Poachers for Mangold

Last week, federal prosecutors in Alaska charged a number of Mississippians with illegally hunting and killing animals in a federal preserve. Among those charged was Charles Dixon of Brookhaven. According to the District Attorney's press release

Charles W. Dixon... is charged with two counts of violating the Lacey Act and one count of criminal forfeiture which seeks forfeiture of a STOLQuest SQ-4 aircraft.  As a basis for forfeiture of the aircraft it is alleged that Charles W. Dixon used the aircraft in the illegal outfitting, guiding and transporting operation, in addition to using the aircraft to transport unlawfully taken game taken by Clark W. Dixon and others.

Who is Charles Dixon? When he is not using his plane to transport dead animals that may have been killed in violation of federal law, Dixon plays host to a revolving door of Republican officials and wannabes.

In June, Charles Dixon hosted a fundraiser for Republican House candidate Vince Mangold; Mangold is challenging House Democratic Leader Bobby Moak of Bogue Chitto. At this fundraiser for Mangold were Governor Phil Bryant, House Speaker Philip Gunn (R-Clinton), Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann, Agriculture and Commerce Commissioner Cindy Hyde-Smith, Sen. Sally Doty (R-Brookhaven), and Rep. Becky Currie (R-Brookhaven). 

A couple questions as we head into the week: How many Mississippi Republican elected officials joined Mr. Dixon on the alleged illegal hunt? Why are Rep. Becky Currie's eyes closed in roughly half the pictures taken of her?

Commissioner Hyde-Smith, Governor Bryant, Bette Dixon, and Charles Dixon

Vince Mangold is standing between Bryant and Secretary Hosemann

Republican Party Endorses Inadequate and Inefficient Public Education

It was bound to happen. For years, Mississippi Republicans have worked tirelessly to undermine public education in the state. Now, they have finally put their party's stamp of approval on it.

Early today, the Mississippi Republican Party Central Committee - not to be confused with the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China - voted unanimously to endorse the Mississippi Republican Party's opposition to public education. Some familiar faces are on this committee: Governor Phil Bryant, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann, House Speaker Philip Gunn (R-Clinton), and House Speaker Pro Tempore Greg Snowden (R-Meridian).

If you recall during this year's legislative session, Gunn and Reeves rushed alternative ballot language through the legislature without any hearings or public input while threatening their rank-and-file Republicans to vote for it. Their goal: confuse the voters. During this session, Gov. Bryant pushed his private school voucher bill which will pull resources away from public schools. At the same time, Speaker Gunn has been at the beck and call of the Bomgar Caucus, an association of deep-pocketed interests that spent tens of thousands of dollars to defeat pro-public education Republican legislators in the August primaries. Just last week, Bryant and Hosemann voted to put their political talking points on the November ballot by putting misleading language before the voters. This intentionally-confusing language, mind you, was pushed by Reeves and Snowden through the Legislative Budget Office. The public has been refused access to the communication between these offices because they chose to not be transparent. Let's not forget that time Rep. Herb Frierson (R-Poplarville) threw out his scare tactics of frightening state agencies that if the state fully support public education, their agencies would see massive budget cuts - possibly leading to huge layoffs.

All these political players and all these moves have been a part of the Republicans' masterful strategy of deliberately weakening Mississippi's public education system.

Republicans can talk about how proud they are about continuing to not fully support public education and that Mississippi still pays its public school teachers less than their counterparts across the South. The truth remains that you can either be a Republican or support public education, but you cannot do both. The Republican Party's vote today proves it.

Who is (601) 324-5142?

An interesting development this weekend comes from some tips to Kudzu, suggesting that more than one community has received anonymous calls from a local number push-polling false narratives. Reports are that these calls relate to Democratic candidates across the state, unchecked by Delbert Hosemann, who apparently has things to do other than his job.

The caller does not identify themselves as a particular person or organization (a legal no-no).

