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State Investigates ‘Lawn Service' Contracts
Better late than never. It looks like the state and the media are finally playing catch-up on investigating the city's allocation of money to Frank Melton's "lawn service" contracts to young friends from the Wood Street area. The Jackson Free Press has been trying to get attention to this matter for many moons now, and it seems that the feds took heed before the state auditor bothered to take a closer look. For background, here is one of our stories, from last March, on the issue in which I interviewed the head of the "lawn service" (and that story links to documents that we acquired and published for the first time).
Barbour to Deliver ‘State of the State' Tuesday
[Verbatim] Jackson, Mississippi - Governor Haley Barbour will deliver his sixth State of the State address at 6 p.m. Tuesday, January 13, in the House Chambers at the State Capitol. Governor Barbour will report on the state's austere budget for Fiscal Year 2010, his assessment of current issues and the continuing rebuilding efforts from Hurricane Katrina.
Hood Renews Call for Campaign Finance Reform
[verbatim statement] JACKSON, Miss. - Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood—as he has done since 2004—is again calling on state lawmakers to reform campaign finance laws.
Barbour: No! Don't Mingle Tobacco Taxes and Medicaid!
[Verbatim from Gov. Haley Barbour] While an increase in tobacco taxes to fund Medicaid is being talked about, no such proposal has passed either house of the Legislature during the current Special Session. In fact, most recently, the effort failed in the House. And, while some like to talk about finding a compromise to Medicaid's revenue problems, the fact is SB 2013 – which passed the Senate on an overwhelming 41-to-7 vote – is the only compromise on the table, having been agreed to after extraordinary negotiations by the Mississippi Hospital Association, the Division of Medicaid, and the Governor's Office, and then passed by the state Senate.
Opposition to Iraq War Grows in South
A new poll of the region hit hardest by the war in Iraq finds that the South is steadily losing patience with the war in Iraq:
BREAKING: Dick Cheney's Chief of Staff Indicted, Five Counts
Word is that Dick Cheney's chief of staff will be the first to go down. Meantime, check out this Salon piece that defrocks Cheney's inner circle:
Gannett Earnings Drop 16% in 2008, 22% Quarter
News is grim today at the Gannett Corp., which owns The Clarion-Ledger. A company press release (PDF) reveals the news that earnings overall dropped 16 percent in 2008 and 22 percent in the last quarter alone. It is rumored that more job cuts are on their way to the Ledger, which has cut 25 percent of its positions in the last year. The paper recently dropped or combined some sections of the paper, further reducing its space for news coverage, and is banking on Metromix, an outlet of a national entertainment Web-site chain, to help make up for other losses. As the paper announced job cuts last year, it offered overtime pay to editorial staffers to go to local bars to take party pictures for the site. The publisher blames the local economy, and staffers say, is urging employees to shop more in local businesses. In recent years, The Clarion-Ledger has pushed a national ShopLocal service, which ironically heavily marketed big-box and chain retailers to local consumers. The current crisis is hitting big-box retailers hard, however, with many experts saying that local businesses, and media, are in a better position to weather the storm.
Get Excited About Downtown - TODAY
Ben Allen and other Jackson mover-shakers are hosting a shindig today at 5:15 p.m. to expose what is going on downtown. In Allen's words, he hopes to see the "JFP Nation" there in droves. The JFP's Todd Stauffer will unveil plans for Boom Jackson, a new glossy magazine about the city's progress. The Downtown Jackson Partners Economic Development Briefing is tonight, Jan. 24, at the MS TelCom Center from 5:15-7:30 pm. Cash bar; free hors d'eourves. Click here for more information.
House Subpoenas Rove in Justice Political Scandal
As expected, the House Judiciary Committee has subpoenaed former presidential adviser Karl Rove to testify about his role in the alleged political investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice into Democrats perceived as enemies of the Bush administration. This investigation potentially has direct implications on the prosecutions of Democratic lawyer Paul Minor and Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Oliver Diaz, as previously reported by the Jackson Free Press.
