Congressman Travis W. Childers Announces Locations of District Offices

From a press release:

Congressman Travis W. Childers announced today that he plans to maintain four district offices in Mississippi's First Congressional District in DeSoto, Grenada, Lee, and Lowndes counties.

The Congressman announced that he plans to continue operations at offices in Columbus, Grenada, and Tupelo that were maintained by the Clerk of the House while the congressional seat lay vacant until Childers was elected in the May 13th special election. The DeSoto County office has been moved from Southaven to a facility on the Courthouse Square in Hernando.

"We are ready to roll up our sleeves and get to work for the people of North Mississippi," Congressman Childers said. "Since we were sworn in right in the middle of a session, we had to hit the ground running in Washington. There were some administrative processes that we had to work out for the district offices, such as negotiating new leases and transferring computer and phone services, which took a couple of weeks to finalize, but we managed to get the Tupelo and Columbus offices nailed down in a matter of days. We are getting the other offices up and running this week, and now, less than one month after being sworn in, we have office space and a good start on staff. We are focused on serving the people of North Mississippi."

The address and phone numbers for the district offices are:

Columbus: 523 Main Street, 662-327-0748;
Grenada: 1360 Sunset Drive, Suite 2, 662-294-1321;
Hernando: 2564 Hwy. 51 South on the Hernando Courthouse Square, (telephone number will be announced at a later date); and,
Tupelo: 6 Fairpark Crossing in Downtown Tupelo, 662-844-5437.

Constituents needing help with federal issues or services may also call the Congressman's Washington, DC office in 2350 Rayburn House Office Building at 202-225-4306 until the district offices are fully functional.

3.1 earthquake in Sherman, MS

Maybe it is sign that the landscape is shifting in Mississippi, both politically and now apparently geologically. An earthquake measuring 3.1 on the Richter scale registered around 12:52 CST, just outside of Tupelo in Sherman. Sherman is a community located right off of highway 78 about 5 miles outside of Tupelo.

My family lives on the edge of Tupelo that leads right to Sherman. Dad said that it felt like the ground shook a little and made a booming sound. Other than the family cat high-tailing it to hide under the car, nothing else much eventful happened according to the family.

1987 Republican Gubernatorial Candidate Reed Denounces Davis' Tactics

One of those prominent Republicans, Tupelo department store owner Jack Reed Sr., the GOP candidate for governor in 1987, said Davis has simply gone "too far."
The Commercial Appeal:

"The ads from both the national Democratic and Republican parties are not helpful to Mississippi and not helpful to either candidate," said Reed, 84. "But I think one candidate has been more extreme in this, and I feel very keenly about it." He said that candidate was Davis.

Of the Illinois senator's insertion in the race, Reed added, "I'm quite confident the Democratic candidate did not seek that endorsement."

But the Obama-Wright message, for others, is a clear instance of using a race card where race wouldn't normally be an issue. Raising issues about an African-American presidential candidate and his outspoken former pastor was designed to divide Democrats, said DeSoto County Democratic Executive Committee member X.L. Buckley. "I think it's something to confuse the issues," he said.

Democrat Joe Forsythe, who took on incumbent Roger Wicker in 2006 (whose elevation to the senate created the open seat being filled by the special election), went further.

"It's painting an erroneous picture in people's minds that Obama is some kind of Muslim who's going to betray the country. ... It's a cheap trick. ... It's perfectly ridiculous."

Mississippians on average are genuinely good people and hopefully those people will turn out to vote for Travis Childers next week in the May 13th runoff election.

Daily Journal: Huckabee to campaign for Greg Davis

I had heard this through the grapevine a couple of days ago, but now it is confirmed. Former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, also the former governor of Arkansas, is coming down to north Mississippi to help campaign for Greg Davis. Huckabee Will no doubt be here to try and shore up the evangelical vote and help fundraise. In today's "Campaign Notebook" the Daily Journal reported:

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee will be in Tupelo on Saturday to boost the congressional campaign of Southaven Mayor Greg Davis.

According to Lee County GOP chairman Mike Maynard, the former Arkansas governor will join Davis for an invitation-only fundraiser at 9 a.m. at the BancorpSouth Conference Center.

Starting about 9:45, the public is invited to meet Davis and Huckabee at Joe Joe's Espresso at 398 E. Main St.

I wonder if they server fried squirrel at Joe Joe's Espresso?

Seriously, at this point in the race, two things are most important, raising money and getting your vote out. Huckabee should be an asset in both areas.

