Here is your Morning Brief for May 19, 2015

Scott Olson, Getty Images
Scott Olson, Getty Images
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Bobby Jindal Is Almost In

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal has formed an exploratory committee for 2016 according to National Review. In Jindal's statement, he says that he will officially announce his plans after the legislature meets in Louisiana. Jindal also called for a dramatic change in direction for the United States.

Speaking about the committee launch, Governor Jindal said:    “For some time now, my wife Supriya and I have been thinking and praying about whether to run for the Presidency of our great nation. We’ll make a final decision in June, after the legislative session in Louisiana ends.   “If I run, my candidacy will be based on the idea that the American people are ready to try a dramatically different direction.  Not a course correction, but a dramatically different path.   “President Obama has started to redefine the American Dream, turning it into the European Nightmare. Because of this, I believe our country is in serious trouble and that the hour is late for America. Economic collapse is much closer to the door than people realize, our culture is decaying at a rapid rate, and our standing in a dangerous world is at an all-time low.   “However, the problems caused by 7 years of weak leadership and mistakes in the Obama administration can be corrected. But they won’t be fixed by just sending Republicans to Congress.  It will only be fixed by a President who is willing to make hard decisions and who has the ideas to change our country’s future.

Jindal would begin his campaign as an underdog but could strike the right tone with Iowa voters. If he finishes well in Iowa, he could have some momentum in the race. Jindal is smart and would be a welcome addition to the race. Jindal would be a candidate that would do well with evangelical and conservative voters who want a proven Governor as the next President.

Matt Lewis: Castro Isn't Qualified to be VP

Matt Lewis of The Daily Beast had an excellent take-down of Julian Castro yesterday. Castro reportedly is on Hillary Clinton's shortlist for Vice President. I guess when you don't have anyone else to look at, Castro makes the most sense but as Lewis points out, Castro isn't anywhere close to being qualified.

Elected in 2009, Castro was basically a glorifiedribbon-cutter. He had “no executive authority”, as the Washington Examiner’s Byron York noted last year when Castro was tapped for the HUD job. As mayor, he made around $4,000 a year, while the city manager made $355,000 to actually run the city. To make ends meet, Castro gave paid speeches and wrote a memoir, which together got him roughly $200,000 in 2013. Before that, he made a small fortune as a lawyer in a career that attracted a fair amount of scrutiny.

By the time November 2016 rolls around, Castro will have run HUD—one of our less-efficient federal bureaucracies —for a couple years and change. The last guy to try and use that office as a launching pad, for what it’s worth, was Andrew Cuomo, who ran for New York governor in 2002 after leaving the agency and got clobbered in the Democratic primary.

So the experience of the supposed frontrunner for the Democratic nomination boils down to five years in a ceremonial position and a couple years at HUD. Is this a worthy qualification of someone to be a heartbeat away from the presidency? Seriously, isn’t the city manager actually more qualified to be vice president? And lastly, isn’t the selection of a potential vice president especially important when the top of the ticket is of a certain age? I seem to remember that being bandied about when McCain was running.

Of course we are talking about the Democrats here and from I can tell, qualifications mean nothing. These are the same Democrats who championed a community organizer for President, claim that Hillary Clinton is the most qualified person ever despite evidence and now want Julian Castro to be VP. Agian, they have no one else so it's not surprising. Qualifications mean nothing to the Democrats as long as they can play a race or gender card.

Other Must Read Links:

These and many more topics coming up on today’s edition of The Chad Hasty Show. Tune in mornings 8:30-11am on News/Talk 790 KFYO, streaming online at kfyo.com, and now on your iPhone and Android device with the radioPup App. All guest interviews can be heard on our KFYO YouTube page after the show and online at kfyo.com.

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