The anonymous caller, whose voicemail sounds to be a young man in his 20's with no additional information about his whereabouts, seems to have perturbed a number of Mississippians in recent months. A quick google search shows that this Google Voice number has been active since at least 2014, and pesters folks a good bit.  Here are a few comments from 800Notes.com:

Caller ID shows it's from McComb, MS. Called 6 times today between noon & 3pm. Tried to call it back once & reached a male's voice message that didn't identify himself (or company); just said "Thank you for calling, please leave your name & number...", so I just hung up.

- April 9, 2014

I have received 6 calls in 3 days. Political survey. I told them on first call I was not interested and wished them a good day. Did not respond to call again until the fourth call and explained I had received 4 calls and she immediately became rude and said I had to be mistaken.  I assured her I was  DEFINITELY not mistaken as I was staring at my 4 mistakes on caller ID.  She loudly explained that wasn't possible and rudely hung up on me. Guess she has no sense of humor.

- July 18, 2015

 Had 16 calls from it hanging up within 5 minutes today. No one there when I call back

- September 4, 2015

In July, Secretary Hosemann called anonymous mailers directed at Mayor Mary Hawkins-Butler "gutless."

We here at Cottonmouth are holding our breaths in regards to whether that applies to attacks on Democrats.

Any additional information or other tips to Cottonmouth/Kudzu can be emailed kudzu@cottonmouthblog.com.

Delbert Hosemann Crying Wolf

Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann was in the news this week stating his fear that voters are casting their ballots. In short, Hosemann is scared voters are voting.

State law allows a number of instances where a voter may cast his or her ballot through an absentee ballot. They are:

(a) Any qualified elector who is a bona fide student, teacher or administrator at any college, university, junior college, high, junior high, or elementary grade school whose studies or employment at such institution necessitates his absence from the county of his voting residence on the date of any primary, general or special election, or the spouse and dependents of said student, teacher or administrator if such spouse or dependent(s) maintain a common domicile, outside of the county of his voting residence, with such student, teacher or administrator.
(b) Any qualified elector who is required to be away from his place of residence on any election day due to his employment as an employee of a member of the Mississippi congressional delegation and the spouse and dependents of such person if he or she shall be residing with such absentee voter away from the county of the spouse's voting residence.
(c) Any qualified elector who is away from his county of residence on election day for any reason.
(d) Any person who has a temporary or permanent physical disability and who, because of such disability, is unable to vote in person without substantial hardship to himself or others, or whose attendance at the voting place could reasonably cause danger to himself or others.
(e) The parent, spouse or dependent of a person with a temporary or permanent physical disability who is hospitalized outside of his county of residence or more than fifty (50) miles distant from his residence, if the parent, spouse or dependent will be with such person on election day.
(f) Any person who is sixty-five (65) years of age or older.
(g) Any member of the Mississippi congressional delegation absent from Mississippi on election day, and the spouse and dependents of such member of the congressional delegation.
(h) Any qualified elector who will be unable to vote in person because he is required to be at work on election day during the times at which the polls will be open.

With respect to persons over the age of 65, the counties Hosemann specified have a good number of senior citizens. Benton County's over 65 population is 17.4 percent; Claiborne's is 13.9 percent; Tallahatchie's is 13 percent; Noxubee's is 14.8 percent; Quitman's is 15 percent. Thus, the number of persons who are senior citizens who are eligible to cast an absentee ballot is in line with the turnout rates up to this point. On top of that, Hosemann did not mention how many people are on these counties' permanently disabled voter list or state how many students are likely out of town. 

To sum it all up, Delbert Hosemann is afraid that people in counties with high black populations are voting. In his time in office, he has done practically nothing to make voting easier in the state of Mississippi. All Hosemann has shown us is that his campaign about ballot protection has done almost nothing to prevent fraud. If Hosemann was so concerned about ensuring the integrity of the voting process, he should have put some meaningful proposals on the table over the past eight years rather than grandstanding and confusing elderly ladies on park benches.

