Blogging, the Dems and Trent LottA New York Times editorial today: "H. L. Mencken is said to have guffawed and slapped his thigh in delight at times as he would write about a typical day at a presidential nominating convention. Those long-ago times are enviable …
Creating a 'Brand of Passion' for VotingNew York Times reports: "WHILE partisan political ads continue to dominate attention, a rapidly growing number of nonpartisan campaigns from recently created groups are trying the tactics of Madison Avenue pros to register new, and especially young, voters. Today, Declare …
Doth the State GOP Protest Too Much?It strikes me that the state GOP is getting pretty bent out of shape over Edwards, considering that the state is supposedly so locked up for George Bush. Over on their Web site, they're playing the Pickering and Kennedy cards …
Dueling for the NRA VoteEvan Derkacz writes for Alternet that the pro-gun vote doesn't necessarily belong to George Bush. He writes: "Although Kerry seems to have learned from Gore's mistakes and Bush has lost favor among much of the vigilant Second Amendment crowd, conventional …
Cheney Says He's Staying on GOP TicketAP is reporting that Vice President Cheney says he's staying on Bush's ticket. Good news for Dems and the ABB crowd?
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Can Dems Get Back on Track with Blacks?In his column, Earl Ofari Hutchinson says yes, but only if they boldly speak out for issues that matter to African Americans: "Edwards potentially can ensure that blacks turn out in big numbers. But he must do more than take …
JFP PoliticsBlog Is Back! (Almost)The JFP is re-launching our popular PoliticsBlog to track information about candidates our readers can vote for this year—from U.S. president to judicial races in Mississippi. Our news interns are currently assembling photos of candidates, putting together candidate questionnaires (can't …
John Edwards: Friend of Business?The Washington Post today: "Business associations in Washington were uniformly hostile yesterday to John Kerry's choice of Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) as his running mate, promising that a trial lawyer on the ticket will energize them and their members to …
Summer of ‘64: A Mississippi Freedom Fighter Remembers the StruggleYou never know when something's going to happen that will change your life completely. If I had stayed in Florida canning tomatoes, I wouldn't have been here when the civil rights workers came to Mississippi in the summer of 1964. …
[Ladd] Freedom is Just Another WordWhen I was living in New York, we heard that the Klan was coming to march in Manhattan. This, predictably, caused an outrage in the city with folks screaming about why the stupid yuck-yucks shouldn't be allowed to march there. …
'Mississippi Burning' and Other Tall TalesIn one of those bizarre twists of fate that keep happening to me since I returned to Mississippi, I ended up recently spending a Saturday afternoon in Neshoba County with a camera crew from Glamour magazine. As if that weren't …
[Hutchinson] What is ‘the Truth,' Mr. Cosby?Comedian Bill Cosby's partial recant that his knock of allegedly bad behaving blacks was a call for action and not a broad brush stroke indictment of all poor blacks, came too little, too late. Rightwing shock jocks, conservative black apologists …
I Felt the Earth MoveIt was like old home day in Neshoba County Sunday … with a few twists. The usual suspects—the people I've gotten to know in the struggle for justice and racial reconciliation in the state—were there to honor Chaney, Goodman and …
Barbour Revitalizing Democratic Party?Bobby Harrison argues in the Daily Journal that Barbour is singlehandedly revitalizing the Democratic Party in the state. I think he has a point. "Haley Barbour lives, eats and sleeps politics. He knows it inside and out. Having said that, …
1.6 Million Women Sue Wal-Mart for DiscriminationThe NY Times reports: "A federal judge ruled yesterday that a lawsuit that accuses Wal-Mart Stores Inc. of discriminating against women can proceed as a class action covering about 1.6 million current and former employees, making it by far the …
Down a Southern Road<i>Monday, June 21, is the 40th anniversary of the deaths of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner.</i>
Dick Molpus Raises the Roof in Neshoba CountyJune 20, 2004—With Gov. Haley Barbour sitting right behind him, former Secretary of State and Neshoba County native Dick Molpus made a thundering speech in honor of slain civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner Sunday in …
Barbour and his Deadbeat MississippiansJune 11, 2004–Today in The New York Times, columnist Bob Herbert nails Barbour's cuts to Medicaid recipients–the worst Medicaid cuts ever: "If you want to see 'compassionate' conservatism in action, take a look at Mississippi, a state that is solidly …
Bigotry of Low ExpectationsI was about to start my second year at Mississippi State when Ronald Reagan came to the Neshoba County Fair in 1980. My gut instincts told me one thing. "The Republicans are playing Mississippians for fools," I told my oldest …
Conservative Group Unveils Reagan AdAP is reporting: "Days after Ronald Reagan was laid to rest, a conservative interest group on Tuesday unveiled a campaign ad that aligns him with President Bush and criticizes Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. The Club for Growth's ad, which …
Former Bush Staffer Working for KerryAP is reporting: "Randy Beers sat on the porch steps next to his longtime friend and colleague Dick Clarke and the words came tumbling out in a torrent. 'I think I have to quit. ... I can't work for these …
Neshoba County Coalition Calls for JusticeThe newly formed Philadelphia Coalition of blacks, whites and Choctaws released the following statement calling for justice and issuing a long-overdue apology for the tragic murders that happened there on Father's Day 40 years ago. See http://neshobajustice.com for a schedule …
The Next GenerationThose are six words I never expected to say. I grew up, like many restless kids, thinking my town was the most backward place on earth. That's normal. But when I was 14 and found out what occurred in Philadelphia, …
Salter Bashes Holland on MedicaidSid Salter's column today bashes Rep. Steve Holland for originally supporting Haley Barbour's Medicaide bill, accusing him of "crawfishing": "Trouble is, the record shows that Holland was the chief House negotiator in the legislative conference committee that approved the Barbour-backed …
[Breaking] ‘Tort Reform' Hits Brick Wall<i>UPDATE, 4 p.m.: After an apparent lunch meeting between Gov. Barbour, Speaker Billy McCoy and Senate President Pro Tem Travis Little, Sen. Charlie Ross, R-Brandon, announced on the floor that the Senate would reject HB 4, the tort-reform bill the …
‘Philadelphia Coalition' Calls for JusticeThe Neshoba Democrat is reporting that a multi-racial coalition of leader, business owners, newspaper editors and citizens in Neshoba County today issued a long-overdue statement, calling for justice for the murders of James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner. The …
Alleged Racism at the CapitolWLBT reported"Leading the charge was Representative Ed Blackmon (D-Canton), a key negotiator of tort reform. Blackmon and other committee leaders say they never talk face-to-face with senate leaders and Govenor Barbour about important issues. They feel things are done behind …