Yall Politics

McMillen sues school for suppressing free speech, makes top 5 on Google Trends-Complaint here

2010-03-11T18:01:00Z

Constance McMillen sues school for suppressing free speech, makes top 5 on Google Trends

The American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi today filed suit in federal court against the Itawamba County School System, which canceled the prom for one of its high schools when a student challenged a ban on bringing same-sex dates.

The federal suit asks the court to force the school board to reinstate the prom and alleges district officials have violated the First Amendment rights of Constance McMillen, a senior at Itawamba Agricultural High School.

"It's shameful and cowardly of the school district to have canceled the prom and to try to blame Constance, who's only standing up for herself," said Christine Sun, an attorney with the ACLU national LGBT Project. "We will fight tooth and nail for the prom to be reinstated for all students."

The school board met Wednesday and announced it was canceling the prom after McMillen challenged the same-sex date ban. The Mississippi ACLU, which is assisting McMillen, gave the district until Wednesday to change its policy.

Clarion Ledger
3/11/10

McMillen vs. Itawamba County School

WTOK - Charter Schools Debated at Capitol

2010-03-11T17:22:00Z

Charter Schools Debated at Capitol

Lawmakers continue to debate whether to add charter schools to the state.

The House passed an amendment to Senate Bill 2293 called "Innovative School Act of 2010," which would consolidate twelve school districts throughout the state.

House Education chairman, Cecil Brown, a Democrat, says this is a good alternative to creating a new charter school.

"If you start a new school district, and it's a publicly funded school, like charter schools are, then you're draining resources away from the existing school district, " Brown said.

According to the Mississippi Department of Education, the state currently has fifty-three schools classified as 'failing', and an additional 158 that are considered 'at risk' of failing.

Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant, a Republican, says changing Mississippi's current education system is long overdue.

WTOK
3/11/10

MIM - Barbour Unleashes on Stringer re: Guv’s Jet

2010-03-11T17:21:00Z

Barbour Unleashes on Stringer re: Guv’s Jet

Majority in MS
3/11/10

AP - Federal jury: Mississippi lawyers committed fraud in asbestos case

2010-03-11T15:12:00Z

Federal jury: Mississippi lawyers committed fraud in asbestos case

A federal jury says two Mississippi lawyers committed fraud during asbestos litigation and they should pay Illinois Central Railroad Company $430,000 in damages.

Illinois Central claimed William Guy and Thomas Brock knew their clients lied about being involved in earlier litigation when questioned during the railroad lawsuit filed in 2001.

Court records said Illinois Central settled with plaintiffs Warren Turner Jr. for $120,000 in 2002 and Willie Harried for $90,000 in 2003.

Illinois Central sued Harried and Turner in U.S. District Court in Natchez for alleged fraud and eventually accused the lawyers of it, too.

AP
3/11/10

Drudge - Miss. school prom off after lesbian’s date request

2010-03-11T15:10:00Z

Miss. school prom off after lesbian's date request

JACKSON, Miss. – A northern Mississippi school district will not be hosting a high school prom this spring after a lesbian student sought to attend with her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo.

The Itawamba County school district's board decided Wednesday to drop the prom because of what it called recent distractions but without specifically mentioning the girl's request, which was backed by the American Civil Liberties Union.

The student, 18-year-old high school senior Constance McMillen, said the cancellation was retaliation for her efforts to bring her girlfriend, also a student, to the April 2 dance.
"A bunch of kids at school are really going to hate me for this, so in a way it's really retaliation," McMillen told The Clarion-Ledger of Jackson. Calls to McMillen by The Associated Press late Wednesday went unanswered.

School policy requires that senior prom dates be of the opposite sex. The ACLU of Mississippi had given the district until Wednesday to change that policy, arguing that banning same-sex prom dates violated McMillen's constitutional rights.

Drudge Report linked on 3/11/10

AP

WAPO - Patton Boggs is in negotiations to purchase the Breaux-Lott Leadership Group

2010-03-11T14:23:00Z

Patton Boggs is in negotiations to purchase the Breaux-Lott Leadership Group

Washington's biggest lobbying firm is on the verge of getting even bigger. Patton Boggs LLP, which rang up nearly $40 million in lobbying last year, is in negotiations to purchase the Breaux-Lott Leadership Group, according to sources familiar with the talks.

Breaux-Lott -- named for its founders, former U.S. senators John Breaux (D-La.) and Trent Lott (R-Miss.) -- already has a close relationship with the Patton Boggs behemoth, with the two firms operating in a "strategic relationship" for the past two years. Thomas Hale Boggs Jr., the larger firm's chairman, has particularly close ties with Breaux, who left Patton Boggs to partner with Lott.

