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The JFP Interview With Dave Dennis

In 1995, then-Mississippi Gov. Kirk Fordice announced his re-election campaign from the Gulfport home of Dave Dennis. Dennis had a lot in common with the governor. Both made their fortunes in the construction industry, and Dennis was an active Republican fundraiser who embraced Fordice's brand of business-friendly conservatism. Dennis, now 58, hopes to follow in Fordice's shoes.

Redistricting Hits the Courts

Gov. Haley Barbour's crusade for more Republican districts in the Mississippi House of Representatives is putting him at odds with the Mississippi NAACP, which wants the U.S. Department of Justice to approve a map with more black-majority districts.

‘Save Our Office,' Council Says

Jackson City Council members want to keep their full-time City Hall offices. Today, they passed a resolution in support of a proposed law change.

More Redistricting Fireworks Ahead?

The battle over African American-majority legislative districts continues this week in the state capitol after a confusing series of dueling redistricting proposals failed to stick--two from the Mississippi House of Representatives; one from the Senate; and a fourth especially controversial effort by Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant.

State Economic Picture Improves

In light of an improved economic outlook, a panel of state lawmakers agreed today to adopt slightly higher estimates for state revenues in the 2011 and 2012 fiscal years.

Flood Study Cost Increase Spurs Finger Pointing

Rankin-Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District Board Chairman Gary Rhoads said today that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is to blame for cost increases in a multi-million-dollar study of flood control on the Pearl River between Hinds and Rankin counties.

Mandatory Sex Ed: Almost There

The Mississippi Senate and House of Representatives are awaiting the governor's signature on a bill forcing all local public-school boards to adopt a policy to add "abstinence-only" or "abstinence-plus" education into its curriculum by June 30, 2012.

Key AG Bills Headed to Barbour

<i>Verbatim Statement</i>
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Five of the Attorney General Jim Hood's key legislative bills are now headed to the Governor for his signature.

Bryant's Redistricting Plan Fails

The Mississippi Senate struck down Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant's controversial substitute redistricting plan, which would have diffused black voting power in Hattiesburg, with a 35-to-16 vote today.

HIV/AIDS Advocates Speak Out

Donna M., a homeless Jackson woman infected with HIV, threw away her medicine while living with family members, fearing that they would find out about the disease that she was trying to keep secret. Another Jackson resident, Thomas L., claims that many suffering from HIV/AIDS in Mississippi often tell family members that they have cancer and would rather die than have anyone know they have the disease.

Transparency and Head Trips

State agencies will have to put their spending and contracts on a website for public scrutiny if the Mississippi House of Representatives and Senate work out their differences with a popular government accountability bill. Senate Bill 2554, the Mississippi Accountability and Transparency Act, survived a Senate floor vote last month, and also got past the House March 2, after some minor tweaking.

Reject the Partisan Posturing

Politics are getting uglier by the day.

Politics are getting uglier by the day.

[Head] Immigrants vs. Profit

There is a story that U.S. citizens often hear about undocumented Latino workers. It is fiction.

Carson to Run for Jackson House Seat

Jackson attorney Dorsey Carson announced over the weekend that he is running for the Mississippi House of Representatives seat for District 64, which Jackson Republican Bill Denny currently occupies.

Republicans and ‘ConservaDems' Suffer in Redistricting

<i>UPDATED March 3, 2011</i>

Redistricting in Mississippi as a result of the 2010 Census will likely target Republican and conservative Democratic seats in the state House of Representatives, legislators say.

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