Jindal Puts Emphasis On Content, Not Form
by Robert Travis Scott - Times-Picayune (excerpt)

BATON ROUGE -- In his first news conference since delivering his widely panned address to the nation last week, Gov. Bobby Jindal admitted his public-speaking talents were no match for President Barack Obama's but said the content of his message showed important policy differences between Republicans and Democrats.

The governor had just returned from Florida, where he vacationed with his family at Disney World and held a fundraiser. It was his first live encounter with the media since an interview on "The Today Show" on Wednesday.

The governor started the news conference by announcing an initiative for tougher laws against repeat drunken driving offenders and then took questions on a range of topics. Most questions related to his speech Feb. 24, in which he delivered the nationally televised Republican Party response to Obama's address to Congress. Jindal delivered the speech in a sing-song speaking style that critics and even many admirers said bombed.

On Monday he sought to draw the focus away from his awkward performance and toward the things he said in the speech. Robert Weiner, a Democratic strategist and a former White House public affairs director under President Bill Clinton, said Jindal has "tried to paint a mirage" that the stimulus package was a bad bill overall when, in fact, the governor is taking nearly all the federal stimulus money offered to Louisiana.

Conservative syndicated columnist Kathleen Parker said in a weekend commentary that Jindal did not write his own speech, "and he's wearing a choke collar placed by some well-meaning people who helped him win the governor's race." But Jindal said he was the author of the speech and takes responsibility for its delivery. The governor said he is not planning to use a speechwriter in the future.

Jindal repeated his speech themes when he appeared on CNN's Larry King Live on Monday night.