Those of you up north, do everything in your power to get out the vote on May 13. In the meantime give a little cash to the Childers for Congress Campaign. We are over half way to our goal at Cotton Mouth.

Travis Childers on Big Oil

Travis Childers understands that our dependence on foreign oil is a major problem. Childers spoke at at Texaco station in Tupelo on Friday, where he denounced our dependence on foreign oil, and its implications on working class families in Mississippi. The Daily Journal had this to say:

Democratic congressional candidate Travis Childers stopped at a Texaco station here Friday afternoon to denounce rising gas prices and offer solutions if elected to the U.S. House of Representatives."We need to quit depending on foreign oil," said Childers, who is also Prentiss County's chancery clerk. "We need to start depending on ourselves and explore alternative energy sources."As a more immediate strategy, Childers recommended the nation ease the filling of its reserve fuel tanks to boost oil surplus and thereby lower gas prices.At the Texaco station, on the corner of South Gloster and South Green streets, gas prices posted were $3.54 for regular and $3.78 for premium. Childers estimated they were up 25 percent from last year and said some families can't afford to buy fuel anymore."It seems like everyone in Washington is concerned about everything but working-class families," he said. "I'm concerned about working-class families. I'm concerned about north Mississippians."He also said he would not take campaign contributions from big oil companies. Childers and Republican candidate Greg Davis, mayor of Southaven, will meet in a May 13 runoff election after both led an April 22 special election for U.S. House of Representatives' 1st District seat.

Travis Childers Fish Fry Tonight In Tupelo

5:30 to 7 at the Mississippi Building at the Tupelo Furniture Market.

Free and Open to the Public

Supporters of McCullough, Holland and Childers are uniting at this event in an attempt to push Childers to victory tomorrow.

District 1 Republicans Get Dirty In The Stretch

I don't live in the District so I may get the order of some of this wrong:

First I thing McCullough ran an attack ad which I can't find online.

Next someone, likely a consultant of Greg Davis, placed clips from Tennessee television news online attempting to tarnish McCullough for his time at the Tennessee Valley Authority:
Glenn McCullough's Lavish Government Spending Part 1
Glenn McCullough's Lavish Government Spending Part 2
Glenn McCullough's Lavish Government Spending Part 3

Also Davis ran this ad responding to those attacks and launching his own:
Greg Davis Attack Ad
(placed on YouTube March 4th)

McCullough responds with this ad going as far back as 2001 to get positive quotes about him:

(placed on YouTube March 20th)

Now I think they're both running positive ads.

The election is Tuesday.

Republicans go vote if you live in the 1st or 3rd District.
I prefer Harper over Ross and McCullough over Davis as the best choices among the Republicans.

Democrats go vote if you live in the 1st District.
Both are excellent candidates, but do go vote and express your preference. Either will make a great Congressman.

Bill Clinton's Introduction In Tupelo Friday Night

He identifies Steve Holland and Travis Childers as our two Democratic candidates. They did a side hug. Perhaps Hillary and Obama can take a lesson and "hug it out."

Thanks to reader "olemiss" for the video!

On the Scene with Big Dog in Tupelo

I will be on the scene in Tupelo tomorrow to see the former President Clinton speak at the Tupelo Furniture Market. Not to mention, we are going to eat some good ole fried catfish. That will be two nights in a row for me, but what do I expect I am on a Clinton tour through Mississippi. My brain has run wild with fantasy visions of the Big Dog knocking back a cold one and slaying some catfish while talking to me. I can hear his voice say, "Hey Bubba, pass me a few of them hush puppies and little more slaw, will ya?"

I will post Friday night post-event if possible. My folks live in the stone age, or at least last century when it comes to technology.

Which Clinton is Touring The State Friday?

While we and other media outlets reported that Bill Clinton will be touring the state Friday, a hunch and an unconfirmed source tell me that it may be both Bill and Hillary or Hillary instead. As always, we'll keep you updated (and continue breaking news before the big boys).

Big Dog in Tupelo Friday Night

Former President Clinton will be in Tupelo at the Mississippi Building of the Tupelo Furniture Market, Building B on Friday March 7. The event will be a fish fry with the Big Dog taking the podium as the keynote speaker. The event is open to all who wish to attend. I can't think of many things that sound more fun than going to a fish fry with Bill Clinton. As of right now the plans are for feeding to begin around 4:30 with Clinton scheduled to speak at 5:45. These times are subject to change according to the schedule of President Clinton.

Bill Clinton Events In Mississippi

The Clinton Campaign has confirmed a tour by President Bill Clinton of Mississippi.

He will headline events in Hattiesburg, Meridian and Tupelo Friday.

