Mississippi Today
Mississippi officials focus on red meat, presidential race in Neshoba County Fair stump speeches
Most of the Neshoba County Fair crowd stood Thursday and chanted “fight, fight, fight” at the behest of Republican Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson who vowed to battle the โliberal, woke agenda that has America in its jaws.โ
Fight was the cry of former President Donald Trump as he was helped up by Secret Service agents after barely escaping an assassination attempt at a recent Pennsylvania rally. Fight also is what Trump urged his followers to do in 2021 before they attacked the U.S. Capitol in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent the certification of Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 presidential election.
ย The animated crowd was an example of how the second day of political speaking at the red dirt Founder’s Square at the Neshoba County Fair on Thursday was mostly highlighted by red-meat statements stressing the importance of electing Donald Trump as president and less on state policy positions.
But the statewide officeholders, led by Gov. Tate Reeves, did promote what he called โcore conservative policiesโ that he and other speakers said have led to progress in Mississippi.
As is always the case at the fair during the fair’s political stumping, there was lots of speculation about what politicians will be jockeying for offices in Mississippi’s 2027 statewide elections.
One fair visitor making the rounds at cabins and glad-handing was the source of much talk Thursday: billionaire businessman Thomas Duff, a potential Republican gubernatorial candidate in 2027.
Duff, the co-wealthiest Mississippian along with his brother, has helped fund numerous other politicians’ campaigns over the years and could self-fund a serious one for himself.
Asked about any plans to run for governor as he met with movers and shakers at the fair, Duff said: โI’m very much considering it, and I’m very much interested in it.โ
Gipson told reporters he is not ruling out a run for governor in 2027.
โI am praying about that,โ Gipson said. โI โฆ have not made a decision,โ though he said he has started fund-raising efforts.
READ MORE: Hosemann, White trade jabs, hint at gubernatorial aspirations at Neshoba Fair
Second term Secretary of State Michael Watson, who also spoke Thursday, has reportedly been considering a run either for governor or lieutenant governor, though he did not tip his hand to his future political plans.
Watson, the chief administrator of Mississippi’s elections, used part of his speech to advocate for Attorney General Lynn Fitch, who did not speak at the fair because of a scheduling conflict, to prosecute election fraud crimes.
“I’m not here to attack, but I am here to ask people to do their jobs,” Watson said, who added that he would like to see an attorney with the Attorney General’s Office specifically assigned to prosecute election-related crimes.
Speaking at the fair for the first time on Thursday, House Speaker Jason White, a Republican from West, said health care would again be a priority during the 2025 session. He said the House would maintain โan open mindโ on expanding Medicaid to the working poor and wants to reach a compromise with the governor and the Senate.
But Reeves, who said in his speech that he had spoken at the annual political speaking more than any governor in the history of the state, told reporters he still opposes Medicaid expansion, though he thanked the speaker for advancing conservative policy in other areas.
When a reporter pointed out the many bad health care outcomes in the state, such as the nation’s highest infant mortality rate, Reeves said, โWe want to work on these things, There are plenty of items we need to work on when it comes to health care.โ
He added some of those poor outcomes are not the fault of government.
This past session both chambers passed legislation to expand Medicaid, but that effort proved unsuccessful when the House and Senate could not agree on a final proposal.
Reeves said many of the policies he has espoused during his 20-year tenure as treasurer, lieutenant governor and governor were first unveiled at the fair.
โAs Donald Trump would say, we are winning like never before,โ Reeves said of Mississippi.
He added, โJoe Biden and Kamala Harris have steered the national economy into the ditch.โ
None acknowledged that inflation is coming down and that employment has dramatically increased nationwide, though, they cited strong employment numbers in Mississippi. None cited legislation supported by Biden that has helped spur the state economy, such as improving infrastructure and expanding broadband internet access.
Repeating the refrain from his successful 2023 reelect campaign, Reeves said, โMississippi has momentum. This is Mississippi’s time.โ
He added, โI don’t want to be just Mississippi good. I want to set the national standard. I wantย to beat Georgia’s ass.โ
After his speech, Reeves declined to respond when asked about comments Trump made Wednesday that Vice President Harris only identified as Black recently as she ran for president.
Reeves said he wants to instead focus on Harris’ record.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
AT&T, union reach deal ending strike
AT&T workers are back on the job today after the company reached a tentative agreement with the Communications Workers of America to end a month-long strike in the Southeast.
The new deal includes a 19.33% pay increase for all workers, and more affordable healthcare premiums.
