Tonight, Judge Edith Jones made her selection of the final two judges to hear Mississippi’s redistricting case. In addition to Judge Tom Lee (appointed by Reagan), Judge Grady Jolly (appointed by Reagan) and Judge Louis Guirola (appointed by George W. Bush) will preside over the case.
It will be interesting to see the public reaction of Democrats, but the early indications I have received are that there is a great deal of private gnashing of teeth on the left side of the aisle.
Speaking of the left side of the aisle, it seems Democrats have a new darling in the form of Senator Terry Burton (R-kinda). As chair of the Senate Redistricting Committee, he has filed to intervene, and has basically asked the Court to let the Senate run under the districts in his plan. The NAACP apparently likes that idea a lot as they are rooting for Burton to be let into the case. Republicans in the Senate and House have privately been seething about Burton going off the ranch for weeks in the redistricting fight. In his zeal to cut a deal at any cost, he has alienated a lot of his fellow lawmakers in his party and there are some lingering hard feelings by some. I am sure this move by Burton won’t help.
Stay tuned. It’s about to get more interesting.
Magnolia Tribune
