Legislature vs Reeves: horsepower check in Jackson

The next skirmish in the battle between the Mississippi Legislature and Governor Tate Reeves is likely to occur tomorrow afternoon at the State Capitol. However, not many knowledgeable observers expect the conflict to end tomorrow. One top-ranked Mississippi Republican told NEMISS.NEWS last week, “This is just a little preview.”

The immediate conflict between Reeves and the legislature is over the spending of the state’s $1.25-billion share of the trillions of dollars the federal government has appropriated to help those who have suffered hardship during the coronavirus pandemic.

Soon after the federal appropriation was made, Governor Reeves started asserting that he alone, as governor, has the authority to decide how and where to spend the money. There apparently had been some discussion between Reeves, the lieutenant-governor and the house speaker, but Reeves maintained that he would control the money without the legislature having significant input.

MS Lt. Governor, Delbert Hosemann, fighting for legislative say in use of CARES funds.

One week ago today, Wednesday, April 29, Lieutenant-Governor Delbert Hosemann, the presiding officer of the State Senate, and House Speaker Philip Gunn called a session of the legislature to meet at the Capitol on Friday, May 1. During that brief afternoon session Hosemann and Gunn spoke to members of both houses and asserted that only the legislature, not the governor, had authority under the constitution to decide how the $1.25-billion in federal relief money should be spent.

Members of both houses supported the leaders overwhelmingly. The House voted unanimously – every Republican and every Democrat – that the legislature, not Governor Reeves, should appropriate the money.

In the State Senate, only two senators did not support the measures claiming the spending authority for the legislature. Two Republicans, District 42 Senator Chris McDaniel and his former campaign manager and friend, District 37 Senator Melanie Sojourner, voted against the measure, in effect supporting Reeves.

MS Speaker of the House, Philip Gunn, opposes Reeves’s total control of CARES fund.

The rhetoric has accelerated sharply since then with the governor holding daily press conferences during which he has accused the legislative leadership of playing what he called “power politics.”

Speaker Gunn responded earlier this week in a letter to Reeves in which he said, “In your comments Friday you portrayed legislators as thieves and killers. You said we ‘stole the money’ and people would die. Such cheap theatrics and false personal insults were beneath the dignity of your office. They were out of character for you personally.”

Lieutenant-Governor Hosemann’s responses have been less sharply worded than Gunn’s remarks. His office refused to respond to Reeves’s accusations that the legislature had acted illegally. Hosemann submitted a column to the Jackson Clarion-Ledger newspaper in which he said, “Recently, the Mississippi Legislature reconvened briefly to begin appropriating federal funds sent to Mississippi for direct and indirect COVID-19 expenses.The governor was provided almost $35 million in discretionary money. Another $800 million was designated to specific agencies and programs, and those funds are already available for agencies to use.

“A separate $1.25 billion, the Coronavirus Relief Fund, will be used for other related expenses, like COVID-19 testing and equipment for hospitals, expansion of distance learning technology like broadband to help teacher and students, and grants for struggling small businesses.”

Both houses of the legislature will convene at 1 p.m. tomorrow, Thursday, May 7.

State Senator Chad McMahan (R)  favors having legislature appropriate CARES funds.

Republican State Senator Chad McMahan of District 6 told NEMISS.NEWS yesterday, “We will convene again at 1 p.m. on Thursday, May 7. We will submit a plan to allocate $100-million of the money to make grants to every one of 10,000 small businesses in the state that need the money to reopen.” McMahan specifically mentioned beauty salons, barbershops, and other “microbusinesses” who need the money to start up again.

“I support the governor,” McMahan said. “I think he’s done a good job in handling the coronavirus pandemic.”
However, McMahan said, “I have not seen a single plan from the governor about how he intends to spend the $1.25-billion.”

“I want the governor to succeed,” McMahan continued. “We need for him to succeed and the legislature needs to do its job for the state of Mississippi to succeed. The governor needs to get on with his constitutional duties and let us get on with ours in the legislature. Our job is to allocate the money that belongs to the people of Mississippi, and he needs to let us get on with that job.”

McMahan said that there are numerous gubernatorial appointments to state boards, commissions and other offices that have not been filled. “He needs to do his constitutional job and fill those positions.”