It is also worth noting that Hosemann had a press conference today about conservative mystery groups which are funding opposition mail pieces against Republican legislators. The groups Hosemann referenced are not Democratic operations which had been suggested by representatives of Speaker Philip Gunn.

It's 2015, Right, Republicans?

The fact that you are reading this post online from your phone, tablet, or computer means you have access to the Internet. Not only are you reading the quality blog posts off this website, you likely do your shopping online, watch a movie online, pay your bills online, and connect with friends on social media. It's how we as a society have come to interact with businesses and one another. One thing that we cannot do online in Mississippi is register to vote or update our voter information.

20 states (including Louisiana, Georgia, Indiana, Utah, and Kansas) already have online voter registration systems established, many of which cost less than $300,000 to set up. In order to ensure the integrity of the voter registration application, states require information for online applications such as driver's license number, dates of birth, or last digits of a voter's Social Security number.

Delbert Hosemann (Visual Approximation)

Recently, person-who-got-elected-by-confusing-an-elderly-woman-on-a-park-bench and Republican Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann went on a radio program to talk about how his office is setting up an online portal for individuals to invest in businesses. That's right. A business can raise capital by having people invest in their operations from the comfort of his or her living room. For a state where 41 percent of its citizens cannot access the Internet from their homes, this is a big undertaking. If you want to update your voter registration online while reviewing a business plan, you are out of luck. Did Hosemann discuss online voter registration during his interview? Of course not.

Think of how convenient it would be for a voter to access a website or an app and change his or her address in case of a move or change a family name following a marriage or divorce. Unfortunately, Delbert Hosemann and the Phil Bryant-led Republicans have not made secure online voter registration or finding innovative ways to make voting easier a priority.

Delbert Hosemann Missed His Calling

For a politician whose party hates "Hollywood celebrities," Secretary of State and self-appointed Hollywood promoter Delbert Hosemann (R) spends a lot of time with folks who make their careers on television and movie screens. Hosemann is best known for getting elected by being the guy whose name was forgotten by a sweet little old lady. Judging by his Twitter feed, he is trying to boost his name id by getting his picture taken with people much more famous than himself. Since he hangs out with such A-list crowds, if Delbert ever sidles up to you and asks to take a photo, you will know you've made it.

I think Delbert is secretly upset his acting career never took off. Thankfully for us, there are not enough taxpayer-funded television and radio ads supporting voter identification that can help him.

Election Integrity? Why Won't Delbert's Office Publish Primary Results?

EDIT: UPDATE BELOW

Derek Willis over at The Upshot via The New York Times, has drawn attention to something that has privately annoyed me for a few days now.

Mississippi primary election was six days ago. No results posted on Secretary of State site yet: http://t.co/AInlekUJRG
— Derek Willis (@derekwillis) June 10, 2014

To give you an idea of how stupid this is, Rankin Co. has HTML of results. The state can't tap into this? https://t.co/1rcWqGxpLQ
— Derek Willis (@derekwillis) June 10, 2014

I mean, the Miss. SoS knows the results of the primary, yes? But it can't post even PDFs of unofficial results? Boggles the mind.
— Derek Willis (@derekwillis) June 10, 2014

Much ado has been made regarding protecting the integrity of elections under Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann. Hosemann even suggested in an Election Day press release that they had not heard any problems relating to Voter ID, despite the fact that I personally called to report 2 (two) of my own.

But the issue here is that we are six days removed from an election and Hosemann's office has absolutely dropped the ball in reporting its data. Not only does this cause trouble for nerds like myself interested in checking out precincts in depth, it means that nobody really knows how close the election was, including the media.

In fact, without official announcement or certification from Delbert Hosemann's office, how do we even know that a runoff was necessary?

This is a wee bit troubling as Hosemann publicly endorsed Cochran after flirting with the idea of running himself.

Why are we waiting? I've done enough data parsing to know that the Secretary's office doesn't even digitize the returns. They merely scan them and publish.

Something's got to give. You know, for integrity's sake. 

