A Month for Confederates, a Week for Hurricane Preparedness

This morning Governor Bryant issued a statement declaring May 23-27th "Hurricane Preparedness Week." From NewsMS:

“Eleven years after Hurricane Katrina, we have vivid memories of that storm and its aftermath,” said Gov. Bryant. “Catastrophic hurricanes do not occur every year, but we must prepare ourselves in such a way that we are prepared for any level of destruction.”

Yes, five days for hurricane preparedness, but thirty for Confederate history. 

But the irony lost on Phil Bryant doesn't stop there, because the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency has been urging Speaker Gunn, Lieutenant Reeves, and Governor Bryant to appropriately prepare for quite some time. Last month, the Clarion Ledger reported that Mississippi's "Hurricane Preparedness" hub is operating with 48% of the budget needed to respond to real crises:

In 2006, after Hurricane Katrina hit, State Personnel Board audit showed that in order to handle a similar disaster, the agency would need  $6.1 million.  It was fully funded that year.  

In 2016, the agency was just given a budget of $3.2 million. That's with 16 open federal disasters still in various phases of recovery, including hurricanes Katrina and Isaac, tornadoes from Louisville, Smithville, the Pine Belt, and all around the state on Dec. 23, 2015, as well as the recent flooding from March 9.

So when Governor Bryant reminds you to be prepared, you should take him seriously. 

Because if something happens, he doesn't have a plan to save you. 

A State of the State that doesn’t add up

Regardless of how many times you say something, it does not make that statement true – even if you say it to the entire legislature, media and citizens of the state.

In his 2016 State of the State address, Governor Phil Bryant said the following:
“We now face a new year where I am able to inform the people and the duly elected members of the House and Senate – the state of the state in Mississippi is sound.”

Of course, he had to immediately brush off the fact that revenue projections were not met this year causing mid-year budget cuts along with a raiding of the rainy day fund. And revenue projections for next year are already down. Add to this the jobless rate INCREASING from 6% to 6.4% in the month of December (and still remaining much higher than the national rate of 5%). Even the Republican legislature’s best friend ALEC said our economy is terrible (though not the worst) ranking us 41st out of 50 on whatever arbitrary scale they produced.

ALEC is not the only group to give us a poor ranking on our economy, and Education Week is not the only group to name us 49th in the country for our abysmal education system. And while we might be “sound” because we have more money than is necessary in our rainy day fund for the future lack of revenue, nothing has improved in the lives or everyday Mississippians in the last four years – not benefits, not access to healthcare, not education, not job opportunities. It would be unfair to say pay hasn’t increased – from 2010 to 2014 the median household income did increase $273, allowing us to maintain our spot at 50th in the nation.

Trust the Bryant Touch

What do Republicans Dan Moreland, John McKay, Cheri Berry, Fred Pitts, and Mitt Romney have in common?

They all received endorsements from Governor Phil Bryant, and promptly lost. Often in embarrassing fashion. And tonight is no different:

After much ado over Biloxi Mayoral candidate Fofo Gilich's Republican credentials, Bryant endorsed Windy Swetman and made quite a scene in the process. Tonight, Gilich routed Swetman with 60% of the vote. 

Not too much later in the evening we saw a similar scene, when Bryant-backed-Boyce Adams was crushed by much of the field in his attempt at Mississippi's first congressional seat, despite early suggestions that he was the frontrunner.

When it comes to endorsements, we are co-signing a statement from the Mississippi Democratic Trust:

Gov. Philbo strikes again: Dan Jones out as Ole Miss chancellor

There has been an ongoing power struggle at the Institutions of Higher Learning, with Gov. Phil Bryant and his appointees pushing to politicize the curriculum at our state's colleges and universities by increasing the power wielded by the IHL.

Gov. Bryant has been no fan of University of Mississippi Chancellor Dan Jones, despite the outstanding things Jones has done for the University. (Bryant is in league with supporters of the old Confederate imagery that Jones worked to wipe from the University's image.)

