Free Republic

We’ve written extensively of late regarding the widening divide between fiscally conservative Republicans and the “neoconservative” fiscally liberal wing of the party – led by U.S. Senators John McCain, Lindsey Graham and John Cornyn. In fact according to the website Mississippi PEP, they’ve censured him. For those of you unfamiliar with this aging RINO, Cochran is one of several Southern “Republicans” who habitually caves to U.S. President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats (along with Graham, North Carolina’s Richard Burr, Tennessee’s Lamar Alexander and Georgia’s Johnny Isakson). “When any official continues to engage repeatedly in a course of conduct that violates...

JACKSON, MS (Mississippi News Now) - As soon as the sun came up Monday, Jackson Police Detectives were searching for clues in the parking lot and the woods behind the Motel 6 on the I-55 Frontage Road that is just south of County Line Road. Just hours before, on Sunday evening about 7:30, James "Jimmy" Johnson, 56, was shot in the face. He died at the scene. "Jimmy is a great guy. You know, he was just a real friendly guy...always willing to help. Just one of those special people, you know, that loved bass fishing just like the rest...

JACKSON, Miss. — James “Jimmy” Johnson, a 56-year-old B.A.S.S. angler competing in the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Central Open tournament on Ross Barnett Reservoir this week, was shot to death Sunday night at a motel in Jackson, police confirmed. Jackson Police Department spokesperson Colendula Green said Johnson of Ganado, Texas, was fatally shot at the Motel 6 at 7145 Interstate Hwy. 55 North in Jackson, where he and his wife were staying during the tournament. Police received the call at 7:48 p.m. Sunday. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Green told Bassmaster.com the incident is being investigated as a...

Food stamp users across Mississippi and neighboring states were being declined Saturday morning as they tried to use their EBT, or Electronic Benefit Transfer, cards at grocery, dollar and convenience stores. A Sam's Club member services representative, however, said the cards would work if purchases were broken down into smaller increments worth less than $90, but one food stamps user said his card wouldn't work for a $4 purchase.

At the Jackson County Sheriff's Department, deputies initially suspected both men were drunk. Then-Capt. Glenn Ryder, who still works for the sheriff's office, said he laughed at the report, but met with the men. Parker and Hickson stuck to their story. After the formal interview, deputies left Hickson and Parker together in a room with a hidden tape recorder, hoping to catch them in a lie. "Me and the other investigator got up and left to let them talk, to see if they were going to say, `Well, we got them fooled,' but they didn't," Ryder said. "They were really...

Tropical Storm Karen threatens Central Gulf of Mexico states. NHC Public Advisories NHC Tropical Discussions

Well, this is not just a bit scary. Raising his fist in a black power salute during his swearing in, the newly elected mayor of Jackson, Mississippi was true to his character as a former leader of the black supremacy group, Republic of New Afrika. The group is dedicated to transforming five of the Southern states into an independent socialist black nation. Jackson Mayor Chokwe Lumumba, born in Detroit as Edwin Finley Taliaferro, is a radical activist, and co-founder of the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement. He’s, also, being praised by the Nation of Islam, who wrote in their publication, Final...

On Jan. 16, Jagjeet Singh, 49, a long-haul truck driver from California on his way to pick up chickens for delivery in Texas, was pulled over for driving with a flat tire in Pike County, Miss. Officers at a weigh station operated by the Department of Transportation demanded that Singh turn over his "kirpan," a 3-inch ceremonial blade carried by all Sikh men and frequently sewed into the waistband of their trousers, according to the ACLU. "Contending, wrongly, that his kirpan was illegal, the DOT officer demanded that Mr. Singh turn it over. Mr. Singh tried to explain that he...

LAWRENCE COUNTY, MS (Mississippi News Now) - Lawrence County authorities have identified the second suspect in a Tuesday morning home invasion that left one man dead. Thirty-four year old Michael Alford of Brookhaven is wanted for questioning and you should call the Lawrence County Sheriff's office, at 601-587-2961, if you see him. The incident happened at a mobile home on Henry Cox Road just outside the Monticello city limits. Sheriff Joel Thames says dispatchers received a call from David Maxwell at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday. Maxwell said his dog was barking and it woke him up. When he got up to...

