There’s not much left between Henry Barbour’s house and the horizon. Since the tornado came through here last April, the house has sat on a bare hill, looking out over the meager remains of the surrounding woods.
It will be decades before that seclusion grows back, but Mr. Barbour is staying anyhow. He grew up here, his family is here and he has managed a career in big-money politics from here perfectly fine.
Whenever Mr. Barbour’s name has shown up in the national news media, it has regularly been followed by the words “nephew of Gov. Haley Barbour.” That suits him well enough; Mr. Barbour has no problem being a backstage player.
But he is also fiercely competitive, and his profile has begun to rise over the last couple of months, as Mr. Barbour, a member of the Republican National Committee, has led a widely publicized campaign to have Michael Steele ousted as chairman. The committee begins its annual winter meeting on Wednesday and holds its election for chairman on Friday, and few are playing a more central role than Mr. Barbour.
READ MORE
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
East Flora PTA to meet Thursday night over potential school closing.
The East Flora PTA will meet Thursday night at 6:00 in the school gym to discuss the potential closing of the school. If closed, the town of Flora would be the only municipality in Madison County without a school. The move would force students to be bussed several miles away.
East Flora Middle School serves 147 students and is listed as underperforming. Madison County spends $14,000 per student at East Flora compared to the average per student cost of $7,700.
Concerned parents and town officials met Tuesday night at Flora City Hall to discuss the predicament.
East Flora Middle School serves 147 students and is listed as underperforming. Madison County spends $14,000 per student at East Flora compared to the average per student cost of $7,700.
Concerned parents and town officials met Tuesday night at Flora City Hall to discuss the predicament.
Barbour's Last State of the State in Pictures
Prognosticators, Politico's and Pundits have already begun to break down Governor Haley Barbour's final State of the State Address given last night. You can check out Majority in Mississippi to view a transcript of the Guv's speech. Follow this LINK to see the transcript of the Democrat response. And, you can view the entire MPB coverage of the event HERE.
I won't attempt to add another layer to those who have started breaking it all down to tell you what you thought you heard. Instead I'll offer a few visual aids.
Click on the photos to enlarge.
Enjoy.
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| Congressman Gregg Harper arrived on the House Floor early to talk to Lawmakers. |
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| Speaker Billy McCoy brings the House to order. |
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| Lt. Governor Phil Bryant and President Pro-Tempore Billy Hewes welcome First Lady Marsha Barbour. |
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| Speaker McCoy welcomes Governor Barbour to the floor of the House. |
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| The Governor received a warm welcom from the joint session of the Mississippi State Legislature. |
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| Lt. Governor Bryant, a gubernatorial hopeful, and Senator Billy Hewes who is looking to replace him as head of the Senate. |
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| Barbour was at times sentimental about his time in the Governor's Mansion. |
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| Members of the Legislative Black Caucus sat on their hands for much of the Governor's speech. But, rose in agreement when Barbour called for a plan to build a Civil Rights Museum in Jackson. |
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| Senator Giles Ward, Representative Scott Bounds and other legislator's listen intently to the Governor's speech. |
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| Madison Representative Rita Martinson |
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Monsanto corn breeding facility up and running in Flora.
Elected officials from across the state joined Flora in welcoming Monsanto to the Flora Industrial Park on Tuesday January 11. The $2.4 million facility further boosts the company’s investment in the South and is a reflection of Monsanto’s commitment to continue delivering new high-performing products to southern farmers.
The 26,000-square-foot corn breeding station will employ approximately 10 full-time and up to 50 seasonal workers. Corn production in the southern region has been growing in the last several years, and the new site’s research focus will be on using the latest breeding techniques to develop higher-yielding corn hybrids with greater resistance to disease and other environmental stresses, specifically adapted to the region.
The site will complement Monsanto’s global breeding program and become part of a network of more than 50 corn breeding locations around the world. Southern farmers also will benefit from the genetic diversity of Monsanto’s global germplasm pool.
Monsanto currently has 3 technology research sites in Mississippi – Scott, Leland, and Winterville – focused on delivering cotton and soy varieties and traits to meet the needs of southern farmers.
The announcement comes two years after the town lost out to a site in Kansas to be the new location for a Department of Homeland Security Bio lab. Flora's Industrial Park currently has only one tenant, Primos Hunting Calls, locating there in May of 2002.
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| Mayor Les Childress, Ag Commissioner Lester Spell, Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith, Congressman Gregg Harper, and Representative Phillip Gunn were on hand to welcome the new Monsanto facility to Flora. |
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| Flora Mayor Leslie Childress welcomes officials from across Madison County and Mississippi to Flora. |
The site will complement Monsanto’s global breeding program and become part of a network of more than 50 corn breeding locations around the world. Southern farmers also will benefit from the genetic diversity of Monsanto’s global germplasm pool.
Monsanto currently has 3 technology research sites in Mississippi – Scott, Leland, and Winterville – focused on delivering cotton and soy varieties and traits to meet the needs of southern farmers.
The announcement comes two years after the town lost out to a site in Kansas to be the new location for a Department of Homeland Security Bio lab. Flora's Industrial Park currently has only one tenant, Primos Hunting Calls, locating there in May of 2002.
Monday, January 10, 2011
DeLay Sentenced to Three Years in Prison
A Texas judge sentenced former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) to a three-year prison term Monday for his role in a scheme that violated the state’s campaign finance laws and funneled corporate funds to candidates in 2002, the Associated Press reported.
A jury convicted DeLay in late November on charges of money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He is expected to appeal.
DeLay was accused under a 2005 indictment of illegally funneling to state candidates $190,000 in corporate money collected by his state political action committee through the Republican National Committee in 2002. State laws prohibit such funds from being used for political campaigns.
DeLay denied wrongdoing in the case. The AP reported that his attorney had sought probation, rather than a prison term.
Texas Judge Pat Priest could have sentenced DeLay to life in prison. Instead, DeLay was sentenced to three years in prison on the conspiracy charge and 10 years of probation on the money-laundering charge, the Austin American-Statesman reported.
Read More
A jury convicted DeLay in late November on charges of money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He is expected to appeal.
DeLay was accused under a 2005 indictment of illegally funneling to state candidates $190,000 in corporate money collected by his state political action committee through the Republican National Committee in 2002. State laws prohibit such funds from being used for political campaigns.
DeLay denied wrongdoing in the case. The AP reported that his attorney had sought probation, rather than a prison term.
Texas Judge Pat Priest could have sentenced DeLay to life in prison. Instead, DeLay was sentenced to three years in prison on the conspiracy charge and 10 years of probation on the money-laundering charge, the Austin American-Statesman reported.
Read More
Special Elections to go ahead as planned
Special elections for Northern Transportation Commissioner, and to replace the seats left open by Senator Alan Nunelee and Representative Steven Palzzo will reportedly go on as planned tomorrow despite snow and sleet across the state yesterday.
Secretary of State Delbert Hoseman said his office would plan to hold the elections as scheduled unless Governor Barbour decided otherwise. Barbour spokesman Dan Turner said Sunday the governor would make a decision today, based on whether roads are expected to be clear Tuesday.
Secretary of State Delbert Hoseman said his office would plan to hold the elections as scheduled unless Governor Barbour decided otherwise. Barbour spokesman Dan Turner said Sunday the governor would make a decision today, based on whether roads are expected to be clear Tuesday.
Friday, January 7, 2011
George Dale to run as independent for Insurance Commissioner?
Rumor is that former Insurance Commissioner George Dale picked up qualifying papers from the Secretary of State's office on Thursday, January 6 with the intent of running for his old office as an independent. He previously held the office as a Democrat.
Dale was a teacher, coach and school administrator in the Moss Point public school system prior to entering state government in 1972. Elected as commissioner of insurance in 1975, he became the youngest insurance commissioner in Mississippi history. Upon completing his eighth term, Commissioner Dale was the longest-serving insurance commissioner in the United States.
Following his defeat by Democrat Challenger Gary Anderson 51-49 in 2007, he joined the law firm of Adams and Reese as a governmental affairs advisor.
Dale lost in the wake of his cozy relationship with the insurance industry following Hurricane Katrina.
The now seventy year old told the Mississippi Business Journal following his 2007 defeat, "I will not go home and retire."
He added, "I come from family of long livers. I have one uncle who lived to be 99 and another who lived to 94. I think a certain amount of long life is hereditary. The key to all of them living so long was they were active to the end. I intend to be active as long as I can."
It would appear he intends to get his old job back.
Dale was a teacher, coach and school administrator in the Moss Point public school system prior to entering state government in 1972. Elected as commissioner of insurance in 1975, he became the youngest insurance commissioner in Mississippi history. Upon completing his eighth term, Commissioner Dale was the longest-serving insurance commissioner in the United States.
Following his defeat by Democrat Challenger Gary Anderson 51-49 in 2007, he joined the law firm of Adams and Reese as a governmental affairs advisor.
Dale lost in the wake of his cozy relationship with the insurance industry following Hurricane Katrina.
The now seventy year old told the Mississippi Business Journal following his 2007 defeat, "I will not go home and retire."
He added, "I come from family of long livers. I have one uncle who lived to be 99 and another who lived to 94. I think a certain amount of long life is hereditary. The key to all of them living so long was they were active to the end. I intend to be active as long as I can."
It would appear he intends to get his old job back.
Republicans Say Higher U.S. Debt Limit Depends on Specific Spending Cuts
Republicans in Congress told President Barack Obama and Democrats they will insist on specific cuts in government spending as a condition of raising the U.S. debt limit.
Any increase must be “accompanied by meaningful action by the president and Congress to cut spending and end the job- killing spending binge,” House Speaker John Boehner said in a statement yesterday after the Obama administration asked Congress to boost the debt ceiling by March 31.
Boehner, of Ohio, and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, of Wisconsin, said a default on government debts isn’t an option. Still, Ryan suggested Republicans may use the debt- ceiling issue as leverage to attach conditions that would force Obama to sign them into law or force a default.
“Republicans are not interested in just a naked debt- ceiling increase,” Ryan said at a Washington forum on economic policy. “Nobody likes brinksmanship, but what we really don’t want is runaway spending.”
Republicans “want to do something that gets us pointed in the right direction,” he said.
In a letter to congressional leaders, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the $14.29 trillion debt limit may be reached as soon as March 31, and “most likely” by May 16. The debt was incurred “during periods when both Republicans and Democrats were in control of different branches of government,” he said.
A default on government obligations by a failure to extend the borrowing authority would have “catastrophic consequences” possibly worse than the 2008 financial crisis, said Geithner. He said Obama is committed to working with both parties to put the U.S. on a “fiscally responsible path.”
Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, told reporters, “Rather than sending out scary letters, what we ought to look at is an opportunity here, on a bipartisan basis, to address spending and debt.”
As part of the Republican focus on spending cuts, the House yesterday voted to reduce its operating budget by 5 percent. The 410-13 vote imposed the reduction on all House committees and the offices of leaders and members. The resolution will save an estimated $35 million from a federal budget that exceeds $3.5 trillion.
