WDAM-Senator Billy Hewes comments on Tate Reeves being caught in Pay to Play scandal

While on the campaign trail Friday, in Purvis, State Senator Billy Hewes commented on recent reports involving State treasurer Tate Reeves campaign funds.

Hewes said, "The states business is not for sale."

Hewes said, "If elected, those cozy money relationships will be no more."

"If somebody is going to be controlling money interests in the state, they shouldn't be able to take it and tie it to where there are campaign contributions that are given in return. Years ago there were some problems with the Public Service Commissioners, there were some indictments and we prohibited them from doing that. We don't want that same situation to occur anywhere else in state government. There needs to be a very clean severance there."

www.wdam.com

CBO: Obama budget worse than projected on 10-year deficit

The Congressional Budget Office on Friday released its analysis of President Obama’s 2012 budget proposal and found it does less to rein in deficits and the debt than the administration had estimated.

CBO estimates Obama's plan would produce 10 years of deficits totaling $9.5 trillion. By 2021, it would increase the debt held by the public to 87 percent of gross domestic product.

The administration, using different methods, estimated budget deficits would total $7.2 trillion over the next 10 years under the 2012 budget. It forecast that total debt in 2021 would be 77 percent of GDP.

House to debate defunding NPR

House Moves Toward Defunding NPR


The House on Thursday moved to proceed to debate on a bill that would block federal funding for National Public Radio.

The passage of the rule for the bill to cut NPR funding comes one week after the resignation of NPR fundraiser Ron Schiller, who came under fire for making controversial remarks about the tea party. The rule passed by a vote of 236-181.

NPR Executive Director Vivian Schiller, who is not related to Ron Schiller, was also fired in the wake of the incident, which drew sharp criticism from Republicans and conservative activists.

Letter to the Editor: TEA Party movement falling prey to lack of organization, power hungry leadership and political prostitution

BY: Roy Hollingsworth

With the taste of victory experienced by the TEA Party in the last elections came a false sense of power for some. As a loose confederation of like-minded individuals mad about government spending and overreach, the group found it easy to affect the political conversation. I was one of that number. But the details of policy are proving to be a little messier. The same group that railed at the audacity of then Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s flaunting of House rules to push her big government agenda have no problem demanding that Republican’s now do the same.

The current argument between House leadership and TEA Party activist’s swirls around that stalwart of publicity, Michelle Bachmann; the geographically challenged representative from Minnesota. Mrs. Bachmann has packaged herself as the TEA Party leader in the House by doing little more than grandstanding for political points. She, along with Representative Steve King, wants to add language to the current Continuing Resolution (CR) that will strip funding for Obama care from the federal budget.

Here’s the rub: The CR temporary spending bill is an appropriation bill, not an authorization bill. And you cannot take away "authorized" money on an appropriations bill without playing Pelosi style loose and goosey with the rules. If the TEA Party is about principle, then we should stick to that principle. If it’s now about winning at all costs, then some of our self-described patriots have shown themselves to be dupes at Bachmann’s self-constructed alter. I want no part of that.

Furthermore, many of the King/Bachmann supporters say they are willing to force a government shutdown over the whole affair. The shutdown would effectively slow government spending, but it wouldn’t cut government spending. And the House leadership is on track to do that across a large swath of federal agencies by passing CR’s, allowing for comprehensive reductions back to 2008 funding levels. This tactic not only follows the House rules, it puts our federal government back on a path to sustainable spending. We need not cut off our nose to spite our face. These problems didn’t happen overnight, and they won’t be solved in a week.

This lack of forward thinking by the TEA party “leadership” illustrates how the movement is coming apart at the seams. One of the latest state-wide leadership meetings attracted only a handful of people. Many Mississippians still identify with the basic TEA Party message of less spending and less government. But, I have spoken with a number of TEA Party members who believe that overzealous behavior and a lack of education with respect to process is exacting a price. The “cry wolf syndrome” without first studying all aspects and angles of an issue is pushing away many previously active members of the group. The members I have spoken with say current leadership seems to have allowed the new found power to go their head, as they begin to make decisions without consulting rank and file members.

