foster, m gov
<font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">mofo KKK</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
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</font></div><div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Restricting Representation</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">New laws are hardly the only method Louisiana elected officials have used to stifle residents’ opposition to industry.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">In 1997, former Gov. Mike Foster pressured the Louisiana Supreme Court to trim the sails of student law clinics after the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic helped St. James Parish residents fight a polyvinyl chloride plant the chemical giant Shintech wanted to build in Convent.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Foster badly wanted to see the Shintech plant built. He mocked the plant’s two most vocal opponents, Emelda West and Pat Melancon of Convent, as “a bunch of housewives.”</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Calls to Shintech seeking comment were not returned.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Former Louisiana Gov. Mike Foster pushed for Tulane University to be defunded after students in the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic helped Convent residents challenge air and water permits for a proposed polyvinyl chloride plant.</b> (Bryan S. Berteaux/The Times-Picayune)</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In addition to challenging Shintech’s air and water permits, Convent residents — with the help of Tulane — filed a complaint with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency claiming the state violated the landmark 1964 Civil Rights Act when it approved the project.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">The complaint became the first key test of an executive order signed by former President Bill Clinton in 1994 that aimed to address the fact that communities of color bore a disproportionate burden of pollution.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>Foster was apoplectic. He encouraged Tulane alumni and business leaders to reconsider their financial support for the university.</b></font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Several industry lobbying groups, meanwhile, urged the Louisiana Supreme Court, which oversees student law practice in the state, to investigate the law clinic.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Student law practice allows legal novices to gain hands-on experience, while providing legal assistance to those who would not otherwise have access.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">The Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, the state’s most powerful business lobby, had recently helped three pro-business justices win seats on the Supreme Court. The chief justice, Pascal Calogero, was up for election the following year.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">At LABI’s urging, the court began investigating the Tulane clinic in 1997. As the election heated up, Calogero — and all but one justice — voted to restrict student law assistance. The new rules banned the representation of any community organization affiliated with a national organization — like Greenpeace, the Sierra Club or the NAACP and prohibited students and supervising lawyers from initiating contact with potential clients.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">The new rules also placed limits on how much residents could earn and still receive student representation. A family of three, for example, could not get assistance if they made more than $13,650 annually.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);"><b>
</b></font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);"><b>The head of the Association of American Law Schools called the new requirements “the most restrictive student practice rule in the nation.”</b></font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Emelda West, of the St. James Citizens for Jobs and the Environment, speaks in front of the Governor’s Mansion during a protest against the governor’s threats against the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic in 1997. (Tim Mueller/The Advocate)]</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Ironically, the new rules — which have since been relaxed some — came too late to save Shintech’s plant. The company announced in 1998 it had scratched its plan, opting instead for a much smaller facility in Iberville Parish.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">The Tulane clinic has continued to garner the ire of industry over the last two decades. In 2010, Adley introduced another bill aimed at stopping the clinic from going after chemical plants. It would have yanked state funding from Tulane if its law clinic sued a government agency. As the bill was introduced, Dan Borné, then head of Louisiana Chemical Association, said: “My board acted on taking an aggressive approach toward the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic. This is part of that approach.”</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);"><b>But Adley’s bill to defund Tulane was ill-timed. One month earlier, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. Lawmakers were concerned that if the bill passed, residents affected by the spill wouldn’t be able to get legal assistance from Tulane. The bill failed.</b></font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Lisa Jordan, director of the clinic, co-wrote the civil rights petition to the EPA on behalf of Convent residents two decades ago. Even though the case put a crimp on the clinic, she’s proud of taking on the fight. “It was hard, and it had a really good result for the clients,” she said. “And because it told me this is such important work, even when you don’t necessarily succeed ... to give people a legal voice that they otherwise couldn’t have had.”</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Monique Harden, of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice who co-wrote the civil rights petition, said the repeated assaults on the clinic exemplify how Louisiana officials tend to react to environmental uprisings.</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">“There is this systemwide hostility to people fighting back,” Harden said. “They want to cut support. But not just cut support, cut your remedy.”</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Share Your Story</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.</font></div><div><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.4px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b style="">Murphy James Foster, Jr.</b>, known as <b style="">Mike Foster</b> (born July 11, 1930), served as the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Governors_of_Louisiana" title="List of Governors of Louisiana" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; text-decoration: none;">53rd governor</a> of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana" title="Louisiana" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; text-decoration: none;">Louisiana</a> from January 1996 until January 2004</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">. Foster's father was Murphy J. Foster, Jr., but Mike Foster uses "Jr." even though he is technically Murphy J. Foster, III.