We’re going to make a prediction here, and it’s one we probably shouldn’t make based on what we know about John Bel Edwards. Our prediction: on Monday, or maybe Tuesday, he’s going to announce he’s reopening the state of Louisiana on an accelerated schedule as opposed to that May 15 date he caused such a stir about on Monday.

We’re predicting that despite what we know about Edwards and how he operates. One thing true about him is he is one of the most bullheaded, my-way-or-the-highway operators Louisiana has ever had in public office. Everything about him rejects compromise or cooperation of any kind. His experience is as a trial lawyer, and from that what you get with Edwards is an attempt to make those opposed to him as uncomfortable and intimidated as possible so they’ll bend to his will. He also was a lieutenant in charge of a rifle company in the U.S. Army, and the lessons one learns about leadership in a job like that are that orders come down from above and they are followed, and no opposition or questions are tolerated.

There are lots of examples of how this has played out during his time as governor. His first huge mistake came even before he was inaugurated. He had a Republican legislature bound and determined to elect a Republican House Speaker, and the House Republican delegation told him so – but they asked him to submit three names of third-term Republican House members he would be comfortable with in the job and they’d pick from that list. Instead, Edwards backed a Democrat, Walt Leger, and proceeded to create legislative independence for essentially the first time in the state’s history.

A more recent example came last year, when Edwards had railed against Attorney General Jeff Landry’s having joined a score of other states in asserting that Obamacare was unconstitutional. Edwards declared that if the Supreme Court agreed, then hundreds of thousands of Louisianans with pre-existing conditions would lose their health insurance. So Landry got together with legislative leaders and Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon and crafted a bill that would remedy the problem in the likely event Obamacare went down in flames, and Edwards railed against that. The bill proceeded to pass with an overwhelming margin over Edwards’ objections, and he was reduced to later taking credit for having signed it. The state’s media failed to accurately report it, and Edwards’ opponents didn’t capitalize on the messaging opportunity the embarrassment gave them, but it was a fiasco nonetheless.

So we’re making this prediction counter to what we know about Edwards.

Why?

Because it’s starting to become obvious that he can’t control the state’s virus response much longer as he’s done for the past five weeks.

Lafayette has begun staging a local reopening of its economy. West Carroll, East Feliciana and West Feliciana Parishes have gone even further. In West Feliciana, parish president Kenny Havard is openly defying the governor, which is interesting because when Havard was a state representative a couple of years ago he was one of Edwards’ more compliant Republicans. There was this…

Other businesses like the numerous boutiques in the parish must maintain no more than 25% occupancy. However, the number of people inside cannot include more than 10, including employees, and everyone must wear some type of personal protective equipment.

“We ask that you continue to be patient and help protect the most vulnerable among us. This can be done by wearing a mask when in public and washing your hands often,” Havard said.