Ryan suggested Republicans’ new House majority may seek to use the debt-ceiling matter to force Obama to sign legislation with spending conditions he might otherwise veto. An increase in the government’s borrowing authority “is not an unrelated item,” he said.
Asked whether Republican demands for spending cuts would threaten a government default, Ryan said, “It would be irresponsible if the president brings about a default of the country if he refuses to sign a bill that raises the debt- ceiling limits. That’s his choice.”
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, told reporters that Republicans are “threatening to shut down the government” over the debt limit, which would cause “an economic crisis.”
Ryan said Republicans are discussing their strategy for boosting the government’s borrowing authority, adding they might opt for either a one or two-year extension.
“There are different ways of doing a debt-ceiling increase that could speak to our strategy,” Ryan said.
Ryan said he holds out “some hope that there’s a shot at some actual, maybe not wholesale, fundamental” changes in the tax code.
Bloomberg
Any increase must be “accompanied by meaningful action by the president and Congress to cut spending and end the job- killing spending binge,” House Speaker John Boehner said in a statement yesterday after the Obama administration asked Congress to boost the debt ceiling by March 31.
Boehner, of Ohio, and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, of Wisconsin, said a default on government debts isn’t an option. Still, Ryan suggested Republicans may use the debt- ceiling issue as leverage to attach conditions that would force Obama to sign them into law or force a default.
“Republicans are not interested in just a naked debt- ceiling increase,” Ryan said at a Washington forum on economic policy. “Nobody likes brinksmanship, but what we really don’t want is runaway spending.”
Republicans “want to do something that gets us pointed in the right direction,” he said.
In a letter to congressional leaders, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the $14.29 trillion debt limit may be reached as soon as March 31, and “most likely” by May 16. The debt was incurred “during periods when both Republicans and Democrats were in control of different branches of government,” he said.
A default on government obligations by a failure to extend the borrowing authority would have “catastrophic consequences” possibly worse than the 2008 financial crisis, said Geithner. He said Obama is committed to working with both parties to put the U.S. on a “fiscally responsible path.”
Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, told reporters, “Rather than sending out scary letters, what we ought to look at is an opportunity here, on a bipartisan basis, to address spending and debt.”
As part of the Republican focus on spending cuts, the House yesterday voted to reduce its operating budget by 5 percent. The 410-13 vote imposed the reduction on all House committees and the offices of leaders and members. The resolution will save an estimated $35 million from a federal budget that exceeds $3.5 trillion.
Ryan suggested Republicans’ new House majority may seek to use the debt-ceiling matter to force Obama to sign legislation with spending conditions he might otherwise veto. An increase in the government’s borrowing authority “is not an unrelated item,” he said.
Asked whether Republican demands for spending cuts would threaten a government default, Ryan said, “It would be irresponsible if the president brings about a default of the country if he refuses to sign a bill that raises the debt- ceiling limits. That’s his choice.”
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, told reporters that Republicans are “threatening to shut down the government” over the debt limit, which would cause “an economic crisis.”
Ryan said Republicans are discussing their strategy for boosting the government’s borrowing authority, adding they might opt for either a one or two-year extension.
“There are different ways of doing a debt-ceiling increase that could speak to our strategy,” Ryan said.
Ryan said he holds out “some hope that there’s a shot at some actual, maybe not wholesale, fundamental” changes in the tax code.
Bloomberg
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Dems prove early that the 112th will be no different than the 111th: Games, Games, Games
“Despite the fact that they read the Constitution today, they should have read it yesterday, actually,” one senior Democratic aide said. “I guess swearing in their Members wasn’t part of their pledge.”
The aide was referring to the adjourning of a GOP hearing on a health care repeal resolution.
Rules Chairman David Dreier (R-Calif.) abruptly adjourned a hearing on a GOP health care repeal resolution Thursday after he became aware that Rep. Pete Sessions was not sworn in as a Member of the 112th Congress, committee spokeswoman Jo Maney said.
The Texas Republican was not on the floor during Wednesday’s swearing-in ceremony. But he was the Member who offered the motion to constitute the Rules Committee.
The aide was referring to the adjourning of a GOP hearing on a health care repeal resolution.
Rules Chairman David Dreier (R-Calif.) abruptly adjourned a hearing on a GOP health care repeal resolution Thursday after he became aware that Rep. Pete Sessions was not sworn in as a Member of the 112th Congress, committee spokeswoman Jo Maney said.
The Texas Republican was not on the floor during Wednesday’s swearing-in ceremony. But he was the Member who offered the motion to constitute the Rules Committee.
Harper: "Our Path To A Balanced Budget Begins Today, And It Begins With This Vote"
U.S. Representative Gregg Harper (R-Miss.) speaks in support of a bill to reduce Members of Congress' operating budget by five percent. Harper: "As lawmakers, we must lead by example. For this past Congress - my first term - my congressional office has come in under budget, voluntarily returning approximately 10 percent of the Members' Representational Allowance."
Madison County Superintendent not to run for re-election
Kent said he had been weighing retirement.
"I've been struggling with it about a year," he said. "I am, by nature, a term limits guy. ... I think there is value in change and revitalization."
Kent, 59, has spent 38 years as a state educator, all of them in the Madison County School District. He was Madison Central High School's principal before being elected superintendent in 1999. Under his leadership, Madison County schools have consistently ranked among the top districts in the state.
During his tenure, Ridgeland High was built and two more bond issues were passed, the second funding construction of Germantown High, set to open in Gluckstadt this fall.
"We've gone from nine schools to 23. We've spent $300 million on new construction," he said.
The district serves nearly 12,000 students. "When I took office, we had about 7,000 students, and we had more kids in trailers than in bricks and mortar, but we're about to get that remedied." Kent said.
Kent also pointed to the district's achievement of unitary status, which "returned local control to the school district."
The district got out from under the U.S. Justice Department in 2006. A group of Madison County residents unsuccessfully challenged the change.
Board member Bill Grissett Jr. noted there has been no tax increase in the Madison County district in six years and attributed that to Kent's leadership.
Whoever is elected as the district's superintendent will need to follow Kent's lead "because what he's had in place has been working," Grissett said.
Deputy Superintendent Ronnie McGehee said Wed-nesday he plans to file qualifying papers to run for the job Friday, and Kent is endorsing him.
Read More: CL
"I've been struggling with it about a year," he said. "I am, by nature, a term limits guy. ... I think there is value in change and revitalization."
Kent, 59, has spent 38 years as a state educator, all of them in the Madison County School District. He was Madison Central High School's principal before being elected superintendent in 1999. Under his leadership, Madison County schools have consistently ranked among the top districts in the state.
During his tenure, Ridgeland High was built and two more bond issues were passed, the second funding construction of Germantown High, set to open in Gluckstadt this fall.
"We've gone from nine schools to 23. We've spent $300 million on new construction," he said.
The district serves nearly 12,000 students. "When I took office, we had about 7,000 students, and we had more kids in trailers than in bricks and mortar, but we're about to get that remedied." Kent said.
Kent also pointed to the district's achievement of unitary status, which "returned local control to the school district."
The district got out from under the U.S. Justice Department in 2006. A group of Madison County residents unsuccessfully challenged the change.
Board member Bill Grissett Jr. noted there has been no tax increase in the Madison County district in six years and attributed that to Kent's leadership.
Whoever is elected as the district's superintendent will need to follow Kent's lead "because what he's had in place has been working," Grissett said.
Deputy Superintendent Ronnie McGehee said Wed-nesday he plans to file qualifying papers to run for the job Friday, and Kent is endorsing him.
Read More: CL
House GOP leadership to start 112th with reading of the Constitution
House lawmakers will also take up a spending cut bill, a five percent cut taken from lawmaker and committee budgets, worth about $35 million dollars.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Ridgeland Police Chief to run for Sheriff
Ridgeland Police Chief Jimmy R. Houston has qualified to run for Madison County Sheriff.
Houston filed qualifying papers late Wednesday afternoon to run in the Republican primary.
Houston filed qualifying papers late Wednesday afternoon to run in the Republican primary.
Trowbridge will be sorely missed
BY: B. Keith Plunkett
The news broke yesterday morning. I'll admit it was quite a shock to me that Madison County Sheriff Toby Trowbridge would not seek re-election this year. Those who have known the Sheriff since his youth have said that he was destined for this job. I've even been told he would sometimes dress as a law enforcement officer for Halloween in his younger days. His dedication to law and order and the brotherhood of officers that do that job well is unwavering.
The dealings I have had with the Sheriff over the course of my time living and working in Madison County have been extremely pleasant. His committment to his job sets the bar high for the person that will step into his shoes in 2012. He is well liked by his officers, and with 70 percent of the vote in the last elections, it is pretty obvious he is respected by the voters of Madison County. If current Census estimates are correct, Madison County has seen an increase in population of 24.7 percent in the past 10 years. Despite that phenomenal growth, and despite the county's close proximity to Jackson, crime has remained low. That's because of Trowbridge's leadership.
He has had a great working relationship with the Board of Supervisors during a time when the board has seen a great deal of political and managerial upheaval. His ethics are without reproach. A welcome thing following the way former Sheriff Jessie Hopkins left office.
The Sheriff and his wife Jenny are hard working and dedicated to their community and their church. In the past Jenny has given her time and efforts towards numerous causes. She is a previous director of the Flora Area Chamber of Commerce, and has recently giver her time to organize and promote the "Don't Forget Your Child" campaign. DFYC has been helpful in reminding busy adults not to leave their children behind in vehicles during the sweltering Mississippi heat. (Yes, apparently we have become that busy.) I have had the priviledge of witnessing their generosity at the Trowbridge home during a church event sponsored by she and Toby for the youth at Damascus Baptist Church where they open their home and their hearts frequently. The care they show is not about public relations.
Sheriff Trowbridge has never really quite cared much for being the celebrated center of attention, putting the work first. The media has never had an easy time getting anything more out of him than he thought he should give to inform without jeapordizing his officers or the cases they were working. When the blood began to swirl in the water over the ACLU and boycotts from black residents over profiling and roadblocks a few years ago, he simply said it wasn't up for debate and continued to do his job. His leadership has been calm and steady. We can only hope the next Sheriff has half his demeanor.
So, Toby is leaving the job. I am surprised. But, I would be willing to bet that he certainly will not be giving up on the good things he and his wife do for Madison County and the Flora community. His dedication to protect and serve runs too deep for that.
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| Sheriff Toby Trowbridge |
The dealings I have had with the Sheriff over the course of my time living and working in Madison County have been extremely pleasant. His committment to his job sets the bar high for the person that will step into his shoes in 2012. He is well liked by his officers, and with 70 percent of the vote in the last elections, it is pretty obvious he is respected by the voters of Madison County. If current Census estimates are correct, Madison County has seen an increase in population of 24.7 percent in the past 10 years. Despite that phenomenal growth, and despite the county's close proximity to Jackson, crime has remained low. That's because of Trowbridge's leadership.
He has had a great working relationship with the Board of Supervisors during a time when the board has seen a great deal of political and managerial upheaval. His ethics are without reproach. A welcome thing following the way former Sheriff Jessie Hopkins left office.