Expect to see someone well-connected to Gov. Bryant be named to replace Jones. And expect that they will be less enthusiastic about getting rid of the Old South trappings long-associated with Ole Miss.

So, what's with the "Philbo" line in the title of this post?  In 1930, Gov. Theodore Bilbo got the predecessor to IHL to fire 3 college presidents and fire 179 professors.

MS voters like Gov. Bryant, but not enough to reelect him, poll shows

GarinHartYang Research Group conducted a poll last week of Mississippi voters, focused on this year's races for Attorney General and Governor.  I outlined the results regarding the Attorney General's race in a previous post, so let's now turn our attention to the results concerning Gov. Phil Bryant.

As this poll was mainly focused on the Attorney General's race, I don't have as much information from the poll on the Governor's race.  What I do have, though, is interesting, and tracks with what internal Democratic polls have found for the past 2 years.

Approval rating

Gov. Bryant is a popular guy.  66% of Mississippians approve of him. But....

Reelection support

While Mississippians might like Gov. Bryant as a person, we are not very enthusiastic about having him serve as governor for another 4 years.  Where nearly 60% of Mississippians want to reelect AG Jim Hood, only 45% of Mississippians want Gov. Bryant to serve another term. Importantly, only 33% of independents would vote to reelect Bryant.  (By contrast, 58% of independents would vote to reelect Hood.)

But who is the opponent?

At this moment, there is no Democrat qualified to run for governor against Phil Bryant.  That is expected to change within the next few days, however. It will be interesting to see how these numbers move after that announcement, and after the campaign begins in earnest.

The big thing Gov. Phil Bryant hid from you in last night's State of the State

Last night, Gov. Phil Bryant made a big deal about an Education Week ranking that had Mississippi ranked 9th in the nation in preschool enrollment.

That's a good thing. But what else does Education Week say about Mississippi's public education system under Gov. Phil Bryant?

In its most recent review of state education systems across the nation, Education Week gave Mississippi an overall C- grade. Well, that's just barely below average, right?

No.

The only states to score lower than Mississippi were Idaho, Nevada, and South Dakota, and they only did so barely. That means that according to Education Week, we have the 4th worst education system in America. (You have to register to view that article, but it's free.)

To borrow a phrase: And now you know the rest of the story.....

Undermining the public's intent with public education

Tomorrow morning at 10 a.m., the Mississippi House of Representatives will vote on an alternative initiative to the education funding ballot initiative that over 100,000 Mississippians signed on for last year.

This deliberate act led by Republican leaders to confuse and undermine the public’s intent is quite perplexing after Governor Bryant's strong declaration a few weeks ago that the public is in charge education in Mississippi.

Perhaps it is the large number of constituents who are employed or have children educated through public schools, or perhaps they took the Governor’s earlier mantra to heart, but about 13 Republican legislators have indicated they are opposed to the alternative language.

Speaker Philip Gunn, however, needs these 13 votes for Tuesday morning. According to sources, these 13 Republican legislators were taken into the Speaker’s office one-by-one and told they would lose their chairmanships and have $100,000 spent on their primary opponent against them this year. The backer of this $1.3 million? A candidate for office from Madison County with substantial financial resources.

This will be the first time in Mississippi history that the legislature has proposed an alternative to a ballot initiative by the people. If the people are in charge of education in our state, then the people should be voting on the initiative as they signed off on it. But instead, the Legislature is sending Speaker Pro Tempore Greg Snowden around to tell folks that they’ve met their "promises," and intentionally misleading the public through an alternative to the initiative.

Educating our children is a promise that has not been met - it is a necessity to improving our state. It is a necessity to turn around our continuous abysmal performance on every list imaginable, from the highest rates of incarceration to the worst places for business.

It is absurd to think that Speaker Gunn, arguably the most powerful elected leader, is threatening his moderate Republicans in order to cater to Tea Party reactionaries who do not understand that everyone suffers when we do not invest in our greatest asset - Mississippians.

