Jackson Free Press

Thanks to the economic downturn, it's a buyer's market for a lot of products: houses are cheap, food is relatively inexpensive (although experts are predicting a bacon shortage of apocalyptic proportions) and now, at Jackson-area Walmart stores, you can even get a pretty good deal on a weapon that shoots bullets faster than I can gobble down bacon, which is pretty damn fast.

Over the weekend, Walmart ran an ad in the Clarion-Ledger advertising deals on shotguns, rifles and MSRs. It's possible that the world's largest corporation understands that global chaos could ensue when bacon reserves dry up.

Anarchy is generally good for the gun business.

According to the ad, one might procure one of these MSRs -- modern sporting rifle more commonly known as an assault rifle -- for as little as $597 and as much $1,097 for a .223-caliber Colt M4 Rifle. If you're smart, you don't go cheap because when the bacon-takers come -- and, believe me, they will come -- you want a reliable weapon to protect your family's salted meats.

At the same time, you don't want to spend too much just to be sure you can afford to stock up on enough ammo to fend off the imminent roving hoards of pork-looters. To that end, there's a mid-level machine gun, a Sig Sauer M400 SRP with Prismatic Scope can be had for just $897 and, according to the ad, is available only at Walmart.

Only at Walmart indeed.

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Update: I deferred to the expertise of the firearmphiles and removed a reference to automatic weapons. Again, the gun people win.

Bill Chandler, the director of the Mississippi Immigrant Rights Alliance, is reporting that the Scott County Circuit Clerk's office may have mishandled the voter registration forms of approximately 200 people, mostly Latinos and African Americans.

Chandler said MIRA, a which advocates from immigrants in Mississippi, registered 320 new voters in Scott County, where 9.7 percent of the population is Hispanic. More than 38 percent of Scott County's citizens are African American.

Roughly half the individuals MIRA signed up did not have working telephone numbers, Chandler said. Of the people who did have working phones, Chandler said not one received voter information cards from Circuit Clerk Joe Rigby's office. Chandler believes the voters without phones also likely did not receive the information cards.

"The effect of that is preventing people from knowing where their polling place is. To me, that is very, very serious," Chandler told the Jackson Free Press this evening.

Back-to-back calls placed to Rigby's office resulted in a busy signal.

CORRECTION: The above blog post has been edited to reflect that the circuit clerk's name is Joe Rigby. We apologize for originally misstating his name.

Hinds County District 2 Supervisor Doug Anderson has resigned from the board.

Anderson, who has been in poor health since suffering two small strokes over the summer, often missed board meetings and rarely spoke when he did attend.

A former state lawmaker in the Mississippi House and Senate, Anderson joined the board in 1993.

The board members can appoint a temporary replacement until a special election can be held next fall.

Obviously, people weren't paying attention when, right after the reelection of Barack Obama to a second term, Mississippi asked for permission to secede from the Union.

(Again.)

Or whenever Gov. Phil Bryant says he doesn't want anything to do with the Obamacare -- which extends to a state health-care exchange that's been in the works since before Bryant took office.

Clearly, people thought Mississippi was kidding last week when Bryant called on state lawmakers to resist any new federal gun regulations.

And today, at the urging of Republicans, the House even passed a bill that lets the Department of Public Safety ignore companies who try to levy fines on Mississippi residents who get out-of-state photo traffic tickets.

So Reps. Jeff Smith and Gary Chism, both Republicans from Columbus, have a bill that make it clear once and for all:

Hey, federal government, leave us alone!

Their HB 490 clarifies that "protected rights under state sovereignty may not be infringed upon by federal action(s)." The provisions of the act include:

TO ASSERT THE SOVEREIGNTY OF THE STATE UNDER THE MISSISSIPPI CONSTITUTION OF 1890

TO PROHIBIT THE INFRINGEMENT OF THE CONSTITUTIONALLY PROTECTED RIGHTS OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, OR ITS PEOPLE BY MEANS OF ANY FEDERAL STATUTE, MANDATE, EXECUTIVE ORDER, JUDICIAL DECISION OR OTHER ACTION DEEMED BY THE STATE TO BE UNCONSTITUTIONAL

TO CREATE THE JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE ON THE NEUTRALIZATION OF FEDERAL LAW

TO PROVIDE FOR THE MEMBERSHIP AND DUTIES OF THE COMMITTEE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

That Chism and Smith look like a couple of extras out of Django Unchained isn't the only reason their bill has been making the Internet sad all day. It's also because invoking the word sovereignty tends to give thinking Mississippians chills. As Smith and Chism are no doubt fully aware, the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission was a clandestine organization the Legislation created to spy on Mississippi’s citizens involved with the Civil Rights Movement.

