Former Gov. Haley Barbour talks during this week's Stennis Capitol Press Forum. (Photo by Jeremy Pittari | Magnolia Tribune)
- Haley Barbour shared his views on state and federal issues in the news at the Stennis Capitol Press Forum on Monday.
After sharing a brief history of how the Republican Party became the majority political party in Mississippi at Monday’s Stennis Capitol Press Forum, former Governor Haley Barbour was asked his opinion on the current state of political affairs. Some of the topics Barbour opined on included President Donald Trump’s tariffs, proposed tax cuts by Mississippi lawmakers, and the possibility of a casino in Jackson.
While President Trump has announced tariffs on several countries since taking office, including neighboring Canada and Mexico, Barbour said he has always been a strong supporter of free trade. He recalled witnessing the formation of trade agreements between those countries during his time as an aide in Reagan Administration.
“However, I think there’s a bit of logic to Trump’s policy,” Barbour said.
The former Governor described how, in his view, tariffs are meant to be reciprocal, meaning the percentages are to be the same from both importing and exporting countries. Yet, in previous years, Barbour said the United States took concessions when establishing trade agreements with other countries in hopes of forming strong alliances during the aftermath of World War II and continuing during the Cold War.
“We bent over backwards for our allies, particularly in Europe and in the Pacific,” Barbour said.
Giving those countries the advantage in trade deals was a way to ensure they would be strong allies during troubling times, he added. However, tariffs do have a downside.
“But there is no doubt in my mind that a tariff is a form of taxation that gets put on the cost of living,” Barbour described.
When asked about the conflict in Ukraine and seemingly strained relations with U.S., Barbour said that Volodymyr Zelensky’s apology after the heated conversation in the White House and Europe’s support in the conflict should help bring people together.
“I think there is a high probability that will happen, and I think [Russian President Vladimir] Putin has to have pulled up a little bit when he saw how quickly the Europeans jumped in and said things they hadn’t said before. Like, ‘We will put troops in there, we will put more money in there, we will put more arms in there,'” Barbour elaborated.
Barbour also expressed his support for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA. The federal agency has come under scrutiny following its slow response to the storms late last year on the east coast. Even though the agency got a bad reputation in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina due to slow response times, Barbour, the state’s governor at the time, said ultimately the federal agency did a lot more right than wrong in the response to that natural disaster.
He was also on hand Friday for a preview of the new exhibit “Hurricane Katrina: Mississippi Remembers, Photographs by Melody Golding” on display now at the Two Mississippi Museums marking 20 years since that fateful day this coming August.
READ MORE: Barbour tours Hurricane Katrina exhibit at Two Mississippi Museums, reflects on spirit of Mississippians
Returning to domestic politics, Barbour was asked for his thoughts on the federal government’s involvement in education within each state as the Trump Administration is looking to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. Barbour said that while he does not believe in dismantling the Department, he does believe states should be deciding how education works within their own borders. He pointed to Mississippi’s recent gains in education, often referred to as the “Mississippi Miracle.”
“I think it’s unlikely they will do away with the Department of Education,” Barbour said. “I think it’s likely they will make some modifications to make it less expensive.”
Barbour also shared his opinion on the proposed cuts to Mississippi’s income tax and the sales tax on groceries as proposed by the state House and Senate this legislative session. He said the fact that Texas, Florida and Tennessee are the fastest growing economies in the region, and the nation, largely because they do not collect individual income tax is not lost on him. However, while tax cuts help the economy, there is a hurdle in implementation.
“Now having said that, we have to figure out how to pay for it,” Barbor said, adding that sales taxes are one way to ensure everyone has skin in the game. “Otherwise, they will vote to pave the streets with gold if they don’t have to pay anything.”
Barbour also expressed his support for a measure that would have allowed for the establishment of a casino in Jackson.
With the population declining by nearly 25 percent over the last 40 years, he said the easiest and least expensive way to draw people into the Magnolia State’s capital city is to allow one casino to build a facility similar to that of the Beau Rivage in Biloxi. He estimated that it would create a large number of jobs, from short-term construction jobs to long-term casino and resort jobs within Jackson.
“Now is there a better infusion of money into this local economy than that?” Barbour said.
That legislation died on the House floor at the end of February due to lack of support in the chamber.
READ MORE: Bill to allow Jackson casino development dies on House floor
Jeremy Pittari