He will be at the Hattiesburg Train Depot on Friday from 9 to 10:30 in the morning.

He will leave for Meridian immediately after that.

He is expected to continue the tour Saturday.

Please comment or e-mail with more details if you have them.

Republican Education Games

The Republicans in the House are playing political games and using the teacher pay raise as their political football as explained in the editorial of Monday’s Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. It is no secret to those who follow the politics of public education that Haley and his minions will do anything to thwart investing in the human capital of our state. Whether it be by a coup attempt for the Speaker of the House, concentrated support in races to remove public education supporters (see Rep. Cecil Brown), or by hyper-partisan politics in both chambers, the GOP in Mississippi has been a persistent and toxic foe of education. If you don’t believe that ask Hank Bounds (State Superintendent, Cecil Brown (House Education Committee Chair) or Claude Hartley (State Board of Education Chairman) what they think of Republican politics related to education in Mississippi.

The House already passed a three percent pay raise for teachers included in their big education funding bill that also met legislated education funding requirements as well as some proposed education funding requirements. The House is majority Democrat if you are wondering why there was success for pro-education legislation. While the funding bill was still in the House, an amendment to strip the teacher pay raise from the funding bill was thankfully defeated. The bill passed with support of all but 26 legislators. While this waits for conference with the Senate, the Republicans made a political move that must be understood by the public for what it really is.

A new bill to give teachers a five percent raise was brought forth by the same Republicans who opposed the three percent raise in the original bill. The educators only called for a three percent raise, why the change of heart? The opposition cited other departmental costs such as Medicaid as reason for not supporting the first bill. But now with House approved tobacco tax, the money is there for a monster raise according to the House Republicans. Oh, the irony is unreal. These are the same “pro-teacher raise’ folks who voted against the tobacco tax, the very instrument they propose to use to pay for their escalated raise. Funny, they were not in the teachers’ corner until it became politically advantageous. The five percent raise will likely be shot down in conference, but either way the Republicans can now try to crack the teacher lobby by saying, “but we voted against the first bill, so we could pass a bigger one but they killed it”. The key here is the instrument of funding. Had the Republicans really wanted to give a teacher pay raise (they did not), then they would have supported the tobacco tax. Never mind we have the most regressive tax structure of the 50 states as shown by independent research, but that is a discussion for a different day.

On a personal level what was embarrassing to me was the vote of my old hometown representatives back in Tupelo – Lee County. I had the advantage of attending Tupelo Public Schools who have always been not only a state leader but noticed nationally for their fine schools. I don’t know of another town in Mississippi that has so prospered in large part to a strong community commitment to public education. Tupelo was the only major town not to have a private school until recently to my knowledge, creating a true community school. The children of the wealthy Tupelo families like the Reed’s, Dodge’s, and Hancock’s all went to public schools along side the Smith’s, Wilson’s, and Jones’s. We had two longtime representatives who were not only education supporters and education advocates, but education leaders in Jackson, with Democrats Eloise Scott and Tim Ford. Unfortunately they have been replaced by Laurel and Hardy, otherwise known as Republicans Jerry Turner and Brian Aldridge. To see both representatives from Lee County to vote against the initial pay raise is mind boggling, embarrassing, and downright stupid. Just as sad as their stance is that of their supporters, the business leaders of Lee County who obviously are not worried about the skills of their labor force, and are unwilling to recognize the benefits they have gained from having a strong public school system.

Any More Democrats For District One?

Three Democrats are now running for District One.

Attorney Brian Neely from Tupelo is running.

Prentiss County businessman and Chancery Clerk Travis Childers is running.

Now Representative Steve Holland of Plantersville is running.

The Daily Journal:

Rep. Steve Holland, D-Plantersville, will be a candidate for the 1st Congressional District seat.

Holland has served in the legislature since 1984.

I'm leaning toward Childers, but I haven't made my pick yet.

Dr. Marty Wiseman on District One and Demographics

Issue #42 The View From The Stennis Institute:

THE WILD, WILD FIRST CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

by Marty Wiseman, Ph.D.
John C. Stennis Institute of Government
Mississippi State University

The political pot in Mississippi is boiling over. Announcements of retirements and resignations have set in motion a predictable chain reaction as candidates scramble to fill the now or soon to be open seats in the First and Third Congressional Districts and the unexpired term of Mississippi's junior Senator Trent Lott.

