in either party, he is probably the most articulate candidate on the national scene since the Gipper himself.” – American Spectator

“The left is the side of the political debate that wants more government: more taxes, more spending, more regulations, more laws. So you would think they would have highly developed thoughts about what a law is and how laws are actually enforced. This is, after all, the stuff they want more of. You would be wrong.” – The Federalist

“Maybe the worst thing that could happen to the president and his party would be for the economic recovery from the 2008 financial crisis to stall out. But that’s exactly what might be happening.” – Hot Air

“The rising interest in desalination is not simply a matter of desperation, though that is certainly a factor in states with growing populations and few obvious sources of new water. Advocates say the technology has improved markedly over the past 20 years. While the water can cost twice as much as conventionally treated water, it is still less than a penny a gallon, and that is starting to look tolerable in parched regions.” – NY Times

“Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly signed off on lifting the ban on providing S-300 anti-missile rocket systems to Iran.” – The Hill