VICKSBURG POST – Is Flaggs seeking Lt. Gov. post?
Speculation that Flaggs may run seemed to pickup Tuesday, after the mayor emailed a copy of a Clarion Ledger story about the lack of potential Democratic candidates for state offices to the media.
The article, which was based on a poll by the online Mississippi political website YallPolitics, had Flaggs scoring higher than state Rep. Jay Hughes, D-Oxford, in a lieutenant governor’s race, 17.3 percent to 14.3 percent…
…Flaggs said he sent the email as “for your information,” but said he was pleased by the numbers.
“He (Hughes) has already spent $194,000 and I haven’t spent any money,” he said.
But is he planning a run for lieutenant governor?
“I’ll announce my decision May 7 at high noon,” he said. “Until then, I’m meditating on it.”
Sen. Wicker: We are experiencing an unprecedented delay by Senate Democrats in getting second and third tier appointees confirmed
We have a duly elected @POTUS, and he is entitled to put his team into place. We are experiencing an unprecedented delay by Senate Democrats in getting second and third tier appointees confirmed. We are getting to critical mass on the delay and it has got to stop. pic.twitter.com/4fBQl9MwQ1
— Senator Roger Wicker (@SenatorWicker) February 7, 2018
CLARION LEDGER – Mississippi Moonlighting: Michael Guest – Congressional hopeful, district attorney, debt collector
When District Attorney Michael P. Guest announced his bid for U.S. Congress in a packed courtroom in January, he touted his law and order record. Since 2008, Guest has served as district attorney for Madison and Rankin counties, two relatively affluent counties in Mississippi…
…One thing Guest did not mention is his other paying job: municipal debt collector. Since 2002, Guest has served as president of Mississippi Court Collections Inc., which collects delinquent court fines and fees in at least 20 counties across the state…
…Asked by the Clarion Ledger about this, Guest replied that there was no intent to mislead, saying he is both the president and a stockholder, owning 50 percent of the company. The other owner serves as vice president.
“I don’t have anything to do with the day-to-day operations,” he said.
CLARION LEDGER – International businessman running for 3rd District congressional seat
Perry Parker said his name is not as well known as some other candidates for Mississippi’s 3rd Congressional District but, “We think that’s a good thing.”
Parker, 52, of Seminary spent 30 years working in financial markets in the U.S. and abroad for Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank and other companies, and founded The First, a national banking association headquartered in Hattiesburg.
Gov. Bryant helps break ground on Cooper Tire facility in Marshall County
https://www.facebook.com/im4phil/posts/1792488497437400
DAILY JOURNAL – Senate passes plan to divert state funds to cities for infrastructure, some question effectiveness of plan
Municipal governments could eventually get an additional $40 million in state funds for infrastructure needs under legislation that passed the Senate Wednesday.
The bill would divert additional sales tax money to the cities and counties. But how long it would take to fully phase in the diversion of funds, which are currently designated for state budget needs, to the municipal governments is not known.
CLARION LEDGER – House passes bill to prohibit driving in left lane
WTOK – Mississippi could set penalties for luring people into gangs
The Mississippi Senate has voted to set penalties for people who lure others into gang activities.
Republican Sen. Brice Wiggins of Pascagoula says Wednesday that gang investigators are requesting the change.
Several black senators raised concerns that new penalties could be used to punish African-Americans who are not in any kind of gang.
CLARION LEDGER – SEC, Keenum warn new gun bill endangers students, football games in Mississippi
A university president and the commissioner of the SEC are criticizing a House bill passed Wednesday that would give gun owners with enhanced carry permits the ability to sue if they are prevented from carrying on public property, including at public universities and courthouses…
…Sankey warned that the bill’s passage could threaten college sports events in the state.
“Given the intense atmosphere surrounding athletic events, adding weapons increases meaningful safety concerns and is expected to negatively impact the intercollegiate athletics programs at your universities in several ways,” Sankey said in a letter to Keenum and the University of Mississippi’s chancellor. “If HB1083 is adopted to permit weapons in college sports venues, it is likely that competitors will decline opportunities to play in Oxford and Starkville, game officials will decline assignments, personal safety concerns will be used against Mississippi’s universities during the recruiting process and fan attendance will be negatively impacted.”
Lt. Gov. Reeves tweets on opioid crisis
Senate passed bills to address the #opioidcrisis. We’ve got to find ways to help law enforcement, health care community, & Mississippi families fight this epidemic. These bills will allow legislators to find solutions for issues of addiction, medical & local government burdens.
— Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) February 7, 2018
CLARION LEDGER – Ex-Vicksburg mayor Paul Winfield seeks to have his bribery guilty plea thrown out
WJTV – Thompson talks about act introduced to honor Medgar Evers
CLARION LEDGER – Senate advances bill cutting elected school board terms down to 4 years
CLARION LEDGER – Sid Salter: Barbour’s embarrassing mistake illustrates depth of partisan divide
Barbour’s stance on guns and his support of law enforcement agencies, particularly after Katrina, is part of the former governor’s legacy and why most in the state believe he could still be elected to virtually any state office he sought. The truth is that Barbour’s mistake at the Jackson Airport did very little to shake that belief among his former Mississippi constituents.
What it did do was hand Barbour’s detractors among Democrats and Republican Tea Party zealots alike a gold-plated opportunity to bash him on social media and in news story comments for a time. Google “Haley Barbour arrested.” At present, the search yields 178,000 results and most of those new report citations also contain commentary attached to the stories.
Most critics made little coherent criticism regarding the airport incident at hand. What they focused on was Barbour’s party allegiance and his political philosophy — realities that made a big target for critics long before the Yazoo City native forgot he had a permitted gun at an unpermitted TSA checkpoint in a carry-on bag.
Magnolia Tribune
