Lester Spell JFP Voter Questionnaire Posted
We have just posted a very complete candidate questionnaire we received from Commissioner of Agriculture Lester Spell, a Democrat, who is running against Republican Max Phillips. Mr. Phillips returned a …
AG candidate Jim Hood accuses opponent of lying
We received this letter today from attorney general candidate Jim Hood, the Democrat, accusing his challenger Scott Newton of intentionally lying about Hood's record. It is reprinted verbatim:
Reaching New Political Lows
This whole lt. gov. abortion dust-up is absurd. Finally, we have two women, one black and one white, running for a major office in the state -- and we're arguing …
Restless Lucero, by Palmer Houchins
Calling Memphis country-rockers Lucero restless might be an understatement. Over the past two years, the group has logged almost 400 live shows. Despite a commitment to touring that would spell …
No Fallen Angel, by Alphonso Mayfield
The world of hip-hop is a male-dominated jungle where the fiercest competitors survive by the ferocity of their lyrical acumen. Meaning that they eat off their words. Many female artists …
James Meredith
Talking to Mr. James Meredith is a right-brain experience. The conversation isn't linear, organized, disciplined. It jumps around to topics that the thin, intense grandfather is interested in at the …
Go, Rush, Go
The Associated Press reports: "New ESPN commentator Rush Limbaugh said on the network's pregame show that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb was overrated because the media wanted to see a …
Barbour's company to profit off Iraq
The AP's Emily Wagster Pettus wrote an important story today about Haley Barbour's D.C. company's plans to make a lot of money in Iraq. She begins: "Lobbying partners of Haley …
Barbour choice of white supremacists?
The Clarion-Ledger today mentions Barbour appearance on a racist site, as a JFP reader revealed on our blog (scroll to bottom) last week: "Barbour wears a lapel pin with the …
Is this even parody?
"Treasury Secretary John Snow announced Monday that the federal government will discontinue its long-term, low-yield investment in the nation's youth," The Onion "reports."
First Gubernatorial Candidate Debate Sept. 29 at Belhaven
WHAT: The first of four 2003 gubernatorial candidate debates to be held across the state. The event is being sponsored by WLBT-TV and Belhaven College and will be aired live …
Bizarro NAFTA logic
Sid Salter often reminds me of George Will: Clearly, he has a good mind, which shows up sometimes in his columns, but he's so busy using it to shill for …
Cover
Hoodwinked! The U.S. Chamber Pulls a Fast One on Mississippi with 'Tort Reform'
It sounded mighty convincing: "Mississippi faces a crisis in medical malpractice insurance." The warnings by industry have been dire: "This is a wake-up call for Mississippi." The reports of doctors …
Sid Salter on Haley Barbour
In the Sept. 13 issue of National Journal: "I think (Barbour's) been successful in changing his image from someone who just showed up on Crossfire to a guy who rolled …
Scary Burbs
<i>Urban Flight May Shorten Your Life</i>
Last spring, during the media frenzy over crime in the city, I interviewed a Brandon woman who had been the victim of an armed robbery in Jackson. She wasn't physically …
[Talk] ‘You Don't Need No Ticket'
Hope was palpable in the new Union Station the evening of Aug. 26. Mayor Harvey Johnson had wisely chosen the almost-completed "multi-model transportation center" as the site of his annual …
[Talk] Home to Roost
The chickens George W. Bush hatched in January 2001 when he signed the No Child Left Behind education bill are starting to come home to roost. Now in the second …
Cheers to Gailya Porter!
Last week, we learned that Smith Elementary has ranked as a Level 5 school. We featured principal Gailya Porter as "Jacksonian" a month ago in our education issue. Here's an …
Wesley Clark for President?
Salon reports today: "On Wednesday Clark officially declared himself a Democrat, telling CNN that if he ran for president, he'd seek the Democratic nomination. 'It's a party that stands for …
[Talk] No Discernible Effect
With no discussion to speak of, the Jackson City Council re-instituted its youth curfew ordinance at its Aug. 26 meeting. With City Councilman Ben Allen out of the room temporarily, …
"How to Lose the Intelligent Vote, Part I"
Things are looking so positive in Mississippi. State Democrats chose the most qualified candidate for state treasurer regardless of race. Dialogue has started to happen about intelligent issues. There are …
Mayor Johnson's ‘State of the City' Address
In its entirety: State of the City Address, Mayor Harvey Johnson, Jr., August 26, 2003, 5:30 p.m., Union Station
Dillon Celebrates Women's Equality Day
Gubernatorial Sherman Lee Dillon sent around a statement saluting Women's Equality Day. It reads: "Green Party Gubernatorial Candidate, Sherman Lee Dillon is fed up. As the father of four daughters …
Howard Dean jumps to a 21-point lead in N.H.