Though there is still a long way to go for the Delta Queen to return to the rivers as a cruise ship, passing of bill H.R. 1961 in the House of Representatives is a major step in this direction. On Wednesday, September 25th 2013, the House has approved the bill that would grant the historic Delta Queen a 15 years exemption from a fire-retardant materials construction requirement. The House voted 280 to 89 in favor of the Delta Queen with almost all Republicans voting with “yea”, while Democrats voted 82 to 84 against the bill. The bill still has to...

20 Sep Republican Sen's Who Are UNDECIDED On Defunding Obamacare! Let's help them decide! Please RETWEET!! #DefundObamacare pic.twitter.com/xn8nG6Y9v6

North Carolina has become the seventh state to prohibit state judges from considering Islamic law in family cases, joining what critics say is a national anti-Muslim campaign. ... North Carolina now joins Arizona, Kansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Tennessee, according to Religion News Service, in banning Islamic Sharia law. A constitutional amendment seeking the same change in Alabama will be on the 2014 ballot. In Missouri, the governor vetoed an anti-Sharia bill because of its potential impact on international adoptions. But the law in Oklahoma was struck down in court as unconstitutional,

While everyone was watching news in Colorado during the final weeks of the recalls, Mississippi was instituting a new law to allow the open carry of firearms without a concealed carry permit. House Bill 2 was passed in Mississippi's last legislative session and signed into law by Governor Phil Bryant (R), but put on hold in July when Circuit Judge Winston Kidd issued an injunction to have the legislature "clarify it." On August 29 the Mississippi Supreme Court "unanimously upheld the... open carry law," setting the stage for it to take effect.

Obama-administration officials and their liberal camp-followers who routinely claim there is no reason to worry about election integrity because vote fraud is nonexistent suffered some embarrassing setbacks last week. Federal law requires states to clean up their voter rolls. In 2009, the Obama Justice Department dismissed, with no explanation, a lawsuit filed by the Bush administration asking Missouri for such a clean-up. It has since taken no action against any other state or jurisdiction since it has an unofficial policy of not enforcing this requirement. But private parties are starting to force changes. In Mississippi last Wednesday, the American Civil...

A new analysis of federal health data shows that Medicaid paid for nearly half of all births in the United States in 2010, a rate that continues to increase. The federal health care program covered 48 percent of the 3.8 million births that year, jumping from 40 percent in 2008, say researchers from the George Washington University School of Public Health. In only two years, the government entitlement covered 90,000 more women giving birth, as states expand the federal-state health coverage plan. Medicaid coverage varied greatly state by state, ranging from a low of one-quarter of births in Hawaii to...

It’s a battle of Christians versus Christians in Brandon, Miss. where city officials oppose efforts by a prominent church to erect a giant cross because it violates a zoning ordinance. But the pastor of the church said elected officials are also afraid the cross might offend Muslims. FOLLOW TODD ON FACEBOOK FOR CONSERVATIVE NEWS. CLICK HERE TO JOIN! The First Baptist Church of Brandon petitioned the city to install a 110-foot tall cross on its property alongside Interstate 20. The project is sponsored by “Crosses Across America,” a non-profit group that builds giant crosses along the nation’s highways.

(Jackson, MS) The Mississippi Supreme Court has ruled a Hinds County Circuit Court judge erred when he granted a motion delaying House Bill 2 from taking effect. That is the open carry law in Mississippi. The judge ruled the bill was unconstitutionally vague. The Supreme Court decided that decision was incorrect. House Bill 2 would allow people without a permit to carry firearms as long as they are within sight. Concealed weapons still require a permit.

