Story
Tough Questions: Gov. Ronnie Musgrove
They said they'd give me 15 minutes. I took 23. In that minuscule amount of time—enough time for sound bites, but not as much substance as I'd like—I tried to …
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[Alert] Public Education: What You Can Do Now
The Coalition for Children and Public Education writes: The Governor has called a special Legislative session to begin Wednesday, May 18 at 1:00 p.m. As part of the Coalition for …
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Politics
UPDATED: GOP Tracker Impersonates JFP Reporter at Espy Event, Campaign Says; PAC Denies
A tracker apparently working for the right-wing America Rising PAC impersonated a Jackson Free Press reporter at a campaign event Friday, campaign staff for Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mike Espy …
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UPDATED: Civil Rights Museum a ‘Done Deal'
A Civil Rights museum commission appointed by Gov. Haley Barbour approved the location of a planned National Civil Rights Museum Tuesday with a 22-to-9 vote in favor of a controversial …
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Chasing Amy
<b>Can Barbara Blackmon Make History?</b>
Read the full transcript of this interview on the JFP Politics Blog.
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Haley Barbour Recalls Reagan in Neshoba County Fair Speech
Neshoba County Fair/July 30, 2009/Verbatim
Thank you. It's great to be back at the Fair; there's no place like it. A little mud on your boots never should bother anybody over here. This is my …
Story
State Democrats Undemocratic?
Last month, the Mississippi Democratic Party filed suit with the federal district court in Greenville charging that the state's open primaries violate voting rights. Mississippi Democratic Communications Director Sam Hall …
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Undocumented Workers, Felons and Fines
Illegal immigrants and employers of illegal immigrants beware. The House passed Senate Bill 2988 by a wide margin today. The bill, called the Mississippi Employee Protection Act, forces all employers …
Story
Mississippi ‘Prepares for the Worst'
As expected, the oil spill caused by the explosion and sinking of BP-owned rig Deepwater Horizon April 20 reached the mouth of the Mississippi River this morning, reports CNN. The …
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[Talk] Alabama on our Minds
In an effort that riveted the attention of the nation and even got Alabama favorable copy on The New York Times editorial page, Alabama's Legislature passed the largest tax increase …
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City & County
Campaign Trickery: Lumumba a 'Race Traitor,' Lee a 'Rankin Republican'?
Supporters of men who are vying to be Jackson's next mayor were busy over the weekend with last-minute election trickery, some anonymous and some not, with much of it targeting …
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Politics
Espy on Mississippi Stereotypes, Public Schools and Immigration at Jackson Forum
U.S. Senate candidate Mike Espy addressed Jacksonians at a community forum on Nov. 14 where he expounded upon and set the record straight about his stances, including his response to …
Entry
FACTCHECK/UPDATED: Jonathan Lee Backers Gave More Than $1.2 Million to Republicans
By Donna LaddNote: This story has been updated with a total donation figure that Lee's backers gave to federal Republican candidates since 2008. The new paragraph is bolded down below.
In the WAPT-Clarion-Ledger debate, Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. alluded to the fact that he is a real Democrat when he unloaded on opponent Jonathan Lee in his closing statement. This is clearly a continuation of some Jacksonians' belief that Lee is a "Rankin County Republican," a meme we've heard off and on for months now.
We have factchecked both parts of that allegation to the best of our ability and will address them both below.
First, Rankin County
Lee's campaign materials make him sound like a life-long Jacksonian. His website states:
Jonathan was born, grew up and lives in Jackson. Jonathan was born and raised in Jackson into a family with deep ties throughout the community. The son of two Lanier graduates and part of a family whose roots span three generations in Jackson’s Georgetown community, Jonathan learned early what it meant to be proud of one’s city.
Jonathan called all of Jackson home – from growing up on Meadow Lane to getting picked up by his grandmother (“Big Mama”) after school who lived in Georgetown. After graduating from high school, Jonathan attended Mississippi State University, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and a Master’s in Business Administration.
The part that is left out of that description is that Lee's family moved to Rankin County in 1988 when he was 11. He later graduated from Northwest Rankin High School and did not live in Jackson again until 2009 when records show that Lee and his wife moved into Jackson from Rankin County. When asked, he does not deny that he has lived less than four years in Jackson as an adult.
Lee, who is 35 now, took over as president of his father's company when he was 24, according to his campaign materials. He told the Jackson Free Press that he stepped down from the company, which he never owned, in December 2011, meaning that he ran it for about 10 years.
Candidate Lee ran into a Rankin-related controversy last year after a commenter posted on the Jackson Free Press site that he was still driving a Maroon SUV with a Rankin County plate. In response to an Aug. 10, 2012, query about it, Lee emailed the Jackson Free Press:
This particular rumor has been shopped around various media outlets all week. The vehicle I assume that they are referring to is my company vehicle. My personal vehicle is registered in Hinds County, a fact easily verified.
MPI is owned by an entity chartered and located in Rankin County. It was where our distribution company was originally located. In fact, MPI has only been located in Jackson for 19 years. For those 19 years MPI has paid property taxes, inventory taxes, and school taxes in Jackson, Miss. The parent company is still located in Rankin county …
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Cover
War On The Poor
Congress Embraces a New Southern Strategy
It was 7:30 in the morning, and the smallest beneficiaries of the Richard Brandon Head Start Center at 5920 N. State St. followed their young parents into the mass of …
Story
Gerald Ford – 1913-2006.
The statement from his family did not list a cause of death. He was 93.
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Child Abuse, Bad Diets Lead to Brain Issues Lead to Crime?
It's kind of one of those scientific findings that ought to be obvious, but here it is: Children who are physically and emotionally abused often become violent criminals. In the …
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Civil Rights
The Racist Roots of Disenfranchising Voters
Mississippi is one of 12 states with disenfranchisement laws that can affect people for life. The list of 22 disenfranchising crimes means an estimated 218,181 people in the state are …
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Cover
Stolen Lives: Remembering the Tragedy of Slavery
An Instrument of Change
A half moon disappeared as the sun rose out of the Atlantic Ocean on Sept. 1, 1832. The humid coastal winds filled the sails and carried the ship through the …
Story
[Lott] The 2004 Agenda
In his State of the Union speech President Bush outlined an agenda which includes the War on Terrorism, tax cuts, job security and improving worker training, using our nation's community …