TEA Party leaders continue to tout the organizations numbers for obvious reasons. But, the latest episodes show the gloss is wearing thin. The “mad as hell” antics are getting tired. It is time for the TEA Party to get serious about educating itself if it hopes to remain a force in politics. Launching an arm of the group that focuses on development of policy, procedure, and how to disseminate that information to members would be a good start. Until the TEA Party rank and file can have calm, considerate and informed discussions with public officials, we are ripe for the picking for state and national opportunists and personalities, and we will continue to fall prey to political prostitution.

TEA Party wants it all and they want it now despite not being sure how to get it.

Bring on the Big Stuff, Republicans


Not even the craftiest incrementalism is going to cut it with tea party types. They're still mad as hell and now griping as much about GOP leaders as they did last year about Obama.

Where's the big stuff -- such as switching Medicare to a voucher system for private insurance and raising the retirement age for Social Security? Oh there it is, lurking backstage in the planning for next year's budget.

What about blasting entire agencies, like EPA, out of the water? Or defunding NPR? This is the sort of stuff that warms the cups of your tea parties.

High Noon in April

Republican chiefs on Capitol Hill get to crunch time in about a month, when the Treasury Department loses its borrowing authority if the debt ceiling is not raised. So far, GOP leaders have claimed they would not back more borrowing unless "meaningful" cuts are made.

An undefined standard like that allows plenty of running room to trim fat and call it meaningful -- except with tea party folks, who will accept nothing less than cutting bone.

Time is running out for Republicans who privately call themselves the party's "adults." They are facing a very public split with the kids.

Madison County Considering forming Regional Solid Waste Managment Authority

BY: D.I. Smith

The Madison County Board of Supervisors continue the process of setting up a Regional Solid Waste Management Authority by voting 4-1 during Wednesday's meeting to hire a consultant to prepare related documents. The estimated cost for this is $30,000 which is not currently budgeted.

This new bureaucratic organization is supposed to provide "efficiencies."

On Oct 1, 2009, Madison County took over garbage collection requiring the purchase of 6 new garbage trucks at nearly a $1 million. Previously, a contractor, Red River, had the contract and picked up the garbage with 12 employees. The County needs 23 to do the job and the County doesn't have all the areas that are now annexed by the City of Madison and Ridgeland. Red River did all that area plus what the County is now responsible for!

In Sept 2008, Supervisor Tim Johnson defended/argued for the tax increase saying we were wasting $1 million a year on the privatized garbage collection.

Well, in Sept 2009, when the 2010 budget was prepared, instead of saving a $1M as promised, $500,000 (1/2 mil) had to be added to Solid Waste. This money was taken from the Road and Bridge account, which reduced funds going to County roads and the municipalities, and created 1/2mil tax reduction for property owners in the municipalities! A loss of precious revenues that were greatly needed.

So, the point is that we had great "efficiencies" when the garbage collection was privatized. Now, there is a proposal to form a Regional Solid Waste Management Authority who will be responsible to no one -- and they are supposed to provide "efficiencies".... Give us a break!

Wonder why one of these is needed in Madison County since we have no shortage of landfills? There are other "authorities" in the State... but, each was established where there was a need for such an organization due to shortage of landfills.

So, what would be the motivation to have an "authority" in Madison County? What are the benefits? What existing problems would be corrected with such an organization.