Family TraditionSciple's Water Mill has been all in the family for nearly 200 yearsBy Nancy Dorman-Hickson Photography by Meg McKinney The honor box says a lot about Sciple’s Water Mill in De Kalb, Miss. Attached to a stand that’s filled with the mill’s stone-ground whole-wheat flour, fish fry mix, grits, and meal, the honor box means visitors won’t leave empty-handed even if the mill is closed. “Most people are honest,” says Eddie Sciple, the mill’s operator and owner. “Usually if meal is gone, there is money or an I.O.U. in the box.” People have been coming to the mill...

Sometimes off-year elections provide insight into national political trends and voters' views on issues. That was true in 2009, when the issues in the governor elections in New Jersey and Virginia were congruent with the issues facing Congress and the president. In both states the Republicans campaigned for lower spending and taxes, in contrast to the Obama Democrats' policies. Heavily Democratic New Jersey voted narrowly for Republican Chris Christie, and in Virginia, the state voting closest to the national average in 2008 and 2012, Republican Bob McDonnell won a landslide victory. This turned out to be a good predictor of...

Four years ago, a startup car company announced with great fanfare big plans for the Mississippi Delta: Using money from foreign investors and other sources, it would build a massive auto plant to churn out a new line of energy-efficient cars and bring thousands of jobs to the area. It seemed like a win for everyone involved. … Today, the place where the plant was to be remains mostly vacant except for a temporary construction trailer. The company—GreenTech Automotive Inc.—is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the probe is reverberating well beyond Mississippi’s borders, bringing scrutiny to...

Two important documents have been filed with the Supreme Court of Mississippi in recent days in response to an injunction preventing House Bill 2, a law clarifying the definition of “concealed” and characterized by some as an “open carry” bill, from going into effect. A halt, egged on by the Southern Poverty Law Center, was placed on the new law’s implementation by an activist Hinds County Circuit Court Judge at the behest of an anti-gun prosecutor and legislators. Hinds County District Attorney Robert Schuler Smith’s Response in Opposition to the State of Mississippi’s Combined Petition to Vacate a Permanent Injunction...

JACKSON, MISS. — A posse of state officials and gun advocates has asked the Mississippi Supreme Court to let them file briefs in support of the state's open-carry law. The court had not ruled Tuesday on the requests by Gov. Phil Bryant, about 80 lawmakers, the National Rifle Association and others. Their motions included arguments supporting the law. A brief has not yet been filed with the high court by those who challenged the open-carry law, including Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith. Earlier this month, Hinds County Circuit Judge Winston Kidd declared the law unconstitutionally vague. Attorney General...

Actually this white teen was beat up in Southaven, MS by these thugs twice, the first time and the end of June by 15 black teens who beat him unconscious and then again a couple of nights ago by 6 from the same group. He says the boys claimed he knew who stole their bicycles but if you ask me they were just looking for someone to pummel. His father says that several from the group approached his house with bats and knives while he was holding a barbecue. He didn’t go into more detail.

Willie Louis risked his life to testify about the murder of Emmett Till in Mississippi, a case that opened the nation's eyes to the dangers facing African Americans.Willie Louis, a witness to the murder of Emmett Till who testified in court in the case that opened the nation's eyes to the dangerous discrimination facing African Americans in the 1950s, died of intestinal bleeding July 18 at a hospital in a Chicago suburb, his family said. He was 76. After the trial, fearing for his life in the South, Louis fled to Chicago, changed his name and slipped out of the...

A man jogging alongside a Mississippi highway was abducted and beaten by three African-American men allegedly in retaliation of the George Zimmerman verdict, police told Fox News. Senatobia Police Chief Steve Holt told Fox News the victim, who is white, was jogging Sunday night along Highway 51 when the suspects pulled over and ordered him to get inside their car. “One of them asked, ‘Do you know who Trayvon Martin was?’” Holt said. At that point, the men in the vehicle attacked the victim. Memphis television station WREG reported the assailants told the victim, “This is for Trayvon.” The television...