_____________________________________________

UPDATE: Derek Willis from The Upshot as well as comments below have an update regarding this issue.

“We don’t even certify the results,” said Pam Weaver, communications director for the Mississippi Secretary of State’s office. “But as soon as the parties send the results to us, we post them.” A similar process is in place in Alabama. Under state law, the parties have until June 13 to send the results to state officials. 

Secretary of State Hosemann affirms finding of his hometown lawyer regarding David Watkins and Metrocenter project

News began breaking today regarding Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann's affirmance of a finding by Bobby Bailess against Jackson developer David Watkins.  Bailess, a Vicksburg attorney, presided over a hearing at which Hosemann alleged Watkins had committed wrongdoing in the financing of the Metrocenter mall renovation. 

The connection between the two was not lost on Watkins or his attorney, Lance Stevens.  They issued a press release this afternoon concerning the findings.  Here is the text of the release:

David Watkins, the President of Watkins Development, is responding to the finding of the Secretary of State hearing officer, attorney Robert Bailess of Vicksburg, and the affirmation of that finding by Secretary of State, Delbert Hosemann. Watkins is the developer who successfully completed the King Edward Hotel and Standard Life Building renovation, as well as the Meridian Law Enforcement building, one of the finest such facilities in the southeast.

Speaking through his spokesperson, lawyer Lance Stevens, the Watkins defense team states:

“The finding of the hearing officer is a joke. He specifically writes, on page 17 of his report, that ‘there exists no applicable statutory requirement that fraud be proven at all...’ Indeed, there was no evidence of fraud whatsoever.” Stevens says.

“Hosemann agrees with the hearing officer’s conclusion, on page 18 of the report, that ‘whether or not the money was owed (to Watkins) is irrelevant.’ Watkins is apparently now fined for withdrawing his own money. That is absurd.” Watkins alleged at the hearing, without any contradiction, that the Retro Metro business owed him well over the amount he withdrew for expenses like the purchase of the MetroCenter property and his costs for development of the property.

“This was a private loan, not public money,” Stevens states. The loan was for $2 million more than the hard construction costs estimated to complete the project, so, according to Watkins, the lenders clearly knew that development and procurement costs would have to be included. “The lenders did not expect Watkins Development to work for free or buy the property for nothing.”

Watkins, a lifelong Democrat, also notes that the decision is so contrary to the law and facts that is smacks of political abuse by his Republican accuser, Hosemann. Bailess, the judge or hearing officer in the two day trial, is a Vicksburg lawyer and Hosemann contributor (according to Secretary of State records). He is also the lawyer for one of Hosemann’s business interests, 100 Colony Cross Blvd. LLC (according to Secretary of State records).

“If I tried all my cases in front of my best buddy and personal lawyer, from my hometown, I bet I’d win them all, too,” Stevens said.

Watkins will appeal the adverse ruling of the Secretary of State.

Next stop, Hinds County Chancery Court....

Moving Voter Registration into the Late 20th Century

A soon-to-be introduced bill by state Sen. David Blount (D-Jackson) opens another voter registration avenue by allowing persons to submit an online voter registration form. Bear in mind that mail-in voter registration forms have been accepted for many years now. According to an article from the Clarion-Ledger, Blount believes that there are enough safeguards in place to make online registration an extension of methods that already exist rather than setting up a new infrastructure. That hasn't stopped critics from jumping on board.

State Republican Chairman, and guy who insists his tweets be re-tweeted, Joe Nosef noted his skepticism that such online forms could be problematic. Because Obamacare, of course. Nosef seems to be off-message in his criticism. The sitting Secretary of State is a fellow Republican, mind you. Breaking the Republican Party's 11th Commandment by insinuating that Secretary Hosemann's office cannot effectively manage online voter registration is puzzling.

Speaking of Hosemann, the Secretary noted his hesitance because of possible security issues. Perhaps Hosemann does not realize what online forms his office processes. For example, businesses file online annual reports, LLC filings are submitted online, and lobbyists file their reports online through the Secretary of State's office. The infrastructure and data security is already in place yet the resistance remains.