</span><b style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> Foster is a businessman, landowner, and sportsman in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Mary_Parish,Louisiana" title="Saint Mary Parish, Louisiana" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">St. Mary Parish</a> in the sugar-growing section of the southern portion of the state.</b></font></p><div id="toc" class="toc" style="border: 1px solid rgb(170, 170, 170); padding: 7px; display: table; zoom: 1; background-color: rgb(249, 249, 249);"><ul style="list-style-type: none; margin: 0.3em 0px; padding: 0px; list-style-image: none;"><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#Early_life_and_career" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">1</span> <span class="toctext">Early life and career</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-2" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#Election_as_governor.2C_1995" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">2</span> <span class="toctext">Election as governor, 1995</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-3" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#Foster_as_governor" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">3</span> <span class="toctext">Foster as governor</span></font></a><ul style="list-style-type: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 2em; padding: 0px; list-style-image: none;"><li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-4" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#Atchafalaya_Basin_Program" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">3.1</span> <span class="toctext">Atchafalaya Basin Program</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-5" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#Foster_and_David_Duke" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">3.2</span> <span class="toctext">Foster and David Duke</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-6" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#Foster_and_Dan_Richey" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">3.3</span> <span class="toctext">Foster and Dan Richey</span></font></a></li></ul></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-7" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#After_governorship" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">4</span> <span class="toctext">After governorship</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-8" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#Electoral_history" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">5</span> <span class="toctext">Electoral history</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-9" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#Sources" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">6</span> <span class="toctext">Sources</span></font></a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-10" style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#References" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="tocnumber">7</span> <span class="toctext">References</span></font></a></li></ul></div><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /><h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0.25em; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 1.3; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="mw-headline" id="Early_life_and_career">Early life and career</span><span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px;">[</span></span></font></h2><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Mike Foster was born in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin,Louisiana" title="Franklin, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Franklin</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/County_seat" title="County seat" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">seat of government</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> of St. Mary Parish. <b>His father, also named Murphy J. Foster, was an area </b></span><b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar" title="Sugar" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">sugar</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantation" title="Plantation" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">planter</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> and owner of </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil" title="Oil" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">oil</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_gas" title="Natural gas" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">natural gas</a></b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b> lands;</b> his mother, Olive Roberts (1904-1990), was descended from a prominent family in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minden,Louisiana" title="Minden, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Minden</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Webster_Parish,Louisiana" title="Webster Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Webster Parish</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shreveport,Louisiana" title="Shreveport, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Shreveport</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caddo_Parish,Louisiana" title="Caddo Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Caddo Parish</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> in northwestern Louisiana. Foster's maternal great-grandfather, </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain(United_States)" title="Captain (United States)" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Captain</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Goodwill" title="Alfred Goodwill" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Alfred Goodwill</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> (1830-1905), was a native of </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England" title="England" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">England</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> and a </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain(United_States)" title="Captain (United States)" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">captain</a> in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confederate_Army" title="Confederate Army" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Confederate Army</a></span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span><sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-1" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[1]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> Captain Goodwill opened an 18,000-square foot </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_store" title="General store" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">general store</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> in Minden, a "superstore" believed at the time to be the largest such enterprise in the state, from which one could even purchase a casket and embalming fluid. The Goodwill Road in Minden is named in his honor.