It was a definite contrast in styles today at the Mississippi House of Representatives, and the issue of who would be elected Speaker was in doubt even as everyone walked into the chamber. The down-to-the-wire conventional wisdom among lobbyists was that it would be McCoy in a squeaker that it could legitimately go either way.
As Eric Clark gavelled the session to order, he had sage words of advice. However, he had a couple of his own cell phone issues that provided a little comic relief in some otherwise tense moments.
The vote for Temporary Speaker was to be the proxy for the permanent Speaker vote. Billy McCoy put up Ed Blackmon. Jeff Smith put up Robert Johnson. How that vote was conducted was a remakable contrast in styles.
Rep. Percy Watson introduced Blackmon. He hit on themes of Blackmon’s background and history. Rep. Bobby Moak came off like an enforcer in his seconding speech with quotes like “honor your commitments” and “your words and actions will find you”. There were other quotes, but his tone struck me as moblike in his admonitions. Rep. Willie Bailey seconded Blackmon’s nomination talking about how Blackmon was turned away by armed guards on the steps of the Capitol in the civil rights movement. He invoked “the spirit of our ancestors” and admonished those who would not vote for Blackmon to not cast “a selfish vote that will set ‘us’ back 50 years”.
Smith’s folks were all business. Rep. Sid Bondurant from Grenada nominated Smith. It took about 2 minutes. No flowery speeches. There were no substantive seconding speeches. No parliamentary shenanigans. It was a what you see is what you get presentation.
On the first and second ballots for Temporary Speaker, there was a 61-61 tie. Lobbyists and insiders gathered on the second floor of the Capitol didn’t know what to think. Finally, on the third ballot, Rep. Linda Coleman broke from her apparent commitment to Smith and cast the deciding vote for the Blackmon/McCoy camp.
The vote for Speaker was pretty much over at that point. Remarkably, even in the face of being on the wrong side of the vote, Smith’s camp held to 60 votes in a 62-60 loss, which is a remarkable referendum on Speaker McCoy who was all but unanimously supported in 2004. It was truly historic.
The Smith camp acquitted themselves very well. Chuck Espy and Robert Johnson were true to their word to support Smith, but the coalition of biracial, cross-party coalition of Jeff Smith was ultimately dispatched by McCoy.
Magnolia Tribune
