On election day 2008, voters decided the vast majority of races for the House and Senate, but sent three separate races to runoffs. Barack Obama endorsed Jim Martin over Saxby Chambliss in the Georgia Senate runoff, in which Chambliss prevailed. Now Obama has weighed in to help Democratic Congressman Paul Carmouche in his upcoming runoff in Louisiana. The only one of the three runoffs in which Obama has not stepped in to help one of the candidates is Louisiana’s second Congressional district, where ethically challenged Congressman William Jefferson is facing political newcomer Joseph Cao. As we have noted before, Cao is a breath of fresh air in a state known for political corruption. He has an exemplary personal history, and would be the first Vietnamese-American elected to Congress. To endorse him over Jefferson would be both the right thing to do, and would demonstrate Obama’s genuine commitment to a ‘new style of politics.’ It seems to be a no-brainer.