Wisconsin conservatives on the verge of defeating union activists

Morning Bell: Bravery and Common Sense Prevail in Wisconsin


In what Reuters is calling “a confrontation with unions that could be the biggest since then President Ronald Reagan fired striking air traffic controllers nearly 30 years ago,” the Wisconsin Senate approved a scaled-down version of Governor Scott Walker’s (R) budget-repair bill last night that would rein in government union collective bargaining powers. After securing approval from three widely respected nonpartisan agencies—the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, the Legislative Council, and the Legislative Reference Bureau—Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald removed the appropriations measures from Walker’s budget, thus eliminating the need for any of the 14 truant Democratic Senators to be present for the vote. The State Assembly will take up the new version of the bill at 11 a.m. today, and if it passes, Walker will have achieved a significant victory for taxpayers everywhere.

The courage of the Wisconsin Senate conservatives cannot be understated. Before the vote, lawmakers were threatened with death and physical violence. After the vote, thousands of protesters stormed into the capitol building, ignoring announcements from police that the building was closed. Once inside, and at great risk to the public welfare, activists handcuffed some doors to the capitol shut. When security escorted the Senators to another building, a Democrat tipped off the mob, which then surrounded their cars and tried to break their windows as Senators returned home.

Senate Democrats, who are still hiding in Illinois, are now claiming that the majority’s committee meeting that broke up the budget-repair bill violated Wisconsin’s Open Meetings Law. But the Open Meeting Compliance Guide clearly states that when there is “good cause,” only two hours’ notice is required. The Senate majority did provide the two hours’ notice. If the Senate Democrats’ 19-day refusal to show up for work wasn’t “good cause” enough, certainly minimizing the opportunity for union mob violence is.

House Hearings over federal pay could get testy.

Federal pay and benefits back in the spotlight


The Republican-led House is scheduled to hold its first hearing today on the compensation of federal employees, pitting the Obama administration and federal worker union leaders against conservative fiscal experts armed with detailed reports suggesting federal employees are paid too generously when compared to private sector workers.

The hearing comes as state governments are working to overhaul public pension plans and scrap collective bargaining rights for state workers and as Republican continue introducing proposals to curtail federal pay and the workforce. Among the bills, some GOP lawmakers hope to cut the federal workforce by 10 percent, implement a two-week furlough of most workers, freeze some pay raises, fire tax-delinquent feds, prohibit federal retirees from earning workers compensation payments and cut the pay for overseas diplomats.

Wednesday's hearing is the first of several House Oversight and Government Reform Committee meetings on these issues that are also likely to serve as tutorials for freshmen members less familiar with the complexities of the federal personnel system.

Disagreements are likely to begin today with Rep. Dennis Ross's opening statement. The Florida Republican, chairman of the subcommittee on the federal workforce, suggests that federal employees earned an average $101,628 in total compensation in 2010 -- nearly four times the average private sector salary.

According to his opening statement, Ross combines the Office of Personnel Management average 2010 federal salary ($74,311) with statistics suggesting the government pays 36 percent of employees' base pay health insurance and pension benefits, plus the financial value of the government's "generous" paid leave system.

Those figures are sure to irk OPM Director John Berry and National Treasury Employees Union President Colleen M. Kelley, two of the scheduled witnesses who have spoken in defense of federal salary levels before. The others witnesses are Partnership for Public Service CEO Max Stier -- a relatively neutral, nonpartisan, well-quoted expert on the issue -- and American Enterprise Institute scholar Andrew G. Biggs and Heritage Foundation labor policy expert James Sherk -- who've penned detailed studies on the size and scope of the federal pay and benefits system.

Update: Senator Lugar of Indiana changes his tune on House spending cuts bill in the Senate

Update: GOP Sen. Lugar says he'll support House Republican spending cuts


Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), who faces a Tea Party-backed challenge in his 2012 primary, has withdrawn his stated opposition to House-passed spending cuts.

Lugar said Tuesday afternoon that he made a mistake when he told reporters earlier in the day that he would oppose H.R. 1, the House GOP plan to cut an additional $57 billion from the 2011 budget.

“I’m going to vote with the Republicans on the issue when H.R. 1 comes up,” Lugar said. “If it’s strictly an affirmative vote, I will be for H.R. 1 because all the Republicans will be voting for H.R. 1.”

