Governor John Bel Edwards has had enough of Attorney General Jeff Landry’s obstructionism, and now he’s taking Landry to court.
“It is not his place in the architecture of our government – the framework of our government – to replace my priorities with his own,” the Governor said in a press conference following a face-to-face meeting with Landry.
The governor is suing the A.G. over refusal to approve more than 30 contracts with outside counsel. The suit requests a writ of mandamus, essentially a court order telling the A.G. to do his job. Landry has blocked the contracts because they contain clauses prohibiting discrimination against lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and the transgendered. The
“I believe he’s on the wrong side of the law and on the wrong side of history on this particular issue,” Edwards said.
The governor issued a non-discrimination executive order April 13. On May 25th, the attorney general issued an opinion stating the governor’s order was not legally binding, because “an executive order cannot create state law. Only the Legislature can do so.”
And Landry says he’s okay with going to court about it, since the legislature has refused to pass LGBT protections.
“I look forward to defending the Legislature in their priorities and their wishes,” Landry stated.
The lawsuit, filed Friday in state court, does address the nucleus of the on-going friction between the attorney general and the governor – if you look beyond party politics. The suit notes the A.G. “is, as head of a department within the executive branch, subject to the policy decisions of the head of that branch, i.e., the Governor.”
Landry, though, has said, “I do not believe the Governor has the constitutional right to promulgate rules and regulations over me. The Legislature does.”
The first hearing in the case is set for October 17.