Special Session Agenda: Utility Watchdog AgenciesThe Mississippi Legislature is back in Jackson this morning for another special session, this time to decide the fate of the state's utility watchdog agencies. Lawmakers were unable to get a budget bill to fund the Public Service Commission and …
Reeves Lends Weight to Mosque OppositionA former Jackson attorney says he sees parallels between his representation of Madison citizens against a proposed mosque and the plight of his own former home in south Jackson.
Jackson Crime Stats For June 29 – July 5Major crimes in Jackson dropped by almost 9 percent last week, according to a weekly report (PDF) released at yesterday's command staff meeting for the Jackson Police Department. The city saw a decrease in property crime from 212 the previous …
McLemore: Always a Player"I'll have a glass of your finest Merlot," Leslie McLemore told the bartender at the University Club last week. "I don't know what it is, but I'll take it," he added with a laugh.
Support State Watchdog AgenciesLast week, the Mississippi Senate shut down talks with House conferees over the funding of the Mississippi Public Service Commission.
Johnson's Back!"I, Harvey Johnson, Jr, do solemnly swear that I will faithfully ... discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter, so help me God."
Budget Battle Shows Barbour's MettleThe state budget negotiations were like a summer blockbuster: expensive, full of strong language, boring and too long. Gov. Haley Barbour played a starring role, and like any diva, he got what he wanted much of the time.
Mississippi Special Session Starts FridayIt's official: Gov. Haley Barbour has called state lawmakers back to Jackson for another special session to deal with the 2010 state budget. The session begins on Friday, July 10, at 10 a.m.
Jackson City Council Gets New LeadershipWard 4 Councilman Frank Bluntson and Ward 5 Councilman Charles Tillman will now serve as president and vice president, respectively, of the Jackson City Council. The two nominated one another for their respective positions and received no opposing votes from …
Bluntson is Jackson City Council PresidentWith a unanimous vote from the new Jackson City Council, Ward 4 Councilman Frank Bluntson was installed as council president this afternoon, with Ward 5 Councilman Charles Tillman as his vice president.
New Jackson Council Meets TodayThe new Jackson City Council will be meeting for the first time today at 4 p.m. Leaving the council this year is former Council President and Ward 2 Councilman Leslie Burl McLemore, who announced his retirement prior to the Democratic …
Barbour to Testify Against Clean EnergyToday, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee begins major hearings exploring how to reduce global warming and build a clean energy economy. The Waxman-Markey bills and related legislation is on the agenda. At the top of the Republican witness …
Jackson Eateries Win Awards; Night Spot to CloseBroad Street Baking Company & Café and Sal & Mookie's New York Pizza and Ice Cream Joint have received awards in this year's "Best of Mississippi" issue of Mississippi magazine. Broad Street was named Mississippi's Best Bakery, and Sal & …
Hood Says Power Companies Forced PSC ShutdownMississippi Attorney General Jim Hood and power industry watchdogs suspect power companies shut down a state regulating agency expressly to remove a new means of regulation from the table.
Fondren Business HappeningsDespite the looming recession threatening to disrupt and weaken local economies all across the nation, the Fondren business district is flexing its muscles.
Second Special Session Starts FridayGov. Haley Barbour plans to call a second special session of the Mississippi Legislature for Friday, reports NEMS360. The session, which will begin at 10 a.m., will deal with funding for the Public Service Commission and the Public Utilities staff.
Sarah Palin to Step Down as First-term GovernorGov. Sarah Palin announced suddenly today that she will step down as governor of Alaska on July 26, only 30 months into her first term. The Washington Post:
Year 2: ‘Being the Media'!The Jackson Free Press is thrilled to host the second summer of a joint youth media effort by public and private school teens in Jackson. last year, they critiqued the media. This year they are stepping up and being the …
Utility Watchdog Employees FurloughedAmong the budget bills that failed to get to the governor's desk earlier this week were appropriations to fund the Public Service Commission and the Public Utilities agency. Without funding, the two state organizations are sending most of their employees …
Governor Vetoes AppropriationsGov. Haley Barbour has vetoed a number of appropriation bills and parts of bills, leaving some doubt as to what the next steps will beor even whether there are next stepsfor completing the state's $6 billion budget for the 2010 …
Medicaid Deal Just In TimeState legislators were poised to pass a Medicaid agreement Tuesday evening, ending a months-long impasse over funding and removing the last major obstacle to a state budget, one day before a new fiscal year began.
Diaz Calls on D.C.Former Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Oliver Diaz outlined allegations of political persecution last week at a Washington, D.C., forum. The Sarah McClendon Group, a government and media watchdog association, held a forum on alleged selective prosecutions by the U.S. Department …
Closing the Clean-Up DealThe city may have brought to a close the troubled business relationship between local debris-removal contractor Garrett Construction Company and Pearl River, Miss.-based Nungesser Industries.
Medicaid Agreement ReachedAround 11 p.m. last night, House Speaker Billy McCoy, D-Rienzi, announced from the House floor that the special budget committee has reached an agreement with Gov. Haley Barbour on the final sticking point holding up passage of the 2010 Mississippi …
Legislative Special Session UnderwayThe Mississippi House and Senate are desperately hammering out an agreement on a state appropriation bill one day after Gov. Haley Barbour finally called a special session. Barbour had initially fought the idea of a special session, after disagreeing with …
Governor Chides Lawmakers for Unfinished BusinessGov. Haley Barbour took time off from nationwide GOP fundraising efforts to announce that he has no plan to call a special session to address the state's non-existent budget just yet. Barbour, who is not a legislator, told the Senate …
Unemployment Rate Jumps AgainThe unemployment rate in Mississippi increased a full percentage point from April to May, inching toward 10 percent once again, according to the Mississippi Department of Employment Security. That one point, from 8.6 percent to 9.6 percent, represents an additional …
Barbour Takes Top RGA SpotIn the wake of South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford's untimely departure from the Republican Governors Association, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour is taking over the organization's leadership. Barbour had already accepted the organization's chairmanship for next year, but when Sanford admitted …
The Tangled Web of HateThe Southern Poverty Law Center counts the Council of Conservative Citizens as a "Neo-Confederate" hate group, which, like the more radical League of the South, fights for the rights of "the Confederacy." The CofCC stops short of calling for a …
Uptown HateWhen the 2000 election devolved into chad-counting in South Florida, I headed down from New York City to cover the mess for the Village Voice. And with all the talk in the media of how there couldn't possibly be any …
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"I, Harvey Johnson, Jr, do solemnly swear that I will faithfully ... discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter, so help me God."