Memorial Day 2020 – Remember and Honor
“I have no illusions about what little I can add now to the silent testimony of those who gave their lives willingly for their country… Yet, we must try to honor them—not for their sakes alone, but for our own. And if words cannot repay the debt we owe these men, surely with our actions we must strive to keep faith with them and with the vision that led them to battle and to final sacrifice.”
– President Ronald Reagan, Memorial Day, 1982
YP – Governor Tate Reeves Extends Safer At Home Order to Continue Flattening the Curve
In a new executive order, Governor Reeves has extended his Safer At Home order and accompanying amendments for another week until 8:00 AM on Monday, June 1 to continue flattening the curve while allowing Mississippians to safely get back to work and move around their communities.
Executive Order No. 1488 also adds Holmes County to the list of hotspot counties under additional social distancing measures to help slow the spread within their communities.
HATTIESBURG AMERICAN – Mississippi lawmakers approved $300M in small business grants. Can they apply for the money?
But can lawmakers who operate small businesses themselves apply for the money?
That’s the question Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann wants the Mississippi Ethics Commission to answer. The eight-member commission discussed the issue at a special meeting Friday morning, but delayed a final decision until it could obtain more details next week, said Tom Hood, executive director of the commission.
Leah Rupp Smith, Hosemann’s deputy chief of staff, said several senators asked before and during debate on the legislation if they could participate in the small business grant program themselves. Hosemann “indicated he did not believe they could,” Smith said in a statement. “As the president of the body, the lieutenant governor told members he would request an opinion to accurately determine the boundaries of the ethics laws.”…
…Hood said the commission was “asked to expedite” the request for an opinion on the small business grants, which is why it held the meeting Friday, ahead of its normally-scheduled meeting June 5. The commission is expected to vote on the question next Friday after obtaining more information related to how the Development Authority plans to distribute the money and set up contracts, he said.
MSDH: Coronavirus cases now at 13,252 with 625 deaths
Today MSDH is reporting 247 new cases of COVID-19 in Mississippi, with 9 new deaths. The total of #coronavirus cases since March 11 is now 13,252, with 625 deaths. See more case details and important preventive steps at https://t.co/QP8mlJ41AN pic.twitter.com/pXaWoVuf5b
— Mississippi State Department of Health (@msdh) May 24, 2020
DAILY JOURNAL – Analysis: Mississippi prisons nominee faces Senate scrutiny
The nominee to lead Mississippi’s troubled prison system, Burl Cain, spent 21 years as warden of Louisiana’s Angola penitentiary, resigning in early 2016 amid ethics questions about how public money was spent during his tenure. Advocates for inmates’ rights have also condemned his work.
“Burl Cain left a legacy of corruption, cruelty and callous disregard for the human lives in his custody,” the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana, Alanah Odoms Hebert, said Thursday.
She issued the statement a day after Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves announced he’s nominating Cain to become corrections commissioner in this state. Reeves said he has “zero reservations” about Cain’s work in Louisiana and that under Cain’s guidance, Angola “went from beatings to Bible study.”
WLBT – Neshoba County Fair still on despite coronavirus pandemic
As of May 21, the fair is still on and is set for July 24 through July 31.
At Wednesday’s COVID-19 briefing, Governor Tate Reeves addressed the fair saying it’s an event he looks forward to and has attended every year since 2003. Reeves said because the fair is still two months away, it’s a little early to make a call.
Gilbert Donald, President of the Fair Association says, “We have had no communication with the Governor’s office in regard to his comments Wednesday and accordingly cannot comment on his remarks.”
WJTV – Virus blamed as plans made to close Mississippi manufacturer
WCBI – Noxubee County Supervisor now tasked with covering two districts
District 2 Supervisor Landis Mickens will now hold the seat Sherman Patterson once held.
The Noxubee County Board of Supervisors made the decision Friday morning.
Mickens will handle the day to day operations for District 2 and 3 until an election is held in November