For now, HB 490 fate rests with Constitution Committee Chairman Scott Delano, R-Biloxi. We'll see if it has legs.

Johnny Lee Butts went out for his regular morning walk on July 22, 2012 and never came home. That morning, a car struck and killed Butts; later police arrested a couple of teenagers for the crime.

In a recent report, CNN shed new light on what happened that morning . According to statements by two of the passengers-- a teenager and a man named Tony Hopper Jr.-- the passengers and unnamed driver of the car spotted a man walking. Here's an exchange from the grand jury indictment, according to CNN:

We see a walker on the side of the road. The complete left side of the road while we are on the complete right side of the road," the unidentified teen told a police lieutenant. "And I pointed out to say, 'watch out there is a walker there...'" The unnamed teen continued his story: "Whit slightly turns the steering wheel and I saw him. 'Watch out, don't do nothing stupid' and then he just keep turning the steering wheel and eventually before we knew it he ran him straight over." "He didn't slow down," Hopper said in a statement to a deputy sheriff. The deputy asked: "He never hit his brakes?" Hopper replied: "No sir." "Do you think he hit him on purpose?" asked the deputy. "Yes, sir, I do," said Hopper.

The driver is white; Butts was African American. However, the Panola County District Attorney John Champion (he is also the DA for DeSoto County) opted to not seek hate crime charges in the case.

Donny Butts, the victims brother wants to know why. He told CNN "That's the only reason they ran him over because he was black. Point blank."

The Butts family is considering filing a wrongful death suit, which may be the only way for the full truth to come out.

The following is a verbatim statement from the Mississippi Democratic Trust:

Jackson, MS- This afternoon, the House Rules Committee killed S.B. 2207, a measure that would extend the repealers on various provisions of Mississippi’s Medicaid program and allow for the consideration of Medicaid expansion.

Proponents of Medicaid expansion say that in the long-term, expansion will save both state and federal dollars while extending healthcare coverage to thousands of lower-income Mississippians. In Mississippi, expansion would also mean jobs by improving Mississippi’s healthcare workforce.

By tabling S.B. 2207, House Republicans are attempting to shut down the conversation on Medicaid expansion in Mississippi. As a result of the Rules Committee’s actions, the only remaining Medicaid bill is H.B. 560, a measure that failed to pass in the House and is currently being held on a Motion to Reconsider. H.B. 560 does not contain any of the code sections that would allow for Medicaid expansion.

House Democratic Caucus Leader Bobby Moak (D-Bogue Chitto) said, “Republicans are again proving that they are not interested in an open and honest discussion on Medicaid. If they were, they would allow Mississippians the benefit of considering this important issue with all options on the table.”

Moak added, “House Democrats will not abide false deadlines or political ploys on this issue. We are ready to kill every bill that comes before us that does not allow for a full vetting of the crucial question of Medicaid expansion. Any attempt by Republicans to suggest that they don’t have options to revive a Medicaid bill is nonsense. They have the Governor’s mansion, the Senate and the House. If a Medicaid bill doesn’t pass in the next month its because Republicans are more interested in playing politics than doing their jobs.”

It takes a big man to admit he was wrong.

Last night, that big man was five-foot funnyman and Daily Show host Jon Stewart, who had a little fun at Mississippi's expense last week when the news broke the state never officially ratified the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery.

In the bit, Stewart does what people who've never stepped a toe in Mississippi tend to do when talking about Mississippi, and lampooned the entire lot of state officials who were in charge when the Legislature ratified the amendment in 1995 -- I know, I know; we probably deserve that one -- as slavery-loving racists.

Among those officials was then-Secretary of State Dick Molpus, whose office was to oversee the handling of the official ratification paperwork. For reasons that remain unknown, the paperwork never made it to the federal archivist in Washington, D.C.

Stewart (or, more precisely, his comedy writers) implied that Molpus likely destroyed the documents -- you know, being the scheming white xenophobe that too many folks ignorantly presume every Mississippi politician to be.

