FishBowlDC:TVNewser has obtained a partial early transcript from this weekend's, The Chris Matthews Show. Panelist John Heilemann of New York Magazine relayed an interesting "rumor" about Lousiana Gov. Bobby Jindal:
I was down in New Orleans, and I heard a great rumor that Bobby Jindal, who we were just talking about as a potential presidential candidate for the Republican party, is thinking about giving up the governorship and running for Senate against David Vitter, or for Vitter's seat if Vitter doesn't run. He's got a terrible budget situation down there. He's thrown himself into a Republican primary up in Baton Rouge that he's going to apparently get creamed in. And I think what's interesting is that that tells you that he's got the message that 2012 isn't his year.
Vitter's up in 2010 and says he'll run for reelection.
If this is true -- and remember, it's just a secondhand rumor -- it'll be interesting to see who comes out of the primary on top. Vitter's best known for a prostitution scandal, but in Louisiana this doesn't seem to really be a problem -- even if you're a hypocritical "family values" type like Vitter. Jindal isn't much better, but Vitter really does seem like an empty suit and a complete phony.
It'd be a race worth watching for entertainment purposes alone. It's hard to imagine that Jindal -- or a pro-Jindal group -- wouldn't make an issue of their primary opponent's "whoremongering."
