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 A look at Louisiana politics from Chaplain Hy McEnery and Christopher TidmoreCopyright News Talk 99.5 WRNO (WRNO-FM) Politique et gouvernement
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    • Carnival Edition

      Carnival Edition
      Feb 6 2026
      It’s our carnival edition, and Hy and Christopher explore the new exhibit at the Presbytere on the Illinois Clubs.Illinois Club exhibit at the Presbytere Tells of 231 Years of Black Carnival Aspiration & TriumphBy Christopher TidmoreJust as The Louisiana Weekly celebrates its centenary this year, so will the Young Men’s Illinois club reach that milestone this Mardi Gras season. The history of that landmark African-American carnival crew and its progenitor, the Original Illinois Club, are the subject of a brilliant new exhibition at the Louisiana State Museum at Jackson Square. One enters the Presbytere‘s second floor into the special exhibition hall to be greeted by the resplendent dress of Dr. Karen Becnel Moore, Queen of Young Men’s Illinois in 1966, backed by a picture of her court. Another glittering gown worn by three generations of the Rhodes family stands sentinel before that case. Kings costumes, videos of balls, and the brilliant backdrop of the Old French Opera House from the 1968 YMI Ball takes up seven full walls. As exhibit advisory member and key contributor Carolyn Duvigneaud Thomas described, “These dresses are just simply beautiful…You have an assortment of dresses and crowns and scepters. It’s it’s just a wonderful collection, and you also have two Kings costumes. The Original Illinois is the only organization that has kings, and so we have two of their costumes on display.” “I’m just happy this story is being told. It’s been a secret. A hidden secret, and it’s time for this story to be out, and for everyone to know it.” Along the way, visitors learn how a former Pullman porter working the Illinois Central Railroad, Wiley J. Knight, arrived in New Orleans in 1894 and revolutionized carnival. As the exhibit explains, “A native of Bolivar, Tennessee, he worked in close proximity to wealthy whites, earning a living as a butler, a valet, a waiter, and a railroad chef. In his eyes, Blacks had limited knowledge of the social graces. Knight believed that the only formal dance familiar to African Americans was the quadrille…Wiley Knight founded Knight's School of Dance, where Black families enrolled their children to learn etiquette and dancing. His students suggested staging a carnival dance, which was so successful that it quickly gave rise to the formation of the Illinois Club. According to club lore, Knight founded the organization at the home of Erona Doley, whose great-nephew Harold Doley Sr. would later become a prominent member of the Young Men Illinois Club….The Illinois Club became the most important African American carnival organization in New Orleans, known for its annual balls, debutantes, and its signature dance, the Chicago Glide.” The First Club would spawn an equally dynamic organization, as the exhibit dioramas explain. “As Illinois Club membership expanded, controversy arose, resulting in a rift in 1926. The exact cause of the split remains uncertain, with two stories surviving. According to one account, some of the newer, younger members no longer wanted to follow founder Wiley Knight's policies. It was said that Knight ‘ruled with an iron hand.’ The other belief is that two members disagreed about the selection of the queen of the ball.” “Regardless of the reason for the breakup, the new organization's name-Young Men Illinois Club (YMI)- implies a generational difference. The founding group became the Original Illinois Club. Longtime YMI member Ernest M. Thomas often stated that YMI was organized at his 1920 Bienville Streethome in March 1926. On February 26, 1927, the Young Men Illinois staged their first ball with Mabel Saulsby reigning as queen. The 1920s tensions faded over time. Despite having two separate organizations, it was not uncommon for men to be members of both clubs simultaneously. Today, the clubs recognize the presence of each other's members and wives at their annual balls.” Dr. Karen Becnel Moore observed, “The original Illinois was founded in 1895 and the young men’s Illinois in 1926, and it is the centennial anniversary that we are celebrating this year, and also we’re celebrating the history of both clubs and the origin of both clubs,” but she added the lessons of serving in those courts went far beyond Mardi Gras sequins. “Queenship and being presented as a debutante means to us service and commitment to our society, to enhancing our community, and to enhancing the country. It is not just party/party/ party. This is an introduction to society for the purpose of working with the society and being dedicated just to serve. Our debutantes and queens— whether young people or senior citizens—we’re still serving and we are still persons who are doctors, lawyers, educators, and businesswomen in the community. People who are determined to contribute to elevating society and elevating the community whether it is Black...
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      54 min
    • Washington, Mardi Gras, Upcoming Elections & Questions For The New Sheriff

      Washington, Mardi Gras, Upcoming Elections & Questions For The New Sheriff
      Feb 6 2026
      Hy and Christopher confront a number of topics, including Washington, Mardi Gras, and the importance of the upcoming election elections on February 7.

      But we talk about two fundamental questions that the current sheriff and the incoming sheriff has so far refused to answer. We try to answer them on this week’s show.

      Last year, the jail switched vendors for providing inmate communications -- like phone calls -- to a controversial Florida company (Smart Communications) that has recently filed bankruptcy, how will that impact jail operations?

