RespondMississippi: Jim Hood loses it
Jim Hood took a drive down the road of populism and then totally launched himself off the cliff of conspiracy theory politics. He got so frustrated at his press conference yesterday that he reverted to his most basic trial lawyer self and attacked who he is suing. WLBT:
Attorney General Jim Hood blames Entergy lobbyists for the delay.
Hood says, “It just shows you Entergy’s kind of like the mafia, if you try to regulate us we’ll shut you down and that’s what happened they have shut down the actual functions of the Public Service Commission to a bare minimum and they’ve shut down the agency that assists them completely. From what I was told, senators and governor Barbour were right in the middle of the shutdown, I guess he’s carrying the water for Entergy.”
Entergy Mississippi responded to Hoods remarks. In a press release they said quote, “The Attorney General’s allegations are false and highly irresponsible. We have not intervened in the M.P.S.C. funding issue. If the M.P.S.C. could not operate in a normal and efficient manner, it would have a negative affect on our company and our customers.”
This further shows how little Jim Hood knows about how utilities work in Mississippi. Entergy is a regulated utility, regulated by the PSC, and they can do nothing without first getting permission from the PSC. It is not in their interests to have the PSC shut down. Its like Jim Hood saying patients in a hospital had all the doctors fired. That makes a lot of sense.
If anyone is to blame, it is Jim Hood. The PSC furloughed 60 of its employees on his order. Hood has let politics take priority over the needs of the people of Mississippi. Earlier, Hood threatened to shut down the Highway Patrol if the budget was not approved, but Governor Barbour said he would keep Troopers running and see Hood in Court. The PSC does not have the will to stand up against Hood like Barbour does, so when Hood said to send their people home, they did.
Meanwhile at the press conference, Hood distributed this bizarre press release repeating attacks he and his allies made against Entergy a couple of weeks ago. There was no news in it, just irresponsible mud throwing. I don’t think Entergy is going to be on the ballot against Hood in 2011, but he is acting like he must try to do anything he can to take shots at them. Seriously, this guy has gone off the cliff and is sacrificing any inch of legal credibility in an effort to win a lawsuit for private attorneys.
Magnolia Tribune