A jogger says three men attacked him in retaliation for the verdict in the George Zimmerman trial. The attack happened on Highway 51 in Senatobia, Miss., Sunday night. The victim told News Channel 3 and investigators the men drove up to him, asked if he knew who Trayvon Martin was, then forced him into a car. At some point, the man says the men told him, “This is for Trayvon.”

Earlier this month we reported on the Mississippi judge, Hinds County Circuit Court Judge Winston Kidd, who issued an injunction blocking the new open carry law there from taking effect. The judge says the law is too vague to be constitutional. The judge originally scheduled a hearing to discuss the law and the injunction for Monday, July 7. Yesterday, the judge made the injunction permanent. This means the bill is blocked from becoming law barring intervention by a higher court. Previously, the Mississippi Supreme Court declined to rule on the injunction, saying they didn’t have the power to stop the...

Claiming Mississippi's House Bill 2 clarification of "concealed" is "unconstitutionally vague," Hinds Country Circuit Court Judge Winston L. Kidd today placed a permanent injunction on the law to keep it from going into effect in his Order Granting Plaintiffs' Motion for Injunctive Relief. “[T]he Court will grant an Injunction to delay the effect of House Bill 2 until such time as the Mississippi Legislature amends or clarifies House Bill 2 during the next legislative Session as it relates to a citizen's right to openly carry a weapon in a holster without requiring a permit,” Kidd ruled. “[The bill] shall not...

State officials across the South are aggressively moving ahead with new laws requiring voters to show photo identification at the polls after the Supreme Court decision striking down a portion of the Voting Rights Act. The Republicans who control state legislatures throughout the region say such laws are needed to prevent voter fraud. But such fraud is extremely rare, and Democrats are concerned that the proposed changes will make it harder for many poor voters and members of minorities — who tend to vote Democratic — to cast their ballots in states that once discriminated against black voters with poll...

(Corinth, MS) Dozens of Mississippians say a judge is trying to take away their freedom. A new gun law was supposed to take effect this past Monday, making it legal for people to openly carry a gun without a permit. But a Hinds County Circuit Court judge stopped the law from taking effect. Most of the time, Elaine Vechorick has a gun tucked inside her purse. She has gone through classes and tests to get an enhanced concealed permit. It’s stronger than a regular concealed permit. “I think it’s worth it to get an enhanced permit, you can carry it...

The Mississippi (Catfish Marketing L)aw, which updates a 2008 law, requires every grocer and restaurant in the state to “provide the consumer with the country of origin and method of production of catfish” and, now, of other catfish-like fish. While the 2008 law required groceries throughout the state to provide country-of-origin labeling for catfish alone, the new law expands the measure to include all catfish-like fish, which is mostly imported, at every “restaurant, cafeteria, lunch room, food stand, saloon, tavern, bar, lounge or other similar facility operated as an enterprise engaged in the business of selling food to the public.”...

Mississippi Representative Andy Gipson is the author and sponsor of House Bill 2. Rep. Gipson represents District 77, Simpson, Smith, and Rankin Counties, in the Mississippi Legislature. He served as Chairman of the House Judiciary B Committee, as well as a member of the Rules, Ways and Means, Elections, Legislative Reapportionment, Banking and Insurance Committees. In addition, he serves as Treasurer for the House Republican Conference and for the Mississippi Legislative Conservative Coalition. Representative Gipson has proven himself many times to be one of the “good guys”. He knows and understands what freedom and liberty is about. Below is a...

Kidd's injunction loads a weighty Democrat agenda onto scales of justice in Mississippi. Credits:  Winston Kidd LinkedIn profile page A Hinds County circuit court judge, initially appointed to the bench by a Democrat governor, granted the wishes of a Democrat prosecutor on Friday in an “emergency hearing” to halt implementation of a gun bill opposed by Democrat lawmakers, the Associated Press reported . Judge Winston Kidd issued a temporary injunction after Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith requested that he block a new law from going into effect.That law, House Bill 2, “Weapons; clarification of definition of concealed,”...

