-Speech to immediately follow President Obama’s First Address to Congress-

Contact; Boehner: Antonia Ferrier, 202-225-4000; McConnell: Don Stewart, 202-224-2979; Jindal: Melissa Sellers, 225-342-8006

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 /Standard Newswire/ -- House Republican Leader John Boehner (OH) and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (KY) announced today that Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal will give the Republican address following the President's first address to Congress on February 24, 2009.  The Governor will speak to the nation from Baton Rouge, LA.

In making the announcement, Leader Boehner noted the Governor's leadership and innovation in public service:

"Gov. Jindal embodies what I have long said: the Republican Party must not be simply the party of 'opposition,' but the party of better solutions.  His stewardship of the state of Louisiana, dedication to reforming government, and commitment to bringing forth new and innovative ideas make him a leader not just within the Republican Party, but in our nation as a whole."

Sen. McConnell said the Governor personified reform and recovery, saying he was a strong choice to offer the Republican address:

"Gov. Jindal's leadership during a time of recovery in Louisiana, his commitment to real government reform, and his protection of hardworking American families make him an excellent choice to offer Republican solutions for the challenges which lay ahead." 

ABOUT GOV. JINDAL (Source: Gov. Jindal's Office)
Bobby Jindal was sworn in as Governor of Louisiana on January 14, 2008. He was elected Governor of Louisiana on October 20, 2007, with 54 percent of the vote in the primary, winning 60 of 64 parishes.

Shortly after taking office, Governor Jindal called a Special Session to address comprehensive ethics reform, the cornerstone of his election platform.  Since the conclusion of the session, the Better Government Association and the Center for Public Integrity announced that Louisiana's new ethics laws are among the best in the nation.

Additionally, the Governor's second Special Session eliminated burdensome taxes that deterred investment in Louisiana and limited the growth of existing Louisiana businesses.

Governor Jindal has put forth detailed plans for reforming our state's health care, education, and transportation systems, as well as for encouraging workforce development and continuing recovery efforts in areas devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, as well as Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. 

Governor Jindal led the historic response to Hurricane Gustav by successfully moving 1.9 million people out of harms' way, the largest evacuation of citizens in the history of the United States, including the largest medical evacuation in history moving more than 10,400 people from hospitals, nursing homes, and other medical facilities out of the path of the storm.

Jindal was born in Baton Rouge on June 10, 1971.  He graduated from Baton Rouge High School in 1988 and went on to attend Brown University where he graduated with honors in biology and public policy. Following his graduation from Brown, he attended Oxford University in England as a Rhodes Scholar, having turned down admissions to medical and law school at both Harvard and Yale.

In 1994, Jindal went to work for McKinsey and Company as a consultant for Fortune 500 companies before entering public service. In 1996, he was appointed Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH).

In 1998, Jindal was appointed Executive Director of the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare. As Executive Director, he was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Commission, whose work continues to be the driving force behind much of the ongoing debate on how to strengthen and improve Medicare.

At the conclusion of the Commission's work, Jindal was appointed President of the University of Louisiana System, the 16th largest higher education system in the country.

President George W. Bush appointed Jindal to serve as Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2001. In that position, he served as the principal policy advisor to the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

In 2004 he was elected to the 109th United States Congress representing the First District of Louisiana.  In Congress, he was elected Freshman Class President and served on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, the House Committee on Homeland Security, and the House Committee on Resources.  Jindal also served as Assistant Majority Whip.  In his first term he passed a number of notable pieces of legislation and played an instrumental role in Louisiana's recovery from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.  His noteworthy accomplishments include the passage of legislation to bring significant offshore energy revenues to Louisiana for the first time and legislation that keeps the Federal Emergency Management Agency from taxing certain recovery grants as income.

Jindal was re-elected to Congress in 2006 with 88 percent of the vote majority.

Jindal and his wife Supriya have three young children.