The Sheriff and his wife Jenny are hard working and dedicated to their community and their church. In the past Jenny has given her time and efforts towards numerous causes. She is a previous director of the Flora Area Chamber of Commerce, and has recently giver her time to organize and promote the "Don't Forget Your Child" campaign. DFYC has been helpful in reminding busy adults not to leave their children behind in vehicles during the sweltering Mississippi heat. (Yes, apparently we have become that busy.) I have had the priviledge of witnessing their generosity at the Trowbridge home during a church event sponsored by she and Toby for the youth at Damascus Baptist Church where they open their home and their hearts frequently. The care they show is not about public relations.
Sheriff Trowbridge has never really quite cared much for being the celebrated center of attention, putting the work first. The media has never had an easy time getting anything more out of him than he thought he should give to inform without jeapordizing his officers or the cases they were working. When the blood began to swirl in the water over the ACLU and boycotts from black residents over profiling and roadblocks a few years ago, he simply said it wasn't up for debate and continued to do his job. His leadership has been calm and steady. We can only hope the next Sheriff has half his demeanor.
So, Toby is leaving the job. I am surprised. But, I would be willing to bet that he certainly will not be giving up on the good things he and his wife do for Madison County and the Flora community. His dedication to protect and serve runs too deep for that.
Friday, December 17, 2010
For Crying Out Loud
By Daniel J. Flynn/The American Spectator
House Speaker John Boehner insists his tears, like his tan, are genuine. Too bad. His election night sob story over his climb to success, followed by his 60 Minutes blubbering over schoolchildren, might be excusable if inspired by a Machiavellian streak. Alas, a lack of self-control, rather than an act to exert control over his audience, explains the teary-eyed outbursts.
Boehner's waterworks flow most frequently and famously. But his aren't the only tear ducts opening when the cameras are rolling. Senator Tom Coburn cried during his speech in favor Judge John Roberts's confirmation to the Supreme Court in 2005. Weepy behavior is bipartisan, as Senator Chuck Schumer whimpered during his introduction of Judge Sonia Sotomayor at her confirmation hearings last year. Mitt Romney choked up running for president when talking about his church admitting blacks, his father, and seeing a casket return from Iraq. America is in trouble when the behavior of its elected officials resembles that of the YouTube sensation who tearfully exhorted everyone to "Leave Britney alone! Please!"
One needn't be a stoic to find something unseemly in all this crying. Almost fifty years ago, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons counseled big girls not to cry. Today, one can't suggest so much to grown men without appearing like a troglodyte. Wussy is the new manly.
Politics merely reflects the culture, which likes its men to be like its women. Sometime after the appearance of man purses but before the pandemic of male eyebrow waxing, the culture gave the green light for guys to wail and weep. "It's okay to cry," we were told. But male icons in sports, movies, and television told us that it's not just okay to cry. It's obligatory.
Michael Jordan cried after winning his first NBA title and Tim Tebow cried after losing the SEC championship game. Get some perspective. You play a children's game. There may be no crying in baseball. Basketball and football are another story.
Joe Friday and Harry Callahan would never make it in today's Hollywood. Jerry Maguire, whose welling eyes impressed rather than repulsed the girl, seems a more iconic representation of modern manliness. He had her at hello. He lost me at boo-hoo.
In 2009, ABC presented Jason Mesnick as a catch to female contestants on The Bachelor. The indecisive, gushing Mesnick presented himself as unable to control his emotions to ABC's viewers. The man that ABC believed that women wanted turned out to be a bachelor for a reason.
Glenn Beck may or may not be a crier in real life, but he plays one on TV. Beck's weepiness has become as much a part of his shtick as Bill O'Reilly's temper or Keith Olbermann's sanctimony. When Walter Cronkite's voice cracked as he reported President Kennedy's assassination, few faulted him for his momentary betrayal of the dispassionate ethic of the anchorman. But in the news-o-tainment era, tears=ratings. Cry yourself to the bank.
Pundits who obsess over the artificiality of the tear flood miss the point. The indifference of the sincerely moved to suppress the impulse toward public emoting, and the eagerness of the phonies to release the feigned emotions, both tacitly acknowledge the benefits of being a crybaby in our society.
Proponents of crying suggest there is something unhealthy in holding back the tears. Perhaps they are on to something. Men are from Mars, not from Vulcan, after all. But why must so many men lose it so publicly? It's undignified. It can be, Ã la children's crocodile tears, manipulative. In leaders, it does not inspire confidence. As one might say to a couple partaking in similarly annoying public displays of affection, "Get a room!" -- the bathroom, the bedroom, the basement, wherever. Just take your crying eyes away from our eyes.
Cannot the dry eyes and the wet eyes come to a compromise? The former faction will grant that it is okay to cry, provided that the latter faction does so behind closed doors. Deal?
Thirty-nine-years ago, Maine Senator Edmund Muskie stood outside of the Manchester Union Leader and denounced the newspaper for criticizing his wife. Amid the emotionally-charged speech, and winter's flurries, reporters glimpsed moisture trailing down the presidential frontrunner's cheek. Was it melting snowflakes or tears? It didn't matter. The mere suggestion that an aspirant to lead the free world broke down during a stressful situation was enough for some to dismiss his candidacy.
In less than four decades, America has morphed from a culture that cringes at grown men bawling to one that rewards it. That's almost worth crying over.
House Speaker John Boehner insists his tears, like his tan, are genuine. Too bad. His election night sob story over his climb to success, followed by his 60 Minutes blubbering over schoolchildren, might be excusable if inspired by a Machiavellian streak. Alas, a lack of self-control, rather than an act to exert control over his audience, explains the teary-eyed outbursts.
Boehner's waterworks flow most frequently and famously. But his aren't the only tear ducts opening when the cameras are rolling. Senator Tom Coburn cried during his speech in favor Judge John Roberts's confirmation to the Supreme Court in 2005. Weepy behavior is bipartisan, as Senator Chuck Schumer whimpered during his introduction of Judge Sonia Sotomayor at her confirmation hearings last year. Mitt Romney choked up running for president when talking about his church admitting blacks, his father, and seeing a casket return from Iraq. America is in trouble when the behavior of its elected officials resembles that of the YouTube sensation who tearfully exhorted everyone to "Leave Britney alone! Please!"
One needn't be a stoic to find something unseemly in all this crying. Almost fifty years ago, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons counseled big girls not to cry. Today, one can't suggest so much to grown men without appearing like a troglodyte. Wussy is the new manly.
Politics merely reflects the culture, which likes its men to be like its women. Sometime after the appearance of man purses but before the pandemic of male eyebrow waxing, the culture gave the green light for guys to wail and weep. "It's okay to cry," we were told. But male icons in sports, movies, and television told us that it's not just okay to cry. It's obligatory.
Michael Jordan cried after winning his first NBA title and Tim Tebow cried after losing the SEC championship game. Get some perspective. You play a children's game. There may be no crying in baseball. Basketball and football are another story.
Joe Friday and Harry Callahan would never make it in today's Hollywood. Jerry Maguire, whose welling eyes impressed rather than repulsed the girl, seems a more iconic representation of modern manliness. He had her at hello. He lost me at boo-hoo.
In 2009, ABC presented Jason Mesnick as a catch to female contestants on The Bachelor. The indecisive, gushing Mesnick presented himself as unable to control his emotions to ABC's viewers. The man that ABC believed that women wanted turned out to be a bachelor for a reason.
Glenn Beck may or may not be a crier in real life, but he plays one on TV. Beck's weepiness has become as much a part of his shtick as Bill O'Reilly's temper or Keith Olbermann's sanctimony. When Walter Cronkite's voice cracked as he reported President Kennedy's assassination, few faulted him for his momentary betrayal of the dispassionate ethic of the anchorman. But in the news-o-tainment era, tears=ratings. Cry yourself to the bank.
Pundits who obsess over the artificiality of the tear flood miss the point. The indifference of the sincerely moved to suppress the impulse toward public emoting, and the eagerness of the phonies to release the feigned emotions, both tacitly acknowledge the benefits of being a crybaby in our society.
Proponents of crying suggest there is something unhealthy in holding back the tears. Perhaps they are on to something. Men are from Mars, not from Vulcan, after all. But why must so many men lose it so publicly? It's undignified. It can be, Ã la children's crocodile tears, manipulative. In leaders, it does not inspire confidence. As one might say to a couple partaking in similarly annoying public displays of affection, "Get a room!" -- the bathroom, the bedroom, the basement, wherever. Just take your crying eyes away from our eyes.
Cannot the dry eyes and the wet eyes come to a compromise? The former faction will grant that it is okay to cry, provided that the latter faction does so behind closed doors. Deal?
Thirty-nine-years ago, Maine Senator Edmund Muskie stood outside of the Manchester Union Leader and denounced the newspaper for criticizing his wife. Amid the emotionally-charged speech, and winter's flurries, reporters glimpsed moisture trailing down the presidential frontrunner's cheek. Was it melting snowflakes or tears? It didn't matter. The mere suggestion that an aspirant to lead the free world broke down during a stressful situation was enough for some to dismiss his candidacy.
In less than four decades, America has morphed from a culture that cringes at grown men bawling to one that rewards it. That's almost worth crying over.
District may close Flora Middle School
The possibility of closing East Flora Middle School was discussed this week as the Madison County School Board faces another year of state funding cuts.
Flora Mayor Les Childress and a group of the school's PTA members sat down with School Board members in executive session to discuss the issue Monday.
The school has an enrollment of 154 students that requires around 13 teachers as well as administration and support staff. School officials estimate it costs around $1 million a year to operate.
Superintendent of Education Michael D. Kent said closing a school is never an easy decision, but with drastic cuts expected for the upcoming school year nothing is off the table.
"There's nothing set in stone, but is it being considered? Absolutely," he said. "It all hinges on funding at the state level.
"What we're doing right now is listening to all the talk coming from the state capitol about funding," he continued. "If we have the funding woes they're predicting we may not have any choice."
Childress said no one in Flora wants to see the school closed and he hoped to push the issue with the town's aldermen and with their state representatives.
"We certainly don't want to see any of the schools on this side of the county close," Childress said. "Hopefully the legislature will come up with the funding, but if not we need to look at all the options."
If closed, the students from East Flora Middle would instead go to Madison Middle School where Kent said they have room. Currently, Madison Middle has the district's second largest enrollment with 1,228 students, second only to Madison Central High School.
In July an analysis of the district's spending showed it costs nearly twice as much to educate a student at East Flora Middle School than it does at Madison Middle School.
The report calculated instructional, transportation and various other expenses coming up with a per-student expense at each school.
It showed East Flora Middle School, the district's smallest, is the most expensive school to operate at almost $10,000 per child.
Other middle schools, like Madison and Germantown Middle, average around $5,700 per student.
The district's overall average is $7,400 per student while the state's average is just over $9,000.
Read More: MCJ
Flora Mayor Les Childress and a group of the school's PTA members sat down with School Board members in executive session to discuss the issue Monday.
The school has an enrollment of 154 students that requires around 13 teachers as well as administration and support staff. School officials estimate it costs around $1 million a year to operate.
