http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/ Yall Politics - The Definitive Guide to Politics in Mississippi en staff@yallpolitics.com Copyright 2012 2012-05-16T19:18:01+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/ms-2_candidate_cobby_williams_speaks_to_mbj_at_delta_council/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/ms-2_candidate_cobby_williams_speaks_to_mbj_at_delta_council/#When:18:18:01Z MS Business Journal 5/16/12 Metro, 2012 Election, Headlines, DC 2012-05-16T18:18:01+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/salter_-_higher_education_and_agribusiness_are_interrelated/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/salter_-_higher_education_and_agribusiness_are_interrelated/#When:12:21:26Z Higher education and agribusiness are interrelated At his speech here to the movers and shakers in the Mississippi Delta's business, agricultural, educational and political circles, Gov. Phil Bryant's remarks were met with more than polite applause. Bryant, the mechanic's son from Moorhead, understands the Delta region's challenges as lessons from his boyhood. Bryant told the audience at the Delta Council's 77th annual meeting that he understood the interrelationship of higher education and agribusiness in that region. Bryant said: "As always, I am mindful of the impact that agriculture has on the economy of the Mississippi Delta. It is big business, and economists at Mississippi State University estimate that the activities associated with production agriculture in the Delta account for more than 1.5 billion dollars of annual income and employ more than 55 thousand people. We should support this industry, not only by treating it like the major employer that it is, but also by creating a minimal regulatory environment." Sid Salter 5/15/12 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2012-05-16T12:21:26+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/mississippi_a_favorite_target/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/mississippi_a_favorite_target/#When:12:20:08Z Mississippi a favorite target A businessman who often travels, Jim Fraiser said his out-of-state clients used to joke about being surprised to find him wearing shoes. Being barefoot is one of the stereotypes Mississippians face from outsiders who unfairly punish current residents for the state's past, some say. The solution? Invite the critics to experience Mississippi hospitality. "People are going to think what they're going to think," Fraiser, 57, of Jackson, said. "All we can do is try to overcome that reputation, which we will do every time someone comes here and sees us." Clarion Ledger 5/16/12 2011 Election, 2012 Election, Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2012-05-16T12:20:08+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/clarion_ledger_-_nc_govs_remarks_about_miss._raise_questions/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/clarion_ledger_-_nc_govs_remarks_about_miss._raise_questions/#When:12:17:37Z Remarks about Miss. raise questions North Carolina's governor took a shot at Mississippi on the heels of what she saw as an embarrassing victory at the polls of a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman in her state. Gov. Beverly Purdue told a crowd in Greenville, N.C., that people around the country must be confused at such an outcome in such a progressive state. "Folks are saying what in the world is going on in North Carolina," Purdue said. "We look like Mississippi." Clarion Ledger via Hattiesburg American 5/15/12 2012 Election, Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2012-05-16T12:17:37+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/jobs-friendly_bills_signed_by_bryant/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/jobs-friendly_bills_signed_by_bryant/#When:12:15:12Z 'Jobs-friendly' bills signed by Bryant Four bills that became law Monday, products of what Gov. Phil Bryant called "the most jobs-friendly legislative session in modern Mississippi history," affect businesses, workers, students and the growth of the health care industry. Taking effect July 1 are laws that will boost the tax credit businesses can claim on inventory taxes, the creation of "health care industry zones" where medical businesses can cluster, dual-enrollment programs for high-school dropouts or those pondering leaving school and changes to the state's worker compensation laws. The inventory-tax bill increases the amount businesses can claim in tax credits to offset the cost of inventory like commodities, products, goods and, for the first time, raw materials and works-in-process. Clarion Ledger 5/14/12 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2012-05-16T12:15:12+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/health_initiatives_puts_miss._on_good_lists/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/health_initiatives_puts_miss._on_good_lists/#When:12:13:04Z Health initiatives puts Miss. on 'good lists' While Mississippi has been continually ranked on or near the bottom of national lists related to health and economic issues, the state's resilience and core values also have landed it on good lists, state and community leaders say. For the last six years, Mississippi has been named the most obese state, prompting former Gov. Haley Barbour and current Gov. Phil Bryant to put special emphasis on exercise and nutrition. Under Barbour, the state instituted a push aimed at getting people to walk and watch their diet. And earlier this year Bryant announced a 5K run to promote exercise. The event is planned for June 30. Clarion Ledger 5/16/12 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2012-05-16T12:13:04+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/barbour_romney_should_focus_on_obamas_record/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/barbour_romney_should_focus_on_obamas_record/#When:12:12:29Z Barbour: Romney should focus on Obama's record Former Mississippi governor Haley Barbour thinks presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney should focus on President Obama's "failed" economic policies. "Best thing for Republicans was for this election to be a referendum on Obama's record," the former RNC chairman said on "CBS This Morning" Monday. "Obama's record on economics and jobs, and the policies that he's put in place and how those policies have failed." CBS News 5/14/12 2012 Election, Headlines, DC, HaleyWatch, ElectedOfficials 2012-05-16T12:12:29+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/4_mississippians_added_to_national_law_enforcement_officers_memorial/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/4_mississippians_added_to_national_law_enforcement_officers_memorial/#When:12:10:56Z 4 Mississippians added to National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial The names of four Mississippi law officers who were killed in the line of duty have been added the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington. Mississippi 's two U.S. senators, Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker , say in a news release that more than 360 names were added to the national memorial this year, including 162 officers killed in 2011. They are Madison Police Patrolman James G. Brooks Sr., who was killed March 23, 2011; Grenada Police Capt. John W. Haddock, killed Oct. 7, 2011; DeSoto County Sheriff William P. Harris, killed Nov. 25, 1912; and McComb City Marshal Richard M. Cloy, killed July 8, 1891. AP 5/15/12 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials 2012-05-16T12:10:56+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/jim_barksdale_comments_on_brett_christensen_appointment/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/jim_barksdale_comments_on_brett_christensen_appointment/#When:11:29:43Z Barksdale comments on Christensen appointment Christensen’s compensation package includes: ◦The maximum amount of money that the state can pay for his salary is $183,000 a year, one-and-a-half times the governor’s salary. ◦A supplemental performance-based bonus of up to $47,000 based on how well Christensen meets Gov. Bryant’s economic development objectives. ◦A $15,000 relocation allowance is also included. Christensen currently lives in Gainesville, Fla. ◦A car is also provided, a historic provision for MDA directors that only Speed rejected. “If we had not been able to do that then we wouldn’t have been able to pay (Christensen) more than what he was making in Florida,” Barksdale said. “It was a necessity. Several other states do it this way. We do that within the state for several jobs. That’s how we pay our football coaches so much money in this state.” MBJ 5/16/12 Metro, 2011 Election, Headlines, ElectedOfficials, Legislature, Muscadines 2012-05-16T11:29:43+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/mbj_interview_with_new_mda_chief_brent_christensen/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/mbj_interview_with_new_mda_chief_brent_christensen/#When:11:26:49Z Metro, 2011 Election, Ads, ElectedOfficials, Muscadines 2012-05-16T11:26:49+00:00