Recap: The Speaker & Party Switches
It will be interesting to see how Bell and some white Democrats vote in a GOP House. Remember, we had a number of Democrats in the Senate generally support Phil Bryant and the GOP because they had to support the legislation that was being pushed in that chamber. Most of that was killed in the House. But with the GOP controlling the legislation in the House now, I suspect more Democrats will be voting with the majority and getting better grades from groups like BIPEC or NFIB.
And one other point on Bell. With his switch the GOP now controls HD 19, HD 20, and HD 21. These three Northeast Mississippi seats represent old Yellow Dog country better than just about anywhere in the state. In 2007, Democrats held on to these seats which were all open that year. Trust me; this gave Republicans major headaches at the time. In rematches, Randy Boyd knocked off Mark DuVall while Chris Brown defeated Jimmy Puckett. The seats previously held by Democratic lions like Bill Miles and Jamie Franks are now in Republican control. How things have changed.
Majority in MS
11/21/11
Magnolia Tribune