</span><sup id="cite_ref-jagan_2-0" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-jagan-2" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[2]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-3" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[3]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> Captain Goodwill and his five children from his first marriage moved to Minden in 1873 from neighboring </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claiborne_Parish,Louisiana" title="Claiborne Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Claiborne Parish</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> with his newly-acquired second wife, the former Ida Victoria Hill (1838-1937). One of the three children of Captain Goodwill and his second wife Ida, was Olive Goodwill (born c. 1875). She married </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Roberts,Jr." title="Robert Roberts, Jr." style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Robert Roberts, Jr.</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, a former mayor of both </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farmerville,Louisiana" title="Farmerville, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Farmerville</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Parish,Louisiana" title="Union Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Union Parish</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> and Minden, a state representative for Webster Parish, a state district court judge, and an attorney in private practice in </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shreveport,Louisiana" title="Shreveport, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Shreveport</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">. Their daughter, Olive Roberts,</span><sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-4" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[4]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-5" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[5]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> subsequently married Murphy James Foster, the son of Governor </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Sr." title="Murphy J. Foster, Sr." class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Murphy J. Foster, Sr.</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, and the father of subsequent Governor Mike Foster. One of Foster's cousins, </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jasper_Goodwill" title="Jasper Goodwill" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Jasper Goodwill</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, was the mayor of Minden from 1955 to 1958.</span><sup id="cite_ref-jagan_2-1" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-jagan-2" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[2]</a></sup></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Foster attended </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_school" title="State school" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">public high school</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> in Franklin, graduated from </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_State_University" title="Louisiana State University" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Louisiana State University</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baton_Rouge" title="Baton Rouge" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Baton Rouge</a> in 1952 with a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bachelor_of_Science" title="Bachelor of Science" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Bachelor of Science</a> in<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemistry" title="Chemistry" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Chemistry</a>, and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_University_Law_Center" title="Southern University Law Center" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Southern University Law Center</a> with a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juris_Doctorate" title="Juris Doctorate" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Juris Doctorate</a> </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">in 2004, the year he left the governorship. He became an</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eagle_Scout(Boy_Scouts_of_America)" title="Eagle Scout (Boy Scouts of America)" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Eagle Scout</a></span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> in the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy_Scouts_of_America" title="Boy Scouts of America" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Boy Scouts of America</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> in 1946 and is a recipient of the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distinguished_Eagle_Scout_Award" title="Distinguished Eagle Scout Award" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Distinguished Eagle Scout Award</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span><sup id="cite_ref-mjfoster_6-0" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-mjfoster-6" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[6]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> He was a member of </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta_Kappa_Epsilon" title="Delta Kappa Epsilon" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Delta Kappa Epsilon</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> Fraternity (Zeta Zeta chapter) and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Friars(club)" title="The Friars (club)" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">The Friars</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> He joined the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Air_Force" title="United States Air Force" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Air Force</a> and served in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_War" title="Korean War" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Korean War</a>. His paternal grandfather, Murphy J. Foster Sr., was governor of Louisiana from 1892 to 1900 and thereafter as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate" title="United States Senate" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">U.S. senator</a> from 1900 to 1913. By the time Mike Foster entered politics, he had already become a wealthy sugar planter and owner of a construction firm. He resides at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oaklawn_Manor" title="Oaklawn Manor" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Oaklawn Manor</a>, an antebellum plantation mansion in Franklin.</span></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>Foster entered politics at the age of fifty-seven. In 1987, then-<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party(United_States)" title="Democratic Party (United States)" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Democrat</a> Foster unseated <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal(politics)" title="Liberal (politics)" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">liberal</a> Democratic state Senator</b> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Guarisco,Jr." title="Anthony Guarisco, Jr." style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Anthony Guarisco, Jr.