Mississippi's Unemployment Rate Nation's Highest

The Phil Bryant economy continues to drag Mississippi down. Reports out this afternoon show Mississippi's unemployment rate to now be the country's highest - now at 7.9 percent. This now means over 100,000 Mississippians are out of a job.

We should point out that unemployment in Mississippi has been over seven percent for the entirety of the Bryant terms as governor at lieutenant governor. For all the Republican hot air about being pro-business, the government handouts they give to their friends do not seem to be paying off. Either these are very bad returns on investment, the Republicans do not have any idea what they're doing, or both.

Meddling Is Underway in MSGOP Primary

Reports are coming in that Hinds County GOP Chairman and person who is not a lawyer but can read Pete Perry is recruiting black, Democratic-leaning voters in his home county to vote for Thad Cochran in next Tuesday's GOP primary. He is alleged to have said "You people will really be hurting if McDaniel wins."

My, oh my!

Also of note, last night in Texas, longtime establishment GOP Lt. Governor David Dewhurst was defeated by Tea Party state Senator Dan Patrick by a margin of 65 percent to 35 percent! Texas, we should recall, is home to Gov. Rick "Oops" Perry who is also best buddies with Phil "Nothing More I Can Do" Bryant. Looks like reports of the Tea Party's death have been greatly exaggerated.

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.  

Analysis: Public Policy Polling Releases Mississippi Results

This morning, Public Policy Polling released their automated polling data from their weekend in the field. Solely focused on the coming U.S. Senate race, PPP provides a ton of data on the state of Mississippi's politics, and this nerd will be up late enjoying the provided cross tabs. At the bottom of the post I've attached the full report, but here are a few of the immediate takeaways:

1. Senator McDaniel is a real threat to "establishment" Republicans.

PPP has noted that Cochran is in danger of losing his primary all along. Some of us at Cottonmouth have been saying that for a while. But the truly interesting thing to note is that despite McDaniel's lack of name ID among everyday Republicans, he still out-polls Delbert Hosemann as the favorite to win if Senator Cochran is not in the field. McDaniel is a threat to anyone in the field who might be deemed "main stream." This is due to one thing... 


2. The Mississippi Republican Party is now controlled by the Tea Party.

It is not safe to be anything other than combative anymore. Even the well-known and popular Lieutenant Governor Tate Reeves polls dismally (3%) to others in the prospective field, and among the Republican primary voters, 15% consider themselves "moderate." When asked if they'd prefer Thad Cochran or "someone more conservative," 55% of Mississippi's Republican primary voters prefer the latter. But..

3. Aside from a swath of Tea Partiers, Mississippians are willing to look at other options, even if they have a (D) next to their name.

Despite what has been stated so far -- at least the three Democrats mentioned in the poll are competitive. The generally surveyed field was overweighted with Republicans 422 to 502, and yet Attorney General Jim Hood is head-to-head with every potential Republican nominee...Including Senator Cochran. If Chris McDaniel ended up with the nomination, former Governor Ronnie Musgrove, former Congressman Travis Childers, and Attorney General Hood would be in a statistical dead heat -- and this is among a weighted Republican populous. Perhaps PPP  even missed out on an opportunity to test another strong candidate, Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley, who may be able to tap into the public discontent. Because...

4. These numbers aren't off.

In the coming days, there may be some people here and there suggesting that these poll results are off-kilter or possibly even completely incorrect. (even though they were weighted for Republicans). For that reason, I asked Mississippi Democratic Trust Director Brandon Jones, who very flatly told me:

"This matches our recent survey of Republican Party primary voters. The Tea Party owns this Party now."

With that in mind, the DSCC may be chomping at the bit for Republican primary voters to choose their favorite Tea Party candidate. Because they don't necessarily hold the views of the rest of our state, and some "moderate" Republicans may be without a home.

PPP Release MS 1119

Ms GOP Senate Numbers-PPP

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.

Meanwhile, in Tupelo...

This...

Rep. Brian Aldridge (R - Tupelo)

became this...

Rep. Brian Aldridge (R - Tupelo)

By the way, I do have a potential explanation for where Aldridge could have gotten the money for that trip to Hawaii: You know those guys at the fair who try to guess your age?  I bet he kills it at that game.  He's the oldest looking 36 year-old I've ever seen.  