Bryant vs Reeves: Trooper School Edition

Gov. Phil Bryant's public safety agenda continues to work its way through the halls of the state Capitol.

A major component of Bryant's plan is a "sentencing reform" bill that easily passed the House on a bipartisan vote. Now that it is in the Senate, the pressure is on to pass this bill. Still, there are concerns from law enforcement that the bill could have unintended complications for county governments. So now it looks like the wheels are starting to buckle on this piece of legislation. I would be shocked to learn that Bryant and the Republicans are trying to pass this bill so they can find out what is in it.

Not just the sentencing reform law is causing a stir. We are now told that state troopers will descend upon the Capitol on Wednesday to push legislators to approve funding for a new trooper school. As more troopers retire or resign, those positions have to be filled. Even in Governor Bryant's latest State of the State address, he underscored the importance of having a new highway patrol officers.

"The men and women who wear the blue and grey of the Mississippi Highway Patrol remain the best of the best, but they now need your help. The last trooper school added 51 officers to a patrol that remains nearly 150 below its necessary number. This shortage puts not only the motoring public's lives at risk but also those of our troopers. Let me assure you, without more troopers on the road people will die. Let us fund a trooper school this year."

The issue is whether Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves's personal battle with the Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety will bleed over into this nonpartisan issue. Time will tell if Reeves will not play ball and allow his personal grudge with the Department of Public Safety to overrule the agenda of his fellow Republican governor. Bryant also has to show some strength by pressing the super majority in the Republican-led Senate to advance his agenda.

At this point, it is tough to see who wins out: the Tater Tots or the cowboy boots.

If you didn't believe me before about the failure to expand Medicaid, maybe you will now

Southwest Regional Medical Center in McComb let five of its doctors go this past week.  In an AP interview, its CEO, Norman Price, said what I've been saying all along:

"The Affordable Care Act will force the acute care delivery system to evolve to accommodate a new reimbursement reality. As a result of the Affordable Care Act, the non-expansion of Medicaid will have the effect of over-running the emergency departments with non-paying patients. The inevitable cuts and changes will not be popular nor easy to accomplish. However, all will be necessary in order to move this medical center forward into the new Affordable Care Act world." (Emphasis added.)

And remember those DSH payments I've mentioned before (here, here, here, here, here, here and here)?

"We know we're going to be cut $8 million by the federal government, and we also know we're going to be cut 2% by Medicaid. That's going to equate to about $8.5 million to $9 million," Price said. 

The $8 million refers to the amount of money the hospital receives per year for taking on a disproportionate share of patients who are on Medicare or Medicaid.

DSH stands for "disproportionate share hospital".  The DSH program was established to give financial help to hospitals that provide care for an inordinate number of indigent patients.  As you can imagine, Mississippi hospitals are pretty dependent upon payments from the DSH program.  Under the Affordable Care Act, which is the law of the land regardless of how you feel about it, DSH payments are being severely restricted.  Why? Because patients that were causing hospitals to get DSH payments in the past were supposed to be covered by Medicaid expansion.  A Medicaid expansion, mind you, funded almost entirely by the federal government, not the state.

So as our Governor and his cohorts in the Legislature keep whistlin' Dixie, our health care system is burning to the ground.  

So Much for Board and Commission Elimination

A bill pending before the Mississippi House of Representatives is likely to raise some heated concerns when it is debated this week.

House Bill 525 would establish term limits on individuals serving on dozens of state boards and commissions.

Here is the language that is repeated throughout the bill:

"however, upon the expiration of the term of each member in office on July 1, 2014, all subsequent terms shall be for four (4) years.  A member initially appointed to the board after July 1, 2014, may not serve more than eight (8) consecutive years.  A board member serving on July 1, 2014, may be reappointed to a subsequent term; however, any member so reappointed may only serve that portion of a subsequent term which, when added to the member's prior service on the board, does not exceed eight (8) consecutive years."