But after getting a flurry of pushback from people who know Molpus, Stewart admitted last night that the show erred in using "Dick Molpus...as an avatar for racial bigotry, forgetting, perhaps that Dick Molpus is a real person with a real record on civil rights."

That record, as Stewart notes, includes apologizing in 1989 to the families of the murdered civil-rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner. Despite the threats he received against his life, Molpus counts the apology as among his proudest moments.

In doing so, Stewart proved himself to be a class act (it was, after all, a bad week for satirists. See: The Onion debacle). And if any good came out of the whole thing, it's that the rest of America learned a little bit about the classy Dick Molpus and about Mississippi.

Gov. Phil Bryant is still against Medicaid expansion, but says he's now willing to sit down with hospitals about other ways to cushion the blow from massive funding cuts when certain provisions of the Affordable Care Act go into effect.

In a statement issued jointly with the Mississippi Hospital Association, Bryant said he and hospitals "have come together in good faith to work out a possible solution to our funding issues."

Under the ACA, certain hospital funding mechanisms would sunset and be replaced by other revenue streams, primarily state Medicaid expansion. However, Bryant hates Obamacare so much he's refused to talk about covering an extra 300,000 low-income Mississippians with an expanded Medicaid plan.

Chris Anderson, CEO of Singing River Health Systems in Gulfport, said the Medicaid expansion question is "dead end" with Bryant so hospitals will have to work with the governor's administration to find alternate funding sources.

Anderson and other hospital execs are encouraged that Bryant now appears willing to come to the negotiating table.

First there was Bill Clinton. Then there was Barack Obama. Then came Ohio Sen. Rob Portman and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Now there's former Mississippi Gov. Ronnie Musgrove.

OK, maybe not in that exact order, but all of these elected officials eventually evolved to become–for lack of a better and less condescending word–accepting of same-sex-loving people.

The latest, Musgrove, penned about his change-of-heart today at the Huffington Post.

He writes: "My evolution on LGBT adoption came from intensely personal reflections on my own life. What is sad to me is that my understanding of this issue did not come until after I had left office and no longer had the power to right this wrong. This reality weighs heavily on me to this day."

Portman, who had been a foe of marriage equality, has a gay son and publicly reversed his position last week. Musgrove also said he agrees with Portman's new stance on gay marriage.

The Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration, which oversees the operation of state buildings, has recommended the former Worldcom Building in Clinton as the permanent home for the Department of Revenue, now housed in what's practically a shed, also in Clinton.

Downtown Jackson had been a front-runner for agency HQ, especially after a 2011 report commissioned by then-Gov. Haley Barbour said buying the Landmark Building would be the cheapest option for our cash-strapped state.

The issue has since become politically charged with Speaker Philip Gunn wanting to keep the agency close to his Clinton district.

DFA explains its rational in the following verbatim news release:

MS Department of Finance & Administration Recommends New Location for the MS Department of Revenue

Today, the MS Department of Finance & Administration has determined that, on the basis of receiving the highest evaluation score, the Mississippi Department of Revenue should execute a 20 year lease agreement with Duckworth Realty for the relocation of its offices to the South Pointe Building (the former Worldcom Building) in Clinton, MS. The initial annual cost to the State would be $2,878,000 resulting in a total cost of $41,428,492 (net present value) for the term of the lease agreement. This offer represented the lowest total cost to the State. The proposal submitted by Duckworth for the South Pointe Building includes 187,511 square feet of office space, 600 parking spaces, tenant improvements, security and janitorial services. The lease term would begin July 1, 2014.

Kevin J. Upchurch, Executive Director of the Mississippi Department of Finance & Administration, stated “We are pleased to have a more permanent solution to the issue of housing the MS Department of Revenue. The selection process was thorough and comprehensive. The main objectives of this process were the cost to the taxpayers, ease of access for citizens, and securing a more permanent, functional facility for MDOR employees. I am satisfied that this location meets all of those objectives.”

On November 1, 2012, DFA issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to obtain new offices for the Mississippi Department of Revenue (MDOR) via a long term lease. A team consisting of three DFA employees and two MDOR employees was assembled to evaluate all proposals based on pre-defined calculations and scoring criteria. The State received six proposals and three were selected for further review. The three finalists were Hertz Investment Group, LLC (The Landmark Building), Ergon (Diversified Technologies Building), and Duckworth Realty (South Pointe Building).