Superintendent of Education Michael D. Kent said closing a school is never an easy decision, but with drastic cuts expected for the upcoming school year nothing is off the table.
"There's nothing set in stone, but is it being considered? Absolutely," he said. "It all hinges on funding at the state level.
"What we're doing right now is listening to all the talk coming from the state capitol about funding," he continued. "If we have the funding woes they're predicting we may not have any choice."
Childress said no one in Flora wants to see the school closed and he hoped to push the issue with the town's aldermen and with their state representatives.
"We certainly don't want to see any of the schools on this side of the county close," Childress said. "Hopefully the legislature will come up with the funding, but if not we need to look at all the options."
If closed, the students from East Flora Middle would instead go to Madison Middle School where Kent said they have room. Currently, Madison Middle has the district's second largest enrollment with 1,228 students, second only to Madison Central High School.
In July an analysis of the district's spending showed it costs nearly twice as much to educate a student at East Flora Middle School than it does at Madison Middle School.
The report calculated instructional, transportation and various other expenses coming up with a per-student expense at each school.
It showed East Flora Middle School, the district's smallest, is the most expensive school to operate at almost $10,000 per child.
Other middle schools, like Madison and Germantown Middle, average around $5,700 per student.
The district's overall average is $7,400 per student while the state's average is just over $9,000.
Read More: MCJ
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Preservation Mississippi: MiMo No Mo? The Sun-n-Sand in Downtown Jackson Needs Our Help
 |
| The iconic sign is a Jackson landmark in itself |
Milner’s space-age motel came replete with meeting rooms with exotic names like the Polynesian, Bali Hai and the Kon Tiki. Its lobby and public areas were decked out in turquoise, pink and an almost lurid shade of orange. The rooms also featured turquoise draperies and shag carpet in colors ranging from rust brown to lime green. It was nothing if not colorful.
Perhaps best known as a second home to the members of the state legislature, the Sun-n-Sand’s siren call was cheap rooms and its proximity to the new capitol building, only a block away. The members of the House made their homes there while the House was in session. It became something of a club for them, even if more than a few legislators had to get their sustenance from the crackers and bologna thoughtfully placed in a corner of the lobby each night. These were the days before lobbyists had infiltrated politics to the extent that such simple fare would do. Not that the bright little coffee shop with its turquoise vinyl banquettes didn’t do a brisk business. It remained popular until the hotel closed in October 2001.
No “sandbox” for the politicos would be really successful without the presence of libations. The hotel didn’t have a bar until the legislature repealed the liquor laws in 1965. “Ye Olde Sandbox” was ready for them with a river of whiskey and umbrella drinks for all. Not that liquor wasn’t there before in abundance…the proverbial (and literally) smoke filled rooms were well-provided with liquor on the down low all along. The legislators hosted barbecue parties outside by the heated pool and nobody really minded the thin walls or the almost wondrously tacky decor. It was a sort of fraternity house for them and they were reluctant to leave when the place finally closed its doors.
Read More
Monday, December 13, 2010
Myths about TSA and screeners
What most Americans forget is why we have these procedures in the first place. There was an outcry when the underwear bomber almost took out a Detroit-bound plane, but little focus on what it would take to prevent such actions, until nearly a year later. The same thing happened with the shoe-bomber; you'd be surprised how easy it was for people to start complaining about taking off their shoes in the airport. But if we've learned anything about terrorism, it's that terrorists don't follow last-year's plan. Instead of a new underwear bomber, they chose to ship explosives in packages via courier. Better intelligence or planning on next time's strike wouldn't be a bad thing to consider, as we buy more and more expensive security gear and develop more intrusive practices.
Myths about TSA and screeners
Myths about TSA and screeners
Mississippi Delegation in U.S. House landing plum committee assignments
Most of the 22 House Republican freshmen-to-be selected to sit on much-coveted, A-list committees won their races with Tea Party backing.
The House Republican Steering Committee last week added the incoming members to the rosters of four powerful committees: Appropriations, Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce and Financial Services.
Speaker-to-be John Boehner (R-Ohio) and his fellow GOP leaders and representatives on the House Steering Committee ensured that members of the largest GOP freshmen class in 70 years were given spots on influential panels.
Nearly half of the new GOP spots on the House Appropriations Committee were given to incoming members.
The Steering Committee tapped four Tea Party-backed representatives-elect to serve on the powerful spending panel.
GOP Rep.-elect Alan Nunnelee (Miss.) was one of nearly a dozen candidates officially endorsed by former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. GOP Reps.-elect Steve Womack (Ark.) and Kevin Yoder (Kan.) were both endorsed by Freedom Works – the interest group closely tied to the Tea Party movement. Rep. Tom Graves (R-Ga.), elected in a special election in June 2010 and who won in the fall's regular election, will also serve on the spending panel and is an outspoken proponent for fiscal restraint.
Republicans pledged that they would make significant cuts in spending over the next two years. The GOP Conference for the 112th Congress voted to ban earmark spending last month.
Just under half of the new GOP spots on the Energy and Commerce Committee will go to incoming lawmakers.
Reps.-elect Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), David McKinley (R-W.Va.), Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.) and Charlie Bass (R-N.H.) were chosen to sit on the panel that will face a heavy workload in the next Congress as incoming Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) attempts to revamp the new healthcare law and conduct oversight of the EPA.
Bass served in the House from 1995-2007. He won back the seat he held in November.
GOP lawmakers Brian Bilbray (Calif.), Bill Cassidy (La.), Brett Guthrie (Ky.), Gregg Harper (Miss.), Conference Vice-Chairwoman Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (Wash.), Pete Olson (Texas) and GOP Leadership Chairman Greg Walden (Ore.) were also added to the Energy panel.
The House Financial Services Committee, led by incoming Chairman Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), will get the largest portion of the incoming freshmen.
Ten of the twelve new GOP spots on the committee went to incoming freshmen. GOP Reps-elect Quico Canseco (Texas), Bob Dold (Ill.), Sean Duffy (Wis.), Michael Grimm (N.Y.), Nan Hayworth (N.Y.), Bill Huizenga (Mich.), Robert Hurt (Va.), Steve Stivers (Ohio), Steve Pearce (N.M.) and Michael Fitzpatrick (Pa.) were selected to sit on the panel with jurisdiction over federal monetary policy and the banking system. Pearce and Fitzpatrick served in the House in prior years.
The GOP Steering Committee will meet this week to decide the committee assignments for the rest of the House panels. They have yet to determine the ratio of Republicans to Democrats on the committees.
Read More
The House Republican Steering Committee last week added the incoming members to the rosters of four powerful committees: Appropriations, Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce and Financial Services.
Speaker-to-be John Boehner (R-Ohio) and his fellow GOP leaders and representatives on the House Steering Committee ensured that members of the largest GOP freshmen class in 70 years were given spots on influential panels.
Nearly half of the new GOP spots on the House Appropriations Committee were given to incoming members.
The Steering Committee tapped four Tea Party-backed representatives-elect to serve on the powerful spending panel.
GOP Rep.-elect Alan Nunnelee (Miss.) was one of nearly a dozen candidates officially endorsed by former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. GOP Reps.-elect Steve Womack (Ark.) and Kevin Yoder (Kan.) were both endorsed by Freedom Works – the interest group closely tied to the Tea Party movement. Rep. Tom Graves (R-Ga.), elected in a special election in June 2010 and who won in the fall's regular election, will also serve on the spending panel and is an outspoken proponent for fiscal restraint.
Republicans pledged that they would make significant cuts in spending over the next two years. The GOP Conference for the 112th Congress voted to ban earmark spending last month.
Just under half of the new GOP spots on the Energy and Commerce Committee will go to incoming lawmakers.
Reps.-elect Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), David McKinley (R-W.Va.), Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.) and Charlie Bass (R-N.H.) were chosen to sit on the panel that will face a heavy workload in the next Congress as incoming Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) attempts to revamp the new healthcare law and conduct oversight of the EPA.
Bass served in the House from 1995-2007. He won back the seat he held in November.
GOP lawmakers Brian Bilbray (Calif.), Bill Cassidy (La.), Brett Guthrie (Ky.), Gregg Harper (Miss.), Conference Vice-Chairwoman Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (Wash.), Pete Olson (Texas) and GOP Leadership Chairman Greg Walden (Ore.) were also added to the Energy panel.
The House Financial Services Committee, led by incoming Chairman Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), will get the largest portion of the incoming freshmen.
Ten of the twelve new GOP spots on the committee went to incoming freshmen. GOP Reps-elect Quico Canseco (Texas), Bob Dold (Ill.), Sean Duffy (Wis.), Michael Grimm (N.Y.), Nan Hayworth (N.Y.), Bill Huizenga (Mich.), Robert Hurt (Va.), Steve Stivers (Ohio), Steve Pearce (N.M.) and Michael Fitzpatrick (Pa.) were selected to sit on the panel with jurisdiction over federal monetary policy and the banking system. Pearce and Fitzpatrick served in the House in prior years.
The GOP Steering Committee will meet this week to decide the committee assignments for the rest of the House panels. They have yet to determine the ratio of Republicans to Democrats on the committees.
Read More
Friday, December 10, 2010
Harper gets seat on Energy and Commerce
HARPER SELECTED FOR HOUSE ENERGY AND COMMERCE COMMITTEE
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Representative Gregg Harper (R-Miss.) today was nominated by the Republican Steering Committee to serve on the prestigious House Committee on Energy and Commerce in the 112th Congress.
“As the son of a former petroleum engineer, I have always been interested in energy policy,” said Harper. “I support an all of the above energy strategy that harnesses new technologies and increases American energy production ultimately leading to an energy independent America. Mississippi has an opportunity to lead the nation in renewable technologies through projects like the Kemper County clean-coal plant.”
The Committee on Energy and Commerce has a broad legislative jurisdiction, which covers – among other issues – national energy and environmental policy, health and health facilities, interstate and foreign commerce, consumer affairs and consumer protection, and travel and tourism. The panel’s incoming chairman has indicated that his first priority is to repeal the Democrat’s disastrous health care overhaul signed by the President in March 2010.
“I believe that the so-called “Affordable Care Act” is nothing short of politics above economics,” Harper added. “During a time when nearly one in ten Americans is unemployed, Congress should be offering incentives for entrepreneurs to invest in Mississippi’s economy as opposed to penalizing them with additional taxes and rules. This is why I am committed to repealing this flawed health care law and replacing it with reforms centered on decreasing costs and protecting middle-class jobs.”
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Representative Gregg Harper (R-Miss.) today was nominated by the Republican Steering Committee to serve on the prestigious House Committee on Energy and Commerce in the 112th Congress.
“As the son of a former petroleum engineer, I have always been interested in energy policy,” said Harper. “I support an all of the above energy strategy that harnesses new technologies and increases American energy production ultimately leading to an energy independent America. Mississippi has an opportunity to lead the nation in renewable technologies through projects like the Kemper County clean-coal plant.”
The Committee on Energy and Commerce has a broad legislative jurisdiction, which covers – among other issues – national energy and environmental policy, health and health facilities, interstate and foreign commerce, consumer affairs and consumer protection, and travel and tourism. The panel’s incoming chairman has indicated that his first priority is to repeal the Democrat’s disastrous health care overhaul signed by the President in March 2010.