Lugar said he does not like the “formulation” of the spending cuts passed by the House and would like Congress to go even further to cut the deficit.


Republican Sen. Lugar to oppose House GOP's $61B spending cuts

Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), the most senior member of the Senate Republican conference, said Tuesday he will oppose the House-passed proposal to make drastic cuts to the federal budget.

He is the first Senate Republican to publicly state his opposition to a plan that Democrats have blasted as “reckless.”

Lugar, who is facing a Tea Party-backed challenge in the 2012 Indiana Republican primary, is taking a political risk. But he and other centrist Republicans have concerns about steep spending cuts that will eliminate funding for some federal programs in mid-year.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has pledged to schedule an up-or-down vote on the House-passed plan to put centrists on the record about whether they support it or not.

“The plan the Tea Party pushed through the House is an irresponsible plan,” Reid said Tuesday. “It’s a reckless plan. It’s dangerous for the health of our economy and certainly the citizens of our great country.”

Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) has criticized cuts to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program that benefits many constituents in his home state, where the temperature plummets in the wintertime.

The House bill would eliminate funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Planned Parenthood. It would also cut substantially from the federal nutrition program for women, children and infants.

WSJ: GOP Seeks to Block Funding for Health Law

House Republicans will use a stopgap spending bill coming to the floor next week as a vehicle to block money for the new health-care law, a top lawmaker said Tuesday.

The latest push to neutralize the legislation, confirmed by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, (R., Va.), comes on the heels of an earlier effort to repeal the law. That passed the House but fell short in the Senate.

The spending bill, needed to fund the government through the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30, is being drafted by the House Appropriations Committee, which is seeking deep spending cuts. The current stopgap bill expires March 4.

While the initial version isn't expected to include the health-law funding ban, Republicans plan to introduce it as an amendment to the bill, Mr. Cantor said. It is expected to block the use of money in the bill to carry out the law, for example by preventing the Department of Health and Human Services from hiring more workers to oversee the new benefits.

The House Republicans' strategy means President Barack Obama's health-care initiative will be a major hurdle to passing the government-wide spending bill. Democratic leaders in the Senate are unlikely to back any move to defund the new law.

With repeal of the health law dead for now, Republicans have also called for rolling back specific parts of the legislation, such as the requirement that most Americans carry health insurance or pay a fine.

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State Senate passes Senate Bill 2532 to consolidate operations of agencies

After contentious debate, the Mississippi Senate passed a bill yesterday that would consolidate the business operations of all state agencies.

Senate Fees, Salaries and Administration Committee chairman Terry Brown, a Republican from Columbus, says the bill could help the state save money by centralizing the agencies’ operations at the Department of Finance and Administration.

The bill moves to the House.

MBJ

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

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."

House GOP leadership to start 112th with reading of the Constitution

The House of Representatives will read the Constitution aloud today, starting at 10 am. You can watch it live via the internet by going to CSpan HERE.

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.

It really is this simple.

Laforge: Earmark Moratorium will have NO impact on the federal budget.

BY: Bill Laforge

Yesterday the Senate Republican conference agreed on a two-year moratorium on earmarks. Republican Leader Mitch McConnell reluctantly changed his position of supporting earmarks, went along with the party’s conservative wing, and embraced the idea of a moratorium, thus ensuring the endorsement of the Republican caucus, and avoiding a bitter and devisive intra-party battle. This is all in reaction to the election and to voter interests in the government, especially the Congress, doing everything possible to reduce spending and get the financial house in order. Congressional Republican leaders feel it is necessary to restore trust in government by the American people.