JACKSON, Mississippi -- A state judge blocked Mississippi's open-carry gun law from taking effect next week, writing in a Friday ruling that the law was vague and that an injunction was needed to prevent irreparable harm. Hinds County Circuit Judge Winston Kidd scheduled a hearing July 8 to consider more arguments about whether to extend the injunction.

HERNANDO- A new law giving Mississippi residents the right to openly carry firearms without the need of a gun permit will go into effect July 1. Local law enforcement officials will receive instructions from the DeSoto County District Attorney on Thursday on how the Open Carry Law will affect them and how to handle citizens carrying guns at their sides. “Legislators did not contact any sheriffs or law enforcement officials prior to passing the new law,” said DeSoto County Sheriff Bill Rasco. “I’m concerned that anyone can walk around with a gun on their side.” Growing confusion regarding Mississippi’s concealed...

When a hurricane hits, it generates a host of problems for oil and gas companies and for the electric utilities that power them. The biggest worry for power companies is that a generation facility will be knocked offline, potentially cutting power to millions of customers, an Entergy executive said Wednesday during a Gulf Coast Power Association special briefing at CenterPoint Energy Tower downtown. “What scares me the most is losing generation close by,” said Greg Grillo, the system storm incident commander for Entergy–which lost 2,000 megawatts of generation capacity when its Sabine plant went offline due to flooding from Hurricane...

A landmark Supreme Court ruling that struck down a key part of the Voting Rights Act has set up a stand-off between Republican-led states and the Obama administration over controversial voting laws that until now had been stalled. The 5-4 ruling on Tuesday addressed a 1960s-era provision that largely singled out states and districts in the South -- those with a history of discrimination -- and required them to seek federal permission to change their voting laws. The court ruled that the formula determining which states are affected was unconstitutional. ********************** Attorney General Eric Holder warned states against going too...

With confusion and concern looming over Mississippi’s new gun law set to kick in July 1, businesses are reminded of their rights in relation to the “Open Carry” legislation. House Bill 2, approved by Gov. Phil Bryant in March, is being referred to as the open carry law because gun owners will now have fewer concealment regulations. "HB 2 set out to redefine what a concealed weapon is," said Cleveland Police Chief Buster Bingham. "If the law holds up, any person can carry a weapon on their belt as long as it's holstered. It doesn't need to be hidden or...

As a lawyer/lawmaker, I respect the rule of law in our nation, and I took an oath to defend and uphold the Constitution. The law is designed to encourage good conduct and deter wrongful conduct. It’s not intended to criminalize law-abiding citizens simply exercising their constitutional rights. Unfortunately, laws can be interpreted in ways that are contrary to these principles. Under prior interpretations of Mississippi’s firearms laws, law-abiding people – even “concealed carry” permit holders-- could be charged for breaking the law simply by carrying a lawful pistol or revolver in a holster. House Bill 2 becomes effective July 1,...

Southaven, MS) The longest serving mayor of Southaven is out and Republican Darren Musslewhite is in after winning nearly 80 percent of the vote. To a round of applause he arrived as city hall tonight as the mayor elect of Southaven. “I’ve got to get to work. I have a new job I’m anxious to get together with the new board and get the process going,” Musselwhite said. The insurance agency owner said Mayor Greg Davis called him Tuesday night to concede and assured him that he will help with the transition. “He was very kind and said he would...

Looks like Mike Barnicle's not going to let anyone get to his PC-left when it comes to women. On today's Morning Joe, Barnicle claimed that "a lot of men . . . fear the fact--and I think it's a fact--that women are better balanced than men. They have better judgment about things than a lot of men." Barnicle's comment during a discussion about the statement made yesterday by Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant that the decline in educational outcomes for children today is due to the entry of women into the workforce. View the video here.