If this bill goes into effect, dozens of appointees to these boards and commissions will essentially be fired, leaving Governor Phil Bryant with the ability to appoint his friends to these vital roles. Given the animosity between Bryant and Lt. Governor Reeves, it would be interesting to watch these Senate confirmation proceedings take place.

In his first State of the State address, Bryant hit on the theme of eliminating and/or consolidating state boards and commissions in order to save money. Once again, he is missing his own targets.

Brandon Jones, the State Seal, and Jesus

Mississippi Democratic Trust Executive Director Brandon Jones went on MPB's @issue program tonight, where he was paired with former MSGOP Chairman Jim Herring. The issue of Gov. Bryant's proposal to put "In God We Trust" on the State Seal came up, and when asked about it, Jones responded: 

"I will say this. In the New Testament, the number one admonition of Jesus is that we take care of our poor. And I think until Mississippi does a better job of that, we ought to be careful what we put God's name on in this state. I think if people are very serious about their Christian commitment, they want to live out their faith, then what we need to do is really get serious about educating our young people, making sure that they have healthcare opportunities, and then we can worry about what we slap God's name on."

He didn't actually drop the mic and walk away, but he might as well have. 

AW NAW! Gov. Bryant wants to add "In God We Trust" to the State Seal? AIN'T NO STOPPING US NOW!!!

In tonight's State of the State address, Gov. Phil Bryant (R) took the opportunity to align himself with the whackjob wing of the State Senate by announcing his support of SB 2498.  Authored by Thad Cochran opponent Sen. Chris McDaniel among others, SB 2498 would redesign the State Seal to include "In God We Trust".

WHY DIDN'T WE THINK OF THIS SOONER?!?! THIS IS CLEARLY WHAT'S HOLDING US BACK AND KEEPING US IN LAST PLACE!!!

Governor Bryant's Hypocrisy Strikes Again

In a recent interview with the Associated Press, Governor Bryant was pressed on his views that poor families which receive benefits from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program should be subjected to a drug test. Notwithstanding the fact that a George W. Bush-appointed judge in Florida recently found such tests to be in violation of the Constitution, Bryant offered a hypocritical argument as to why the state should proceed with such testing.

AP: You mentioned drug testing for TANF recipients. Is there some reason to believe people on the program are disproportionately troubled by drug problems, compared with the rest of the population?

Bryant: “I don't have evidence to indicate that that population would be more likely. What I do have is a great concern that single mothers are not abusing drugs or other substances and try to maintain a family.”

AP: If the public policy concern is to make sure children are being raised in homes where people aren't addicted to drugs, why not test all parents?

Bryant: “I'm not responsible for an individual or his actions unless he violates the law and then we will certainly put into effect the responsibility that we have to enforce the law for substance abuse. But when someone is taking tax dollars I think we have the right to determine whether or not that individual is abusing a substance and then how we go about treating them.”

AP: Why not test corporate leaders whose companies get state tax money? Or why not test public employees, like yourself?

Bryant: “If I was receiving any federal or state benefits to help raise my family, I'd be glad to take a drug test. I think that would be something that would be acceptable to me if I was receiving tax benefits. I work hard for my money. The federal government or the state government has a right, I think, to merely ask people who are receiving benefits through TANF to submit to a drug test so that we can identify if you're abusing a substance and then how we go about treating you for that.”

Something that stands out about this interview is that Bryant does not suggest companies which do business with the state of Mississippi should submit to a drug test. We know Bryant has buddied up with the French to help them store nuclear waste in Mississippi; no doubt is he prepared to ask French businessmen and women to take a drug test should they receive a tax benefit. Additionally, should his plan prevail, we as taxpayers should expect a drug test report from business executives from Yokohama Tire, Nissan, and Toyota thanks to all the tax incentives provided to them. Fair is fair.

Bryant noted that he would be glad to take a drug test if he was receiving state benefits to raise his family. Someone please hand the governor a cup; he has been in state government for nearly 20 years and was a county employee before that. With his government salary and health benefits in hand, he certainly raised his family with the tax dollars of hardworking Mississippians.

