No unity, no progress.

Blanco bills going down in flames

With four days left before adjournment, the governor's push to create a single levee board for southeast Louisiana is on life support, almost certain to be replaced by scaled-back legislation that preserves autonomy for the West Bank. A bill to consolidate the seven New Orleans assessors into a single office died in committee with little chance of resurrection, while legislation that would consolidate sheriffs, clerks of court and other New Orleans municipal offices languishes in a Senate committee that is widely viewed as hostile to the bill's chances. Bottcher said the governor knew when she called the special session that several issues would be contentious. "I think what's happened is that you have some folks who are trying to hold on to a past and to a place that has certainly changed," Bottcher said.

Nothing ever changes in Louisiana.