JEFF LANDRY ANDDONALD TRUMPJR.
kept their eyes peeled for a bumpy, thin snout as their guide navigated a silver mudboat.
But so far, no movement.
Donald Trump Jr. and his girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle, at Landry’s annual alligator hunt.
Not for $100, responded Trump Jr., but if you make it $500, Im in.
Am I going to have to go in and get him?
the agent asked Landry.
Landry laughed and said, Dont worry, hes gonna be fine.
If I have to, Ill go in.
Later that day, Trump Jr.s swim became the talk of the hunt, joining the events lore.
Satisfied, she pulled the trigger on the .22-caliber rifle.
It is the most-fun political event I am aware of or have had the privilege to attend.
Its like a great party with a rock concert and incredible people combined into one awesome weekend.
Now, politicians like Gov.
Kristi Noem, Gov.
The event raises more than $1 million annually for Landrys campaign and PAC.
The next year, Landry used the event as a way to unofficially declare he was running for governor.
ON A TUESDAY AFTERNOON in July, I sit across from Landry.
He leans forward and talks quickly, eager to make his point.
Now as governor, hes taken it further.
The states Dont Say Gay bill is more extreme than Floridas.
Ron DeSantis and former Sen. J.D.
Vance stumbling, Landry seems poised to pick up theMAGAflag.
Jeff has also always turned up when Team Trump needed him….
He did that even when it wasnt politically expedient for him to do, which I always personally appreciated.
The other damage he could do is simply by example.
If Landry gets away with the Ten Commandments, others are going to do it.
Its setting examples as much as anything.
[The damage] cascades.
Lets look at the country that everybody says is the greatest thats undisputed what got us to that point?
he says, then asks me the common theme of Americas foundational documents.
He immediately answers his own question.
It was not government, it was God.
The Magna Carta, Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution all mention God, he insists.
(The U.S. Constitution does not, in fact, mention a deity.)
The foundations of our government were laid, he tells me, when God gave Moses the Ten Commandments.
Theyre universal guidelines for a peaceful community, he says, no matter your religion.
The Ten Commandments are the fabric of civilization, and youre telling me we cant hang them in school?
Everybody gets their feelings hurt so much.
A FEW WEEKS BEFORE OUR INTERVIEW, Id spent a few days where Landry grew up.
St. Martinville is in rural south Louisiana alongside sugarcane fields and the bayou.
Landrys mother taught religion, swimming, and basketball while also managing the community pool.
She and her husband, an architect, were devout Catholics.
Neighbors called their modest home Grand Central Station.
He says as a kid Landry was known for being chatty and full of energy.
We run into the current mayor, a Democrat named Jason Willis, who went to school with Landry.
He says Landry was known around town for taking bruises, then getting up and still running his mouth.
People either love Landry or hate him, Willis tells me.
He knows hes going to be the most popular or the worst because hes not afraid to fail.
Landry took a circuitous route to the governors office.
Soon after, he worked as a police officer and as a sheriffs deputy.
In 1992, Landry helped the sheriffs friend Craig Romero campaign for a state senate seat.
Once he won, Romero hired Landry to be his legislative aide, unknowingly launching Landrys career in politics.
He had the instinct.
LANDRY HIT THE NATIONAL STAGE when he won a congressional seat in 2010.
He also refused to accept Obamas invitation to the White House to discuss the debt ceiling.
Three years after that, in 2015, he was voted in as state attorney general.
In the AG role, Landry made national headlines as he pulled the state further to the right.
He was close to the Trump family, backed Trumps controversial travel ban, and fought against Obamacare.
(After two months, he was overruled when other Republicans deemed it too extreme.)
She says Landry has this bombastic approach, like I am the law and what I say goes.
Ive tried to allow these issues to percolate through the Legislature.
Cecile Richards, former president of Planned Parenthood, tells me: Gov.
Landry is leading a race to the bottom.
