Usually between the Legislative session and Memorial Day, there’s just not much happening in Mississippi politics.
Most statewide elected officials use this time for post-session fundraising and you have seen several efforts recently from Delbert Hosemann, Lynn Fitch and Stacey Pickering.
Lobbyists have had a few weeks to lick their wounds and let their American Express cards cool of from daily swipings at steak houses across Jackson.
For insiders, this can be an interesting time behind the scenes. This is where policy implementation starts from the last session and where policy planning starts for the next.
The last big open bit of intrigue before the summer truly begins is Medicaid. The ball is entirely in Phil Bryant’s court right now about how he wants to play it. There have been muffled protests from Democrats, who are now distinctly changing their logic for expansion for a third or fourth time. The bottom line is that a straight up or down vote on Medicaid will carry, but it has to be called and committed to.
As of yet, there doesn’t seem to be any leaking about exactly when that session will be called, but stay tuned. Absent something weird happening, it will likely be the only bit of political intrigue (other than municipal election primaries) that we get for a while.
Magnolia Tribune
