A Jan. 2014 published study found Mississippi came in last in an average of 14 different state rankings from sources like US Census Bureau, CDC and FBI, and on factors such as high school graduation rates, per capita income, life expectancy and crime rate. The no-doubt Cochran-Barbour report card.
"Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) is appealing to Democratic voters to cross party lines and vote in an upcoming runoff election against his conservative challenger, state senator Chris McDaniel. But a noted election law expert says that may be illegal.
J. Christian Adams, a former Civil Rights Division attorney at the Department of Justice with experience litigating election law cases in Mississippi, said a law there prevents people from voting in the primary for candidates they don't plan to support in the general election....
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The Mississippi law Adams cites, MS Code 23-15-575, states: “No person shall be eligible to participate in any primary election unless he intends to support the nominations made in which he participates.”...
The Supreme Court determined in a 2005 case that the First Amendment “protects the right of political parties to associate with fellow members and disassociate with non-members, ” Judge Pepper wrote in his opinion. So technically it’s the party’s responsibility—i.e., in this case, state GOP chairman Joe Nosef’s responsibility—to protect GOP voters’ First Amendment rights by working to keep Democrats from voting in the GOP primary runoff.
Catherine Engelbrecht, the head of national conservative election integrity organization True the Vote, told Breitbart News she thinks Nosef must step up and enforce these laws. Engelbrecht and her organization are in Mississippi right now, preparing for the election with poll watchers from around the country to work to prevent any shenanigans on election day next week.
“Chairman Nosef must understand that this matter is not playing out in an echo chamber; people across the country are now suspicious about what they see happening in Mississippi,” Engelbrecht said in an emailed statement. “Breaking this law or any other voter integrity law - erodes America's confidence in our elections. With only a handful of days remaining until the runoff, it is Chairman Nosef's responsibility to enforce the rule of law and restore our trust.”
Nosef hasn't responded to a request for comment on the matter from Breitbart News.
A group of conservative state senators who support Cochran’s primary challenger, state Sen. Chris McDaniel, are demanding that Nosef intervene to keep this practice from happening.
The group of state senators rallying him highlights McDaniel’s bench of local power brokers fighting from the ground up against Cochran’s political establishment team fighting from the top down in this election. It’s been a common theme in this Mississippi primary: McDaniel’s power comes from grassroots activists and local lawmakers throughout the state, whereas Cochran’s comes from hubs in Jackson, MS, and Washington, D.C. While the state senator team backing McDaniel is constantly appearing alongside him throughout the state at campaign rallies, the group rarely unites to push a message like it is now.
Their calls come largely in response to reports Tuesday from allegations by Mississippi Democratic Party chairman Rickey Cole that a super PAC backing Cochran is routing money to Democratic operatives for get out the vote activities.
Cole said noted Democratic operative James “Scooby Doo” Warren, who confirmed to the Clarion-Ledger newspaper he is working for Cochran, is known for paying individuals to vote and providing “walking around money” to volunteers. Warren has not publicly addressed the allegations, and Pete Perry the Cochran ally and Hinds County GOP Chairman whom the super PAC money was routed through, said he hopes that such activities aren't occurring.
Sen. Philip Gandy of Waynesboro told Breitbart News he’s equally “deeply disturbed” to hear “allegations of funds being funneled to encourage Democrats to vote in the June 24 Republican primary runoff,” and called for the state Republican Party to launch an investigation.
“It is shameful that some in the Republican party would stoop to such a level of courting the Democrat vote in a Republican primary,” Gandy said. “I call on the Republican party to get involved and to get to the bottom of these allegations.”
State Sen. Angela Hill of Picayune cited the same law Adams did in her comment to Breitbart News, saying that Cochran’s supporters “should read” that law.
“A responsible party should investigate these allegations,” Hill said, adding that she thinks this reflects poorly on the state GOP.
“The Republican Party has never been the food stamp party, or the party of pork until desperation set in with Thad Cochran's re-election bid,” Hill said. “I have never seen such open collaboration to get Democrats to spoil a Republican party primary or runoff as is being openly displayed by Thad Cochran operatives in the MS GOP establishment."
"Many have worked for years to build the Republican Party and sent their checks to an organization who has pledged to support the Republican ideals of limited government, free markets, self-reliance, and fiscal responsibility, so it is sad to see the party leadership across the state reach out to Democrats in an organized fashion to try to keep a proven conservative out of Washington," she continued. "This begs the question ‘What does the MS GOP establishment really stand for?’”
Sen. Michael Watson of Pascagoula added that these efforts could harm the electoral prospects of all other Republicans in future elections.
“I trust the state party apparatus is doing its job and working to protect the integrity of the primary process,” Watson told Breitbart News. “At a minimum, it seems there should be an investigation into some of the allegations. If there's not, I foresee a real problem for them with the base of the party in next year's election cycle.”
State Sen. Tony Smith of Picayune called on the U.S. Attorney’s office to investigate the matter.
“I am very troubled to learn of the tactics being used in an attempt to sway the outcome of the Republican primary,” Sen. Tony Smith of Picayune told Breitbart News. “To buy votes or influence from those who have no intentions to vote for the republican nominee in November is absurd. I ask that US Attorney Greg Davis investigate these allegations as quickly as possible.”