So here's the deal: either Hosemann does not know that his office already accepts online forms for other transactions or he should simply admit that he does not want to make the voting process more efficient. His pet Voter ID project is already being implemented so that should alleviate his concerns, but much like his paranoid Republican base, that remains to be seen.

Hosemann Fundraises While He Waits

Hosemann Serving Platitudes on a 6th Grade Reading Level

While he impatiently waits for Sen. Thad Cochran to announce his plans, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann is not wasting any time throwing red meat and scaring donations out of his Tea Party base.

Hosemann spends most of his letter talking about all of his victories over "the feds," including defeating the guys in black suits from meddling in our elections.

Speaking of meddling in elections, we know that Tea Party representatives attended a meeting at the request of Hosemann with leaders of our state's recognized political parties prior to the 2012 General Election. That's correct; Delbert invited Tea Party leaders in order to keep them in the loop and to temporarily ease their paranoia. The Tea Party's biggest concern was that the blue helmets of the United Nations would tamper with our elections. To our knowledge, no tin foil hats were worn by Tea Party representatives at Hosemann's meeting.

Delbert takes credit for winning cases before the United States Supreme Court when the Court struck down Section IV of the Voting Rights Act! Yes, a person who neither argued the case nor has a vote on the Court takes the credit.

Not only that, he takes credit for Voter ID. Sure, he made the issue one of his biggest campaign promises, but it was ultimately the Republican-led legislature that passed legislation implementing Voter ID. Not Delbert. Hosemann should thank his potential Republican challenger, state Sen. Chris McDaniel for passing the Voter ID bill out of his committee.

It seems there is a difference between proven and promise. Hosemann is proving he can take credit for someone else's promise.

Campaign Finance Reports Cannot Be Found

Yesterday, we noted that state Sen. Chris McDaniel was having some technical difficulties with his campaign website. Not to be outdone, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann is having some website troubles of his own.

In this instance, the portal to access certain state campaign finance reports is currently offline. One hopes that Hosemann isn't trying to put up obstacles for those trying to see who has donated to his campaign, especially as the Republican primary gets underway.

If Hosemann and/or McDaniel ever complain about uninsured Americans not being able to sign up for health insurance coverage because of computer glitches, remind them that they are not perfect either.

Update: It is surely now a matter of time before there are demands from members of the Senate Conservative Coalition for Delbert to force his Assistant Secretary of State for Elections to resign.

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

Hosemann: We Have a Senator, but Why Isn't It Me?

In a live chat with the Clarion-Ledger last week, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann (R) was asked if he is jumping into the Republican primary for the United States Senate next year. His response:

"We have a senator right now. He will make his mind I believe shortly whether he is running again. I am honored to be considered for a seat to represent Mississippi in the United States Senate and would quickly address this question if Senator Cochran retires."

It appears that Hosemann has concluded that Senator Cochran is not running for re-election.

Yesterday, it was reported that a staff member of Secretary Hosemann's official office was in Jones County trying to get some dirt on state Sen. Chris McDaniel. McDaniel has already begun his campaign for the United States Senate and has done a successful job in earning the endorsements of many hardcore Tea Party groups.

After looking around Jones County, it seems that all Hosemann's folks could come up with are some elections that McDaniel may or may not have voted in over the past ten years. It should be noted that a simple check of the state's voter file, which Hosemann's office manages, could have come up with such a finding. Gas is a bit cheaper these days, but it seems an awful waste of resources to travel to Jones County and not find much. Does Hosemann have a campaign account through which he paid for his staffer's mileage? Since state agencies are more aware of their expenditures these days, I hope Hosemann did not pay for mileage reimbursement out of his office budget. I don't think the Tea Party base would appreciate state funds paying for campaign expenses.

