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State Lottery propsed for new revenue

Eric Stringfellow of the Clarion Ledger writes: "This measure also would be a great boost to morale, at least for the remaining employees. Barbour has also proposed reducing state government by 700 jobs."

Barbour Signs First Bill: Private Prisons

(Jackson, Miss.) -- Governor Haley Barbour signed House Bill 544, the Tallahatchie County Correctional Authority Bill, into law today making it his first piece of legislation to sign into law as governor. "By signing this bill, we are demonstrating our willingness to do all we can to save Mississippi jobs. Protecting these 280 existing jobs is just as important as creating new ones," said Governor Barbour. "I am honored that this is the first bill I have signed as Governor."

UPDATE: CNN to Air Anti-Bush MoveOn.org Ad

From Moveon.org's Eli Pariser: "During this year's Super Bowl, you'll see ads sponsored by beer companies, tobacco companies, and the Bush White House. But you won't see the winning ad in MoveOn.org Voter Fund's Bush in 30 Seconds ad contest. CBS refuses to air it. Meanwhile, the White House is on the verge of signing into law a deal which Senator John McCain (R-AZ) says is custom-tailored for CBS and Fox, allowing the two networks to grow much bigger. CBS lobbied hard for this rule change; MoveOn.org members across the country lobbied against it; and now our ad has been rejected while the White House ad will be played. It looks an awful lot like CBS is playing politics with the right to free speech."

Barbour proposes plan to cut debt in half

Clarion Ledger reports: "I can't say everything will work," said Barbour, whose plan would wipe out the state's deficit in two years. It also would eliminate some 700 state jobs. 'I'm committed to saving money by controlling costs,' Barbour told reporters at the Governor's Mansion. Earlier in the day, he presented his plan to legislative leaders at a luncheon."

Mississippi GOP Gleeful Over Pickering End Run

Emily Wagster Pettus of AP writes: "Judge Charles Pickering's exhausting journey to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is a cause celebre for the Mississippi Republican Party. People shouldn't expect the talk about it to die down just because President Bush made an end-run around congressional Democrats and installed Pickering on the appeals bench Jan. 16. If anything, the GOP is now ideally situated to gain from the Pickering predicament. Republicans got what they wanted, because the 66-year-old judge — a former state senator, former head of the Mississippi Baptist Convention and former U.S. District Court judge — is serving on the court that handles appeals from Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. He can remain on the 5th Circuit bench until the next Congress takes office in January 2005.

‘Dean Goes Bust'

Josh Benson writes in Salon: "Can Dean recover? Maybe. Even without Trippi, he has a core of supporters that will never abandon him. And while the other campaigns will be fighting each other all over the country in the Feb. 3 states, the Dean camp will hope to rebound by focusing on and winning delegate-rich states like Michigan and Washington on Feb. 7. As John Kerry can attest, comebacks have been built on less."

Kerry Gets Endorsements; Dean Shakes Up Staff

In the aftermath of New Hampshire, where Sen. John Kerry won 39% of the vote (and 14 delegates), Kerry has received the endorsements of Senators Jean Carnahan and Tom Eagleton in Missouri, and may received one from Representative Jim Clyburn of South Carolina. Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack gave him the nod as well. Read the report.

Fingernail Legislation proposed

Byrd of the AP writes:"Under Jordan's bill, the state Health Department would regulate the wearing of false fingernails by restaurant employees who serve or prepare food. He said it's a sanitary issue. The bill isn't winning support from Michael Berry, manager of Nawlin's Grill in Clinton. He said he wouldn't mind if his waitresses wore false fingernails."

Bill approved for optometrists to prescribe drugs

Shelia Bryd of the AP writes: " ... said Beth Clay, an attorney lobbying for the Mississippi Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Association. 'It's creating a substandard of care for the rural or poor people who don't know the difference,' Clay said. 'They're going to think they've seen somebody who's been to medical school.'"

Krugman on the Republi-‘Con'

No, George W. Bush clearly is not a fiscal conservative, says Paul Krugman writing today in the NYTimes, the same day the Congressional Budget Office re-released it's 2004 budget deficit projections at $477 billion (and $2.4 trillion over the next decade). But, Krugman says, it's absurd to think the answer is to simply to cut spending on social programs.

[Just In] Barbour's State of the State Address

[verbatim] Lieutenant Governor; Mr. Speaker; Fellow State officials, Members of

It is a humbling honor to come before you tonight for the first time as your Governor. I want to start by saying to my colleagues in the Legislature: many of you were kind enough to be there for my swearing-in and listened to my Inaugural Address, and now, in less than two weeks, you're being subjected to hearing me speak again... These are the sacrifices you make as a public official. My old friend, State Representative Steve Holland, caught me in the hall today and said he'd read in the paper that this speech was going to last 40 minutes. He asked me if that were true. I said, "Only if you applaud a lot." He laughed and said we ought to be safe.

Barbour: Outstanding Women ‘Rare'

Read the WAPT report.

"'There are some outstanding women but they're rare,' Barbour said. 'I'm not in the bean-counting business. As we fill out this administration, I feel very comfortable that people are going to say those are the right people, they work hard, they're very representative of the state, but I'm not in the quota business.' The co-president of the Mississippi League of Women Voters said Barbour should include more women in his administration. 'This is so important because women make up the 51 percent of the population in Mississippi,' league spokeswoman Fran Leber said, adding that women in Mississippi earn an average of 69 percent what men make."

Poll: Bush Vulnerable Against Unnamed Democrat

Latest Zogby poll: "As Democrats Vote in Iowa and New Hampshire, President Bush Looks Vulnerable in Both His Re-Elect and Face-Off with Generic Democrat; Bush's Job Performance 49% Positive, 50% Negative; Democrats Lead Over Republicans in Congressional Generic, New Zogby International Poll Reveals

Keep Committee Hearings Open!

Common Cause urges in a letter to the Clarion-Ledger that all legislative committees be kept open to the public. Duh. Those men and women report to us. Dick Johnson writes: "So Common Cause/MS recommends all of us contact our representatives and senators, as well as House Speaker Billy McCoy and Lt. Gov. Amy Tuck, and urge them to make sure the rules of the new Legislature keep all conference committees, including those dealing with appropriations and financial matters, open to the public."

Barbour spots investment

Clarion Ledger reports : "Governmental entities enticed Textron Fastening Systems with economic incentives, but they didn't give away the store, said Gov. Haley Barbour."

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