Selection of New Orleans mayor important to us

We can find reasons to vote for either of the candidates for mayor in our metropolitan big city Saturday.

Mayor Ray Nagin was a successful businessman four years ago before he was elected to public office for the first time. His opponent, Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu, is a born and bred politician.

That alone might be enough to tip the scales in favor of the incumbent. New Orleans needs someone who can get rid of the scum of political favoritism as Nagin was doing before Katrina interrupted his normal operation of government.

Landrieu, on the other hand, is an aggressive person who has achieved some success in the political sector. He does, however, belong to a politically-oriented family and one suspects that he may have more in mind than just serving as mayor of the state’s largest city. That in itself is not necessarily bad. Ambition to climb up the ladder, even in the political arena, can sometimes help to steer public officials to doing a good job. It also, however, can encourage them to use their office to favor their party or others who can add to their power.

The nationally-televised debate Tuesday night was more an occasion for moderators Chris Matthews and Norman Robinson to give their opinions on the future of the city. It seems that the candidates were in agreement with the right views on the issues while the moderators disagreed.

We can’t vote in the election but the outcome will affect St. Charles Parish in a big way. Many of our citizens live here and work there or vice versa. Southeast Louisiana is, more than ever, a unified economic region.

All we can do is hope the winner works effectively to make our area, which is rich in natural resources, be the best it can be.