It is well documented that Mississippi has gone through a political transformation in the past ten years. Is it possible McDaniel voted in a Democratic primary ten years ago when his local officials were mostly Democrats? Sure. Does anyone care that much? Probably not. Heck, I would be willing to bet that many Mississippians at some point in their life has voted in both major party primaries. I know I have. Thanks, Dad.

Hosemann tried to deflect his involvement in this records request by arguing that we need to know about McDaniel's voting record, but voters can easily see beyond his facade. At the end of the day, Hosemann jumped the gun and he knows it. Denying that he had any knowledge of the whereabouts and motives of one of his top advisers is quite disingenuous.

The not so mysterious case of not really voter fraud

Last week, Marvin M. Allen tried to vote in the Hattiesburg mayoral race. When he arrived, he was told he had already voted and had to vote affidavit.

Queue all the over-the-top-conspiracy-theory-voter ID rhetoric - voter fraud occurred in the Hattiesburg special election with the Department of Justice monitoring along with Delbert Hosemann and the Secretary of State. This is the proof they needed - people are fraudulently voting in Mississippi!

But alas, that was not the case, as WDAM discovered. Turns out, there are two Marvin M. Morrises in Hattiesburg. Both votes were counted, and while this wasn't an ideal situation, it's important to note  - no one perpetuated a fraud here. And, unless Delbert Hosemann wants to include a photo of each voter on the rolls, Voter ID would have done very little to help this situation.

Wasn't Secretary Hosemann in Hattiesburg?

Secretary Hosemann spent the past month asking for editorial space in papers and nightly news stations, and hosted press conferences in Hattiesburg on Election Day. His team was at major precincts throughout the day, and he wanted everyone to know that he was on it. 

So, where has Delbert Hosemann been since Election Day? What were Mississippian tax dollars used for?

Why not call and ask?

Below is the phone number for the Mississippi Secretary of State Elections Office. Why not ask them directly for an explanation:

Kimberly P. Turner
Assistant Secretary of State
Elections

Located at the Heber Ladner Building
401 Mississippi Street
Jackson, Mississippi 39201
P. O. Box 136
Jackson, MS 39205-0136
Elections Hotline: 800-829-6786
Elections Call Center: 601-576-2550
Fax: 601-576-2545
E-mail Elections

Delbert Hosemann: I want to run the Hinds County elections

There is a ginned-up issue out there, folks, that threatens to end local control of elections in majority-black counties.  It is part and parcel of nationwide Republican plans to suppress minority votes.  This is important, so please pay attention:

According to the Hinds County Circuit Clerk, Barbara Dunn (D), there are 57 Hinds County residents who are eligible to cast military absentee ballots, 12 of which are in the country. The 45 overseas military absentee voters were contacted and informed that they could vote online. The 12 in the U.S. wanted paper ballots, and they will get those once they are printed.

The remaining absentee ballots haven't been printed yet because the Election Commissioner race involving Bobbie Graves is the subject of a lawsuit currently pending before the Mississippi Supreme Court. Contrary to what some people are saying, the law allows for situations such as this. Note the last part of Section 23-15-9(a) of the Mississippi Code:

(a) Not more than forty-five (45) days nor later than 12:00 noon on the Saturday immediately preceding elections held on Tuesday, the Thursday immediately preceding elections held on Saturday, or the second day immediately preceding the date of elections held on other days, he shall appear in person before the registrar of the county in which he resides, or for municipal elections he shall appear in person before the city clerk of the municipality in which he resides and, when the elector so appears, he shall execute and file an application as provided in Section 23-15-627 and vote by absentee ballot, except that if the ballot has not been printed by forty-five (45) days preceding the election, the elector may appear and file an application anytime before the election. Then the absentee ballot shall be mailed by the circuit clerk to the elector as soon as the ballot has been printed.

All of this is apparently giving Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann (R) the vapors, because he is claiming he has already drafted a lawsuit to take over the Hinds County elections.  This lawsuit, if filed, could create the legal precedent Hosemann would need to take over a county's elections any time he sees a problem.  And guess where he's going to see problems?  That's right, the same places he thinks he sees the rampant voter fraud he's not prosecuting.  Which happen to be the same places the MSGOP sends poll watchers.  And all of which just happen to be the majority-black areas of our state.