</a>, of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgan_City,Louisiana" title="Morgan City, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Morgan City</a> by a large margin. Foster is said to have run for the state Senate because Guarisco would not return his telephone calls.<sup id="cite_ref-fittingtribute_7-0" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-fittingtribute-7" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">[7]</a></sup> Guarisco was a vocal supporter of the defunct <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_Rights_Amendment" title="Equal Rights Amendment" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Equal Rights Amendment</a>. Foster served two terms in the state Senate and then ran for governor.</font></p><h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0.25em; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 1.3; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="mw-headline" id="Election_as_governor.2C_1995">Election as governor, 1995</span><span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px;">[</span></span></font></h2><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Foster entered the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_gubernatorial_election,1995" title="Louisiana gubernatorial election, 1995" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">1995 gubernatorial race</a> as a minor candidate whom most local political observers discounted. Then in September 1995, Foster announced he would qualify for the race as a Republican. The Republicans had not coalesced on a candidate, and Foster's announcement that he was switching parties vaulted him from single digits in the polls to serious contention. Foster rode a wave of popular dissatisfaction with the more unsavory aspects of the casino gambling that had been legalized under outgoing Governor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edwin_W.Edwards" title="Edwin W. Edwards" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Edwin W. Edwards</a>. Foster came out strongly against gambling and pledged to run Louisiana "like a business." His conservative platform included attacks on welfare abuse, gun control, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affirmative_action" title="Affirmative action" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">affirmative action</a>, racial quotas, and political corruption.</font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Foster edged out two more well-known candidates for a seat in the runoff with then-<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Representative" title="United States Representative" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">United States Representative</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleo_Fields" title="Cleo Fields" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Cleo Fields</a> from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana%27s_4th_congressional_district" title="Louisiana's 4th congressional district" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Louisiana's 4th congressional district</a>, a prominent black Democratic politician. Future U.S. Senator <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Landrieu" title="Mary Landrieu" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Mary Landrieu</a> ran third and missed the general election berth by just 8,983 votes (0.6 percent of the total votes cast). Former Governor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddy_Roemer" title="Buddy Roemer" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Buddy Roemer</a>, seeking a gubernatorial comeback, came in fourth place. Foster's embrace of the Republican label and his conservative platform undercut Roemer, another Democrat-turned-Republican.</font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Reminiscent of his grandfather's inauguration virtually a century earlier, Mike Foster's inauguration ceremony on January 8, 1996 occurred at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Louisiana_State_Capitol" title="Old Louisiana State Capitol" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Old State Capitol</a>. Always a man of few words, Foster remarked briefly about the historicity of the occasion and made cordial statements about outgoing four-term Governor Edwin Edwards, who was present.</font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Foster defeated black Democratic candidates in both of his campaigns for governor—<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleo_Fields" title="Cleo Fields" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Cleo Fields</a> in 1995 and Congressman <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_J.Jefferson" title="William J. Jefferson" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">William Jefferson</a> of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana%27s_2nd_congressional_district" title="Louisiana's 2nd congressional district" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Louisiana's 2nd congressional district</a> in 1999. He defeated Jefferson in a landslide, avoiding a runoff with 64 percent of the vote. His second inauguration took place on January 10, 2000.</font></p><h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0.25em; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 1.3; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="mw-headline" id="Foster_as_governor">Foster as governor</span><span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px;">[</span></span></font></h2><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Foster was widely seen as having favored business to a greater degree than had previous governors.</b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> He retained the secretary of economic development, former legislator </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Reilly(Louisiana_politician)" title="Kevin Reilly (Louisiana politician)" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Kevin P. Reilly, Sr.</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, of Baton Rouge, the former CEO of </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamar_Advertising_Company" title="Lamar Advertising Company" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Lamar Advertising Company</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> of Baton Rouge. He ended state </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affirmative_action" title="Affirmative action" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">affirmative action</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> and set-aside programs, which earned him the support of the business community but prompted protests from civil rights groups. Foster also targeted </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tort_reform" title="Tort reform" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">tort reform</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> and ended the practice by which trial lawyers could seek punitive damages from businesses. Foster had close relations with the statewide pro-business </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobbying" title="Lobbying" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">lobbying</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> group </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Association_of_Business_and_Industry" title="Louisiana Association of Business and Industry" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Louisiana Association of Business and Industry</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> (LABI) for most of his tenure, though there were short-lived tensions in 2000 over Foster’s attempt to raise business taxes in an effort to secure funding for higher education. By the end of his second term, Foster was receiving criticism for his reluctance to take business trips in order to attract businesses and jobs to Louisiana, and for enrolling in part-time law school classes while still in office</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">. He also appointed then 24-year-old <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Jindal" title="Bobby Jindal" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Bobby Jindal</a> as head of a medical plan for the state.