Gov. Landry Takes Oath

By Woody Jenkins, Editor, Central City News – Baton Rouge

Before 4,000 of his friends and a handful of foes on the steps of the State Capitol, Jeff Landry took the oath of office as the 57th governor of Louisiana. 

The Inauguration occurred on a beautiful but chilly Sunday evening a day earlier than the Constitution requires in a successful attempt to dodge a winter storm that arrived on the day the oath-taking was supposed to take place.

After raising his hand and promising to uphold the constitutions, the new governor, only 53, launched his Inaugural address, best described as a love song about Louisiana and its people.

Born in St. Martinville where the Cajuns first arrived, Landry sang a song that evoked the images impressed on every Cajun boy and girl. He spoke of the common man, of humility.  He said Louisiana is your home.  We take you in. We share our table. He spoke of immeasurable love and unrivaled determination. He spoke of the battlefield of life. 

Persistence. Fisherman and shrimpers. Those who toil in our fields and our forests.  Brave and rugged souls who risk life and limb in ship yards, drilling rigs, and plants.

Cooks, waiters, and hotel maids. 

“The grandeur of [the Capitol] shall never equal our worth as a people, as a culture of peace, of sharing, of patriotism, of family values, of honor and courage.”

He drew a parallel between Cajuns and blacks… “those removed to this place by forces of the past.”  Yet, this is our home. This is your home, he said.

We have not come here to be politicians or settle scores, he said, but to repair and reform our government, to unleash innovation, and to make a better future for our children.

Throughout his speech, he reminded listeners of their history. It was 208 years ago, he said, on this very day that the people of Louisiana gathered together to defeat the greatest army in the world at the Battle of New Orleans.

Like the first Cajuns, we “have always stemmed the rough tides and stood down the angry winds. Only to crawl back, swim back, fight back, get up, stand up, and to never ever forget who we are and why we are here.”  “I love Louisiana. If I had a hundred lives to live, I’d live them all in Louisiana!”

All of the new statewide elected officials were sworn in… Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, Secretary of State Nancy Landry, Attorney General Liz Murrill, Treasurer Dr. John Fleming, Agriculture Commissioner Mike Stain, and Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple. 

Donald Trump, Jr., son of the former President, sat in a place of honor at the ceremony with former Govs. John Bel Edwards and Bobby Jindal, and members of Congress.

Gov. Landry’s Inaugural address was almost devoid of politics.  Yet, as Gov. Landry spoke and Gov. Edwards listened a few feet away, it was impossible not to feel the significance of the moment.

On one side sat a governor like no other who ruled as a dictator ignoring the Constitution, closing churches, destroying businesses, and all of the other endless injustices he wrought during Covid.  And there taking the oath was the very man who fought Edwards at every turn, always standing for freedom and the Constitution.  

Now that man is governor.