Democratic Sen. Landrieu Walks A Fine Line In Red Louisiana
If Democrats are going to keep their majority in the Senate, they'll need to hang on to a few critical seats they hold in conservative states.
Mary Landrieu of Louisiana has one of those, and like some of her colleagues up for re-election, her support of the Affordable Care Act could be the mountain to overcome this fall.
The question for Landrieu is: Will Louisiana voters define her by Obamacare, or judge her on the entire record she's built over nearly two decades as a senator?
For Some, Obamacare's A Dealbreaker
There's a sprawling, twisty live oak in Galliano, La. It's right across the street from Bayou LaFourche in Lafourche Parish.
The Cajuns in the neighborhood call the old tree "Chene au Cowan," and nearly every day, from sun-up to sundown, a group of retired Cajun men sit on swings beneath the branches, talking about life and politics. They say they've been gathering there about 50 years.
One of the men sitting under the tree one particular afternoon is Beau Broussard. He's not Cajun, but they let him hang out here anyway. Broussard says for years, people running for political office have visited this oak tree.
"They don't run without coming here, because that's good luck, here," Broussard says.
Old campaign signs are still hanging all over the tree trunk. Broussard fondly remembers the last candidate who stopped by.
"He brought some white bean," he says. "They were delicious. Ooooo! I'd vote for him just for them white bean."
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