</span></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">He named former state Representative <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_W.Gee" title="Terry W. Gee" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Terry W. Gee</a> of New Orleans as the executive director of the Louisiana Offshore Port Authority, or LOOP. Gee, since deceased, remained in the post for the entire Foster administration and worked to guarantee port security in light of the threat of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism" title="Terrorism" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">terrorism</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-8" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[8]</a></sup> Foster appointed education reformer and attorney <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Pastorek" title="Paul Pastorek" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Paul Pastorek</a> to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Board_of_Elementary_and_Secondary_Education" title="Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education</a>; Pastorek was thereafter from 2007 to 2011 the state superintendent of education.<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-9" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[9]</a></sup> In 2000, Foster named <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_Landry" title="Terry Landry" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Terry Landry</a>, a veteran African-American officer, as the superintendent of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_State_Police" title="Louisiana State Police" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Louisiana State Police</a>. In 2012, Landry was elected to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_House_of_Representatives" title="Louisiana House of Representatives" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Louisiana House of Representatives</a> for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lafayette_Parish,Louisiana" title="Lafayette Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Lafayette</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iberia_Parish,Louisiana" title="Iberia Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Iberia</a>, and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St.Martin_Parish,Louisiana" title="St. Martin Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">St. Martin</a> parishes.</font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In 1996, he appointed <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bo_Ackal" title="Bo Ackal" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Bo Ackal</a>, a state representative from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Iberia,Louisiana" title="New Iberia, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">New Iberia</a> as his assistant on budgeting and taxation.<sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-10" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[10]</a></sup></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Foster worked to re-organized the state's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_college" title="Community college" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">community college</a> system by creating the Louisiana Community and Technical College System, and expanded the Tuition Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS), a brainchild of the New Orleans oilman <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_F.Taylor" title="Patrick F. Taylor" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Patrick F. Taylor</a>, so that students were eligible based on merit, rather than income. In the 2002 legislative session, Foster credited freshman Representative <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Capella" title="Tom Capella" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Tom Capella</a> of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jefferson_Parish,Louisiana" title="Jefferson Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Jefferson Parish</a>, now the parish assessor, with saving TOPS from the budget axe.<sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-11" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[11]</a></sup> Foster instituted mandatory standardized testing for grade advancement in a move described by his administration as an effort to make public schools more accountable. He made increasing teacher salaries a major priority, at one point promising to stop cashing his paychecks until teachers' salaries reached the Southern average. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Andy_Kopplin&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Andy Kopplin (page does not exist)" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Andy Kopplin</a> served as Governor Foster's chief of staff.</font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">He retained long-term political operative <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aubrey_W.Young" title="Aubrey W. Young" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Aubrey W. Young</a>, originally the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aide_de_camp" title="Aide de camp" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">aide de camp</a> to Governor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_J.McKeithen" title="John J. McKeithen" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">John J. McKeithen</a>, as the drug and alcohol counselor in the Department of Health and Hospitals.<sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-12" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[12]</a></sup></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In 1997, Foster named former state budget director <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Perlman" title="Ralph Perlman" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Ralph Perlman</a> as secretary of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board, a position that Perlman held for five years while in his eighties.<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-13" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[13]</a></sup></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The two Speakers of the House under Foster's administration were Democrat (later Republican) <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunt_Downer" title="Hunt Downer" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Hunt Downer</a> of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrebonne_Parish,Louisiana" title="Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Terrebonne Parish</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_W.DeWitt,Jr." title="Charles W. DeWitt, Jr." style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Charles W. DeWitt, Jr.