The evolving contest(s) to fill the First District Congressional seat being vacated by veteran Congressman Roger Wicker as he accepts Governor Haley Barbour's appointment to fill Lott's unexpired term present a tremendously intriguing picture from several angles. For quite some time when one thought of the First Congressional District, the population center radiating out from Tupelo and Lee County came immediately to mind. If fact many simply thought that as the Tupelo area went so went the First District. Indeed 13 year veteran Congressman Roger Wicker calls Tupelo home. As is usually the case when an open seat becomes available, pent up desire to run for the office manifests itself and in the process observers commence the game of handicapping the chances of the respective candidates based on their experience, name recognition and where in the district they are from.

When one examines the First District through the prism of the current crop of announced and potential candidates they are in for some interesting discoveries. To begin with, this district that spans almost the entire way across North Mississippi from the Alabama line in the east stopping at the edge of the Delta dominated Second Congressional District has now developed a second major population center. Upstart, but increasingly powerful, DeSoto County has grown rapidly, and that growth continues so that population-wise it has reached virtual parity with the traditional population center of Tupelo/Lee County. Thus, the potential for a significant east/west rivalry for influence has developed in the First District. The entry into the race of former state legislator and current Mayor of the DeSoto County city of Southaven, Republican Greg Davis serves notice that the western part of the district is ready to play for keeps. Already at least three candidates from the Tupelo area have made their intentions known, and there will likely be others. Former Tupelo Mayor Glenn McCullough, a Republican, and Democrats Travis Childers, Chancery Clerk of Prentiss County and Tupelo Attorney Brian Neely have announced. Although there was a point at which it might have seemed that the Tupelo/Lee County eastern part of the First District was in danger of being swamped by the population growth in the DeSoto County dominated western part of the district, such concerns have abated with the arrival of the Toyota auto manufacturing facility and the growing number of announcements by auxiliary manufacturers.

Just as Tupelo has long been thought of as the "Capital" of the First District, conventional wisdom has labeled this a Republican District. No doubt this was due to Wicker's affiliation with the Republican Party. How quickly we forget the nearly 50-year tenure of Democrat Jamie Whitten. Recent elections clearly prove that residents of the First have not forgotten, and that there is plenty of evidence that a member of the Democratic Party can indeed be a viable candidate in the First. Furthermore, this Democratic viability extends across racial lines. One need look no further than the election of State Senator-elect, Democrat Eric Powell to fill the seat of retiring Senator Travis Little. Powell, an African-American won handily in a heavily white district including parts of Alcorn, Prentiss, and Tishomingo Counties. The eastern two-thirds of the First District is one of the remaining areas of high concentrations of what are often referred to as New Deal, TVA, Jamie Whitten Democrats. As one travels westward in the First they will encounter a growing African-American population that also votes heavily Democratic. A candidate who can pull together these two "brands" of Democrats can be successful in a First District race.

Some attention must also be paid to the impact of the mechanics of the election. Candidates for the race for the First District Congressional seat in the November general election must file by the end of the day on January 11. Candidates for the special election will file a few days later even though the special election will be held before the general election. All candidates in the special election will run together regardless of party with the top two making the runoff provided no one candidate gains a majority of the votes. It is unknown at this point what the date of the special election will be, but the primary for the general election will be March 11. Perhaps if both elections were on the same day voters would have to vote on two separate ballots. If this were the case, what if the winner of the non-partisan special election failed to win his party's primary for the general? Or what if the winner of the party primary was not elected to the seat in the special election?

One final consideration has to do with the context of Election Day. Special elections often have lighter turnouts than general elections. How would the prospects of the prospective candidates differ in a special election as compared to a heavily attended Presidential Election with the historic possibilities of Democratic ticket headed by Barak Obama or Hillary Clinton?

* I'm not in the practice of reproducing entire works, but I couldn't find this elsewhere online. Please post a link in the comments if it appears on the MSU website somewhere.

The Musgrove Announcement Tour

He began the day in Tupelo at Johnnie's Drive-In.

Will Bardwell reports his firsthand experience from there and gives some opinion on the early themes Musgrove appears to be focusing on
The Daily Journal also reports on the major themes and details some of Musgrove's attacks on Representative Wicker

Soon he stopped in Jackson generating more press:

WJTV's Coverage
Natalie Chandler for the Clarion Ledger
WLBT's Coverage
WAPT's Coverage

Next he spoke in Hattiesburg and The Hattiesburg American covered it.

Finally he made his last stop for the day in Gulfport where:

He generated coverage for the 5,6, and 10 o'clock news with WLOX's Jeff Lawson and made it onto Cotton Mouth blog.


Above are former Governor Ronnie Musgrove and WLOX's Jeff Lawson

Update: I almost forgot to include a Daily Kos post on his announcement also.