District 14 State Representative, Sam Creekmore of New Albany, told NEMISS.NEWS he believes only the legislature has the constitutional authority to appropriate the $1.25-billion. Creekmore said he has had one phone call from a Reeve supporters criticizing his support of that position. Creekmore said he’d had several calls agreeing that only the Legislature can appropriate the money.

Governor Reeves has threatened to veto what the legislature has done and what it intends to do. This in spite of the fact that he got zero votes in the state House of Representatives last Friday and only two votes in the state Senate. How he might go about peeling off enough votes to avoid his veto being overridden remains to be seen.

Justice William Waller, Jr. made good showing against Reeves, despite late entry into recent election.

It has been many years since Mississippians have such a sharp and public conflict between their governor and their state legislature. However, it does not come as a surprise to many who have closely followed events in state politics.

When Republican Reeves defeated Democrat Jim Hood in the Nov. 5 general election,several experienced political observers predicted that Reeves would have a rocky four years in the Governor’s Mansion. Although Reeves easily defeated Hood, who ran a lackadaisical campaign, a couple of factors pointed to an inharmonious time in state government:

• Reeves, although far better financed, had been challenged in the Republican primary by recently retired Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice, William Waller, Jr., the son of Mississippi’s 56th governor. He was not as well-known as Reeves, got a late start in the campaign, and had a pittance in campaign money compared to the $15-million war chest Reeves had accumulated in eight years as the state’s lieutenant-governor. Never the less, he ran a surprisingly strong race.
• Reeves failed to secure the Republican nomination in the first primary, receiving a plurality, but not the majority required for nomination. He prevailed over Waller in the Republican runoff, 54 to 46 percent.
• However, Republican Party power was significantly divided.
  • Reeves had the support of President Donald Trump, former Gov. Haley Barbour, then incumbent Gov. Phil Bryant, former professional football player Brett Favre, and Mississippi State Senator Chris McDaniel.
  • Waller was endorsed by four former Mississippi Republican Party Chairmen.
• Another factor presaging a bumpy time for Reeves was the simple fact that by moving up from the lieutenant-governor’s office to governor, he would actually have less power under the state’s 1890 Constitution. It is broadly agreed that the job of governor actually has less real clout under the constitution than the lieutenant-governor. As lieutenant-governor for eight years, Reeves ruled the upper house of the state legislature with an iron fist. More than a few of his colleagues accused him of arrogance and high handedness.

Former two-term Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann replaced Reeves as Lieutenant-Governor the same day Reeves was sworn in as governor.

Reeves was out of the country attending a soccer tournament in Spain when Mississippi experienced its first coronavirus death in March. His absence from the country when the legislature was in session and the coronavirus pandemic was already known to be ravaging Spain made him the target of criticism. Many have seen Reeves’s management of the pandemic within the state as indecisive and uneven.

Reeves supporter, Brett Favre, who has recently been named a recipient of over 1 million dollars of embezzled MDHS funds.

Only a month into his term, one of Reeves’s closest political allies was arrested by the State Auditor on charges of having stolen millions of dollars from the state’s Department of Human Resources (DHS).

And just two days ago, State Auditor Shad White said Reeves supporter Brett Favre had received over one million dollars of the purloined DHS money for speeches and appearances he never actually made. Favre has not been indicted.

Even those who dislike Tate Reeves acknowledge that he is intelligent and good at getting what he wants.

However, Lieutenant-Governor Hosemann is considered by many the smartest man in state government, and he gets very high marks for integrity from all who know him. Most agree he holds the more powerful job under state law. Hosemann’s record of success as a top attorney and as Mississippi Secretary of State shows he is a guy accustomed to winning most of his battles.

Speaker Gunn is a smart man and no lightweight when it comes to close combat politics.

With some exceptions, most members of both houses of the State Legislature are intelligent successful people, who did not get elected by being shrinking violets.

The people of Mississippi need a functioning state government. Those who need help from that $1.25-billion fund need it badly.

Watching all of this get sorted out in coming weeks will be an interesting show and a critically important one.

More about the vote on controlling coronavirus 1.25 Billion dollars.