Jindal pressed to repay travel costs

The head of Louisiana’s Democratic Party called on Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal Friday to reimburse the state police for the costs of Jindal’s trooper bodyguards when he travels out of state for campaign fundraisers.
Jindal, who has gained national prominence in the GOP, has traveled to a dozen states to collect campaign dollars and stump for himself or other Republicans. He’ll be in Florida on Saturday to raise campaign cash for his re-election bid, his office said, capping off a week in which he also had fundraising stops in New York and Boston.
An Associated Press review shows that providing legally mandated security on fundraising and other political trips has cost the state treasury at least $52,000 since Jindal took office in January 2008. Those costs haven’t been reimbursed by Jindal or his campaign.
Chris Whittington, chairman of the Louisiana Democratic Party, said Friday that Jindal should repay those travel expense costs, citing the state’s budget shortfall and cuts the governor has proposed to public colleges and other programs.
“Our governor is taking money from Louisiana taxpayers for his selfish political purposes,” Whittington said in a release. “Gov. Jindal needs to honor his campaign pledges of transparency and ethics reform — and repay Louisiana every dime he’s taking from our citizens for these campaign fundraising trips.”
Asked whether he or his campaign fund would reimburse the state police, Jindal didn’t answer directly, but said he leaves security decisions to the troopers.
“They’ve been making these decisions for governors before me. They’ll be making these decisions for governors after me. And I think it’s appropriate for them to make those decisions,” Jindal said Friday.
State GOP spokesman Aaron Baer said Whittington didn’t request similar repayment when Democratic former Gov. Kathleen Blanco took out-of-state fundraising trips with her state police bodyguards.
“The Democrats’ demand is nothing more than partisan politics and blatant hypocrisy,” Baer said in a statement.
The fundraising trips have increased as Jindal’s national profile rises. He’s been touted as a potential presidential candidate, though the governor insists he’s only running for 2011 re-election to his current job.
Jindal says he always touts Louisiana’s progress when he’s on the road.
Louisiana law requires state police protection for the governor and his family, and the statute doesn’t limit the type of travel. And it is unclear whether the state could accept reimbursement from Jindal’s campaign fund for campaign-related travel expenses. Neither Jindal nor the state police have sought ethics board guidance on the subject.