DFA contracted with Allred Architectural Group, P.A. of Ocean Springs, MS to perform test fit analysis, building assessments, and environmental assessments of the three proposed buildings. This review was designed to determine each building’s ability to meet the needs of the MDOR. The review was also designed to identify any deficiencies within the buildings. Based on the results of these analyses, each finalist was asked to the submit a Best and Final Offer in which they were to explain how any noted deficiencies would be addressed, as well as, make any final …

Gov. Phil Bryant's Education Works bill is going to a conference committee after all.

Yesterday, the House delivered a crushing defeat to Gov. Phil Bryant's Education Works agenda, the governor's everything-but-the-kitchen sink education-reform bill that includes charter schools, a third-grade reading improvement program, teacher merit pay and many other provisions.

Today, the House went the other way. Now details of the bill, HB 890, will be negotiated by members of the House and Senate Education Committees as well as yet-to-named legislators.

The House voted 60-58 against the governor's bill, which passed in the Senate, meaning a few Republicans broke ranks and sided with Democrats in opposing the bill. Today's vote appears to be more a rebuke of Bryant's ram-it-down-throat tactic than of any individual education idea.

It was of little consequence since most of the important provisions of Education Works, including the charter-school bill, remain alive in separate pieces of legislation.

Ironically, the vote against Bryant's agenda fell on the same day at the former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is in town pushing education reform at Mississippi College. Bush's nonprofit, the Foundation for Excellence in Education drafted much of the model legislation on which Bryant's education plan was built.

Health-justice advocates are still calling on state lawmakers to expand Medicaid, and state lawmakers still aren't answering.

The latest rally-cum-presser was this morning when hundreds of representatives of non-profits and social service agencies gathered at the Capitol to call on legislators to consider expanding the state health program for the poor.

"It's time to put people over politics," Sam Cameron, executive director of the Mississippi Hospital Association, said this morning.

Hospitals are especially interested in Medicaid expansion. Starting next year, hospitals will lose millions of dollars in federal funds that have historically offset the cost of caring for poor people who can't afford their hospital bills.

Citing the fact that state would have spend a little extra cash to fund Medicaid, Republican Gov. Phil Bryant and Speaker Gunn don't want Medicaid expansion to take place. Right now, the issue is at a standstill even as social-justice and religious groups have insisted that the Legislature at least have a debate on the question.

"Justice is a common ground on which we stand and we see this as a justice issue," said The Rev. Steve Casteel, president of the Mississippi Religious leadership Conference.

Jackson School Board of Trustees President Monica Gilmore Love released a statement this afternoon about the controversy over JPS schools chief Dr. Cedrick Gray's handling of finances at his former district in Tennessee.

"The Board of Trustees is aware of the recent news items involving Dr. Cedrick Gray and the audit of his former school district in Fayette County, Tennessee. Our focus and our number one priority is, and will continue to be, to improve student achievement in our schools and to move this district forward. We are closely monitoring this matter and will take appropriate action, if and when it becomes necessary," Gilmore said in the statement.

A Tennessee comptroller's audit of Fayette County government, including the school district that Gray ran, revealed numerous accounting problems, including overspending by hundred of thousands of dollars that dwindled the school system's cash reserves.

While it looks like Gray should have kept a closer eye on the district's finances, local media's characterization of the situation as emblematic of law-breaking misdeeds is probably a bit of stretch. Some outlets have seized on the fact that the comptroller issued findings that show financial protocols. Well, anyone who has any experience reading financial reports knows that auditors almost always issue findings that reveal some sort of deficiency.

In fact, if you read the entire Fayette County audit, you'll see that the comptroller pretty much issued findings–some material–against every department from the county mayor's office, sheriff's office, register of deeds and public works.

Responding to the findings, Gray faulted inexperienced staff for the deficiencies.

“At no time was it the intention of this administration to defraud, usurp, or mislead the school board, County Commissioners, or the good people of Fayette County," Gray wrote in response.

Democrats may not have the votes to expand Medicaid to cover 330,000 more people. Republicans don't have the votes to pass Medicaid without at least talking about expansion first.

That has been painfully evident every time Medicaid has come up for a vote on the House floor.

