CL Endorses Speaker McCoy

In the contentious, often mean-spirited race for speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives, what gets lost in the rhetoric is the fact that both current House Speaker Billy McCoy, D-Rienzi, and challenger Rep. Jeff Smith, D-Columbus, are honorable men with impeccable records of service in the House.

Both have a keen respect for the institution in which they serve. Both profess to be loyal to their political party, but are more loyal to what they both say is the duty to serve the interests of the people they represent.
The campaign of character assassination, name-calling and ridiculously insensitive remarks about McCoy's health, his status as a farmer and his legendary temper has on occasion reached the point of utter disgust.
Make no mistake - Smith is a man of character. Standing on the courage of his convictions, he has taken on a powerful sitting House speaker and risked his own political fortunes.
We find no fault in Smith - moreover, we like a lot of his ideas about the House rules being evenly and fairly enforced. McCoy might do well to listen to Smith's arguments in that regard and pay heed to them in the future.
During the last legislative term, McCoy battled back from a debilitating stroke and other health problems that threatened both his life and his livelihood. His mobility is slightly impaired, but he walks unassisted.
His speech is ever-so-slightly gaited, but his intellect and institutional memory are sound and keen. McCoy is neither to be pitied nor ridiculed over his health problems - he is to be respected for battling back in the face of long odds, fatigue and uncertainty.
It is clear that McCoy is able to serve as speaker, as able as he was prior to his health problems.
Given the fact that both McCoy and Smith are capable of serving in the post, it gets down to making a judgment of which candidate is best suited to lead the House for the next four years.
House Republicans are solidly behind Smith, but Smith will need more than their support to unseat McCoy. While McCoy has maintained that he has the votes necessary to return as speaker, the race remains tight and Smith seems to be in striking distance.
In the recent general election, state voters had a chance to remake the House. But in an election in which the GOP won seven of the state's eight statewide elected offices, the Democrats held their dominance in the House.
Gov. Haley Barbour will have a strong ally in Lt. Gov-Elect Phil Bryant in the state Senate despite a slight Democratic majority there. That gives him a launching pad for his legislative agenda. But there must be balance.
McCoy has a career record of delivering results on key issues in Mississippi - public education, transportation, economic development, public safety and social justice. The complaints against him are founded more in raw partisanship than in public policy.
We believe Speaker McCoy deserves another term in that post.



This is good news for McCoy and those that support him.