In Bryant's mind, his positions in public service does not justify needing to take a drug test. By his own claim, he works hard for his money, suggesting that those who are not our state's governor do not work as hard as he does and should be held to a different set of standards. He must believe that he is the hardest working person in state government and everyone else employed by the state is a mooch. Giving tax incentives to business is fine because it is not a net loss to the state because they will produce more than they cost, yet the poorest among us receiving TANF benefits enjoy no such luxury in Bryant's world.

In yet another example of hypocrisy from Governor Bryant: exceptions for me but not for thee.

Season's Greetings: Long-Term Unemployment Benefits Expiring

In this season of family, charity, and self-reflection, it is important to remember those among us who are still struggling financially. Tomorrow, long-term unemployment benefits are set to expire for 13,400 Mississippians. 37,600 Mississippians could lose their benefits during 2014 and over 1,400 of our fellow citizens may lose their jobs as a result of the expiration of benefits.

Some may ask why these folks don't just go out and get a job. Seems simple enough. Well, it's a bit more complicated than that.

Mississippi's unemployment rate now stands at 8.3 percent, the highest of any other Southern state. Our unemployment rate has remained over 8 percent since January 2009. From June 2013 to November 2013, our state's labor force has decreased by roughly 24,000. A more worrisome statistic is that during this same time period, our state's education and health care sectors grew by about 1 percent.

All along we were under the impression that Governor Bryant wanted to be known as the health care governor. A recent study showed that an expansion of Medicaid could produce over 20,000 jobs and inject over $1 billion into the state. The response from Bryant goes something like this: No way do I want to create health care jobs to Mississippi. I'm more than happy to give hardworking Mississippians' tax dollars to my fellow Republican governors in North Dakota and Iowa who expanded Medicaid and have unemployment rates of 2.6 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively.

While Tea Party cheerleaders like GOP Chairman Joe Nosef and Bryant sing "Happy Days are Here Again," the direction of our labor force is going in the wrong direction. Bryant will stop the presses to announce a job created in the state, but he understandably goes radio silent when job losses occur.

It seems the Republican agenda can be boiled down to this: You have to vote for our party so you can find out what's in it.

Greenwood Commonwealth: Gov. Bryant's "mulishness" bad for Mississippi

The op-ed begins:

It’s obvious that Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant erred terribly when he blocked Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney from setting up a state-run health-insurance exchange.

Bryant’s not just made it harder for the uninsured to get coverage, as required by Obamacare. He may also be costing them more when they do find it, according to an analysis published Sunday by The Clarion-Ledger of Jackson.

The entire article is required reading, but yeah, that's pretty much the whole story about Gov. Bryant (R) and his pigheadedness when it comes to anything at all Washington-related. I was actually mildly surprised to see Gov. Bryant's statement of support for U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran (R) yesterday, considering how every other word out of Bryant's mouth is anti-spending Tea Party propaganda.

Mississippi Unemployment Rate Remains High Under Republican Leadership

New unemployment statistics show Mississippi's October unemployment rate remained flat at 8.5 percent.

For perspective, Mississippi's unemployment rate in October 2000 was 5.4 percent and the rate in October 2008 was 7.3 percent. February 2009 was the last time our state's unemployment rate was below 8.5 percent.

This is the most alarming statistic in the article:

The labor force declined by more than 7,000 people between September and October. Mississippi's labor force has fallen every month in 2013.

Phil Bryant is walking on quicksand. Bryant talks a big game about all the jobs he's supposedly created, but the numbers do not lie. The Republican leadership of our state continues to give away the store to their well-off friends, at taxpayers' expense, while the average Mississippi family struggles with stagnant wages and shrinking educational and economic opportunities.

Mississippi's Poverty Increases; Republicans Take Credit

Data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau tells a story we often hear: Mississippi ranks as the poorest state in the United States.

A breakdown provided by the Mississippi Economic Policy Center highlights some very troubling numbers.