The Republican War on Voting (Mississippi Edition)

Mississippi's registered voters will not be required to present identification in order to vote in November-- just don't expect to hear that from Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann or any of his fellow Republicans.

Mississippi's voter ID plan is currently under review by the Department of Justice, a process likely to extend beyond November 6.  But instead of carrying out his constitutional duties and clarifying the current state of voter laws in advance of election day, our Secretary of State is doing all he can to muddy the water. 

This month, Hosemann has spent considerable time telling any coffee klatch who will listen that Mississippi has passed a voter ID law, that the the new law will require voters to present identification before voting, and that the Department of Justice is a bunch of meanies.  He also pauses for the occasional photo op.

 Any questions?

Careful observers will note that Hosemann has been on a Katherine Harris-like trajectory for years now and it's unlikely his office will engage in any honest to goodness voter education projects between now and November 6.

But Hosemann isn't the only one who wouldn't mind a little voter confusion in Mississippi.  This photo has been running inexplicably in a Mississippi newspaper for the past several months:

Secretary Hosemann asks for (and receives) $500,000 to pay lawyers to defend a lawsuit that hasn't been filed

The Mississippi Tea Party is promoting a press conference by Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann to address "derogatory comments made by an Obama Judtice (sic) Dept. employee about Mississippi and our new Voter ID Law which would not have passed without the hard work of you and our MS Tea Party."  Spelling issues aside, the Tea Party's promotion of Hosemann and his handling of Voter I.D. is interesting when you follow the money.

Tucked away in Section 11 (lines 163 - 165) of Senate Bill 3007, the bill which provides the special fund appropriations for the Secretary of State, is a line item that moves $395,000 in tax payer money to the Secretary of State for "litigation of voter identification."  The following section gives Secretary Hosemann the discretion to escalate the funds in the amount of $100,000.  That makes $495,000 of taxpayer money to pay lawyers to defend a lawsuit that is yet to be filed.

I guess its Taxed Enough Already unless the government is preemptively spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to defend one of our pet projects.

Redistricting past and future; a look at where we've been and where we may be headed (maps included)

Most followers of this blog will recall last year's epic redistricting battle.  There were two plans unveiled in the Senate, one by the Senate Reapportionment Committee and one by surrogates of then-Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant (R).  In the House, the House Reapportionment Committee passed a map which was passed by the full House, and now-Speaker Philip Gunn (R - Clinton) failed to pass a "One Percent Plan", developed by the Mississippi Republican Party.  The Senate Reapportionment Committee plan passed the Senate and House, but the Senate refused to pass the House Reapportionment Committee plan, and the whole thing wound up in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi before a three-judge panel.  The panel punted on the issue, following the reasoning pushed by Robert Gibbs and Matt Allen, attorneys for Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann (R).

Well, word is beginning to spread at the Capitol that the 2012 redistricting battle may be about to begin....

Todd Wade blasts Secretary of State Hosemann

After being removed from the ballot today, former Republican Senate candidate Todd Wade fired off a press release attacking Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann (R). Here are the highlights:

I have raised a large amount of money from Conservatives in District 9 who wanted to see us take this seat. The momentum was on our side. The Secretary of State gave my campaign only an hour and forty-five minute notice of the original hearing to remove me from the ballot. I don't believe it was Secretary Hosemann's wishes (sic) that I be able to attend. Luckily I was already on my way to Jackson, and I was able to be there. The voters in Senate District 9 deserve more respect than this from Mr. Hosemann.

I won't pass judgement on the entire Secretary of State's office, but this particular issue has been mishandled and should frighten every Mississippian about what is going on in Jackson. This type of action from our Secretary of State only increases voter apathy, decreases participation, and continues to promote an environment of "good ole boy, status quo politics". It is bad for Mississippi.