Here's how the Mississippi House voted on the question of allowing all Mississippians to participate in the healthcare exchange

Read 'em and weep, y'all:

Mississippi House of Representatives vote allowing all Mississippians to participate in healthcare exchange

Joe Nosef goes on C-L live chat; apparently caught Bryant's foot-in-mouth disease

So, MSGOP Chairman Joe Nosef was on the Clarion-Ledger live chat this afternoon when an interesting thing happened.  His sister, an apparent Democrat, sent in a question:

1:14

Comment From Courtney  Joe, a quick question from your little sister (literally). What is the Republican party doing to attract young voters who are genuinely concerned about social issues but also tend to lean fiscally conservative. I know many people my age (29) who would consider voting Republican but for the party's stance on certain social issues.

1:14	Geoff Pender:  Cool, a question from your sister!

1:14	Joe Nosef:  First of all, Courtney, you were supposed to use another name and ask a much easier question like "why am i so great."

1:15	Geoff Pender:  Doesn't sound like she got the memo, Joe. Is your sister, gasp, a Democrat?

1:16

Joe Nosef:  To answer your question, we are working on that. I think the main thing is to stop chasing shiny objections on issues that aren't the main ones like the economy. The other thing is we have to quit letting the perfect be the enemy of the good. If someone doesn't agree on one or two social issues but is with us on most everything else we have to realize we want those people in the party.

"Shiny objections?!?" "Issues that aren't the main ones?" You mean silly little things like Personhood, women's issues, civil rights, and equal pay? Or education, transportation, and healthcare?

Jeez. What a bad couple of days for Mississippi Republicans.

A special message to the MSGOP from those of us at the Mississippi Democratic Trust

BREAKING - MSGOP fires Brett Kittredge

This is an update to a post from last night.

I've been able to confirm that Brett Kittredge, former editor of Majority in Mississippi, has been fired from the Mississippi Republican Party.  Kittredge had been lured over to Mississippi from Georgia by the MSGOP at the beginning of this year to serve as their Communications Director.  That's the Christmas spirit, Republicans!

So who replaces him?  Frank Corder?

Rep. Jason White (R - West) makes it official

Rep. Jason White (R - West), will make his long running affair with the Mississippi Republican Party official today.  A political protege of former Rep. Mary Ann Stevens (D - West), White has told any Republican that would listen that he really, at heart, was a member of their team.  Democrats in the House quickly learned they could not count on White's vote, and White spent most of his time socially aligned with Republicans and their corporate lobbyists.

So, while Republicans will crow today about the new "switch", in reality, it doesn't make any difference.

Say it ain't so, Joe

Just received word from a traditionally very reliable source within the Republican Party that a MSGOP staffer has been fired today by MSGOP Chairman Joe Nosef, 2 weeks before Christmas. I'm reluctant to release the name, because this would be terrible news if true. I'm hoping against hope that it's a bad rumor. In the event that it's not, my thoughts and prayers are with the staffer and his family.

Awfully Republican thing to do, fire a guy right before Christmas.

Mississippi Republican PAC sued for libel

In a developing story, Rep. David Baria (D - Bay St. Louis) has filed suit against Advance Mississippi PAC, a front group for Republican candidates in the 2011 legislative elections.  The lawsuit also names Steve Simmons, the director of Advance Mississippi, as a defendant.  Dwayne Bremer of the Sea Coast Echo broke the story last week, and Geoff Pender of the Clarion-Ledger wrote about it on Saturday.

The lawsuit seeks damages for libel, and points to mailers from Advance Mississippi PAC that claimed Baria cast votes to raise his pay and raise taxes on food.  Those claims were demonstrably false.

This will be interesting to follow.  I can't recall a lawsuit similar to it in recent Mississippi history.

C-L reports that Kevin McGee cut a deal to avoid further prosecution

The Clarion-Ledger has a story up saying that the Ethics Commission has cut a deal with former Representative Kevin McGee (R - Brandon) in which he will pay a $10,000 fine and leave the Legislature in exchange for the Commission not pursuing the case against him any further.  That's a heck of a deal, considering that he was ordered by the Commission to repay $346,000 earlier this year.

McGee, one of Speaker Philip Gunn's chief lieutenants in the Legislature, was active on Twitter this afternoon in response to the news.  At one point, McGee tweeted "To my new follower who wants to laugh at my misery you won't find any misery here! Plus my replacement will be just like me! Good luck."

Well, since McGee just made off with well over $300,000 in taxpayer funds in exchange for a $10,000 fine and giving up his seat in the Legislature, misery is about the last thing I'd expect McGee to be feeling.  And let's hope that McGee's replacement isn't just like him.  I don't know that our budget can handle another Rankin County representative gone wild.

