It’s no secret that quite a few politicians have taken a seat on the poker desk once in a while via the years. Outgoing Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) appears to be like to be one of many newest admitting to a penchant for card enjoying.
The state’s chief government hosted quite a few low-stakes poker nights on the Louisiana governor’s mansion throughout his eight years in workplace. The video games featured state senators, top administration officials, and lobbyists.
These video games have been in stark distinction to the obvious high-stakes motion that former Gov. Edwin Edwards held throughout his 4 various phrases as governor from 1972 to 1996.
“If you try to equate these games with those of Edwin Edwards, you will be making a tremendous mistake,” John Bel Edwards instructed NOLA.com. “That was not the purpose for why they were held. That’s not the way they were conducted. We always had fun, always. That’s why we did it.”
Details On The Governor’s Games
Edwards mentioned the video games have been held about 3 times annually, excluding through the COVID pandemic. The card-playing get-togethers have been bipartisan affairs and normally included Senate President John Alario® and his successor Page Cortez®.
Other gamers have been Edwards’ secretary of transportation Shawn Wilson, his government counsel Matthew Block, chief of employees Mark Cooper, Sen. Jay Luneau (D), and others. The video games might not have been for giant cash, however have been apparently fairly intense.
“Everybody won at some point,” Wilson instructed NOLA.com. “Nobody lost too big. It was a fun time.” He added concerning the former governor: “He’s not a bluffer, I can tell you that. You can see straight through his bluff in cards.”
Former Louisiana Gov. Buddy Roemer® was an everyday poker participant as properly, and apparently had some actual expertise on the desk. In the Nineteen Eighties, reviews be aware that he received as a lot as $25,000 a 12 months within the Nineteen Eighties and even claimed it on his earnings taxes.
Numerous different politicians all through historical past have additionally performed poker as properly, together with U.S. presidents Dwight Eisenhower, Rutherford B. Hayes, Warren Harding, and Harry Truman. Richard Nixon is alleged to have been such a great participant that he funded a lot of his first congressional marketing campaign with poker winnings.
