SOUTHERN FALLS TO RIVAL JACKSON STATE IN SWAC OPENER 1C
ADVOCATE THE
T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M
R E B E L S
24
|
BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
S u n d ay, S e p t e m b e r 28, 2025
$2.50X
La. lawyer represents state in top Supreme Court cases
T I G E R S
19
NOTHING TO SEE
One of the biggest is the constitutionality of the Voting Rights Act
BY MARK BALLARD | Staff writer
STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
Ole Miss cornerback Ricky Fletcher, right, covers the eyes of LSU wide receiver Chris Hilton Jr. to break up the pass near the end zone in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi. LSU dropped its first game of the season, falling 24-19 to Ole Miss. The offense sputtered through most of the afternoon. The Tigers were held to 254 total yards, 16 first downs (compared to Ole Miss’ 28) and went 2-for-11 on third down. They were outgained by Ole Miss by more than 200 yards. The Rebels haven’t lost at home to the Tigers since the 2019 season. ä SEE COMPLETE COVERAGE OF THE TIGERS GAME. PAGE 1C
WASHINGTON — A mere decade ago, as an LSU law student, J. Benjamin Aguiñaga paced the parking lots around Tiger Stadium, going over legal arguments in his head. “At some point between those evening walks and my own moot court adventures, I developed a love for brief writing and oral advocacy. So, I set out to try to build a strong résumé for an appellate career,” Aguiñaga told The Texas Lawbook, a law firm publication, in 2022. Aguiñaga He graduated from the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at LSU in 2015. He quickly assembled a resume of clerkships with nationally prominent federal judges, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito. Then, in January 2024, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill named him the state’s solicitor general. Now, at 35 years old, Aguiñaga is at the center of several of the state’s federal lawsuits that could have seismic implications across the country, on issues ranging from gun control to abortion to voting rights. “He called me out of the blue one day,” Murrill said, adding that Aguiñaga is “a great writer” and came recommended by the judges he had worked for. Murrill “If all three had picked him, then I didn’t think that all three could be wrong,” she said. “That’s the kind of person I was looking for to be solicitor general.” Aguiñaga declined to comment for this report. As solicitor general, Aguiñaga represents Louisiana in federal appeals, handling
ä See LAWYER, page 6A
State continues push to regulate pharmacy benefit managers Leaders target CVS, other middlemen
giant CVS defined the final days of the Louisiana Legislature’s regular session this year. At issue was the influence of the nation’s largest pharmacy benBY ALYSE PFEIL | Staff writer efit managers, or PBMs, over the A spectacular political fight be- prescription drug market. Landry tween state lawmakers backed by pressured lawmakers to limit the Gov. Jeff Landry and health care companies’ control over the phar-
WEATHER HIGH 89 LOW 65 PAGE 8B
maceutical market in Louisiana by prohibiting PBMs from owning pharmacies here. In response, CVS launched a massive public lobbying campaign, sending text messages to customers saying the new rule would force it to shut down over 100 pharmacies across the state.
Landry’s sweeping proposal ultimately did not pass. But Louisiana officials are still targeting the prescription drug intermediaries on multiple fronts: taking a contract worth millions of dollars away from CVS and giving most of the business to a Louisiana company instead; pursuing three separate
lawsuits against CVS for alleged unfair trade practices; and continuing to explore more stringent regulations. Landry has continued to publicly criticize PBMs as “corporate profiteers” who game the system,
ä See REGULATE, page 4A
Business ......................1E Deaths .........................4B Opinion ........................6B Classified ..................... 2F Living............................1D Nation-World................2A Commentary ................7B Metro ...........................1B Sports ..........................1C
101ST yEAR, NO. 90
AVAILABLE AT
10675 COURSEY BLVD, BATON ROUGE, LA 70816 (225) 291-1919