"kos" mentions that Musgrove has a son (stepson) in Iraq and then says this:

And don't worry, the less we like him around these parts, the better it's for him in Mississippi. There's a reason he took a gratuitous swipe against California and New York in his speech. The best way for us to help win that seat is to hate on Musgrove, and I'm sure he'll oblige plenty in the coming 11 months.

I actually told a couple of Musgrove's people about the comment and they agreed and were happy to hear it.

Governor Ronnie Musgrove's Announcement

Musgrove Declares Candidacy for U.S. Senate

“We Need a Senator Determined to Change

The Washington Way of Doing Things.” 

Former Governor Ronnie Musgrove announced his candidacy today for the Mississippi U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Senator Trent Lott. “There is a complete disconnect between what they argue about in Washington and what people worry about at home,” said Musgrove.

In a series of events in Tupelo, Jackson, Hattiesburg and Gulfport, Musgrove strongly condemned the fiscal and economic policies of Congress, including “the deficit spending, the pork barrel earmarks, the spending money they don’t have and wasting the money they do have.”

“Congress has spent years turning a blind eye to illegal immigration and a deaf ear to the economic fears of the middle class,” continued Musgrove. “Our national debt is weakening our position in the world and bankrupting what we can do here at home. And on top of all that, we’re losing jobs to countries overseas and are on the verge of a recession.”

Musgrove drew contrasts with interim senator Roger Wicker, pointing out how Wicker has voted repeatedly in Congress against pay-as-you-go budgeting and in favor of raising the national debt limit, increasing the deficit, and for billions of dollars in special interest pork. Musgrove singled out Wicker’s support of earmarks like the $400 million “Bridge to Nowhere” in Alaska, and other “national priorities like another concert hall in New York, a National Mule and Packers Museum in California and a Prison Museum in Kansas.”

“Mr. Wicker,” said Musgrove, “don’t tell us you had to vote for all of this nonsense in order to bring our share of pork home. Saying that ‘everyone else does it’ isn’t good enough anymore.”

Musgrove drew other contrasts with Wicker, citing Wicker’s votes for weaker penalties for hiring illegal aliens and for voting five times against funding for tougher border security. “Roger Wicker will spend your tax dollars on a mule museum but not on more border guards. If that doesn’t say something about his priorities, then I don’t know what will.”

“When you get failing grades from the National Taxpayers Union and the Club for Growth,” continued Musgrove, “you have no business calling yourself a fiscal conservative. And sending sugar plums to New York and California doesn’t sound very Mississippi to me.”

Citing his experience as a governor who balanced every budget and cut state spending rather than raise taxes, Musgrove declared “I’ll vote against the Democrats when I think they’re wrong, and I’ll vote with the Republicans when I think it’s best for Mississippi. But the most important thing is this -- if we’re going to get this country back on sound footing, we’ll need a senator who knows how to say no.”

Referring to his years as governor, Musgrove said “Our spending was smart, our economy was growing, we were investing in education and we were attracting jobs and investment. We did it by working across political lines and watching the bottom line. That’s the kind of federal government this country needs and this state deserves. And that leadership and example has to start in Washington.”

TVA keeps paying them

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the nation's largest public utility, has apparently paid huge bonuses that were unrelated to the performance of two top executives this year.

From the Daily Journal:

The nation's largest public utility told the SEC on Tuesday that it paid bonuses in the past year of $724,000 to former nuclear chief Karl Singer "without regard to actual performance" after Singer voluntarily resigned his $480,528-a-year job as executive vice president.

Knoxville-based TVA also disclosed that its former head of fossil operations, Joe Bynum, has continued to receive his $413,992-a-year salary since he resigned in June.Bynum, who will officially leave TVA on Jan. 7, also was paid another $401,421 in performance bonuses in fiscal 2007 even though he worked only half of the fiscal
year.

Bynum collected nearly $3 million in deferred retirement benefits in September for funds he has accumulated during more than two decades at the federal utility. Singer walked away with nearly $1.6 million in deferred retirement benefits.

Both executives also will receive full medical coverage from TVA for the next year.

Tupelo, Miss., was the first TVA city.

Republicans Fire; Franks Fires Back

Last Week Republicans attacked Jamie Franks in a statewide ad buy. Jamie Franks is clearly a fighter and I didn't expect it to take him long to respond.

Jamie Franks in Tupelo

Leesha Faulkner brings us this original video from a "Networking at Noon" event in Tupelo. Thanks Leesha.



Leesha's blog: Behind the News