Judge: Melton Trial Postponed Until Feb. 2, 2009
Over the objection of federal prosecutors, Judge Dan Jordan has announced that the trial of Mayor Frank Melton and bodyguard Michael Recio has been postponed until Feb. 2, 2009 due to the mayor's bad health. The order (PDF, 41 KB), just filed today, states that Melton's counsel just notified the judge on Dec. 23, 2008, that Melton had been in the hospital in November and December for severe heart problems that are life-threatening.
Young Dems Oppose Minimum-Wage Amendment
Breaking news over at StateDesk.
5th Circuit to Hear Paul Minor's Appeal March 30
Associated Press and Forbes are reporting:
Rev. Ross Olivier, Jesse Robinson on Radio JFP Friday
Tune in Friday (Dec. 15) at noon for the second beta version of Radio JFP on WLEZ, 103.7 FM. We have amazing guests this week—Rev. Ross Olivier of Galloway Methodist and bluesman Jesse Robinson! Host Todd Stauffer, and guest hosts Donna Ladd and Brian Johnson, will discuss the latest news—yes, Melton will come up—and provide a weekly wrap-up of the news and a look-ahead to interesting events and music for each weekend—as well as play samples of songs of artists performing over the weekend. Be sure to tune in every Friday!
Is Mississippi a Swing State?
The JFP has been telling readers for weeks that the presidential race is much closer than people think in Mississippi. We reported Sept. 30 on the state-by-state poll by the American Research Group that showed that Bush was only pollng 51 percent in the state, Kerry 42 percent with 5 percent undecided, and a 4 percent margin of error. We've been shocked to see no other state media report these numbers. The Tupelo daily even said they didn't think any national polls of the state had been done and the Associated Press on Monday reported that the race is closer here than people think—but without reporting these numbers. Today, finally, Sid Salter—who writes about politics for The Clarion-Ledger—is admitting that Bush's lead is shrinking in Mississippi. But still no numbers—at least about this race. Salter does tell us that John F. Kennedy only got 36.3 percent of the vote here, that Bush I beat Dukakis with 59.7 percent of the vote, and and the best Bill Clinton got was 44.6 percent of the vote here. But where's the actual news—that mere weeks ago, Bush was only polling 51 percent in Mississippi and that Kerry has a real shot if people turn out and vote? Why not tell us this?
Haley Barbour: ‘You Gotta Admire Obama's Nerve'
July 31, 2008 - Following are verbatim remarks by Gov. Haley Barbour at the Neshoba County Fair today in Philadlphia, Miss.:
Tornadoes Plague State Today; Evacuees Should Stay Put
Mississippi residents woke up today to tornado watches and warnings swirling around the state, especially in central Mississippi, in the aftermatch of Hurricane Gustav. As we return to work and school, the JFP's best advice is to listen to Mississippi Public Broadcasting, which is live with constant updates, as it has been all weekend. Also, Gov. Haley Barbour is cautioning evacuees not to try to return to the Coast until Wednesday, even some highways down there are starting to re-open.
Associated Press: Gregg Harper Wins GOP Run-off
Gregg Harper defeats Charlie Ross for the Republican nomination in the Third Congressional District.
Obama, Huckabee Win Iowa
And they're off. The Associated Press reports:
Shrinking JPD Springs a Sex-Toy Sting
So, the city can manage to find money to do sting operations in order to seize dildos. What a relief. Clarion-Ledger is reporting:
Did Clarion-Ledger Columnist Plagiarize?
Update, Aug. 2, 2006—Today, The Clarion-Ledger published a statement (see below in Comments) saying that Courtney Taylor's work will no longer appear in the newspaper. We guess that answers the question posed by an astute reader on the Ledge forums accusing Taylor of plagiarizing a Southern Living article. The post starts: