Claim OwnershipThe Other Side: Mississippi Today's Political Podcast
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Host Adam Ganucheau and the Mississippi Today political team bring you intimate access to the most connected players and observers in Mississippi politics. This podcast is a continuation of the mission that Mississippi Today serves: To present facts, perspectives and appropriate context on all sides of a political debate. With no focus on one side of the aisle or the other, we'll also provide you the other side of a story, giving our award-winning journalists a platform to share their insights as they cover some of the most contentious elections in the state's history
402 Episodes
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Sens. Kamesha Mumford of Jackson and Justin Pope of Pope (yes, Pope) share their insight and experiences as freshmen lawmakers, at the halfway point of their first legislative session. The two say they've quickly realized legislating centers around relationships made at the Capitol and how one works with others.
Secretary of State Michael Watson discusses his push for lawmakers to enact campaign finance reform, including transparency and searchability of reports for the public. Watson says he knows such legislation is a tough sell with lawmakers.
Senate President Pro tem Dean Kirby, a Republican from Pearl, gives an update on school choice, state support for areas devastated by the winter storm, and serving in the position known as "the senators' senator." Kirby said the state will help areas hit by Winter Storm Fern, but says damages will be in the billions and full recovery will be a long-term process.
State Rep. Zakiya Summers has filed the House version of the "Robert G. Clark Jr. Voting Rights Act." It's an effort to get out in front of what many expect will be the further dismantling of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 by the U.S. Supreme Court. Summers isn't extremely optimistic about the measure's passage in the Mississippi Legislature this year, but says she and other lawmakers are trying to educate people about the dire impact voters could see from damage to the VRA.
Senate Education Committee Chairman Dennis DeBar says he will allow his committee to vote on the House's school choice measure, but he's still convinced the proposal to spend public money on private schooling will not pass in the Senate. Why are senators opposed to this? He explains.
Mississippi Today Jackson Editor Anna Wolfe, who won a Pulitzer Prize for her investigative reporting on Mississippi's massive welfare scandal, provides insight on the first -- perhaps only -- criminal trial from the federal investigation into misspending of millions of dollars meant to help the needy, fight poverty and feed the hungry as it enters its third week in court.
Jackson Mayor John Horhn gives an update on city issues to "The Other Side," including an arrest in the Beth Israel Congregation arson attack, the latest on the water system, the search for a new police chief as crime rates move in a positive direction and what the city hopes to get from the state legislative session. Hohrn says there are many challenges ahead for the state's capital city, and "We are a city that is a prototype for what ails America."
Mississippi Today's team prognosticates on some major issues the state Legislature will tackle in this year's session, which kicks off Jan. 6. School choice and teacher pay, workforce development, prison health care reform and health care in general, and legalized online sports betting are all clear-and-present issues. Will there be any surprise issues at the Capitol this year?
Mississippi Today reporters Gwen Dilworth and Michael Goldberg recap some of the findings from their series "Behind Bars, Beyond Care," which uncovered widespread accusations of lack of adequate health care in Mississippi prisons and the suffering it causes. They discuss the potential for passage of reform in the upcoming 2026 legislative session.
Mississippi Today health reporter Allen Siegler and health editor Laura Santhanam give an update on the state's plan to spend its initial pot of opioid lawsuit settlement money. Siegler's in-depth reporting has chronicled some issues and raised serious questions about how the state and local governments are spending the money, which is supposed to help address the scourge of opioid addiction, which has cost at least 10,000 lives in Mississippi since 2000.
Ridgeland Police Chief Brian Myers and New Albany Fire Chief Mark Whiteside said pending changes the Legislature made to the state employee retirement system will make it even harder to hire and retain first responders. They want the Legislature to revisit an overhaul of the Public Employee Retirement System set to take effect in March for those who serve in high-stress, low paying and dangerous first-responder jobs.
Newly elected state Sen. Johnny DuPree is no stranger to state politics. He was longtime mayor of Hattiesburg and is a former Democratic nominee for governor. He outlines issues he'll tackle in his new job, and vows to keep his constituents informed of what's happening at the Capitol.
Mississippi Today CEO and Executive Director Mary Margaret White, Jackson Editor Anna Wolfe and Editor-in-Chief Emily Wagster Pettus discuss Mississippi Today's mission as a nonprofit newsroom and how donors' support helps pay for expenses such as public records that journalists use in their work.
The link between good, affordable child care and economic development is discussed by Cathy Grace of Tupelo, the early childhood program specialist with the non-profit North Mississippi Education Consortium. She praised Gov. Tate Reeves and other Mississippi political leaders for acknowledging the need for an additional commitment to child care, but said much more of an effort by the state is needed than what is currently being proposed.
Sen. Jeremy England, chairman of the Senate Elections Committee, says he plans to again introduce legislation for Mississippi to join most other states and allow in-person, no-excuse early voting. He also talks about the U.S. Supreme Court agreeing to hear a Mississippi case challenging the counting of mail-in ballots after Election Day, and about major issues he foresees in the 2026 legislative session.
Mississippi Today's Michael Goldberg, Geoff Pender and Taylor Vance break down last week's special legislative elections, where Democrats gained three seats. Goldberg complains of a dearth of election-night pizza.
Republican House Corrections Chairwoman Becky Currie of Brookhaven began touring state prisons when she got her committee chair assignment a couple of years ago, and found a disturbing dearth of medical care for inmates. 'We're paying $124 million to a company for health care and they are not going it and they are keeping the money," said Currie, who is pushing for reform and been a centerpiece of Mississippi Today's investigative series on prison health care, "Behind Bars, Beyond Care.
Ricky Neaves, director of the Mississippi High School Activities Association said that the push for expanded "school choice" by Mississippi lawmakers could have a drastic impact on athletics and other programs in the state's public education system. He said improper "recruitment" of athletes already happens, even with his agency's oversight, but that universal school choice would exacerbate competition to lure athletes with ill effect on public schools, especially small, rural ones. Neaves said he hopes lawmakers leave MHSAA's eligibility authority intact if they expand school choice.
Rep. Robert Johnson III of Natchez, leader of Mississippi House Democrats, says the GOP leadership's push for "school choice" is out of touch with rank-and-file Mississippians, many Republican lawmakers and educators. He also makes an announcement about his plans for his own political future, often the subject of much speculation.
Nancy Loome, executive director of The Parents' Campaign public education advocacy group counters many points proponents are making in their push for more school choice in Mississippi. Loome says siphoning public money for private schools would provide no benefit to Mississippi students or taxpayers and that state leaders should instead focus on sustaining and expanding education gains made in recent years. She said opposition to school choice from parents on both sides of the political aisle in Mississippi is growing.
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