- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
1. Vancleave High Dance Team in running for $100,000 prize
Vancleave High School’s Dance Team has been selected as one of the ten finalists of SoFi’s Game Changers Challenge with Los Angeles Chargers Quarterback Justin Herbert. This online contest will award six public schools, teams or athletic departments with a prize pool of $100,000 – one grand prize winner will receive $50,000 and five runner-ups will be receiving $10,000 each.
“Our dance team has struggled to find a place to practice for years, being shuffled from cafeterias, gymnasiums and classrooms. These rooms have hard floors and no mirrors. We have 3 dancers currently out from dance related injuries secondary to inadequate flooring. We have finally been gifted a permanent dedicated space to practice on the high school campus, but we need funds to furnish the space with adequate flooring and mirrors,” Vancleave High’s Dance Team’s profile states. “If we were to win this contest, it would mean providing our dancers with a safe and healthy space to practice daily!”
You can support the Vancleave High Dance Team by casting your vote online on this site until Monday, November 4.
2. Nearly 120,000 absentees received in MS so far
As of Monday, the Mississippi Secretary of State’s office noted that the Statewide Election Management System reported a total of 137,686 absentee ballots had been requested and 136,372 absentee ballots had been sent ahead of the November 5 General Election.
So far, 119,818 absentee ballots have been received in the state of Mississippi for the 2024 November General Election which is one week away.
Nearly 234,000 Mississippians had their votes accepted in the 2020 election by way of an absentee ballot. In 2016’s November General Election, just over 103,000 absentee ballots were accepted.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Harris to make case against Trump on Ellipse in D.C.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Democratic president nominee Vice President Kamala Harris is set to speak Tuesday on the Ellipse in Washington D.C.
It is a symbolic gesture to make her case against Republican nominee former President Donald Trump who spoke from the same spot before the January 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
“On Tuesday, Kamala Harris will stand on the Ellipse to make the closing argument for her campaign, including why Trump’s handling of that 2020 loss should make clear that he isn’t fit for office,” WSJ reported.
2. Bezos defends Washington Post not offering a presidential endorsement
Politico reports that Jeff Bezos is standing by The Washington Post’s decision to break its decades-long tradition of endorsing presidential candidates.
“The Post owner defended the decision in an essay published in the Post on Monday, saying presidential endorsements undermine the diminishing credibility of the news media,” Politico reported. “He also says they can be counterproductive.”
“Presidential endorsements do nothing to tip the scales of an election,” Bezos, the billionaire Amazon founder wrote. “No undecided voters in Pennsylvania are going to say, ‘I’m going with Newspaper A’s endorsement.’ None. What presidential endorsements actually do is create a perception of bias. A perception of non-independence. Ending them is a principled decision, and it’s the right one.”
Sports & Entertainment
1. USM, JSU basketball put on a show
A wild night at Reed Green Coliseum in Hattiesburg was had by all on Monday as the Golden Eagles hosted Jackson State for a men’s basketball exhibition game.
Whether it was the overtime theatrics, or the 19-point deficit, there was no shortage of fireworks in the 92-85 overtime victory.
The exhibition helped raise funds for Extra Table.
Southern Miss opens the season on Monday, Nov. 4 against Bowling Green at Reed Green Coliseum. Jackson State opens the regular season on the road next Monday, Nov. 4 at No. 4 Houston.
2. Miss. State soccer wins first SEC Regular Season Championship
Mississippi State women’s soccer won the SEC Regular Season Championship with a hard-fought 2-0 win over Texas A&M.
The No. 3 Bulldogs (15-1-0, 9-0-0 SEC) now head to South Carolina Wednesday as the SEC Regular Season Champions for a meeting with the South Carolina Gamecocks for the final regular season game.
Markets & Business
1. Miller joins Clearwater Group
Christopher Miller, a Capitol Hill veteran with a distinguished track record in policymaking, is joining the Clearwater Group to lead its federal lobbying efforts and to focus on energy policy in the state.
Miller has experience in Washington, D.C., most recently serving as the Deputy Legislative Director for U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), where he helped oversee legislative activities related to energy, natural resources, the Department of Interior, FEMA and related federal appropriations.
“Bringing extensive experience on energy issues, Christopher will lead our efforts representing the Mississippi Energy Institute and the Southeast Oil and Gas Association,” noted firm partner Austin Barbour. “He’ll also spend considerable time bringing his experience in Washington to bear to help our clients navigate the complex landscape of federal government.”
2. More Fed rate cuts? Blackrock CEO skeptical
According to CNBC, Blackrock CEO Larry Fink, speaking at a CEO-studded panel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, said Tuesday that the U.S. Federal Reserve won’t cut interest rates as much as markets expect because “embedded inflation” is too high.
“Fink, whose mammoth fund oversees over $10 trillion in assets, sees one rate reduction before the end of this year, compared to the two trims that other market participants have forecast,” CNBC reported.
CNBC went on to note, “The Fed cut its benchmark rate by 50 basis points in September, signaling a turning point in its management of the U.S. economy and in its outlook for inflation. In late-September reports, strategists at J.P. Morgan and Fitch Ratings predicted two additional interest rate cuts by the end of 2024, and expect such reductions to continue into 2025.”
