Jindal resumes raising funds

• By MICHELLE MILLHOLLON
• Advocate Capitol News Bureau
• Published: Jul 31, 2009 - Page: 12A

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Gov. Bobby Jindal traveled to Destin, Fla., on Thursday to resume the out-of-state campaign fundraising that halted during the legislative session.

State law prohibits the governor from accepting campaign contributions during the regular legislative session and 30 days afterward.

The restriction ended earlier this week.

Jindal deflected questions Tuesday about when he would resume the fundraising trips that took him to multiple states before the session began April 27.

At the time, Jindal questioned whether he could even resume raising money yet, later saying that he probably could without acknowledging the Florida trip.

His office announced Thursday morning that the governor was traveling to Florida to talk to the Louisiana chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors at a convention.

A fundraiser was to follow the event.

The governor’s press secretary, Kyle Plotkin, said Associated Builders and Contractors is sponsoring the fundraiser.

Jindal plans to continue his “Louisiana Working Tour” today with stops in LaPlace and Belle Chasse.

The governor raised more than $3.3 million last year for his campaign. He is up for re-election in 2011.

In a year’s time, the Republican first-time governor held dozens of fundraisers and traveled out of Louisiana multiple times to raise money for himself or for other candidates.

The governor kept a low profile during the recent session.  The state’s budget problems dominated the two-month session.

Jindal’s absence from the national political scene — after a widely panned televised address — prompted one publication to question what happened to him.