While Patton Boggs has long held the title as K Street's largest and most influential lobbying firm, Breaux-Lott is a smaller, family-dominated operation that reported just less than $11 million in lobbying in 2009. The firm was formed in January 2008, shortly after Lott left the Senate, and includes both of the founders' sons and a former Lott aide on its payroll.

Washington Post
3/11/10

CQ Politics on McGlowan’s campaign team

2010-03-11T14:18:00Z

CQ Politics on McGlowan's campaign team

Angela, We Have Heard on High. Former Fox News analyst Angela McGlowan, one of several Republicans vying to run against Rep. Travis Childers (D-Miss.), has installed her campaign team for her first bid for Congress.

McGlowan has hired Anne Marie Turner to run her campaign and Ginger Whitwell to run her finance team.

Sonny Scott of Rising Tide Media will be her media consultant.

CQ Politics
3/11/10

Miss. dems fight back - blame Barbour for not taking stimulus $ killing unemployment bill

2010-03-11T14:14:00Z

Miss. dems fight back - blame Barbour for not taking stimulus $ killing unemployment bill

Dear friend,

You are going to hear a lot about the Mississippi Department of Employment Security and a Senate unemployment bill that the House killed today.

Know this: Everything would have been fine had Gov. Barbour accepted federal stimulus money to help the unemployed people of Mississippi during this national recession.

Gov. Barbour thought Democratic leaders in the House would fold, walk away and leave the unemployed to fend for themselves. But that’s not what’s happening. Democrats in the House are fighting for our unemployed.

Now that we’ve reached a boiling point, Gov. Barbour is in full spin mode. He’s released a statement saying the House leadership is to blame for what is going on. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

Below, I’ve included a press release from Rep. Rufus Straughter, chairman of the House Labor Committee. Rep. Straughter lays out the facts quite well. Please read it and pass it along.

Then, do me a favor. Call Gov. Barbour and Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant. Tell them you’re tired of their putting politics before people. Tell them to work with the Democratic leadership to forge a true compromise that provides much needed unemployment benefits to our people.

Mississippi Democrats
3/10/10

Washington Examiner - Kings of Tort shows what happens when tort reforms not enacted

2010-03-11T14:06:01Z

Washington Examiner - Kings of Tort shows what happens when tort reforms not enacted

But those legal reforms are necessary. Otherwise, the natural conclusion is the world portrayed in “Kings of Tort,” the recent book by Alan Lange and former federal prosecutor Tom Dawson. The book describes how former tort baron and current federal prisoner Dickie Scruggs sued his way into a fortune and then began purchasing an entire state’s judiciary. Years before he was caught bribing two Mississippi judges, Scruggs had described as “magic jurisdictions” those places where verdict money was used to stack benches and juries.

“[M]agic jurisdiction,” Scruggs said in a brazen public speech, “[is] where the judiciary is elected with verdict money. It’s almost impossible to get a fair trial if you’re a defendant in some of these places. The plaintiff lawyer walks in there and writes the number on the blackboard, and the first juror meets the last one coming out the door with that amount of money.”

With the billions he won in various courts and settlements, Scruggs gained such influence in the judiciary that he proved popular self-governance cannot survive more people like him.
As Obama seeks out the last few votes he needs for the current health care bill, bear in mind that it will prevent a solution to this problem.

Read more at the San Francisco Examiner
3/11/10

MIM - Where Did Voter ID Signatures Come From?

2010-03-11T14:03:00Z

Where Did Voter ID Signatures Come From?

Earlier this week, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann gave the thumbs up to the signatures from the Voter ID ballot initiative. Using the Majority In Mississippi PVI, our friend JackCUDA, came up with some interesting statistical data on where the bulk of the signatures came from.

Probably not too surprising, but 58.1 percent of the total certified signatures came from MIM Republican PVI counties (those that have given the GOP at least 57 percent of the vote in the last four statewide elections). Further, 77.5 percent of all signatures were collected from MIM PVI counties where the GOP average was 50 percent or better.