</a>, a Democrat from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapides_Parish" title="Rapides Parish" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Rapides Parish</a>. In Louisiana, the governor practically handpicks the Speaker despite the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Separation_of_powers" title="Separation of powers" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">separation of powers</a>. Foster also relied heavily on Republican State Representative <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuck_McMains" title="Chuck McMains" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Chuck McMains</a> of Baton Rouge as a legislative floor leader for the administration. He named Republican Representative <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garey_Forster" title="Garey Forster" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Garey Forster</a> of New Orleans as his state labor secretary.</font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Known for going to bed early, Foster still managed to adjust to evening classes he took while Governor at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_University_Law_Center" title="Southern University Law Center" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Southern University Law Center</a>.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="line-height: 1; white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (November 2011)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">An avid motorcycling enthusiast, Foster introduced an initiative while governor to remove a legal mandate that required motorcyclists to wear helmets </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">when they ride on the highways. This initiative was later overturned by his successor, Democratic Governor </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathleen_Babineaux_Blanco" title="Kathleen Babineaux Blanco" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Kathleen Babineaux Blanco</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In 2000, Foster was the Louisiana campaign chairman for the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W.Bush" title="George W. Bush" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Bush</a>-<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Cheney" title="Richard Cheney" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Cheney</a> ticket.</font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Despite having run on an anti-gambling platform, in office Foster became a quiet supporter of the gambling industry. His advocacy of a bailout bill for the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrah%E2%80%99s" title="Harrah’s" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Harrah’s</a> casino in New Orleans helped ensure the passage of the measure. Prior to leaving office, Foster quarreled with fellow Republican Representative <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Vitter" title="David Vitter" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">David Vitter</a> over expanded <b>gambling on Indian reservations.</b> The dispute did not prevent Vitter from winning the other U.S. Senate seat vacated by Democrat <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Breaux" title="John Breaux" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">John Breaux</a> in 2004.</font></p><h3 style="margin: 0.3em 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; border-bottom-style: none; line-height: 1.6; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="mw-headline" id="Atchafalaya_Basin_Program">Atchafalaya Basin Program</span><span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; font-weight: normal; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px;">[</span></span></font></h3><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.4px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">In November 1996 the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S.Army_Corps_of_Engineers" title="U.S. Army Corps of Engineers" class="mw-redirect" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; text-decoration: none;">U.S. Army Corps of Engineers</a> requested that Foster appoint a lead agency to coordinate state participation in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atchafalaya_River" title="Atchafalaya River" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; text-decoration: none;">Atchafalaya Basin Project</a>. </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Foster chose the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources as the lead agency. </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandra_Thompson" title="Sandra Thompson" style="background: none; text-decoration: none;">Sandra Thompson</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, a highly regarded state administrator from the 1970s, was called back to state government to head the project, an important position in the preservation of the environment. The project encompasses a million acres (4,000 km²) and 140 miles (230 km) of swampland. In December 1996, the Atchafalaya Basin Advisory Committee was created, members appointed, and planning initiated that resulted in the </span><i style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>Atchafalaya Basin Master Plan</b></i><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, as authorized by the U.S. Congress.</span><sup id="cite_ref-14" class="reference" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-14" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[14]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> A result of this plan was the creation of the Sherburne Complex</span><sup id="cite_ref-15" class="reference" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-15" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[15]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> (Section 4.41-B) that includes the partnership of the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S.Fish_and_Wildlife_Service" title="U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service" class="mw-redirect" style="background: none; text-decoration: none;">U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Department_of_Wildlife_and_Fisheries" title="Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries" style="background: none; text-decoration: none;">Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> (LDWF), and the</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S.Army_Corps_of_Engineers" title="U.S. Army Corps of Engineers" class="mw-redirect" style="background: none; text-decoration: none;">U.S. Army Corps of Engineers</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">. The area consists of 44,000 acres (180 km</span><sup style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 1;">2</sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">), and is managed by the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Department_of_Wildlife_and_Fisheries" title="Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries" style="background: