| JFP Mobile | Jackson, Mississippi

Thompson's Easy Win Shocks Many

U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-2nd District, easily trounced his Democratic opponent Chuck Espy in the June 6 primary. Thompson, who has held his seat for more than a decade, won the election with more than 55,000 votes, or 65 percent, to Espy's 30,000, or 35 percent.

Protesting Poverty

As the sun beams above her, Wilma Irving, a resident of Kenner, La., fans herself and begins to tell me the purpose of her journey to Jackson.

Senate Candidates on Education

With concerns on the issue with education, Ronnie Musgrove, Roger Wicker, Thad Cochran, and Erik Fleming offer their views.

Melton: Please Stop Lawsuit

This Tuesday, Mayor Frank Melton filed an emergency petition to appeal a ruling by Lauderdale County Circuit Court Judge Robert Bailey in striking his defense in a defamation lawsuit filed by former Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics pilots Robert Earl Pierce and Jimmy Saxton.

Lott Announces Retirement

Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., stood before a room of reporters, colleagues and friends at the Edison Walthall Hotel in Jackson to announce his retirement on Monday. Lott, 66, has served in the U.S. Congress for 35 years, six of which as Senate majority leader. He abdicated the leadership position in 2002 after he made a controversial statement stating that Strom Thurmond, then-senator and known segregationist, should have won the presidency in 1948. Lott said that his decision to retire comes at the right time, quoting a popular biblical verse from Ecclesiastes.

Vying For The Ball

The air is thick with humidity, and beyond the buzz of cicadas and crickets, the July night is quiet except for the intermittent sound of Pearl River players idly conversing and fairground jubilation in the far distance.

Conservative Agenda Fueling Medicaid Numbers?

Republican governors in states including Mississippi and Nebraska may be using inflated cost figures for Medicaid in order to help a movement to roll back recent health-care reform.

Arts On The Chopping Block

City budget woes have put after-school programs, funded through the Greater Jackson Arts Council, at risk. Revenue shortfalls have reached critical levels, and Mayor Frank Melton's budget revisions now jeopardize a number of programs.

Don't Drink the Water

A month ago, Martin and a handful of neighbors in rural Sunflower County made national news, when ABC Nightly News devoted two minutes to their six-year fight for what many would consider a basic resource and right.

Insurance ‘Bait And Switch'

State Attorney General Jim Hood said he would be willing to settle a multi-million dollar lawsuit against insurance companies like State Farm, Allstate, Nationwide, Farm Bureau and USAA if they would come to the table, but blamed the companies for sticking to the courts and delaying a judgment.

Fight or Flight

The 1st Annual Conference of the Veterans of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement takes place March 2-5 at the JSU E Center on Raymond Road. Organized around the theme "The Pursuit of Quality Education in the Ongoing Movement for Human Rights," the conference offers workshops with veterans of the movement with the goal of inspiring a return to work, focused this time on ensuring that every American receives the quality education that is his or her unalienable right. Owen Brooks, 78, who along with Hollis Watkins serves as co-convener of the conference, spoke with me recently about his experiences as a veteran of the civil rights movement in Mississippi.

Republicans Choose Sides In Bailout

The Jackson NAACP, the Mississippi AFL-CIO and supporting organizations protested Mississippi Republican senators' opposition to a bailout bill for General Motors and Chrysler at the State Capitol on Tuesday.

Watkins Hits the Road

Jackson Public Schools Superintendent Earl Watkins announced that he will not seek to renew his term.

Fear Of A New Tax

Last week, Gov. Haley Barbour did as expected and vetoed Senate Bill 2310, calling it an "irresponsible" revenue change "in a time of fiscal uncertainty." Barbour's office claims the state would lose $1.5 billion, and cities would lose $166 million over nine years. The bill went back to the Senate, but the Senate Finance Committee voted almost immediately 14-to-10 in favor of recommending that the Senate override the governor's veto.

Week 13: Zombies, Exonerees

The Zombie Tax A bill increasing the cigarette tax rose from the dead Monday, as legislators in both the Mississippi House and Senate voted to suspend the deadline for a bill that would satisfy both Senate and House negotiators.

District Attorney Challenges Chief Justice

An updated version of this story will appear in the print edition Wednesday, June 21.

Levee Board Talking Tax Hikes

The Rankin-Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District Levee Board may be gearing up for a district expansion to pay for a proposed flood-control plan for the Pearl River.

ON THE ISSUES: Special Needs: Left Behind?

During the final presidential debate Oct. 15, moderator Bob Schieffer asked the candidates: "Why would the country be better off if your running mate became president rather than his running mate?"

Legislative Update: Smokes, Schools and Parks

The House agreed with the Senate in a 120-to-0 vote to roll the Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi into the Health Department. Former tobacco lobbyist Haley Barbour killed the Partnership last year, suing to cut the annual $20 million funding to the smoking cessation program, which former Attorney General Mike Moore called "the most successful program of its kind in the country."

Melton Timeline

July 4, 2005 New Mayor Frank Melton was sworn in at City Hall. In his speech, he promised that any young person who wanted one could have a job with the city, as long as they attended church regularly. Later in the day, sporting a specially made badge and a sidearm, Melton joined the police on a slew of checkpoints and neighborhood sweeps.

All results / Stories

Sort By

Date

Authors