However, in reality, it is a mere symbolic gesture…a political reaction and a “feel-good” outcome for politicians who believe that they must listen to the American people and do their will on this issue. It will have NO impact on the federal budget. Earmarks are not “new” money. They only direct where the money will be spent. Essentially, they are directives from Congress on how taxpayers’ dollars should be spent, rather than allowing executive branch agencies to make all the decisions. The same amount of dollars will still be on the table and will be spent. The sad difference now is that Congress is abdicating its constitutional responsibility and privilege regarding the power of the purse, and turning over all the decisions to the executive branch. To me, this is very short-sighted. But it is an issue rife with demagoguery and political messaging. Politicians are falling all over themselves trying to outdo their rivals on this issue, so you will note that an unlikely coalition involving the President and congressional Republicans is having a field day with this issue. For many, perception has become reality, and it appears that the moratorium is real, at least for now.

The Senate action by Republicans comes on the heels of similar action by House Republicans earlier this year. It remains to be seen how congressional Democrats in both houses will respond and what they will do next. It is possible that all or some Democrats, and possibly even some Republicans, will continue to request earmarks. Politically I would envision Republicans making any Democratic earmarks a big issue during the next campaign. Hell hath no fury like a reformed earmarker! Only time will tell.

Bill LaForge is an attorney, Washington, D.C. office managing shareholder and Government Relations Practice Group leader with Winstead PC. A Cleveland, Mississippi native, Laforge was chief counsel of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, and culminated his government career as Chief Legislative Counsel and Chief of Staff to United States Senator Thad Cochran of Mississippi.

Tea Party Fuels Born-Again Earmark Opponents

Tuesday's Republican vote on imposing an earmark moratorium was a direct response to the rising influence of Tea Party conservatives in the Senate. Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), the de facto leader of the Tea Party Senate caucus, said "the significance of this policy victory cannot be overstated" in an e-mail to supporters.


But a close look at Tuesday's voice vote to impose a non-binding moratorium on earmarks not only showcases the Tea Party's clout in the Senate this year, but its significant influence in GOP primary politics in 2012 and beyond.

Several Republican senators who are up for re-election in 2012 and who have previously sought millions in earmarks reversed course on Tuesday to vote for the measure -- a move for some that was undoubtedly intended to shore up their right flank in 2012. And even newly elected moderate Republican senators, like Illinois' Mark Kirk and New Hampshire's Kelly Ayotte, backed the measure, an indication that the politics of opposing earmarks is now viewed in the GOP as a clear political winner.

"Part of a politician's DNA is to talk out of both sides of their mouths," said Steve Ellis of Taxpayers for Common Sense, an organization that opposes earmarks. "So it's not surprising that they have put their fingers into the political wind and sensed it has changed directions on earmarks."

Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker (R) is another surprising supporter of the moratorium. A veteran appropriator, Wicker requested $384 million worth of earmarks in 2010, in a state that's relied on federal funds for its military bases and shipyards, among other projects. But he's up for re-election in 2012, and his support of the moratorium is probably with a primary challenger in mind.


HL

Now in Power, G.O.P. Vows Cuts in State Budgets

Republicans who have taken over state capitols across the country are promising to respond to crippling budget deficits with an array of cuts, among them proposals to reduce public workers’ benefits in Wisconsin, scale back social services in Maine and sell off state liquor stores in Pennsylvania, endangering the jobs of thousands of state workers.

States face huge deficits, even after several grueling years of them, and just as billions of dollars in stimulus money from Washington is drying up.

With some of these new Republican state leaders having taken the possibility of tax increases off the table in their campaigns, deep cuts in state spending will be needed. These leaders, committed to smaller government, say that is the idea.

In some cases, that may mean not just greatly changing state policies on taxing and spending, but also loosening regulations facing businesses, restricting access to abortion and rights for illegal immigration, and, perhaps, slowing the Obama administration’s health care overhaul.


Republicans gained more than 690 seats in state legislatures (leaving them with numbers last seen more than 80 years ago), at least five more governor seats, and, perhaps most significant, across-the-board power in the legislatures and governor’s offices of at least 20 states — more than twice as many as before the election. Included in that group were Maine and Wisconsin, which the day before the election had been entirely in Democratic hands.

Read More: NYT