Building on his incredible momentum, presidential candidate Howard Dean jumped to a 21-point lead over Kerry in New Hampshire, drawing a wide range of support, from liberal to moderate, men …
[Talk] Social Republicans
Aug. 21, 2003—Barbara Blackmon's race might hurt her chance at the lieutenant governor's post this November, but it might help put fellow Democrat Ronnie Musgrove back into the governor's mansion. …
Monica Minter
Seated comfortably with perfect posture, Monica Jeany Minter calmly focuses on the photographer, her eyes never leaving his face until she thoroughly understands his instructions. Nothing about the busy Friday …
Important Correction About Run-Offs
In the issue of the JFP out today, we said you could vote in the run-offs on Tuesday ONLY IF you voted in the Aug. 5 primary. The secretary of …
Amy Tuck Revives State Flag Issue
Whoa. How should we read this interesting turn of events? Does Ms. Tuck believe it will be politically expedient to have a rebel flag debate as part of her race …
Green Party of MS Says Stop Buying Public Offices
(Aug. 16, 2003, press release) The Green Party of Mississippi announces its support for a new project called "White House for Sale" which tracks the special-interest contributions to President Bush's …
Gary Anderson confident about run-off
Gary Anderson, who could become the first African-American elected to state office since Reconstruction, told the Mississippi Link that he is confident about the Aug. 26 run-off with Rob Smith, …
[Talk] Rebels for NAFTA
Every year at the Neshoba County Fair, candidates bring in college students to do their dirty work. They did it back when I was head of "Students for Stennis" at …
School Daze: Testing Madness
As I proctored a classroom full of seventh-graders taking the Grade Level Testing Program (GLTP) test last April in a suburban Jackson public school, I couldn't help but think that …
Barbour Denies NAFTA Charge
(Aug. 14, 2003, press release from Musgrove campaign) (Jackson, MS) Haley Barbour is trying to deny his involvement with NAFTA and to minimize the scope of his work for the …
Electronic Voting Easily Hacked?
The Washington Post reports that many states are backing away from electronic voting machines: "Since being released two weeks ago, the [Johns] Hopkins report has sent shock waves across the …
Open Primaries in Mississippi?
Is the closed-primary system outdated? The Sun-Herald explores.
"African Americans for Dean" Site Launches
It's intriguing to watch the efforts of the Dean campaign to reach out to the black community. Earlier today, the campaign announced that he has appointed a new deputy campaign …
Sun-Herald: A Question of Priorities
The Sun-Herald today editorialized about Tuesday's election: "Last year, 43,466 Harrison Countians decided it was worth a trip to the polls to vote on a flag. This week, 22,280 Harrison …
Chasing the Youth Vote
Here's a story from Wiretap magazine about the strategies (and lack of) behind luring the youth vote. This talks about the Harvard report that our teen columnist Jessica Kinnison wrote …
Reed Branson: Race No Longer a Factor?
Commercial-Appeal writer Reed Branson examines the Mississippi primaries in the light of their race implications: "Mississippians are once again about to dance with, or around, the awkward issue of race. …
Kamikaze: Left Behind, by Alphonso Mayfield
The term "kamikaze" is a well-known phrase used to identify Japanese pilots who flew suicide missions during World War II. However, the term has a much deeper significance with the …
Tough Questions: Gov. Ronnie Musgrove
They said they'd give me 15 minutes. I took 23. In that minuscule amount of time—enough time for sound bites, but not as much substance as I'd like—I tried to …
Blackmon Makes History
Will Barbara Blackmon become the first African-American -- and a woman at that!? -- to be elected statewide in Mississippi since Reconstruction? Time will only tell.
Sherman Lee Dillon's "Blog" ... of sorts
It's not a really a blog—you can't post comments—but Dillon's gubernatorial race journal is the closest I've seen to a candidate posting a blog, and direct comments to the voters, …
Treasurer Candidates to Run-off
Cindy Ayers-Elliott told me last week that Rob Smith was the candidate to look out for. She was right.
Election Returns
Get updated election returns from the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal.
Bill Minor: Watch legislative races
This Tuesday, the state legislative races are some of the most interesting races to pay attention to, columnist Bill Minor writes.
