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McCoy Urges Barbour Against Cold Feet on Stimulus
Mississippi House Speaker Billy McCoy offered a public plea Thursday to Gov. Haley Barbour to accept federal money offered through a proposed congressional stimulus package worth more than $800 billion. The House is considering the package to jump-start the faltering national economy. "We're in a recession the likes of which we haven't seen for many, many years. We've been very encouraged with the stimulus package thus far, and we're appreciative of the president. But we've been very disturbed at the recent news of our governor considering not taking part of the stimulus package," McCoy said, referring to the House proposal that had not yet passed the Senate Thursday.
Flaggs: Keep Check Cashers Act
Mississippi House of Representatives Banking Committee Chairman George Flaggs, D-Vicksburg, says he wants to extend the life of the 1998 Mississippi Check Cashers Act, which allows short-term lenders a special exemption from the 36-percent annual-percentage-rate cap on loans of under $1,000. Under the Act, check-cashing operations can charge customers 18 percent simple interest in fees for loans under $400 due within two to four weeks.
First Black Judge Sworn In Under Barbour
The state of Mississippi swore in its first African American judge under Republican Gov. Haley Barbour this morning.
City Seeks Removal of Visitor's Bureau Expiration Date
The Jackson City Council's Legislative Budget Committee moved forward to re-authorize the Convention Center & Visitors Bureau yesterday, but committee Chairwoman Margaret Barrett-Simon said the committee should ask the state Legislature for a law change that could make future re-authorizations for the bureau unnecessary.
Quentin Whitwell
Quentin Whitwell, 37, is a local political advisor and the go-to guy for many campaigns in the state. He co-founded the largely Republican government-relations firm The Talon Group in 2004, along with political strategist and former Jackson City Councilman Chip Reno. Jackson law firm Brunini, Grantham, Grower & Hewes acquired The Talon Group last year, and Whitwell is now a senior government-relations advisor at the law firm.
Mason Gets Mixed Reviews
Jackson State University President Ronald Mason Jr.'s announcement last week that he will be ending his 10-year stint at JSU and taking the reins at Louisiana's Southern University and A&M College System in Louisiana, received a mixed response from the community.
Downtown Vandalism Creates Tension
John Gomez, associate director of business improvement of Downtown Jackson Partners, vowed that the recent vandalism at Tye's Restaurant & Bar would not significantly upset the organization's attempts to sell the area's assets.
DeLaughter Sentenced to 18 Months
Update: U.S. District Judge Glen Davidson sentenced DeLaughter to 18 months this afternoon.
Corps Says Lakes Plans Dead, Wants Levees
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has told the local levee board that it has to agree on a flood-control plan for the Pearl River by the end of Septemberand is warning that two controversial development plans are likely already dead in the water due to financial and environmental barriers.
Unions Oppose Kemper County Plant
Unions have sided with the Mississippi Sierra Club and the Mississippi Coalition for Citizens with Disabilities against Mississippi Power's push to build a $2.4 billion lignite-burning plant in Kemper County.
BREAKING: Faye Peterson: 'I Offer Leadership'
2009 JFP City Election Blog/Archive
UPDATED: Judge to Rule on Mayor's Health Today; Melton Holds Press Conference
The health of Jackson Mayor Frank Melton is having a decided impact on the trial over his role in the 2006 illegal demolition of a home on Ridgeway Street. U.S. District Judge Dan Jordan, who is presiding over Melton's trial, held a three-hour closed hearing yeaterday to review whether the mayor is healthy enough to face a jury. At the end of the hearing, Jordan allowed reporters back in the courrtoom. "I've heard testimony from two of Melton's doctors and his bodyguards, and as you know, Melton has made a motion for continuance of trial. I will look at some cases this evening and transcripts from witnesses and enter a ruling tomorrow," he said.
Mississippi Legislature Faces a Dire Task
Mississippi legislators skulked back into the state capitol Jan. 5, keeping their body movements at a minimum and their heads low in case somebody noticed them and asked them questions containing the words "budget shortfall."
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.
The 2009 JFP Interview With Marshand Crisler
After serving as Jackson's Ward 6 Councilman for eight years, Marshand Crisler wants to give the executive branch a try.
Legislature 2006: A House United?
Last year, in the days before the new legislative session, lawmakers were ready to walk into the state capitol with their guns out. Mississippi was, and remains, a state where financial ends are never comfortably met, and legislators with a passion to meet federal requirements for education or health-care funding rarely sleep well at night. The state has routinely delivered shortfalls in Mississippi Adequate Education Program requirements, and meeting the one-third match for the federal funding of Medicaid was a battle last year and the year before.
GOP Panic: How to Save the ‘Party of Lincoln'
The Grand Old Party is living up to the "old," according to Nov. 4 exit polls. The poll revealed the vast brunt of Republican voters to be elderly, rural and overwhelmingly white in a country that is increasingly none of the above with each passing year.
The Sour Smell of Corruption
Of all the interesting odors hovering in the wake of the exiting Bush administration, the most pervasive smell could prove to be the sickly scent of corruption. The reek sank as far south as Mississippi, and will likely take Congress years to clean, if it manages to get its hands on a big enough mop.
Webster: No Patience For ‘Fluff'
Retired Coahoma County Judge Joe Webster, who is presiding over Mayor Frank Melton's trial next week, is a personality with little patience for "dilly-dally," say lawyers who have worked with him.
The 2009 JFP Interview With Harvey Johnson Jr.
Harvey Johnson Jr. became Jackson's first black mayor after winning the 1997 election with about 70 percent of the vote.