none; text-decoration: none;">Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span></font></p><h3 style="margin: 0.3em 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; border-bottom-style: none; line-height: 1.6; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="mw-headline" id="Foster_and_David_Duke">Foster and David Duke</span><span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; font-weight: normal; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px;">[</span></span></font></h3><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">In his 1995 campaign, Foster paid more than $150,000 for former <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ku_Klux_Klan" title="Ku Klux Klan" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; text-decoration: none;">Ku Klux Klansman</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Duke" title="David Duke" style="background-image: none; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; text-decoration: none;">David Duke</a>'s mailing list of supporters. After failing to report the purchase as a campaign expenditure, Foster became the first Louisiana governor to admit and pay a fine for a violation of the state's ethics code. Foster insists he did not need to report the expenditure because he paid Duke with his <b style="">personal funds</b> </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">and did not utilize the list in his campaign. Duke had also endorsed Foster in the 1995 campaign. (</span><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://domino.ethics.state.la.us/campopn.nsf/999d109733135c25862567f8006847bf/8f58d9e4d672366e86256848006b83df?OpenDocument&Highlight=0,foster,duke" style="text-decoration: none; padding-right: 13px; background-image: linear-gradient(transparent, transparent), url(data:image/svg+xml,%3C%3Fxml%20version%3D%221.0%22%20encoding%3D%22UTF-8%22%3F%3E%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%22%20width%3D%2210%22%20height%3D%2210%22%3E%3Cg%20transform%3D%22translate%28-826.429%20-698.791%29%22%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%225.982%22%20height%3D%225.982%22%20x%3D%22826.929%22%20y%3D%22702.309%22%20fill%3D%22%23fff%22%20stroke%3D%22%2306c%22%2F%3E%3Cg%3E%3Cpath%20d%3D%22M831.194%20698.791h5.234v5.391l-1.571%201.545-1.31-1.31-2.725%202.725-2.689-2.689%202.808-2.808-1.311-1.311z%22%20fill%3D%22%2306f%22%2F%3E%3Cpath%20d%3D%22M835.424%20699.795l.022%204.885-1.817-1.817-2.881%202.881-1.228-1.228%202.881-2.881-1.851-1.851z%22%20fill%3D%22%23fff%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fg%3E%3C%2Fg%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E); background-color: initial; background-position: 100% 50%, 100% 50%;">La. Campaign Finance Opinion No. 99-360</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">)</span></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Foster initially seemed to favor Duke's run for the Senate seat being vacated in 1996 by </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bennett_Johnston" title="Bennett Johnston" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">J. Bennett Johnston, Jr.</a></b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>, but under pressure from the Republican Party, he did not officially endorse Duke.</b> Instead, the Republican consensus choice for the Senate was veteran state Representative </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_E.%22Woody%22_Jenkins" title="Louis E. " woody="Woody" jenkins="Jenkins" class="mw-redirect" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Louis E. "Woody" Jenkins</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> of Baton Rouge. Jenkins was narrowly defeated by Johnston's choice, </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Landrieu" title="Mary Landrieu" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Mary Landrieu</a>.</span></font></p><h3 style="margin: 0.3em 0px 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; border-bottom-style: none; line-height: 1.6; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="mw-headline" id="Foster_and_Dan_Richey">Foster and Dan Richey</span><span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; font-weight: normal; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px;">[</span></span></font></h3><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In 1997, Foster named former state Senator <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Richey" title="Dan Richey" style="text-decoration: none; background-image: none; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;">Daniel Wesley "Dan" Richey</a>, to head the new Governor's Program on Abstinence. The appointment became controversial in 2002, when the American Civil Liberties Union sued the state on grounds that Richey had permitted religious instruction to be used in the program in violation of federal law. Foster and Richey went to court to defend the program and pledged that violations cited by the ACLU had been remedied. The program is underwritten by the national welfare-reform law of 1996.</font></p><h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0.25em; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 1.3; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="mw-headline" id="After_governorship">After governorship</span><span class="mw-editsection" style="-webkit-user-select: none; margin-left: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; line-height: 1em; display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket" style="margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px;">[</span></span></font></h2><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In retirement, Foster lives with his wife Alice C. Foster (born 1940) on the family estate near Franklin. She is active in the Sunshine Foundation in Baton Rouge, which seeks to enhance self-esteem among Louisiana public school youngsters.<sup id="cite_ref-16" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-16" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[16]</a></sup></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In 2003, Foster was inducted into the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Political_Museum_and_Hall_of_Fame" title="Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winnfield,Louisiana" title="Winnfield, Louisiana" style="text-decoration: none; background: none;">Winnfield</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-17" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-17" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[17]</a></sup></font></p><p style="margin: 0.5em 0px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In 2013, the state agreed to fund $2 million to renovate part of Franklin City Hall to provide housing for Foster's papers.<sup id="cite_ref-fittingtribute_7-1" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy_J.Foster,Jr.#cite_note-fittingtribute-7" style="text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap; background: none;">[7]</a></sup></font></p><h2 style="font-weight: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0.25em; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(170, 170, 170); line-height: 1.3; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span class="mw-headline" id="Electoral_history"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Electoral history</font></span></h2></div><div></div></div>