Jackson Free Press

The attorney general's office recovered $33.95 million and delivered that money to the state Treasury on Monday. In a press release, Attorney General Jim Hood encouraged the Mississippi Legislature to use the money to offset budget shortfalls for vital state services.

“Hopefully, this will undo some of the damage inflicted to agency budgets because of state leaders’ untimely devotion to tax breaks for big businesses,” Hood said in the release. “Those misguided corporate tax cuts along with the problems associated with Senate Bill 2362 and the Legislature’s mathematical error have led to a reduction of beds at the State Hospital, layoffs at the Department of Revenue and the Forestry Commission, and closure of National Guard armories. Lawmakers will fall far short of collecting the $188 million that they anticipated collecting in the special funds sweep, and I’m concerned that there are more significant budget cuts ahead.”

The majority of the $33,951,305 is from a judgment against pharmaceutical manufacturer Sandoz Inc., which defrauded the state by manipulating the prices it charged for its drugs to the state Medicaid program.

After the Washington Post released a 2005 video recording of Donald Trump and Billy Bush having a lewd conversation about permissible ways to treat women, several former Trump supporters backed away from their endorsements. Among these politicians were Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley and two Alabama members of Congress.

Mississippi political leaders, however, did not back off their endorsements. Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves did tweet his disapproval with Trump's remarks on Oct. 8.

"As a dad of girls, @realdonaldtrump's remarks on video are reprehensible and outside the bounds of decency. I hope his apology is sincere," Reeves tweeted on Oct. 8.

Trump issued an apology in a short video later, but defended the discussion as "locker room talk" in the second presidential debate on Sunday.

The Mississippi Democratic Party released a statement in response to Trump's views on sexual assault last Friday.

"It was revealed this afternoon that the Republican presidential nominee continues to hold astonishing views about how he can get away with sexual assault. Yet, not a single Republican statewide or legislative leader has called his actions deplorable," the statement says. "America deserves better leadership than this, and voters should remember his words when they vote on November 8th."

Following the debate, Gov. Phil Bryant did not back off his endorsement of Trump, and on Facebook, he said issues like repealing Obamacare and appointing judges to the U.S. Supreme Court were at stake in the election.

"Tonight, Donald Trump focused on issues important to the American people -- securing our borders, rebuilding our economy and repealing and replacing Obamacare. Bill Clinton was correct when he called it the craziest thing in the world. It was good to see most of this debate centered on things that are important to Americans," Bryant said in a Facebook post on Sunday. "Hillary Clinton spent the evening proposing the same policies that have failed for 30 years, including appointing liberal judges to the Supreme Court who would advance the Left's agenda rather than respect the Constitution. Most conservatives understand this election is about the United States Supreme Court and the future of our country."

Thus far, no state political leaders who formally endorsed Trump have swayed in their support of the Republican presidential candidate. The deadline for Mississippians to register to vote was on Saturday.