      2) Has the Sheriff begun investigation for a replacement?

      3) The owner of smart communications was a very proud ex convict. He had a license plate that said “ convict”. Did the sheriff express reservations given that information?

      4) In some jurisdictions, inmate advocates have been critical of banning mail, arguing that it diminishes contact with family and loved ones; I believe the jail currently scans mail for viewing on kiosk screens -- what are your thoughts on that?

      5) Does the sheriffs office currently have an in-house PIO officer?
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      54 min
    • Cassidy vs. Letlow

      Cassidy vs. Letlow
      Jan 24 2026
      Hy and Christopher broadcast from Big Bend National Park. We ask why Trump has put his face on the new annual pass for the National Parks? We also examine Trump’s recent endorsement of Julia Letlow. Here is Christopher’s column in The Louisiana Weekly.GOP contenders unfazed by Trump endorsement of Julia LetlowBy Christopher Tidmore, Contributing WriterThree weeks ago, in a closed meeting of the Republican National Committee, Chairman Joe Gruters reportedly said that he had learned that Senator Bill Cassidy would be accepting a university position instead of qualifying for another term, and that Congresswoman Julia Letlow would soon be endorsed by President Trump, and subsequently run for the Senate. This news brought cheers to the hyper-partisan crowd, as Cassidy enjoys very little popularity in senior GOP circles after his vote to convict President Trump in the second impeachment five years ago. At least half of Gruters’ prediction came true last week.On Saturday, January 17, President Trump announced his endorsement of Julia Letlow in a TruthSocial posting that read, “Should she decide to enter this Race, Julia Letlow has my Complete and Total Endorsement. RUN, JULIA, RUN!!!” She formally joined the United States Senate race the following Tuesday.State Rep. Mike Bayham, a Letlow supporter, speculated that an upcoming fundraiser the GOP Senate Majority Leader planned on hosting in Baton Rouge might have prompted President Trump to act sooner than he might have previously planned: “I think the Thune event for Cassidy triggered the late night Trump post [on Truth Social] for Julia for the U.S. Senate,” Bayham explained.Trump’s endorsement certainly came as a shock to the four candidates already challenging Bill Cassidy in the U.S. Senate race, which includes La. Treasurer John Fleming, 1st District PSC Commissioner Eric Skrmetta, 22nd District State Senator Blake Miguez and 39th District State Rep. Julie Emerson. All had been vying for Trump’s endorsement, and Skrmetta, in particular, had just attended a meeting at the White House on energy policy the previous week.Emerson dropped out on Friday, January 23, yet she is the only candidate to depart so far. In fact, Skrmetta doubled down by announcing a $3500 per person fundraiser on February 3, promoting his new book Conservatism: Endowed by Our Creator. In an interview with The Louisiana Weekly, Skrmetta pledged to remain in the contest, no matter what. He sees a lot of discontented conservatives eager for another choice. Partially, the reason is ideological. Louisiana’s rightwing intelligentsia is not thrilled with the President's choice of Letlow.As 1996 U.S. Senate candidate and former State Rep. Woody Jenkins put it, Cassidy and Letlow “ARE THE TWO MODERATE REPUBLICANS IN THE SENATE RACE coming up in Louisiana – not by any length the candidates most conservative Republicans will be looking at. We have strong conservatives running who have a good chance to win. Don’t let the media define the race as between these two moderate candidates because that is far from the case. FYI Cassidy and Letlow have voting records almost the same.”The critique is a tad unfair, as it is based on American Conservative Union ratings, which put both Cassidy and Letlow at roughly 75-percent pure conservative voting records. One of the main reasons both were discounted was the effort undertaken by both to convince FEMA to change its flood maps. In other words, the desire to keep the federal government subsidizing flood insurance for tens of thousands of Louisianans—a very critical need for their constituents to remain in their homes south of the flood protection walls—may have been popular locally, but national conservative organizations rated those votes as “liberal.”Still, Jenkins tapped into the anxiety that many local conservatives have about sending yet another moderate to D.C. Governor Landry’s motivation to reestablish the closed primary was to make it impossible for a comparative moderate like Cassidy to win renomination. Letlow, a candidate with a voting record on insurance and healthcare similar to Cassidy, doesn’t strike many conservatives as an improvement. She reminds many conservatives of how the White House parachuted former New Orleans Councilwoman and La. Elections Commissioner Suzie Terrell into the 2002 U.S. Senate race; Terrell entered the contest only due to the unabashed support of President George W. Bush, which propelled her into the runoff over more conservative candidates. Nevertheless, she ended up losing to Mary Landrieu.Terrell’s 2002 Senate GOP opponent, Tony Perkins, a protégé of Jenkins’ and currently the head of the conservative Family Research Council, argued at the time that a more conservative candidate would have had better turnout – and perhaps won.As an editorial by the Louisiana conservative website The Hayride argued, “Overall, [Letlow’s] scorecard numbers generally hover around 75 ...
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      54 min
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