Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who had to cope with the 2010 BP oil spill, is a likely contender for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016. His controversial stances on education reform, the environment, and sex offenders, however, may affect his candidacy.
Here are the details of his positions:
1. Four years before the spill occurred, Jindal served his state in Congress. He sponsored the Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act, a House bill to end the moratorium on offshore oil and gas drilling over the nation’s outer continental shelf. This drew criticism from Republicans for Environmental Protection, a watchdog group.
http://ballotpedia.org/Bobby_Jindal
The Heritage Foundation, however, heralded the bill, saying it “would expand domestic offshore oil and natural gas production and is a strong step towards more affordable and stable energy supplies.”
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2006/06/the-deep-ocean-energy-resources-act-of-2006-state-control-increased-supply-and-lower-prices
As governor, Jindal later signed into law a measure that shields oil and gas companies from lawsuits for damages and tax revenue lost in the BP spill. The explosion killed 11 BP crew members and released 210 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/09/16/louisianas-bobby-jindal-declares-climate-change-a-trojan-horse
2. Jindal drew the ire of some constituents when he suggested that the state opt out of Common Core, an educational initiative that requires K-12 students to have certain knowledge in English language arts and mathematics by the time they finish each grade.
Approved by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers, its goal is to set regular educational criteria across all states and ensure that students graduating from high school are ready to enter college or the workforce.
Although Jindal calls Common Core a federal takeover of public education, he can’t terminate it without help from the Louisiana Legislature or the state school board.
http://ballotpedia.org/Bobby_Jindal
Jindal’s other education reforms caused two public school teachers to start a recall petition drive against him. The women also didn’t like his proposed reform of the state’s retirement system, which wouldn’t have gone into effect until after he left office. Their recall attempt didn’t get enough signatures by the deadline.
http://ballotpedia.org/Bobby_Jindal
3. He also drew criticism from the American Civil Liberties Union after he signed into law the Sex Offender Chemical Castration Bill. It allows the state to chemically castrate convicted child molesters and rapists; they still must serve their sentences.
http://archive.redstate.com/stories/breaking_news/gov_bobby_jindal_signs_bill_to_chemically_castrate_sex_offenders
The ACLU has opposed such laws, saying they are cruel and unusual punishment, banned by the Eighth Amendment. The organization also says the measure destroys the offender’s right to privacy guaranteed in the 14th Amendment and the offender’s rights of due process and equal protection.
http://criminal.findlaw.com/criminal-charges/chemical-and-surgical-castration.htmlThe Michigan Law Review, however, argues that chemical castration should pass constitutional muster, saying that the chemicals are not cruel and unusual but give the offender freedom from deviant urges. The review also noted that the Supreme Court makes exceptions when regulations are designed to protect children.
http://www.michiganlawreview.org/articles/strong-medicine-toward-effective-sentencing-of-child-pornography-offenders
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