“I believe that the so-called “Affordable Care Act” is nothing short of politics above economics,” Harper added. “During a time when nearly one in ten Americans is unemployed, Congress should be offering incentives for entrepreneurs to invest in Mississippi’s economy as opposed to penalizing them with additional taxes and rules. This is why I am committed to repealing this flawed health care law and replacing it with reforms centered on decreasing costs and protecting middle-class jobs.”
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Christmas Challenge: Donate now to keep Boys and Girls Club doors open.
Want to show your kids what the Christmas Season really means? Then here's an opportunity, and a challenge.
Boys and Girls Club of Central Mississippi President and CEO Billy Redd said yesterday that the organization will likely be closing three area facilities after December 31. Lack of funding has left the facilities in Bolton, Magnolia and Canton without the money to keep the doors open affecting more than 1,000 kids.
Billy tells me that one time donations are welcome, but what is really need to sustain the programs are long-term committments.
"We need folks to sign up for our monthly check draft program," he said. "We have people who are having a monthly check draft from as low as $5 per month to several hundred dollars per month."
So here is the challenge part. Sharon, Isaac, Rickey and I are pledging $20 per month. Surely your family can give that much to help out kids in need in our own community. Write "The Flora Harvester" at the top of the form before mailing it in, and the Boys and Girls Club will keep a running tally of how much we all give.
The Boys and Girls Club mission statement is “To enable all young people, especially those who need us the most, to realize their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens”. The group is a God centered organization that teaches the important of dedication to Faith, country, honesty and fair play. Who can deny these truths to be needed in our communities today.
Here's a few more stats Billy shared with me:
- 95% of Boys and Girls Clubs members graduate from High School
- 0% Pregnancy rate of Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi members
- 95% of our members are on free or reduced-cost lunch programs at their schools.
- The Boys and Girls Club in Central Mississippi serves over 3,200 youth in six clubs (4-Jackson, Bolton, and Canton) each year and they spend over 750,000 hours a year in the Clubs.
- The membership fee for a child to attend the club is only $25.00 per year. However, the actual cost to serve a child is over $500.00 per year.
• 57% said the Club literally “saved their lives;”
• 95% said the Club was one of the best things available in their community;
• 79% said the Club had a positive impact on their self-esteem; and
• 70% said the Club had a positive impact on their ability to avoid difficulty with the law.
The education aspect can't be overstated. The stat I find to be incredibly important is that of the latest report card info. As of last week, the overall grade average of kids particpating in the Boys and Girls Club ranges from 81.41 to 88.24. Our future is pretty bleak if we can't find a way to instill learning in all children in every community, and the Boys and Girls Club is doing that.
Matthew 25:45 tells us that Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me."
We can argue all day long about geopolitics, race, personal responsibility and a number of other reasons these kids fall through the cracks. We can also argue about all the problems in other parts of the world. But, the simple truth is the Lord didn't put us in a different place, He put us here. It is here where we must work out in the real world our beliefs and attempt to do the most good.
To do your part to help, print and fill out the Pledge Form below and mail it to the address on the form. Remember to write The Flora Harvester at the top. Billy will give us regular reports on the tally.
Pledge Form
Congress To Abandon Washington Every Three Weeks
House Republicans have released their schedule for next year's session: One week off for every two weeks on.
They'll be working five-day weeks instead of the typical three, and cutting down the honorary votes that happen about every 15 minutes now. This will leave plenty of time to cut the capital gains tax several times next year.
Read More
Major motion picture filming in Canton
A local company, Eyevox which is based in Ridgeland, is behind a big production in the City of Lights.
It has the look and feel of a Hollywood set, but this movie is based in Mississippi, written by three people who live here and is now being filmed by a Mississippi company. Opie Cooper is the director.
"We can shoot a city scene here, we can shoot a country scene here, we can shoot just about anything here. We can do winter scenes if we have to, we can do summer scenes if we want to, its just, Mississippi is just a great place to make movies", said Cooper.
The movies is called "Big Bad".
It's a throw back to the 80's thrillers like "The Goonies".
The crew has been working in Canton for about a week.
"There's a monster in it so there's the misconception that we're making a horror film. We're making an action adventure film about 3 kids. A young boy and two girls", Cooper said.
Read More
It has the look and feel of a Hollywood set, but this movie is based in Mississippi, written by three people who live here and is now being filmed by a Mississippi company. Opie Cooper is the director.
"We can shoot a city scene here, we can shoot a country scene here, we can shoot just about anything here. We can do winter scenes if we have to, we can do summer scenes if we want to, its just, Mississippi is just a great place to make movies", said Cooper.
The movies is called "Big Bad".
It's a throw back to the 80's thrillers like "The Goonies".
The crew has been working in Canton for about a week.
"There's a monster in it so there's the misconception that we're making a horror film. We're making an action adventure film about 3 kids. A young boy and two girls", Cooper said.
Read More
Lawmakers celebrate decision to place training mission at Key Field Air Guard Station in Meridian
New Aircraft, Personnel Help Ensure Future for Meridian Military Facility
WASHINGTON, D. C. – U.S. Senators Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker, with Congressman Gregg Harper, today celebrated the U.S. Air Force decision to locate a new formal training unit at Key Field Air National Guard Base at Meridian.
The Mississippi lawmakers, as well as Governor Haley Barbour and Meridian Mayor Cheri M. Barry, were informed early Wednesday that Key Field had been selected as the Air Force’s “preferred alternative” to host a C-27J formal training unit (FTU) mission.
The decision will bring two additional C-27J aircraft to Meridian, increasing the planned total to six. An estimated 37 full-time employees and 85 trainees annually will be associated with the FTU, bringing the total personnel associated with the C-27J platform to 142 by 2015 when the mission is fully operational.
“I am convinced that the qualities represented in Key Field, the Mississippi Air National Guard and the people of Meridian were instrumental in leading the Defense Department to this decision. This new training mission is a solid indication that Key Field will be a long-term asset to the Air National Guard and the U.S Air Force as Mississippi continues to contribute to our nation’s security,” Cochran said.
“The Air Force’s decision to base this training mission at Key Field is another strong reminder of the importance of Meridian to our military,” said Wicker. “Mississippi’s long history of supporting our Armed Forces proudly continues through the MC-12 and C-27J operations.”
“Gaining the C-27J training mission is a tribute to the men and women of Key Field and their ability to adapt and succeed at any task or mission they are given,” said Harper. “Key Field was evaluated alongside several impressive bases during the Air Force’s site survey process, and I am confident that the base’s past successes and the friendly nature of the people of Meridian influenced the Department of Defense’s decision.”
“Gaining this additional mission has been a long-standing goal for the state,” Governor Barbour said. “Having the C-27J training mission at Key Field is important to Mississippi, as the state continues to play a crucial role in our national defense.”
“We are thrilled that the 186th Air Refueling Wing has been selected as the location for the Air National Guard’s C-27J Flying Training Unit. The city of Meridian is truly grateful for the diligent effort of Senator Cochran, Senator Wicker and Congressman Harper that went into this project,” Mayor Barry said.
In being named the preferred alternative site, Key Field edged out five other sites considered for the tactical transport aircraft training mission, which involves preparing pilots, loadmasters and maintenance crews for C-27J operations. The decision will be finalized pending an environmental impact analysis.
The decision to land the C-27J training mission at Key Field will build on the number of those aircraft located in Meridian. The training mission will add two C-27J aircraft at Key Field, where the Air Force had already decided to base four other C-27Js starting in early FY2012. The Air Force indicated that the two additional C-27J aircraft will be transferred in the third quarter of FY2014, with initial operational capability achieved in late 2014. The new FTU would be fully operational by the third quarter of FY2015.
The Air Force based its decision on criteria that considered airspace, facilities and infrastructure, as well as mission and training requirements.
The Key Field Air National Guard Station is currently home to the 186th Air Refueling Wing. In its 2005 BRAC Recommendations, the Department of Defense decided that by 2012, it would move the 186th Air Refueling Wing’s KC-135R aircraft to Wisconsin, Tennessee and Maine, leaving Key Field without a clear mission. This decision changes that, giving Meridian responsibility for a crucial mission well into the future.
The C-27J is a twin turbo-prop engine aircraft that provides short take-off and landing capabilities that are best suited for the transport of cargo among intra-theater locales.
WASHINGTON, D. C. – U.S. Senators Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker, with Congressman Gregg Harper, today celebrated the U.S. Air Force decision to locate a new formal training unit at Key Field Air National Guard Base at Meridian.
The Mississippi lawmakers, as well as Governor Haley Barbour and Meridian Mayor Cheri M. Barry, were informed early Wednesday that Key Field had been selected as the Air Force’s “preferred alternative” to host a C-27J formal training unit (FTU) mission.
The decision will bring two additional C-27J aircraft to Meridian, increasing the planned total to six. An estimated 37 full-time employees and 85 trainees annually will be associated with the FTU, bringing the total personnel associated with the C-27J platform to 142 by 2015 when the mission is fully operational.
“I am convinced that the qualities represented in Key Field, the Mississippi Air National Guard and the people of Meridian were instrumental in leading the Defense Department to this decision. This new training mission is a solid indication that Key Field will be a long-term asset to the Air National Guard and the U.S Air Force as Mississippi continues to contribute to our nation’s security,” Cochran said.
“The Air Force’s decision to base this training mission at Key Field is another strong reminder of the importance of Meridian to our military,” said Wicker. “Mississippi’s long history of supporting our Armed Forces proudly continues through the MC-12 and C-27J operations.”
“Gaining the C-27J training mission is a tribute to the men and women of Key Field and their ability to adapt and succeed at any task or mission they are given,” said Harper. “Key Field was evaluated alongside several impressive bases during the Air Force’s site survey process, and I am confident that the base’s past successes and the friendly nature of the people of Meridian influenced the Department of Defense’s decision.”
“Gaining this additional mission has been a long-standing goal for the state,” Governor Barbour said. “Having the C-27J training mission at Key Field is important to Mississippi, as the state continues to play a crucial role in our national defense.”
“We are thrilled that the 186th Air Refueling Wing has been selected as the location for the Air National Guard’s C-27J Flying Training Unit. The city of Meridian is truly grateful for the diligent effort of Senator Cochran, Senator Wicker and Congressman Harper that went into this project,” Mayor Barry said.
In being named the preferred alternative site, Key Field edged out five other sites considered for the tactical transport aircraft training mission, which involves preparing pilots, loadmasters and maintenance crews for C-27J operations. The decision will be finalized pending an environmental impact analysis.
The decision to land the C-27J training mission at Key Field will build on the number of those aircraft located in Meridian. The training mission will add two C-27J aircraft at Key Field, where the Air Force had already decided to base four other C-27Js starting in early FY2012. The Air Force indicated that the two additional C-27J aircraft will be transferred in the third quarter of FY2014, with initial operational capability achieved in late 2014. The new FTU would be fully operational by the third quarter of FY2015.
The Air Force based its decision on criteria that considered airspace, facilities and infrastructure, as well as mission and training requirements.
