Crowd erupts in anger when GOP senator shows up late to town hall…

Republican Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy faced an angry crowd at a town hall meeting in Metairie on Wednesday when he showed up late and then tried to have the crowd participate in a group prayer. “Wow, they booed the name of Jesus,” said Cassidy after the prayer – led by Louisiana State Chaplain Michael Sprague – got drowned out by protests.

Sen. Bill Cassidy’s town hall: Fractious and furious constituents shout down the senator

Town halls around the country are fractious affairs these days for Republican members of Congress, but the crowd of hundreds that showed up at the Jefferson Parish East Bank Regional Library in Metairie today for a town hall with U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy was so raucous and furious that CNN began carrying it live. People began arriving around noon to line up and hold a parking lot rally before the doors opened at 3 p.m., so attendees already were tired of waiting when Cassidy arrived 22 minutes late to the 3:30 p.m. town hall.

Unfazed: GOP senators insist on keeping Obamacare option

Two Republican senators aren’t deterred by conservative pushback to their Obamacare replacement plan, saying if President Trump is serious about giving insurance to everybody, their idea is the best way to go. Sens. Bill Cassidy, of Louisiana, and Susan Collins, of Maine, are working with lawmakers in both chambers to whip up support for their replacement plan.

Gov. John Bel Edwards seeks President Donald Trump’s help in securing $2B more in federal flood aid

Gov. John Bel Edwards, right, and FEMA Regional Administrator Tony Robinson talk while arriving with other officials to take a tour of flood damage Thursday, August 25, 2016, in and near Youngsville, La. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards wants President Donald Trump’s help in getting another $2 billion in federal aid for the state’s recovery from last year’s historic floods and loosening restrictions that limit how the money can be used.

Could California go it alone with Obamacare? How much are you willing to pay?

As President Donald Trump and the Republican majority U.S. Congress work to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, California officials continue to look for ways to keep as much of the law as possible. That’s a question lawmakers might be asking residents in the months to come as President Donald Trump and the Republican Congress scurry to repeal the Affordable Care Act and scramble for a plan to replace it.

GOP lawmakers hope for message of unity, focus from Trump

House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis., joined by, from left, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Calif., House Majority Whip Steve Scalise of La., and Rep. Mimi Walters, R-Calif., meets reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017, as he announced that he has invited President Donald Trump to address a Joint Session of Congress on … (more)

Congressional Republicans prepare to hear from Trump

House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis., joined by, from left, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise of La., and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Calif., meets with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017, as he announced that he has invited President Donald Trump to address a Joint Session of Congress on Feb. 28. PHILADELPHIA – Congressional Republicans eager to deliver are about to find out whether Donald Trump can stay focused on their goals in his first appearance before them as president. Trump will speak Thursday to House and Senate GOP lawmakers at their annual policy retreat.

Louisiana leaders praise Trump’s action to advance Keystone XL pipeline

President Donald Trump signs an executive order implementing a federal government hiring freeze, Monday, Jan. 23, 2017, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. ORG XMIT: DCEV106 President Donald Trump signs an executive order implementing a federal government hiring freeze, Monday, Jan. 23, 2017, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.

La. supporters pour in for inauguration

La. supporters pour in for inauguration Many visitors from Louisiana said they traveled to Washington to witness history. Check out this story on dailyworld.com: Military personnel walk along the National Mall in Washington, Wednesday alongside vendors selling President-elect Donald Trump merchandise ahead of Friday’s presidential inauguration.

Jeff Sadow: Medicaid expansion becomes an obsession

If you agree with the agenda of Medicaid reformers taking power in Washington, Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards and his intemperate chief health bureaucrat say you’re the bad guy. With a mixture of conceit and high dudgeon, Louisiana Department of Health Secretary Rebekah Gee declared efforts to repeal Medicaid expansion “irresponsible, inhumane and ill-advised.”

GOP Senator outlines Obamacare provisions on chopping block

With Republicans looking to make immediate progress on a repeal of the Affordable Care Act this month — and Democrats rallying on Capitol Hill Wednesday to try to preserve it — Sen. Bill Cassidy said American voters who favor repeal of the law have particular provisions in mind, and aren’t necessarily talking about the whole law. “Really we have to, if you will, differentiate between Obamacare — the penalties, the mandates, you gotta do this or the federal government is coming after you — and the other things that were in the bill that were put in there because it was a vehicle,” Cassidy said during the debut of CBSN’s new daily political show “Red and Blue.”