Sen. Vitter Talks Bossier Sheriff, Landrieu’s Senate Seat and Political Aspirations

Senator David Vitter told KEEL Morning News this morning that he is fully behind Bossier Sheriff Julian Whittington in getting federal funding back to his office's youth programs and behind Congressman Bill Cassidy for Senator Mary Landrieu's seat.

Vitter told KEEL News that he has been in communication with Sheriff Whittington, trying to find a resolution.

"This is just political correctness gone haywire," explained Vitter.  "I've been fighting and trying to reinstate the funding and trying to get the strings sliced and unattached."

According to Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement Executive Director Joey Watson, the funding was never revoked, but instead Sheriff Whittington turned down the money when he was told that it could not include religion in the program.

We also asked the Senator about his thoughts on the candidates running for the state's other Senate seat.

"I'm strongly supporting Bill Cassidy.  He's the only major Republican in the field," Vitter said.  He said the other announced Republican candidate seeking Senator Mary Landrieu's seat, Rob Maness, is a newcomer and likely won't raise enough funds to compete with the other candidates.  "Our whole Republican delegation in Congress is supporting Bill."

Vitter describes the upcoming race as, "a very competitive race and I think it's going to be a basic debate on fundamental values and ideas.

"I think Bill more ably and accurately represents where Louisiana is right now, which is a right-of-center state, a conservative state," Vitter added.  He continued by saying that Cassidy would bring change to the Senate, but, "not the sort of change President Obama has brought to America."

We turned to the Senator's own political aspirations.  Senator Vitter's name has been tossed around as a potential gubernatorial candidate in 2015.

"I'm very flattered that folks have mentioned me in the context of the next governor's race," reacted Vitter.  "We haven't even begun to talk about that.  I'm very happy and very focused doing what I am doing in the Senate."