Top 20 Signature Counties:

Read more

Majority in MS
3/11/10

MS Deputy a finalist for American Most Wanted award - GO VOTE

2010-03-11T11:14:00Z

Chief Deputy Jimmy Edwards has worked in law enforcement for ten years. He started as a patrol officer and went on to work as a criminal investigator and a narcotics investigator. He has brought justice to many victims and safety to many neighborhoods as he has worked hundreds of felony cases including burglaries, armed robberies, murders and drug cases. Five years ago he was promoted to Chief Deputy and continues to be actively involved in investigations. He has received recognition from the State of Tennessee for locating a criminal in 2006 and from Tippah County Sheriff's Office for apprehending an escapee in 2007. He has training in crime scene and narcotic investigations and has been a speaker with the DARE program in local schools. The most impactful moment of Jimmy Edwards's law enforcement career was when he met a terrified three-year old boy, one of seven abused and malnourished children who had been held captive in an abusive home. The boy, who longed to be loved and cared for, was drawn to Jimmy the first day they met and proceeded to climb his way into Jimmy's lap and into his heart. During the year that followed, Jimmy and his wife began to visit the boy on weekends and became foster parents. In April, 2009, they adopted little Edwin. The two people responsible for the abuse, the Bareto's, are currently fugitives; Chief Deputy Edwards, along with other officers in his department, continues to search for the fugitives in partnership with US Marshals and America's Most Wanted to have justice served. Due to his efforts in this case, Jimmy was chosen to receive the TOP COPS Award in 2010; he is one of ten officers across the country who will receive this prestigious award issued by the National Association of Police Organizations for their work in law enforcement.

Go vote

LNL - Federal jury finds fraud on part of asbestos lawyers

2010-03-11T01:47:00Z

Federal jury finds fraud on part of asbestos lawyers

"This case is significant because it is the first time I am aware of that a jury has found that asbestos plaintiffs' lawyers committed fraud," said Mark Behrens, a Washington, D.C., attorney with Shook, Hardy & Bacon.

A spokesperson for Illinois Central said the company will continue aggressively pursue suspected fraud or litigation abuses.

The complaints allege the company would not have been obligated to pay the settlements had it known that Harried joined the mass action, titled Cosey, in 1995 and Turner in 1996.

Harried and Turner both filed suit against Illinois Central in 2001. The complaints say the attorneys knew of the previous lawsuits.

"Guy and Brock did not disclose Turner's prior asbestos claim in Cosey to Illinois Central at any time before Turner's settlement was consummated and the settlement check was accepted and deposited by Guy and Brock," the Turner complaint says.

Legal Newsline
3/10/10

Barbour - House leaders jeopardize unemployment benefits for the needy

2010-03-11T00:06:00Z

DATE: March 10, 2010

STATEMENT OF GOVERNOR BARBOUR ON SB 2404

“Today, House Democrats killed legislation to reauthorize the Mississippi Department of Employment Security, the agency which not only provides critical workforce services to thousands of Mississippians but also pays unemployment benefits to some of our neediest citizens. By refusing to bring up Senate Bill 2404 for a vote, House leaders have jeopardized the continued payments of unemployment benefits and put Mississippi at risk of being noncompliant with a multitude of federal guidelines, which will necessarily result in higher taxes. Some people may be in favor of raising taxes on businesses some $400 million if MDES is not reauthorized, but I’m not one of them. Clearly, in these economic times, the last thing Mississippi should do is increase taxes on the very people who create jobs: our employers.”

ROLL CALL - Wicker says GOP Senators won’t waive points of order if it violates procedure

2010-03-10T22:49:00Z

ROLL CALL - Wicker says GOP Senators won't waive points of order if it violates procedure

Senate Republicans on Wednesday were preparing to send a letter to Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) vowing to raise potentially crippling objections to any portion of a proposed health care reconciliation package that they believe violates the procedure’s narrow guidelines.

The letter, signed by all 41 Senate Republicans and spearheaded by Minority Whip Jon Kyl (Ariz.), is actually directed at House Democrats. To sow discord among House Democrats and derail passage of health care reform in that chamber, Senate Republicans are making it very clear that anything House Democrats agree to could die in the Senate.

“Forty-one of us have signed a letter. It’s in writing. None of us will vote to waive points of order,” Sen. Roger Wicker (Miss.) said Wednesday afternoon during a joint news conference with Senate Republican Policy Committee Chairman John Thune (S.D.) and GOP Sens. Jim DeMint (S.C.) and Tom Coburn (Okla.).

Roll Call
3/10/10

MIM - Cochran Statement on Earmarks

2010-03-10T22:45:00Z

Cochran Statement on Earmarks

In response, Sen. Thad Cochran said this: “Congress cannot ignore its constitutional responsibilities to approve the allocation of federal funds. I will continue to work with Chairman Inouye to ensure that the bills reported by the Senate Appropriations Committee are prepared in a transparent manner, conform to federal laws and only approve spending that is in the national interest.”

Majority in MS
3/10/10