The Key Field Air National Guard Station is currently home to the 186th Air Refueling Wing. In its 2005 BRAC Recommendations, the Department of Defense decided that by 2012, it would move the 186th Air Refueling Wing’s KC-135R aircraft to Wisconsin, Tennessee and Maine, leaving Key Field without a clear mission. This decision changes that, giving Meridian responsibility for a crucial mission well into the future.
The C-27J is a twin turbo-prop engine aircraft that provides short take-off and landing capabilities that are best suited for the transport of cargo among intra-theater locales.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Thomas: Look for Barbour to Announce Presidential Bid Around Feb. 10, 2011
How do I know this? I looked at when people announced in 2007 for the 2008 race. Here is when major candidates announced:
•Edwards: Dec. 26, 2006
•Dodd: Jan. 11, 2007
•Clinton: Jan. 20
•Biden: Jan. 31
•Huckabee: Jan. 28
•Obama: Feb. 10
•Romney: Feb. 13
•Giuliani: Feb. 15
•McCain: Feb. 28
They have a name for candidates who screw around, get coy and "test the waters": Fred Thompson. Thompson waited all the way until Sept. 5 to announce. Don't look for anyone to make that mistake again.
So for Barbour (and other serious candidates) it could be as early as mid-January ,or as late as the end of February. A good guess is in between. Feb. 10 seems like a good a date as any, since it worked for Obama. At least that's how I see it.
Philip Thomas: MLR
Why Obama Caved on the Bush Tax Cuts
By David Paul Kuhn
It's the liberal version of George H.W. Bush reneging on his "read my lips" tax pledge. Candidate Obama excoriated the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. But Monday evening, President Obama tentatively agreed to extend those same tax cuts.
Call it compromise or call it caving, the deal will anger the Democratic base. It opens Obama to charges of hypocrisy. Perhaps Obama saw it as a raw deal. But he also likely believes it's the best deal he can get.
This partly comes down to votes. Democrats lack the 60-Senate votes to extend the tax cuts for earnings under $200,000. That left Democrats with two options: expire all or extend all.
Expiration was Obama's worst option. It amounted to bad policy and bad politics. Major tax hikes have a bad record in bad economies. And this economy has struggled to weather smaller headwinds. Democrats would also have to explain to all working Americans, not merely top earners, why their taxes rose in hard times.
Tax hikes have long been a political loser for Democrats. Many liberals argued that Democrats should blame Republicans for obstructing middle class tax cuts to win tax cuts for the rich. But Democrats retain control of Congress and the presidency (for a few more weeks). And they have learned a DC-axiom the hard way: the party that controls Washington accounts for Washington.
Imagine the Bush tax cuts expiring. The conservative Americans for Tax Reform currently have a "Countdown to the Biggest Tax Increase in American History." The most-cogent message wins debates. And Republicans have long had it on taxes.
Timing is another issue. Democrats waited until the eleventh hour to have this debate. Republicans were not going to let Democrats move to the next issue until the tax issue was resolved. This White House still hopes to ratify the new START treaty with Russia as well as end "don't ask, don't tell" this term. Republicans were also unwilling to extend unemployment benefits for about 2 million Americans without extending the tax cuts to the top income bracket. In the game of chicken, Democrats had more to lose. Democrats would also only have a worst hand next year, with a slimmer Senate majority and a Republican House.
The tentative deal was a political win for Republicans. But Obama has a deal he can stand on. If the deal comes to fruition, the package will extend the Bush tax breaks for two years in exchange for an additional 13 months of unemployment benefits. It will also cut payroll taxes to spur hiring.
The package will cost about $900 billion over the next two years. The deal comes only days after the deficit commission report, which urged serious action to combat America's long-term debt problem (or crisis).
Ironies abound. Democrats spent years railing against George W. Bush for not paying for his tax cuts. Democrats are now emulating the very actions they criticized. Republicans have spent two years preaching about the primacy of deficits. The GOP victory however means a tax deal that will likely prove more costly to the deficit than the stimulus package. This bi-partisan compromise is, oddly, politics as usual.
Obama said Monday evening the "framework" for the tax deal "was not perfect." Yet it's conceivable Obama saw an upside to losing this debate.
In Obama's ideal world, he would bolster programs like food stamps or extend the unemployment benefits independent of the tax cut debate. This is liberal orthodoxy. It is also however not without reason.
Consider the math of Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Analytics and a past-advisor to both parties. Zandi calculates that every dollar spent on food stamps, for example, has a $1.74 impact on the economy (the money goes entirely to goods). The bang-for-buck for extending unemployment benefit is $1.61 (unemployed spend what little they have to stay afloat). By comparison, Zandi calculates that extending the Bush tax cuts will only have a 32-cent impact on the economy for every dollar (affluent earners feed government coffers but they are also more likely to save their tax cut, and therefore not greatly stimulate growth).
But Obama lacks the coalition to win his ideals. That ship sailed long ago. And Obama's political recovery is tied to the economic recovery. Obama will take what stimulus he can get.
Read More
It's the liberal version of George H.W. Bush reneging on his "read my lips" tax pledge. Candidate Obama excoriated the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. But Monday evening, President Obama tentatively agreed to extend those same tax cuts.
Call it compromise or call it caving, the deal will anger the Democratic base. It opens Obama to charges of hypocrisy. Perhaps Obama saw it as a raw deal. But he also likely believes it's the best deal he can get.
This partly comes down to votes. Democrats lack the 60-Senate votes to extend the tax cuts for earnings under $200,000. That left Democrats with two options: expire all or extend all.
Expiration was Obama's worst option. It amounted to bad policy and bad politics. Major tax hikes have a bad record in bad economies. And this economy has struggled to weather smaller headwinds. Democrats would also have to explain to all working Americans, not merely top earners, why their taxes rose in hard times.
Tax hikes have long been a political loser for Democrats. Many liberals argued that Democrats should blame Republicans for obstructing middle class tax cuts to win tax cuts for the rich. But Democrats retain control of Congress and the presidency (for a few more weeks). And they have learned a DC-axiom the hard way: the party that controls Washington accounts for Washington.
Imagine the Bush tax cuts expiring. The conservative Americans for Tax Reform currently have a "Countdown to the Biggest Tax Increase in American History." The most-cogent message wins debates. And Republicans have long had it on taxes.
Timing is another issue. Democrats waited until the eleventh hour to have this debate. Republicans were not going to let Democrats move to the next issue until the tax issue was resolved. This White House still hopes to ratify the new START treaty with Russia as well as end "don't ask, don't tell" this term. Republicans were also unwilling to extend unemployment benefits for about 2 million Americans without extending the tax cuts to the top income bracket. In the game of chicken, Democrats had more to lose. Democrats would also only have a worst hand next year, with a slimmer Senate majority and a Republican House.
The tentative deal was a political win for Republicans. But Obama has a deal he can stand on. If the deal comes to fruition, the package will extend the Bush tax breaks for two years in exchange for an additional 13 months of unemployment benefits. It will also cut payroll taxes to spur hiring.
The package will cost about $900 billion over the next two years. The deal comes only days after the deficit commission report, which urged serious action to combat America's long-term debt problem (or crisis).
Ironies abound. Democrats spent years railing against George W. Bush for not paying for his tax cuts. Democrats are now emulating the very actions they criticized. Republicans have spent two years preaching about the primacy of deficits. The GOP victory however means a tax deal that will likely prove more costly to the deficit than the stimulus package. This bi-partisan compromise is, oddly, politics as usual.
Obama said Monday evening the "framework" for the tax deal "was not perfect." Yet it's conceivable Obama saw an upside to losing this debate.
In Obama's ideal world, he would bolster programs like food stamps or extend the unemployment benefits independent of the tax cut debate. This is liberal orthodoxy. It is also however not without reason.
Consider the math of Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Analytics and a past-advisor to both parties. Zandi calculates that every dollar spent on food stamps, for example, has a $1.74 impact on the economy (the money goes entirely to goods). The bang-for-buck for extending unemployment benefit is $1.61 (unemployed spend what little they have to stay afloat). By comparison, Zandi calculates that extending the Bush tax cuts will only have a 32-cent impact on the economy for every dollar (affluent earners feed government coffers but they are also more likely to save their tax cut, and therefore not greatly stimulate growth).
But Obama lacks the coalition to win his ideals. That ship sailed long ago. And Obama's political recovery is tied to the economic recovery. Obama will take what stimulus he can get.
Read More
Monday, December 6, 2010
Byrd Analysis: Process servers on radar for '11 session
BY: Shelia Byrd
In Mississippi, not much is required to be a process server, and some lawmakers believe that needs to change.
Rep. Hank Zuber, R-Ocean Springs, says he'll file a bill in the 2011 Legislature that would require licensing and educational training for process servers. Zuber believes the proposal, which died in the past, will have a chance next session because of the recent scrutiny given process servers handling child support cases for the Mississippi Department of Human Services.
Earlier this year, judges in Hinds and Jackson counties were reviewing hundreds of child support cases to determine whether some process servers had lied about delivering subpoenas.
The process servers worked for subcontractors of YoungWilliams Child Support Division, a Jackson-based company that received a $23 million contract to file about 15,000 cases, manage another 13,000 and operate a call center. Company President Rob Wells has said about 30 of those cases are being reopened because they involved a process server facing the allegations.
Zuber said there's been other instances of process servers failing to properly perform their jobs and it's caused hardships for average citizens. Zuber said the case of Natalie Parker of Ocean Springs is the reason he first filed the bill in 2008.
Parker's driver's license was revoked in 2003 and, because of that, she missed out on job opportunities. She eventually wound up living in her car. Zuber said Parker had told him about how a process server had lied about delivering papers to notify Parker about a lawsuit that had been filed against her.
After the DHS situation, "I realized it came to the point that something needed to be done. I think there's momentum. It's a statewide problem," he said.
Currently, the only requirement to work as a process server in Mississippi is to be age 18 or older. Zuber, an attorney, wants a licensing procedure that would educate process servers about what is valid service and invalid service.
Read More
In Mississippi, not much is required to be a process server, and some lawmakers believe that needs to change.
Rep. Hank Zuber, R-Ocean Springs, says he'll file a bill in the 2011 Legislature that would require licensing and educational training for process servers. Zuber believes the proposal, which died in the past, will have a chance next session because of the recent scrutiny given process servers handling child support cases for the Mississippi Department of Human Services.
Earlier this year, judges in Hinds and Jackson counties were reviewing hundreds of child support cases to determine whether some process servers had lied about delivering subpoenas.
The process servers worked for subcontractors of YoungWilliams Child Support Division, a Jackson-based company that received a $23 million contract to file about 15,000 cases, manage another 13,000 and operate a call center. Company President Rob Wells has said about 30 of those cases are being reopened because they involved a process server facing the allegations.
Zuber said there's been other instances of process servers failing to properly perform their jobs and it's caused hardships for average citizens. Zuber said the case of Natalie Parker of Ocean Springs is the reason he first filed the bill in 2008.