• Mississippi has had the largest increase in poverty among states from 2011 to 2012. 
• Total poverty increased from 20.6% in 2007 to 24.2% in 2012
• Child poverty increased from 28.9% in 2007 to 34.6% in 2012. 
• Median income dropped over $3,000 in the last five years from $40,240 to $37,095.

Mississippi has the lowest median income of any state in the country, roughly $37,000. Keep in mind that for a family of four, the federal poverty level is $23,550.

In his testimony before the Legislative Budget Committee earlier today, State Economist Darrin Webb noted that Mississippi is gaining jobs at a very slow rate, and many of those jobs are low-wage.

Governor Bryant released a statement noting "Today’s report from State Economist Darren Webb that Mississippi’s economy continues to improve brings to the forefront our aggressive growth strategy to retain our existing industry base and recruit new global business investment." 

Speaker Philip Gunn also took the opportunity to tout this as good news. Gunn credited the state's Republican leadership for creating the conditions in which we now find ourselves.

Bryant and Gunn appear to be missing the point. They seem to ignore the fact that these low-paying jobs are not doing much to enlarge the economic pie in our state. We can only infer that Bryant's and Gunn's attitudes are likely to sound a lot like "If you have a job, regardless of how much it pays, what's there to complain about? A job is a job, right?"

After nearly ten years of Republican leadership in the state, this is what we have to show for it? Mississippi's perpetual position at the bottom of the list is not something to celebrate.

Bad News for Job Creation:

It was a no good, very bad day for "job creation" across the state (and especially for families in North Mississippi) yesterday, when Furniture Brands announced a manufacturing plant closure that will cost Mississippi 1,400 jobs. According to the Clarion Ledger, the plants in Belden and Saltillo will be closing as quickly as October, which will make for a tough autumn for hard-working Mississippians.

The disappointing truth is this: Despite the fact that Governor Bryant has made a point to individually count jobs (one by one) in his State of the State addresses, he won't be found near this one.

And 1,400 families in North Mississippi won't be comforted by those counts either. Governor Bryant  has chosen to use the working people of this state to make cheap political points -- He now must own his failure.

The chest thumping doesn't stop with the governor (though the buck certainly does). Joe Nosef has framed the Mississippi economy as the MSGOP's signature "accomplishment." In his August 28th  Clarion-Ledger web interview, Nosef wrote:

Unlike the nation here in Mississippi the economy is strong. Mississippi's economy totaled more than $100 billion for the first time. Since taking office, Phil has announced the creation of 7,298 new jobs and more than $1.1 billion in private sector investment to date. Have announced 4,659 of those jobs in 2013. 2012: 2,674 new jobs (plus 400 retained jobs), $455,560,000 in company investment. White taxes and regulations are going up in Washington, the Governor has taken both of those in opposite direction. Obviously though there is much more to do and progress to make. I think he thinks about that all the time and I talked to him this morning about some projects he is excited about.

And a recent graphic was created and pushed by the MSGOP touting the state's economic rankings.

Seems like the workers are getting the short end of that "business" thing.

We expect the Mississippi Republican Party to update their numbers to honestly reflect reality soon.

Hold your breath.

SOURCE - STEVE RENFROE TO BE NAMED SOUTHERN DISTRICT PSC

Steve Renfroe (The Mississippi Press file/Jon Hauge)

Steve Renfroe, former in-house lobbyist for Chevron, will be named to replace Leonard Bentz at the Public Service Commission.

ETA 9:24 am CST - More on Renfroe can be found here.  My guess is that Renfroe will merely be a "place holder" as the Clarion-Ledger's Sam Hall speculated this morning.

ETA 9:31 am CST - Here's more from Sam Hall.  Good stuff.

Gov. Bryant to announce his appointment to PSC Southern District seat at 10 am press conference

No word yet on who it will be, but I can't help but wonder where the appointment will stand on Kemper, rate increases, and the storage of nuclear waste in Mississippi.