Thursday John Arthur Eaves, Democratic candidate for governor, supported the call of Reps. Steve Holland and George Flaggs for a special session to fully fund Mississippi’s eight colleges and universities to combat a 6% tuition increase recently adopted by the state college board.
Eaves began his speech by addressing his race for governor. He said: “People tell me I’m running against a Goliath. . . . The real Goliaths in this state are mediocrity, corruption, poverty, injustice, and low expectations. . . . Putting higher education out of reach . . . makes the Goliaths harder to beat back.”
Referring to the recent tax cut package for the Toyota plant in Tupelo, Eaves continued: “We have provided tax relief to big corporations who want to build plants in our state, and we have an obligation to provide tax relief that makes a quality education affordable to all Mississippians who work hard and play by the rules.”
According to Flaggs and Holland, the state will have more than $200 million in reserves at the end of the fiscal year. Only $25 million is needed to fully fund Mississippi’s colleges and universities.
To this the candidate replied: “It is wrong to hold onto hundreds of millions in the treasury when these kids have to begin their adult life with huge debt. We should not tax our future.”
Our students need the money. We have the money. Where is the governor?
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