Today, for the second time this week, the House failed to pass the Medicaid budget. Democrats want to force House Speaker Philip Gunn, R-Clinton, to allow debate and up-down vote on Medicaid expansion. Despite House Republicans' repeated efforts to block expansion, several GOPers delivered passionate defenses of Medicaid today. Earlier in the session, the House also voted down its own Medicaid reauthorization plan while the House Republican leadership spiked a Senate version that would have allowed Medicaid debate to commence.

After members killed the Medicaid bill this past weekend, House Appropriations Chairman Herb Frierson, of Poplarville, implored his colleagues to approve the Medicaid budget today saying he doesn't "like to lose." Medicaid Committee Chairman Bobby Howell, R-Kilmichael, told members before the voted they would risk the lives more that 700,000 sick and elderly Mississippians if they voted the bill down.

House Minority Bobby Moak, D-Bogue Chitto, put out a statement a few minutes ago saying: “The decision by House Republican leadership and the Governor to not allow a full debate, much less a vote, on Medicaid expansion, could cost the taxpayers $30,000 per day if a special session is called.

"On the other hand, if the Governor does not call a special session, 700,000 people who depend on the program will be in jeopardy along with the 300,000 Mississippians that would be eligible under the expansion program.”

Since last year's surprising defeat of charter-school legislation in the Mississippi House Education Committee, proponents of the public-private schools seemed to want passing a charter school law priority No. 1. In the offseason, Speaker Philip Gunn even stacked the committee to clear the way for charter schools to pass and land on the House floor for a vote.

When the session started, I expected the legislative equivalent of shock-and-awe, a ramming down the throat of a charter school bill by the Republican leadership to show everybody who was in charge.

In the intervening 90 days, however, the Legislature has busied itself adding meaningless layers to existing laws on top federal laws. Affirming the right to bear arms and school prayer, constitutionally enshrined protections that weren't going anywhere even had the Legislature not sprang to action. So inane were some of the proposals--exempting Mississippi from federal law, banning bans on big soda--that Mississippi lawmakers couldn't stay out of the comedy headlines.

Finally, this week, both houses got their ish together to pass a long-coveted measure to expand charter schools in Mississippi. The House approved the conference report earlier in the week with no debate. Today, after a lengthy discussion, the Senate followed suit.

Next up: a bill signing by Gov. Phil Bryant.

What happens after that is anybody's guess.

A University of Mississippi student-body panel ruled this week that the male winner of a campus popularity contest would not longer have the title "Colonel Reb."

The Daily Mississippian, Ole Miss' school newspaper, reported that the Associated Student Body Judicial Council ruled the title of “Colonel Reb” was unconstitutional per the student government bylaws.

The DM quotes former ASB Judicial Chair Courtney Pearson, who last fall became the first African American homecoming queen in Ole Miss' history explaining: “An anonymous complaint was filed and the ASB Judicial Council took the appropriate steps to hear the complaint.... We followed the appropriate guidelines that we could have according to the most current Codes and Constitution. The decision is final.”

The Colonel Reb character is a old coot of an officer in the vanquished Confederate army, and has stirred controversy over the years. In 2003 then-Chancellor Robert Khayat announced in 2003 the Confederate throwback adopted as the official mascot in 1979 but whose image had been around since the 1930s, would no longer be a staple of Ole Miss on-field matchups. Khayat’s public reasoning was that having “a 19th century person representing a 21st century university in such a highly visible role” seemed odd.

As they are prone to do when anyone so much as sneezes in Colonel Reb's direction, Ole Miss were furious about the ASB committee's decision. Rob Pillow, ASB Attorney General Rob Pillow, vowed to investigate the name change, which he concedes is permanent.

The 2013 legislative session temporarily drew to close today. Because lawmakers failed to renew the state Medicaid program, Gov. Phil Bryant will have to call a special session sometime before July 1. Anyhow, a lot of people had stuff to say, mostly through emailed press statements.

Here's a flavor from around the Capitol:

From Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves:

JACKSON – The 2013 legislative session brought landmark education reforms, including public charter schools and rigorous literacy standards for students, a conservative $5.7 billion budget for fiscal year 2014 and new laws aimed at strengthening and protecting families, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves said today.