Parker's driver's license was revoked in 2003 and, because of that, she missed out on job opportunities. She eventually wound up living in her car. Zuber said Parker had told him about how a process server had lied about delivering papers to notify Parker about a lawsuit that had been filed against her.
After the DHS situation, "I realized it came to the point that something needed to be done. I think there's momentum. It's a statewide problem," he said.
Currently, the only requirement to work as a process server in Mississippi is to be age 18 or older. Zuber, an attorney, wants a licensing procedure that would educate process servers about what is valid service and invalid service.
Read More
Madison Co. center training pups to be guide dogs
BY: Lucy Weber
Sadie, along with five other pups, are in the first training class of Gallant Hearts run by Becky Floyd, who has relied on a series of eight different dogs to help her navigate through a sightless world since 1964.
"All my life I wanted to start a guide dog school," said Floyd, who retired in 2009 as executive director of the Mississippi Protection and Advocacy System. "I remember sitting in a law school class telling a classmate that was my dream. After I retired, I decided I want to do this now. I want to be able to give back to the community."
Gallant Hearts, which will provide dogs free of charge, is one of about 13 schools in the country. "There are approximately 18.8 million adults with significant visual impairment and only 1,500 teams (dogs matched with handlers) put out a year in the United States," Floyd said.
For now, Gallant Hearts, run out of Floyd's home by volunteers, has six puppies in foster homes learning basic skills in preparation for the next phase of working with a trainer on how to lead the blind. Tonto lives in Floyd's home, Sassy Sadie is in Vicksburg, Zoe and Dena are at the Hinds County Penal Farm and the two others live in homes in Jackson and Batesville.
The puppies will live in foster homes until they're about 12-15 months of age and then they will start working with a professional trainer for about four months to learn how to be a guide dog. Each dog is thoroughly screened for health problems. Gallant Hearts pays all expenses for the puppies in foster homes and for all the training.
"Each dog will have $22,000 worth of training," she said.
The program relies on donations, and Floyd is in the midst of seeking grants to help fund the operation.
"We've got to have a salary of $45,000 for a trainer or it's all for nothing," volunteer Kathie Curtis said. "The apprentice is another $30,000."
Read More
Sadie, along with five other pups, are in the first training class of Gallant Hearts run by Becky Floyd, who has relied on a series of eight different dogs to help her navigate through a sightless world since 1964.
"All my life I wanted to start a guide dog school," said Floyd, who retired in 2009 as executive director of the Mississippi Protection and Advocacy System. "I remember sitting in a law school class telling a classmate that was my dream. After I retired, I decided I want to do this now. I want to be able to give back to the community."
Gallant Hearts, which will provide dogs free of charge, is one of about 13 schools in the country. "There are approximately 18.8 million adults with significant visual impairment and only 1,500 teams (dogs matched with handlers) put out a year in the United States," Floyd said.
For now, Gallant Hearts, run out of Floyd's home by volunteers, has six puppies in foster homes learning basic skills in preparation for the next phase of working with a trainer on how to lead the blind. Tonto lives in Floyd's home, Sassy Sadie is in Vicksburg, Zoe and Dena are at the Hinds County Penal Farm and the two others live in homes in Jackson and Batesville.
The puppies will live in foster homes until they're about 12-15 months of age and then they will start working with a professional trainer for about four months to learn how to be a guide dog. Each dog is thoroughly screened for health problems. Gallant Hearts pays all expenses for the puppies in foster homes and for all the training.
"Each dog will have $22,000 worth of training," she said.
The program relies on donations, and Floyd is in the midst of seeking grants to help fund the operation.
"We've got to have a salary of $45,000 for a trainer or it's all for nothing," volunteer Kathie Curtis said. "The apprentice is another $30,000."
Read More
Thursday, December 2, 2010
A Real Change Appears on the Horizon
John Boehner set to slice up spending bills
House Republicans are devising a plan to simplify spending decisions by considering government funding bills on a department-by-department basis in the new Congress, according to Republican insiders.
The move would facilitate cutbacks in government programs and, GOP aides say, enhance oversight and accountability for individual agencies, fulfilling promises made by Republicans on the campaign trail and in their Pledge to America. But it would also threaten to complicate an already tattered appropriations process on the House floor and in negotiations with the Senate, which is why the mechanics of the transition are still under discussion.
In a speech to the American Enterprise Institute earlier this year, Speaker-designate John Boehner (R-Ohio) outlined the idea that he, Republican transition chief Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and rank-and-file Republicans are now working to implement.
"Let's do away with the concept of 'comprehensive' spending bills. Let's break them up, to encourage scrutiny, and make spending cuts easier. Rather than pairing agencies and departments together, let them come to the House floor individually, to be judged on their own merit," he said at AEI more than a month before the midterm election. "Members shouldn't have to vote for big spending increases at the Labor Department in order to fund Health and Human Services. Members shouldn't have to vote for big increases at the Commerce Department just because they support NASA. Each department and agency should justify itself each year to the full House and Senate, and be judged on its own."
The push to reconstitute the congressional spending process comes just as Republican leaders are deciding who will win the chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee in the next Congress. The candidates' reactions to the proposal could influence whether Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Calif.), Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) or Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) gets the gavel.
Read more: Politico
House Republicans are devising a plan to simplify spending decisions by considering government funding bills on a department-by-department basis in the new Congress, according to Republican insiders.
The move would facilitate cutbacks in government programs and, GOP aides say, enhance oversight and accountability for individual agencies, fulfilling promises made by Republicans on the campaign trail and in their Pledge to America. But it would also threaten to complicate an already tattered appropriations process on the House floor and in negotiations with the Senate, which is why the mechanics of the transition are still under discussion.
In a speech to the American Enterprise Institute earlier this year, Speaker-designate John Boehner (R-Ohio) outlined the idea that he, Republican transition chief Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and rank-and-file Republicans are now working to implement.
"Let's do away with the concept of 'comprehensive' spending bills. Let's break them up, to encourage scrutiny, and make spending cuts easier. Rather than pairing agencies and departments together, let them come to the House floor individually, to be judged on their own merit," he said at AEI more than a month before the midterm election. "Members shouldn't have to vote for big spending increases at the Labor Department in order to fund Health and Human Services. Members shouldn't have to vote for big increases at the Commerce Department just because they support NASA. Each department and agency should justify itself each year to the full House and Senate, and be judged on its own."
The push to reconstitute the congressional spending process comes just as Republican leaders are deciding who will win the chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee in the next Congress. The candidates' reactions to the proposal could influence whether Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Calif.), Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) or Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) gets the gavel.
Read more: Politico
Votes Happening Now Over Pelosi's One Last Political Stunt
With their days numbered in control of the U.S. House, Democrats are planning a political stunt Thursday in hopes of embarrassing Republicans on a vote to raise taxes.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) announced Democrats would disregard the Obama administration’s ongoing negotiations with congressional Republicans and force a vote on taxes. Democrats will use a procedural maneuver preventing the GOP from offering an amendment to extend all of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts.
Republicans immediately voiced alarm at the move. While the vote would prevent tax hikes on Americans earning $250,000 or less, small businesses would face steep tax increases under the Democrats’ plan.
Without an opportunity to offer amendments, Republicans are expected to vote against the measure. By doing so they’ll give Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) one final opportunity to demagogue the issue. However, it will likely be a short-lived victory. The measure has little chance of passing in the Senate.
Read More: RS
Coincidence? Fed’s Attack on For-Profit Colleges Supports Dem Donor’s Agenda
Florida trial attorney Chris Hoyer, who along with his wife, has donated close to $30,000 to President Barack Obama and other Democratic candidates and causes over the last decade, appears to be curiously in-tune with the Democratic administration’s agenda on higher education.
Hoyer, through his James/Hoyer Law Firm, is targeting for-profit career schools for class actions at around the same time the Obama administration Department of Education appears to be targeting that same industry through aggressive new regulatory action and rule making.
Hoyer has filed a lawsuit against Westwood College, claiming the school lied about tuition costs and future salary potential for graduating students. As with any class action situation, where the people who benefit are primarily the attorneys, Hoyer’s class action pursuits should not be taken lightly. His 2008 action against Waste Management Company yielded each plaintiff a whopping $25.
But the underserved, largely black and Hispanic students who tend to enroll in similar career schools need to worry that their education choices are under legal assault. “I’m not trying to attack the whole for-profit school industry,” Hoyer maintains. Nevertheless, James/Hoyer claims on its website that it is “investigating” no fewer than seven such for-profit colleges.
As it happens, the Department of Education has begun an aggressive campaign to enforce a beefed up “Gainful Employment” rule. As former New Jersey Governor and 9/11 Commissioner Thomas Kean recently pointed out, this “Gainful Employment” rule appears to be specifically targeted at the same career schools in Chris Hoyer’s laser scope:
Hoyer, through his James/Hoyer Law Firm, is targeting for-profit career schools for class actions at around the same time the Obama administration Department of Education appears to be targeting that same industry through aggressive new regulatory action and rule making.
Hoyer has filed a lawsuit against Westwood College, claiming the school lied about tuition costs and future salary potential for graduating students. As with any class action situation, where the people who benefit are primarily the attorneys, Hoyer’s class action pursuits should not be taken lightly. His 2008 action against Waste Management Company yielded each plaintiff a whopping $25.
But the underserved, largely black and Hispanic students who tend to enroll in similar career schools need to worry that their education choices are under legal assault. “I’m not trying to attack the whole for-profit school industry,” Hoyer maintains. Nevertheless, James/Hoyer claims on its website that it is “investigating” no fewer than seven such for-profit colleges.
As it happens, the Department of Education has begun an aggressive campaign to enforce a beefed up “Gainful Employment” rule. As former New Jersey Governor and 9/11 Commissioner Thomas Kean recently pointed out, this “Gainful Employment” rule appears to be specifically targeted at the same career schools in Chris Hoyer’s laser scope:
Specifically, the department’s proposed gainful employment rule, which seeks to regulate the amount of debt that students who attend career colleges can take on, has been met with legitimate criticism from both sides of the aisle. The rules purport to target higher education programs with high loan default rates.Read More: BG
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Howland heading back to Madison city board
John Howland appears to be the winner of a special election for Madison alderman at large.
In unofficial results, Howland garnered 916 votes, or 52 percent, to Eddie Tanner’s 847, or 48 percent. Absentee and affidavit ballots were yet to be counted at about 10 p.m. Tuesday.
"I look forward to being back on the board again,” said Howland, a former Madison alderman. “It’s a tall order for anyone to run a citywide campaign in three weeks. It was a hard-fought race.”
Howland and Tanner, a former director of parks and recreation for the city of Madison, vied for the post vacated by Lisa Clingan-Smith in October.
Howland will complete the 2 years remaining of Clingan-Smith’s term. He will take a seat when the Board of Aldermen, meet Dec. 7.
Howland, 48, served one term on the board from 2005-2009. He decided not to run for re-election last year when redistricting carved his existing Ward 6 among three others and he found himself in the same ward as Alderman Pat Peeler.
Tanner, a former member of the Madison County School Board, ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Ridgeland in 2001 against current Mayor Gene McGee. He also previously served as Ridgeland’s director of parks and recreation after serving as Madison’s director.
