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Transcript: JFP Interview with DA Candidate Robert Smith

Interview by Adam Lynch

How old are you?I'm 36.

A New Sheriff In Town?

Photos by Brian Johnson, Roy Adkins, Nate Glenn, Darren Schwindaman, and Jaro Vacek

Sheriff Malcolm McMillin is familiar with opposition, having faced it and triumphed in repeated elections since he was first elected sheriff of Hinds County 16 years ago.

A New Sheriff? JFP Interview with Malcolm McMillin

My opposition in this race, their mantra is, "It's time for a change." Not that I've done a bad job, but that it's time for a change, just a change in the leadership. He hasn't said anything that he would do any differently, except that he would try to get along better with the board of supervisors. I've said in the past that I might even step down if it meant seeing him actually get along with the supervisors, just to see him try.

A New Sheriff? JFP Interview with Tyrone Lewis

I come from a family of six kids—two sisters, three brothers. And my mother and father still live, and still reside in this neighborhood I grew up in. I had a good childhood.

A New Sheriff? JFP Interview with Lester Williams

In 1990 I transferred over to the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics. There I was primarily assigned to the DEA and the FBI on their task force, working in major investigations. During that time at the MBN I served as Commander of the Capital City Metro Narcotics Unit. That was between 1990 to 2004. I started out at the MBN working the motel/hotel and airport drug interdictions, but because of the quantities of drugs we were seizing and the currency, it often led into other major investigations, which resulted in me being assigned to the DEA or FBI task force for much of that time.

A New Sheriff? JFP Interview with Henry Grigsby

I do a little garden work, farming, and I haul a little timber. I live in Utica, out on Morrison Road. I've been a Hinds County resident for 24 years.

The Regulator: The JFP Interview with Gary Anderson

Photos by Roy Adkins & Adam Lynch

Gary Anderson wants to be Mississippi's insurance commissioner, and he's not pulling any punches in the race. The Byhalia native knows a thing or two about politics: He worked under former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove as chief fiscal officer and served as director of the Mississippi Department of Community Development. He broke ground as the first African American in both those positions. He made similar inroads in his private life, as the first African American to hold the position of senior vice president of Union Planter's Bank, and he put up a hard but unsuccessful fight against Republican candidate Tate Reeves in 2003 for the office of state treasurer.

Fleming sets hearing on NSF fees

Red And Ready To Rumble: The JFP Interview With Charlie Ross

Photos by Roy Adkins

Sen. Charlie Ross, R-Brandon, is confident this year. The 50-year-old senator is running for lieutenant governor against State Auditor Phil Bryant in the primaries, and possibly against Democratic Rep. Jamie Franks of Hernando in the November general elections.

Campaign announcement

Jesus Rode A Donkey: THE JFP Interview With John Arthur Eaves

Photos by Roy Adkins

Attorney John Arthur Eaves, 40, is the polar opposite of his Republican opponent, Gov. Haley Barbour. Barbour is a faithful follower of smaller-government philosophy, isn't afraid to boot Mississippians off state Medicaid and has been willing to short-change the so-called "artificial" Mississippi Adequate Education Program in the name of budget austerity. Eaves, on the other hand, thinks the state is failing to provide for the health of thousands and is shooting itself in the foot by short-funding education. Barbour has lobbied for tobacco companies for years, while Eaves, a Jackson trial lawyer, has vociferously attacked those same companies in the courtroom. Barbour is a happy comrade of President George Bush, who has stumped for Barbour on the campaign and vice versa, while Eaves criticizes the Bush administration for all its malfunctions and corruption.

Summary of 2007 session

Summaries galore

Location: Blue Springs, Mississippi (outside of Tupelo)

HOUSEKEEPING - A WEEKLY SUMMARY REPORT FOR THE WEEK ENDING MARCH 2, 2007 JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI The announcement that Japanese auto giant Toyota will build a manufacturing plant in Northeast Mississippi clearly dominated talk in the State Capitol during the ninth week of the 2007 Legislature. Once the announcement was made that we had secured the plant, the Legislature went to work on the incentives package. After consideration by the House Ways and Means Committee, the full House and Senate then voted on Friday to approve the $293.9 million package. This means that work on the plant site will begin almost immediately. The new plant, to be located just northwest of Tupelo where Lee, Pontotoc and Union counties join on the industrial site known as Wellspring, will have the capacity to build 150,000 vehicles annually of Toyota's popular Highlander sport utility vehicle. Production is scheduled to begin by 2010. The new plant represents a $1.3 billion investment by Toyota and is expected to create approximately 2,000 new jobs for the region and indirectly create work for many more. Operations at the plant will include stamping, body weld, plastics, paint, and assembly. Toyota is pressing General Motors to become the world's largest automaker. Toyota manufacturing Executive Vice President Ray Tanguay pointed out several factors that led to Toyota's site selection decision. "On my visits to Northern Mississippi, I have talked with area companies and observed their workforce," said Tanguay. "What I observed were people who are educated, ethical and friendly with a strong work ethic—a perfect match for the Toyota Way." He added that the area's existing companies had high praise for the workforce. "They were definitely the best sales people." Speaker of the House Billy McCoy, who attended the announcement in Tupelo, called Tuesday, Feb. 27 "a great day in Mississippi. I wish all of you could have heard the way the Toyota leaders talked about the things that the Legislature has worked hard for over the last 25 years, like education, economic development and transportation. They talked well of the region and the entire state." Outline of Toyota Mississippi

Special Session averted

Summary from the week ending 2/23

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