Of the new measures enacted, key items include legislation allowing a grant program to help schools hire trained law enforcement officers, increased funding for all levels of education and protection of Mississippians’ Second Amendment Rights.

“During the 2013 session, the Senate addressed issues that will have an impact on the state for many years to come, and I appreciate each member of the Senate who worked hard to ensure Mississippi stays on the road to economic recovery and continues to encourage the creation of better, higher-paying jobs,” Lt. Gov. Reeves said. “I appreciate working with Speaker Gunn to enact strong, conservative policies to push Mississippi forward.”

Key notes from the 2013 legislative session include:

Improving public education

The 2013 session will be remembered for the successful efforts to reform education and raise academic achievement for every student. The first steps toward school choice were made with the creation of public charter schools and legislation to end social promotion of students who cannot read at grade level.

“Mississippi students will rise up to meet these new standards for academic achievement, and parents will respond by demanding better from principals and teachers, many of whom work hard for public education every day,” Lt. Gov. Reeves said. “A quality education provides a stronger foundation for a well-trained workforce to grow Mississippi. We need graduates who are ready for highly skilled careers that pay well and will keep our children and grandchildren in Mississippi.”

The Legislature approved House Bill 369 creating public charter schools in D- and F-rated school districts with approval from a state authorizing board. School boards in districts rated as A, B or C can veto a public charter school application and deny giving parents educational choice. While Lt. Gov. Reeves pushed for a stronger public charter school law, he believes the new law will help foster demand for school choice across Mississippi.

Other measures passed include Senate Bill 2347, a “Third-Grade Gate” that measures literacy skills for students in Kindergarten through third grade, provides intervention programs for students needing assistance and requires third-grade students to meet reading standards before moving to the fourth grade. Gov. Phil Bryant’s Education Works package, Senate Bill 2658, established a $15,000 scholarship for students who score at least a 28 on the ACT and a 3.5 GPA and plan to enroll in a teacher education program. It …

In the immortal words of Ice Cube's Doughboy: Either they don't know, don't show or don't care about what's going on with circus elephants in the Tupelo, Miss. 'hood.

The Associated Press reports that a Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus elephant was hit by a bullet in an apparent drive-by shooting in Tupelo. Circus spokeswoman Melinda Hartline says the elephant, named Carol, was not seriously hurt and that no other animals were harmed.

Tupelo Police Chief Tony Carleton said a vehicle drove past the arena about 2 a.m. and fired into the area, AP reported.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. Former U.S. Rep. Travis Childers also offered a $250 reward.

http://jacksonfreepress.com/users/photos/2013/apr/09/11413/

The Mississippi Department of Corrections announced the death of Lessadolla Sowers at Mississippi State Penitentiary.

Sowers, formerly of Tunica County, was convicted of 10 counts of voter fraud in April 2011. She was sentenced to five years at Parchman for submitting fraudulent ballots in the August 2007 Democratic primary election.

Sowers appealed to the Mississippi State Supreme Court, which upheld her conviction in November 2012.

MDOC officials said Sowers, 69, possibly died from stroke complications on April 7.

It's unclear whether North Korea has gone ahead with its plan to launch a nuke, but it does appear that the universe has imploded.

Today, the Obama Administration announced it would hold off on cutting a program that partially reimburses hospitals for caring for the poor -- and Mississippi's Republican Medicaid foes are welcoming the news.

These funds, known to health-care policy wonks as disproportionate-share hospital payments, were set to expire next year. Under a deal the White House struck with hospitals to get their support for Obamacare, hospitals agreed to accept DSH cuts in exchange for putting more people on state Medicaid rolls.

However, Republican governors in states that are most in need of improved health-care vowed to resist growing their Medicaid programs.

Governing magazine reports that Marilyn Tavenner, head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said "postponing the reductions would allow states to complete their decision process about the Medicaid expansion."

Surprisingly, Mississippi Republicans are trumpeting the Obama Administration decision. The Legislature reached a stalemate on funding Medicaid as well as expanding the program during the legislative session that recently ended.

Gov. Phil Bryant, who is expected to convene a special session to deal with Medicaid, said he is "pleased" with Obama.

Said Bryant, through a news release: "I have long advocated that cuts to this program should not be used to affect budgets in states that choose not to expand Medicaid. This move should give us additional time to make a reasonable decision about any changes to the Medicaid program."

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