Howland was endorsed by Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler.
Read More at MCH
In unofficial results, Howland garnered 916 votes, or 52 percent, to Eddie Tanner’s 847, or 48 percent. Absentee and affidavit ballots were yet to be counted at about 10 p.m. Tuesday.
"I look forward to being back on the board again,” said Howland, a former Madison alderman. “It’s a tall order for anyone to run a citywide campaign in three weeks. It was a hard-fought race.”
Howland and Tanner, a former director of parks and recreation for the city of Madison, vied for the post vacated by Lisa Clingan-Smith in October.
Howland will complete the 2 years remaining of Clingan-Smith’s term. He will take a seat when the Board of Aldermen, meet Dec. 7.
Howland, 48, served one term on the board from 2005-2009. He decided not to run for re-election last year when redistricting carved his existing Ward 6 among three others and he found himself in the same ward as Alderman Pat Peeler.
Tanner, a former member of the Madison County School Board, ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Ridgeland in 2001 against current Mayor Gene McGee. He also previously served as Ridgeland’s director of parks and recreation after serving as Madison’s director.
Howland was endorsed by Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler.
Read More at MCH
Your Vote, Your Opinion: Are the President's Actions Really "Impeachable"?
Vote in the column to the left. Comment below.
Arizona Legislator Calls Obama’s Actions “Impeachable”
The campaign to impeach Barack Obama has a distinguished new advocate: Arizona State Senator Russell Pearce, who authored Arizona’s immigration law S.B. 1070. During a speech on November 19, Pearce told an audience:
Think about it. This is the first time in the history of the United States that a sitting president has sided with a foreign government to sue the citizens of its country. For defending our laws? For defending and protecting the citizens of the state of Arizona? It’s outrageous, and it’s impeachable.
Senator Pearce was referring to the Obama administration’s decision to invite 11 Central and South American nations to join the federal government’s lawsuit against Arizona. This outsourcing ignores the president’s numerous lawsuits against the state, as well as motions against Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio for “racial profiling,” on the grounds he arrested too many Hispanics near our open border with Mexico.
The lawsuit was perhaps the least offensive or forceful measure the president has taken against the will of his own citizens. The Obama administration hauled Arizona before the UN Human Rights Council after it passed Pearce’s bill.
After Governor Jan Brewer learned about Obama’s outrage, she sent a letter demanding Hillary Clinton strike the reference from the UNHRC report. Hillary refused.
In September, a UN committee issued a thinly veiled denunciation of Arizonans as “xenophobes and racists.” Then Obama allowed human rights violators to humiliate the United States in the Geneva forum while appointing milquetoast globalists like “transnationalist” Harold Koh to “defend” America.
His efforts to enlist foreign nations and the UN to overturn state policies with which he disagrees is indeed unconstitutional, and one of many grounds for impeachment. This author is pleased to have perhaps the best state senator in the United States voicing such truths, especially to those who are hostile to them.
Arizona Legislator Calls Obama’s Actions “Impeachable”
Think about it. This is the first time in the history of the United States that a sitting president has sided with a foreign government to sue the citizens of its country. For defending our laws? For defending and protecting the citizens of the state of Arizona? It’s outrageous, and it’s impeachable.
Senator Pearce was referring to the Obama administration’s decision to invite 11 Central and South American nations to join the federal government’s lawsuit against Arizona. This outsourcing ignores the president’s numerous lawsuits against the state, as well as motions against Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio for “racial profiling,” on the grounds he arrested too many Hispanics near our open border with Mexico.
The lawsuit was perhaps the least offensive or forceful measure the president has taken against the will of his own citizens. The Obama administration hauled Arizona before the UN Human Rights Council after it passed Pearce’s bill.
After Governor Jan Brewer learned about Obama’s outrage, she sent a letter demanding Hillary Clinton strike the reference from the UNHRC report. Hillary refused.
In September, a UN committee issued a thinly veiled denunciation of Arizonans as “xenophobes and racists.” Then Obama allowed human rights violators to humiliate the United States in the Geneva forum while appointing milquetoast globalists like “transnationalist” Harold Koh to “defend” America.
His efforts to enlist foreign nations and the UN to overturn state policies with which he disagrees is indeed unconstitutional, and one of many grounds for impeachment. This author is pleased to have perhaps the best state senator in the United States voicing such truths, especially to those who are hostile to them.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Profit-sharing agreement signed for biomass plant
National Clean Fuels announced today that the company signed a profit participation agreement with the Center for Environment, Commerce & Energy (The Center). The two organizations are working together closely to build a biomass-to-electricity (BTE) plant in Port Gibson, Miss.
According to the agreement, National Clean Fuels will provide the Center with monthly project support payments in exchange for a percentage of the net profits generated by the Port Gibson BTE plant once it becomes operational. The Center and National Clean Fuels signed a term sheet earlier this month.
Plans call for the new Port Gibson BTE plant to generate electricity by gasifying sawdust and woodchips to power a massive turbine. NACF inked a letter of intent with the City of Port Gibson in September to devise plans for biomass and solar-energy production in and around the municipality as well as other potential means of green energy production. The Center will assist with the planning and implementation of the project.
MBJ
According to the agreement, National Clean Fuels will provide the Center with monthly project support payments in exchange for a percentage of the net profits generated by the Port Gibson BTE plant once it becomes operational. The Center and National Clean Fuels signed a term sheet earlier this month.
Plans call for the new Port Gibson BTE plant to generate electricity by gasifying sawdust and woodchips to power a massive turbine. NACF inked a letter of intent with the City of Port Gibson in September to devise plans for biomass and solar-energy production in and around the municipality as well as other potential means of green energy production. The Center will assist with the planning and implementation of the project.
MBJ
CHARLIE MITCHELL: Voters haven’t ‘changed their minds’ about anything
 |
| Mitchell |
Three Mississippians – returning U.S. Rep. Gregg Harper of District 3 along with newly elected Rep. Alan Nunnelee of District 1 and Rep. Steven Palazzo of District 4 – are in the thick of it.
There’s been a shallow but consistent media chorus since midterm elections. The story line has been, “Why did Americans turn against Obama?” and “Why did voters change their minds?”
Bogus questions, both of them. Voters didn’t turn against Obama. And voters certainly have not changed their minds.
Let’s define Middle America as the voters who swing elections. They dwell between the extremes of liberalism and conservatism. Two years ago, Middle America embraced Barack Obama’s rising star and accepted his pledge to be a president for all the people – one who would focus on the economy and bring federal spending under control. (He really did make those pledges.) Middle America also responded to his promise to bring rationality, equity and cost controls to the delivery of health care and to resolve immigration issues, among many other things. Yes, Obama was a “liberal,” but he was solution-oriented. That resonated.
Obama’s rival for the White House, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called his opponent “naïve,” but Americans not only backed the far more charismatic candidate, they also provided President Obama with clear Democratic majorities in both chambers of Congress. Media folk called this a big victory for liberalism. Wrong. It was a big endorsement of problem-solving.
In the two years since, Middle America has not undergone a giant shift in its collective ideology. Only the most simplistic talk show hosts would suggest that has happened. Lefties are still lefties. Righties are still righties. What Middle America wants is solutions.
So what that means is that Republicans – even without control of the White House or the Senate – must either deliver in the next two years or it will be their turn to decide who gets invited to farewell parties.
Within the party itself, there are divisions.
Harper, Nunnelee and Palazzo have aligned with the super-conservative core of the GOP.
Harper, from Pearl, went to Washington at the same time Obama did. Regarding the $787 billion stimulus bill, Harper had a great quote. When trying to get out of a hole, a good first step is to stop digging, he said in voting “no.” He was re-elected to a second term to deliver the same “stop spending” message. (Interestingly, Harper has been chastised for voting against new spending that would have benefitted Mississippi. Nothing like knocking a guy for doing what he said he’d do.)
Nunnelee, from Tupelo, managed Mississippi’s money as chairman of the Appropriations Committee in the state Senate. Although he and Palazzo don’t take office until January, Nunnelee is on the record with other incoming House Republicans to stop earmarks immediately. (For the record, Obama also pledged to review earmarks “line by line,” yet has signed off on hundreds.)
The way to make the people happy is to fix what’s broken and fixing what’s broken means crafting legislation that (1) Middle America understands and (2) in which Middle America has confidence.
It’s easier said than done, of course.
But folks need to stop saying voters changed. It’s just not true.
NEMS360
Steering panel loaded with John Boehner's allies
House Speaker-designate John Boehner has some close allies to help him potentially sway other members on a Republican panel set to pick leaders of key committees in the next Congress.
Several lawmakers close to the Ohio Republican reside on the 34-member House Republican steering committee – including Lynn Westmoreland (Ga.), who gave a speech backing Boehner to be House speaker, according to a list of steering committee members obtained by POLITICO.
Rep. Steve LaTourette is a fellow member of the Ohio delegation, while Reps. Doc Hastings (Wash.) and Tom Latham (Iowa) have long been close personal friends with Boehner as well.
Others well known to be close to Boehner on the Steering Committee include House Republican Conference Vice-Chair Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (Wash.), National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Pete Sessions (Texas), House GOP transition team leader Greg Walden (Ore.), Mike Rogers (Mich.), and Gregg Harper (Miss.).
Boehner’s choice in contested races to head the Energy and Commerce, Appropriations and other panels is automatically worth four votes, the most of any other committee member. The next expected House majority leader, Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) gets two votes, while all other members get one vote each when considering each committee race, jurisdictional challenges and potential caucus rule changes.
Shimkus, Energy and Commerce ranking member Joe Barton (Texas), Fred Upton (Mich.) and Cliff Stearns (Fla.) will give roughly 10-minute presentations to the steering committee Tuesday to give their arguments to head the energy panel, followed by a question and answer period. The steering committee will convene at 1:30 p.m. in the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center.
Read more: Politico
Several lawmakers close to the Ohio Republican reside on the 34-member House Republican steering committee – including Lynn Westmoreland (Ga.), who gave a speech backing Boehner to be House speaker, according to a list of steering committee members obtained by POLITICO.
Rep. Steve LaTourette is a fellow member of the Ohio delegation, while Reps. Doc Hastings (Wash.) and Tom Latham (Iowa) have long been close personal friends with Boehner as well.
Others well known to be close to Boehner on the Steering Committee include House Republican Conference Vice-Chair Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (Wash.), National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Pete Sessions (Texas), House GOP transition team leader Greg Walden (Ore.), Mike Rogers (Mich.), and Gregg Harper (Miss.).
Boehner’s choice in contested races to head the Energy and Commerce, Appropriations and other panels is automatically worth four votes, the most of any other committee member. The next expected House majority leader, Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) gets two votes, while all other members get one vote each when considering each committee race, jurisdictional challenges and potential caucus rule changes.
Shimkus, Energy and Commerce ranking member Joe Barton (Texas), Fred Upton (Mich.) and Cliff Stearns (Fla.) will give roughly 10-minute presentations to the steering committee Tuesday to give their arguments to head the energy panel, followed by a question and answer period. The steering committee will convene at 1:30 p.m. in the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center.
Read more: Politico
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