Think the conservative movement isn't about race? Listen to this

Lee Atwater was one of the more brutal Republican political consultants of the 1980s.  He worked for Reagan and H.W. Bush, and was at one point chairman of the Republican National Committee.  Atwater is still revered by the College Republican National Committee, whose members are often taught his techniques.

There's an old interview with Atwater that has come to light in the last few days, and it's pretty much a confirmation of everything that Republicans try to argue isn't true about them with regards to race.  Here it is:




h/t to NMissCommentor.com

A deliciously ironic tweet from Rep. Kevin McGee (R - Brandon)

Upon the news of his resignation, a reader brought the following tweet from Rep. Kevin McGee to my attention:

It's ironic, of course, because Rep. Kevin McGee was hit with an order by the Ethics Commission to repay nearly half a million dollars in state funds that he got...wait for it...by unethically doing business with the state. 

"Money for nothing" and "me me me", indeed.

***BREAKING*** - Capitol sources say Rep. Kevin McGee (R - Brandon) has resigned from the House

There have been calls for Rep. Kevin McGee's resignation this year, and according to legislative sources, it appears as though he's finally heeded them. Rep. McGee, one of Mississippi's ALEC legislators and a chief lieutenant to Speaker Phillip Gunn (R - Clinton), had been found in violation of state ethics laws earlier this year for illegal contracts with the State.

8th grader demonstrates Republican claims about Attorney General Hood are flat out lies

Republicans, in an effort to prevent Attorney General Jim Hood from protecting Mississippi from unscrupulous Wall Street behemoths, are attacking Hood's ability to contract with attorneys skilled in high-level litigation. Among the complaints being made by Republicans are that AG Hood isn't being transparent about whom he contracts with, that the terms of these contracts are unknown, and that some "insiders" get better terms than others. Allegations like these need to be called what they are: bald-faced lies designed to prevent Mississippi from defending itself against major corporations who steal from us.

In a video being circulated among legislators and members of the media by the Mississippi Democratic Trust, an 8th grader shows just how easy it is to locate and read contracts AG Hood signs with independent counsel. Oh, and how every single contract has the same payment terms. Here's the video:

Republicans attacking Democrats for voting with Haley Barbour

You're seeing it in your mailboxes and on your televisions all over Mississippi: Republican challengers in legislative races attacking Democratic legislators for "voting for tax increases."  Well, that's interesting, seeing as they get several things horribly wrong.

The Republican smear is always the same: "So-and-so voted to increase your taxes!"  Well, let's look at what they're talking about.  First, they mean to say that an incumbent voted to raise the hospital bed tax.  Well, there was indeed a vote on a proposal to change the assessments on hospitals as a way to finance health care programs.  Anyone care to guess whose plan that was?  Gov. Haley Barbour.  You got it, they're attacking Democrats for voting with their Fearless Leader.

Second, they try to say that the nefarious, job-hating, Cawmniss, Soshaliss, libruhl Democrat incumbent voted to raise your taxes by increasing fees and assessments on things like CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS.  Yeah, you read that right.  Republicans must be assuming that you're a criminal when they say that the Democrat voted to raise your taxes.  And, by the way, guess who signed into law every last one of those increases in fees and assessments?  You got it, Gov. Haley Barbour.

Folks, the tone and tenor of Republican attack ads this year has been shockingly bad.  The "damn-the-truth" attitude started back in the Longwitz-Barbour race, and it's carried right on through to the general election.  In fact, I remember predicting exactly this two months ago.  So good work, MSGOP.  You're running an operation Theodore Bilbo would be proud of.

A brief note on Republican semantics about PERS

Republicans, justifiably terrified that voters will find out what they intend to do to the Mississippi Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS), are running around telling folks that Democrats are using "scare tactics" to get folks to vote against them.  Well, here's the thing:

Some things in this world are scary. When a guy pulls a gun on you and demands your money, that's scary. When a rattlesnake shakes its tail, that's scary. When Republicans look for ways to give your retirement money over to Wall Street, that's scary.

I can't help but think of President Harry S Truman's famous words as House Republicans complain about Democrats using "scare tactics" when informing the voters about Republican intentions for PERS: "I don't give them Hell. I just tell the truth about them and they think it's Hell."

Well, welcome to Hell, guys. Thank Haley for the ride.