Wire technicians and utility operations employes get an extra 3% pay increase.
In a statement, CWA president Claude Cummings Jr. praised the solidarity of the striking workers.
โI believe in the power of unity, and the unity our members and retirees have shown during these contract negotiations has been outstanding and gave our bargaining teams the backing they needed to deliver strong contracts,โ he said.
CWA district president Jermaine Travis told Mississippi Today that he and his coworkers are happy to be back at work.ย
โIt’s been a long month, so everybody is excited to get back to work and get back to taking care of business,โ he said.
Travis also noted the significance of the strike, the longest telecommunications strike in the Southeast.
โI think we’re gonna look back at this strike, at this moment in history, and see it was really important for workers to stand up for the rights and force companies to do right by them, so I think we did a good thing,โ he said.
AT&T has also reached a tentative agreement with the CWA in the West.
“As we’ve said since day 1, our goal has been to reach fair agreements that recognize the hard work our employees do to serve our customers with competitive market-based pay and benefits that are among the best in the nation — and that’s exactly what was accomplished,โ AT&T said in a released statement. โThese agreements also support our competitive position in the broadband industry where we can grow and win against our mostly non-union competitors.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
On this day in 1925
Sept. 16, 1925
โThe King of the Bluesโ was born Riley B. King on a plantation near Itta Bena, Mississippi, the son of sharecroppers.
While singing in the church choir, he watched the pastor playing a Sears Roebuck guitar and told the preacher he wanted to learn how to play. By age 12, he had his own guitar and began listening to the blues on the radio. After playing in churches, he went to Memphis to pursue a music career in 1948, playing on the radio and working as a deejay who was known as โBlues Boyโ and eventually โB.B.โ
Within a year, B.B. King was recording songs, many of them produced by Sam Phillips, who later founded Sun Records. In 1952, โ3 O’Clock Bluesโ became a hit, and dozens followed.
While others sought to bring change through the courts, King did it through music. The songs that he and other blues artists created drew many listeners across racial lines. One of the biggest fans walked into the studio one day and called him โsir.โ His name? Elvis Presley, whose first big hit was the blues song, โThat’s All Right, Mama.โ
King explained that music was like water โ something โfor every living person and every living thing.โ His smash hit, โThe Thrill Is Gone,โ made him an international star and led to collaborations with some of the world’s greatest artists.
He survived a fire that almost burned up his beloved guitar, โLucille,โ and won 18 Grammys as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1987, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Both Time and Rolling Stone magazines ranked him as one of the greatest guitarists of all time.
In 2006, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the greatest civilian honor. Two years later, his hometown of Indianola honored him by opening the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center. After he died in 2015, thousands flocked to the Mississippi Delta for the wake and funeral.
โHands that once picked cotton,โ the preacher told the crowd, โwould someday pick guitar strings on a national and international stage.โ He performed till the end, telling Rolling Stone in 2013 that he had only missed 18 days of performing in 65 years. He died two years later at 89 after battling diabetes for decades.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
Podcast: Sen. David Blount discusses tax cuts, retirement system, mobile sports betting
State Sen. David Blount sits down with Mississippi Today’s Bobby Harrison and Adam Ganucheau to discuss the push for income tax elimination and how that would affect the state’s budget. He also talks about needed funding for the state’s troubledย retirement system and whether Mississippi will soon adopt mobile sports betting.
READ MORE: As lawmakers look to cut taxes, Mississippi mayors and county leaders outline infrastructure needs
The post Podcast: Sen. David Blount discusses tax cuts, retirement system, mobile sports betting appeared first on Mississippi Today.
-
Mississippi News Video6 days ago
Starkville apartment complex resident holds Bible study in the wake of violence
-
Mississippi News Video3 days ago
Woman arrested after reposting school threat in Calhoun County
-
News from the South - Tennessee News Feed6 days ago
Mother outraged after she says son attacked by former Mississippi middle school coach
-
News from the South - Louisiana News Feed3 days ago
Food drive underway for Hurricane Francine victims in Kenner
-
News from the South - Alabama News Feed6 days ago
Former Vigor coach Markus Cook making big impact at Williamson
-
Crooked Letter Sports Podcast5 days ago
Podcast: The Clevelands pay tribute to native Mississippian James Earl Jones and also discuss a full weekend of football, from high schools to the NFL.
-
Local News5 days ago
Schedule changes due to potential impacts from Francine
-
News from the South - Kentucky News Feed6 days ago
Anderson County school evacuated after bomb threat