Tracking Hurricane Gustav

We should keep the residents of the Louisiana coast in our prayers, as hurricane Gustav makes landfall.

We should also pray for Catholic governor Bobby Jindal, who faces his first large-scale preparations for a hurricane since taking office, that he competently oversees the complicated logistics.

"Rebel With a Cause: Bobby Jindal's Spiritual Journey"

Bobby Jindal has been in the news again lately, this time being mentioned as a short-list candidate for McCain's VP. I frankly hope and believe that won't happen. He's such an appealing figure, however, that I'm sure McCain is happy to have an association with him, even rumored.

Today the Wall Street Journal has a story about Bobby's faith, and specifically his conversion from Hinduism to Catholicism as a young man:

... Twenty years later, Mr. Jindal, a convert to Roman Catholicism, is being mentioned as one of John McCain's top choices for the Republican vice-presidential nomination. And his strong religious faith is often cited as a potential bonus for the ticket.

Hinduism is a diverse religion, with varying interpretations. Mr. Jindal, speaking from his office in Baton Rouge this month, said his parents raised him "in a monotheistic home with a firm belief in a God with traditional values -- the same sort of values you find in the Ten Commandments and other mainstream religions." Recalling their religion as "not a faith that was necessarily tied to a particular historical scripture or revelation," Mr. Jindal said, his parents "made their faith their own."

It is rare for Hindus to convert to Christianity or any other religion. According to a survey released by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life earlier this year, eight in 10 American Hindus who were raised in the faith remain so as adults.

"I did not have an overnight epiphany like so many people do," said Mr. Jindal, calling his conversion a "very intellectual-based journey," where he studied countless religious texts. "Given my background and personality, that was an important part of the process." But, he notes, "I don't think you can 'read' yourself into faith. I had gotten to the point where I knew what history had to say about this person named Jesus and what he had done on Earth. . . . I think at some point you have to take a leap of faith."

And while we're doing a bobby post, you can watch him respond to the question about whether he is being considered for McCain's veep:

I frankly wonder if he's been asked to not categorically deny the possibility of being asked, just to keep the talk going (and therefore, his excellent track record in the public eye).

My previous posts on Bobby Jindal can be found here.

Bobby Jindal goes to Arizona - McCain VP chance?

Goodness. This is interesting:

Senator John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, on Friday is scheduled to meet with two Republican governors who have been prominently mentioned as potential running mates, according to Republicans familiar with McCain's plan.

The two governors, Charlie Crist, of Florida, and Bobby Jindal, of Louisiana, have both accepted invitations to meet with McCain at his home in Arizona, according to Republican familiars with the decision. One Republican said that Mitt Romney, a former rival of McCain for the presidential nomination was also expected to visit him this weekend. Romney's advisers declined to comment.

McCain, after a week of campaigning, is heading home on Friday for three days without a public schedule. His campaign declined to comment on the meetings.

"We don't talk about the V.P. selection process," said Steve Schmidt, a senior adviser.

Still, the names of McCain's visitors and the timing — coming three weeks after the Arizona senator told reporters that he had a list of 20 potential running mates — strongly suggested that he was moving into an intensified phase in his search for a vice presidential candidate.

Everyone who I've talked to about Jindal as a potential republican VP this year has said it's too early and that he is too needed in Louisiana to clean up after Katrina.

But still, this report would seem to imply that he's on the shortlist. Perhaps his presence is intended as a nod to Katrina victims and McCain's desire to rebuild and avoid such future debacles. Mitt Romney will also be in attendance it is believed.

But back to Bobby. This is a nice opportunity to quote the article at length and thereby get a feel for what his reputation is like in the media:

Of all the names being mentioned as McCain's potential running mate, Piyush "Bobby" Jindal, the 36-year-old first-term governor of Louisiana, is not only the youngest and least experienced, but also the only one who is not white. Yet in a year in which Democratic voters have raised few objections to such traditional "obstacles," Jindal may be especially attractive as Republicans seek a way to offset the "post-racial" and youthful appeal of Senator Barack Obama.

Jindal, who was born in Baton Rouge to a family that had just arrived there from the Punjab area of India, took office in January after serving three years in the House of Representatives. In a race with four candidates, Jindal, who was born a Hindu but converted to Roman Catholicism as a teenager, won 54 percent of the vote after campaigning as a social conservative, opposing human embryonic stem cell research and abortion in any form and favoring teaching "intelligent design" in schools as an alternative to evolution.

But Jindal also has a reputation as a policy wonk, like the Clintons, with a specialty in health care issues. After graduating in 1991 from Brown University, where he majored in biology and public policy, and attending Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, he worked for the management consulting firm McKinsey and Company and was executive director of the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare. He later served as Secretary of the Louisiana state Department of Health and Hospitals and in the Bush Administration as Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services for planning and evaluation.

Why I am excited about Bobby:

• 25 Apr 2008 McCain-Jindal spotted in New Orleans, VP rumors denied
• 14 Mar 2008: LA Gov. Bobby Jindal for Republican VP?
• 22 Oct 2007: Keep your eye on Bobby Jindal, new Gov. of Louisiana

And while it's on topic: "Grants ensure future for two New Orleans Catholic landmarks" (CNS).

McCain-Jindal spotted in New Orleans, VP rumors denied

McCain in New Orleans:

Surrounded by gutted homes in the Lower 9th Ward, Sen. John McCain promised Thursday that the federal government won't be so slow after the next big storm.

The presumptive Republican presidential nominee toured a residential street with Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a Republican, before addressing about 50 activists, journalists and Hurricane Katrina survivors in front of a church.

"Never again will we experience such mishandling of natural disasters and the suffering that ensues from it," McCain said. "There are so many lessons that … need to be learned." (USA Today)

Bobby Jindal, for his part, said he wasn't considering or remotely expecting the VP spot. Instead:

"I intend to be governor for four years and run for a second term," Jindal said.
Jindal’s national profile will rise again next week with an appearance on "The Tonight Show" on Monday and in front of the National Press Club in Washington on May 2. (The Daily Advertiser)

Hey, I'm free May 2nd. Maybe I should check it out.

LA Gov. Bobby Jindal for Republican VP?

MM points out that James Lucier at The American Spectator has endorsed Bobby Jindal for VP.

I agree with MM that it's too early, and we'd prefer to see him at the top of the ticket in 2012.

My previous defense of and praise for Bobby here. (He's Catholic. That's a good start).