If you were shocked to learn that Utah is gayer than us,then you will probably feel a little confused, anxious, let down, etc. to learn that the state of Mississippi has more same-sex couple raising kids than any other state in the nation. In other words, they are not fleeing to the states that allow same-sex marriage. Now might be a good time to remind readers that Mississippi was ranked one of the top 10 worst states to raise a kid period. Now for your burning question: WTF? A new study by the Williams Institute, a think tank at UCLA,...

Anthony McDaniel of Pascagoula took home two gold and two silver medals in the 2013 Warrior Games in Colorado Springs, Colo., this week. McDaniel won first place in both the 100- and 200-meter wheelchair races. --- snip A 2006 Gautier High School graduate, McDaniel had his legs and left hand amputated while serving in Helmand province, Afghanistan. On Aug. 31, 2010, McDaniel stepped on an improvised explosive device "that was instant amputation," he said. McDaniel, who has three children, lives in San Diego. The sergeant was medically retired on the second anniversary of his injury. Mr. McDaniel is #2

PERRY COUNTY, MS (WDAM) - The accidental death of the Perry County K-9 dog who died after being locked in his handler's patrol car overnight has many people calling for his job. About three weeks ago, Napo, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, was found dead in the patrol car. His handler, Steve Verret, had apparently forgot the dog was in the vehicle. Reaction from around the state from animal advocates and others has been one of shock and anger. "Certainly it was a very unfortunate situation all the way around," said Katherine Sammons, Founder Mississippi Animal Advocate Group. "I have known...

Two Mississippi counties are facing lawsuits filed by the American Civil Rights Union (ACRU) that seek injunctions to compel election officials in Jefferson Davis and Walthall Counties to clean up their voter rolls. The two cases could have a nationwide ripple effect if the plaintiffs prevail. "We hope to get an affirmative ruling from this court, and then proceed to other counties that have irregularities," said ACRU Chairman Susan A. Carleson. "The goal is to ensure the integrity of the voting process, without which we cannot continue as a self-governing nation." Former U.S. Justice Department attorney J. Christian Adams and...

A Mississippi martial arts instructor was charged on Saturday with attempting to use a biological weapon after a ricin-laced letter was sent to President Barack Obama earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Justice said. James Everett Dutschke, age 41, was arrested early on Saturday, following searches of his home and a former business as part of the ricin letter investigation. Dutschke was taken into custody by FBI agents at his Tupelo home shortly after midnight FBI spokeswoman Deborah Madden said in a statement. …

Tupelo, Mississippi (CNN) -- A Mississippi man has been arrested in connection with the investigation into ricin-tainted letters sent to President Barack Obama and other officials, federal and local officials said. FBI agents arrested James Everett Dutschke of Tupelo at his home early Saturday without incident, said FBI spokeswoman Deborah Madden. Earlier this week, agents searched Dutschke's residence and former martial arts studio, though it's not clear what they found. On Tuesday, prosecutors dropped charges against another man, Paul Kevin Curtis of Corinth, Mississippi, who was arrested April 17 and accused of sending a threat to the president after letters...

the Obama administration’s political appointees at the Justice and Agriculture Departments engineered a stunning turnabout: they committed $1.33 billion to compensate... The deal... was fashioned in White House meetings... the $50,000 payouts to black farmers had proved a magnet for fraud. the claims process prompted allegations of widespread fraud and criticism that its very design encouraged people to lie... Agriculture Department reviewers found reams of suspicious claims, from nursery-school-age children and pockets of urban dwellers, sometimes in the same handwriting with nearly identical accounts of discrimination. As a senator, Barack Obama supported expanding compensation for black farmers, and then as...

As the case against Paul Kevin Curtis for allegedly mailing ricin was unraveling Tuesday afternoon, FBI agents were already searching the house of another man in connection with the ongoing investigation. Their focus has shifted to Everett Dutschke — a failed political candidate, taekwondo teacher, and bluesman who’s currently facing child molestation charges. While the feds has been publicly silent about Dutschke and the search of his home, Curtis’ lawyers have been very loudly and publicly pointing the finger at Dutschke, claiming he framed Curtis because of a feud that began with music and martial arts.