Happy Labor Day to you, too, Bobby

(Getty Images) Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal won't renew his predecessor's executive order banning workplace discrimination against gay men and lesbians, he announced just days before his big moment at the Republican National Convention.

Jindal's star is rising fast in the GOP, and he is touted by some as a potential running mate for Sen. John McCain.

He's slated to speak in prime time at the convention, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported, on the night reserved for the acceptance speech of the party's yet-to-be-named vice presidential nominee.

On Wednesday in New Orleans, President Bush praised Jindal for the state's rebound from Hurricane Katrina and gave the state a 30-year extension on a $1.8 billion levee-repair loan.

The young -- just 37 -- Indo-American governor whom Rush Limbaugh once called "the next Ronald Reagan" is seen as a fresh face by the GOP leadership. But how deep does the difference go?

"I don't think it is necessary to create additional special categories or special rights," Jindal told reporters Wednesday. State and federal law already prohibits discrimination, he said.

The order signed in 2004 by then-Gov. Kathleen Blanco is set to expire Friday. The religious right had lobbied against it, as did allies of faith-based groups that partner with the state to provide drug and alcohol rehab and similar services.

"Gov. Jindal comes from a different mindset, understanding the damage that this potentially poses to children and to the economy," Gene Mills, executive director of the Louisiana Family Forum, told the Baton Rouge Advocate newspaper.

But gay rights advocate and former state Revenue Department secretary Joe Traigle said Jindal's stance is hardly good for business.

"Jindal, for the sake of economic development in Louisiana, should reissue the nondiscrimination executive order so that the sign below Louisiana can again read 'everyone welcome,'" Traigle said in a written statement.

The state's first ban on sexual-orientation discrimination was signed in 1992 by Gov. Edwin W. Edwards, but it was allowed to sunset by his successor. (Barbara Wilcox)