Orange Team Landry Governor hats and Army-green fishing shirts circulated at the event Landry had launched his gubernatorial bid.
Word on the street was that establishment Republicans didnt like Landry; he wastoo extreme, toofar-right, tooMAGA.
But, to the shock of many in the party, the stateGOPendorsed Landry as their candidate early.
And Trump Sr. threw his weight behind Landry in a short video.
Landry is leading a race to the bottom.
The results have been catastrophic for women in Louisiana.
He spoke about safety, protecting children, parents rights in education.
He believes that even though the data shows its wrong.
Then came another surprise Landry won outright.
It was one of Louisianas lowest turnouts in years, with only 36 percent of the state voting.
Landry locked in more than 52 percent of the vote.
State legislators whod whispered to local reporters that they didnt support Landry suddenly fell in line when sessions began.
(Landry oncesued a reporterover a public-records request about sexual harassment allegations against his staff member.)
He says GOP legislators are nervous about standing up to him.
Fealty is the only power that matters.
But still, efforts to pull Louisiana to the middle often prove futile.
We talk about rape and incest well, were going to castrate those folks in Louisiana, he says.
Hes referring to thesurgical-castration billhe signed in June 2024 which went into effect Aug. 1.
Ive been wanting to do that since I was attorney general, he tells me proudly.
Then when we clean that up, then we can have that discussion.
LANDRYS FAR-RIGHT POLICIES kept him in the news during his whirlwind first few months in office.
In May, he made national headlines for an entirely different reason.
He was eating dinner at the Kentucky Derby when his phone buzzed.
Back in New Orleans, Mick Jagger had just called him out onstage at Jazz Fest.
Were a very welcoming crowd, arent we?
Were all very inclusive.
Landry is enjoying the show with us tonight.
Hes really inclusive, too.
Wed like to include him even if he wants to take us back to the Stone Age.
Jaggers jab was met with claps, cheers, and boos at the festival grounds.
Landry responded immediately witha post on X: You cant always get what you want.
The only person who might remember the Stone Age is Mick Jagger.
Love you buddy, youre always welcome in Louisiana!
#LoveMyCountryMusic
I ask Landry about Jaggers remarks.
Its all fun, he says, shrugging.
If youre in politics long enough … you just kind of take it in stride.
A month after Jazz Fest, Landry was back in the news.
Get out of my pocket, get out of my body, and get out of my school.
They want to post this in schools.
Pretty cut and dry, dont kill anybody, said correspondent Michael Kosta.
The religious right, however, was thrilled, and Trump agreed.
Landry insists he was shocked at the national outcry.
Landry mentioned the Ten Commandments legislation and says the audience went wild.
Then he brought it up again that night at the gala.
Im going home to sign a bill that places the Ten Commandments in public classrooms, said Landry.
And I cant wait to be sued!
A lawsuit did follow.
She says Jesus was about openness and inclusivity, not about following a list of rules.
I think its crap from a legal perspective, its crap from a religious perspective.
THIS FALL, THE NATION will make a decision about the future of the country.
The country is in need of a reformation, he tells me.
You cant come out of chaos without having some sort of reformation or awakening.
You dont get to govern until you reach a majority.
The country is in need of a reformation.
You cant come out of chaos without having some sort of reformation or awakening.
We dont have the Ten Commandments posted in our classrooms, but we have free breakfast and lunch.
I think Americans want a return of the American Dream that inspired J.D.
Vance but that only Donald Trump can deliver, Landry tells me.
He praises Vance as an unbelievable pick.
I ask if he means Trump was saved from the assassination attempt by divine intervention.
One hundred percent, Landry says.
Him and Steve Scalise got the most overworked guardian angels of all time.
As far as his own future, Landry is keeping it close to the vest.
But I got a lot of work here in Louisiana.
Several of Landrys friends tell me they see him becoming president one day.
But that was the same response Landry had given when Willis had said hed one day be governor.
And then look, hes governor.