The U.S. Attorney’s office in Jackson has not responded to a request for comment on the matter."
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The Myth of Thad Cochran bringing home the bacon to Mississippi. In 2014 Mississippi ranks dead last in US in avg. of 14 different factors such as high school graduation rate, per capita income, life expectancy, and crime rate-Politico Magazine
"We also hold no grudges against the State of Mississippi, which came in last not just overall but on four of the individual lists…."
Jan. 24, 2014, “The States of Our Union … Are Not All Strong,” Politico Magazine, Margarest Slattery
“We ranked all 50, from fabulous to failed….
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Mississippi is the most corrupt state in US 1976-2008, another sad Thad Cochran-Barbour report card. Big spending state projects create most corruption. Residents pay extra $1300/yr. because of it. I guess it's easier to rip off poor people:
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The researchers studied more than 25,000 convictions of public officials for violation of federal corruption laws between 1976 and 2008 as well as patterns in state spending to develop a corruption index that estimates the most and least corrupt states in the union. Based on this method, the the most corrupt states are:
1. Mississippi"...
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About Henry Barbour:
Henry Barbour, nephew of former Gov. Haley Barbour, is head of pro-Cochran Super PAC Mississippi Conservatives. Henry Barbour is also head of the RNC committee supposedly figuring out how to be improve the Republican brand, not make it worse. Barbour is known for his ties to the Bush family. Lobbyist Henry Barbour spent 7 years in Washington DC beginning in 1988, first working for the George HW Bush campaign and later for the Republican National Committee. He was especially adept at raising money from the super rich.
12/10/12, "RNC launches official review on 2012 election," Politico, Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Martin
"The Republican National Committee is rolling out a plan to review what worked and what didn't for the party in the 2012 cycle, appointing five people at the top of a committee that will make recommendations on things like demographics, messaging and fundraising.
The Growth and Opportunity Project is going to be chaired by RNC committee member Henry Barbour, longtime Jeb Bush adviser and political operative Sally Bradshaw, former George W. Bush press secretary Ari Fleischer, Puerto Rico RNC committee member Zori Fonalledas, and South Carolina RNC member Glenn McCall. Priebus, who is running for a second term, is holding a call with committee members to roll out the plan this afternoon...
Still, given the complaints about the party, the composition of the committee includes at least one Priebus ally - Barbour - and others with ties to Bush-world."...
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Cochran campaign sought Democrat votes even for 6/3 primary:
5/31/14, "Cochran ad seeks Democratic votes for a Republican primary," Jackson Jambalaya
"Desperate or smart? That 'tis the question as an ad in the Mississippi Link asked "democrats to cross over and vote in the republican primary to ensure our community's interest is heard." Republicans asking Democrats to vote in a Republican primary? Interesting."...
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Haley Barbour raises money for Thad Cochran his longtime ally:
3/19/14, "The Barbour Gang rides to Thad Cochran’s rescue," Politico, Alexander Burns
"Haley Barbour has raised money for both the Cochran campaign and the super PAC,
and the campaign expects him to return to the stump later in the race. Many of Cochran’s chief benefactors and advisers are alumni of Barbour’s campaigns and administration, including the senator’s pollster, TV admaker and finance chairman....
Haley Barbour said his wife was Cochran’s “first paid employee in his first campaign” for Congress in the early 1970s; when Barbour ran for governor three decades later, in 2003, Cochran gave him a critical boost with an ad calling Barbour a “Mississippi success story.”...
In language unthinkable in the politics of 2014, Cochran spoke straight to the camera to hail Barbour’s prowess as a D.C. lobbyist.
“He built the nation’s No. 1 lobbying firm, representing businesses that employ millions of Americans and helping fund universities and hospitals in Mississippi,” Cochran said in the ad. “I’m proud of Haley, and you will be, too.”
If Barbour owes Cochran something of a debt for that, he and his cohort are repaying it now with interest."....
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Even Mississippi's other "Republican" Senator Roger Wicker solicited democrat voters for the 6/3 Republican primary to vote for Cochran:
5/31/14, "Sen Wicker (R-MS) and County Republican Leader Appeal for Democrat Votes in Senate Primary?" Derek E. Hopper, RedState.com
"It’s up to us to do our part in getting
normally democratic voters out to our primary."
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Jeppie Barbour endorses Chris McDaniel:
Haley Barbour's brother Jeppie endorsed St. Sen. Chris McDaniel for US Senate from Mississippi. Barbour says he "wasted 50 years helping build the Republican Party" and it's time for change-Breitbart News
5/28/14, "‘McDanielmentum’: Haley Barbour’s Brother Endorses McDaniel, MS GOP Softens Tone," Breitbart, Matthew Boyle
"Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour’s brother Jeppie Barbour, the father of powerful political operatives Henry and Austin Barbour, endorsed state Sen. Chris McDaniel in the GOP Senate primary over longtime incumbent Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS).
“I am for McDaniel because Congress spends too much money and Thad Cochran is right in the middle of spending and borrowing money,” Jeppie Barbour told Breitbart News in a phone interview on Wednesday.
“I resent my grandchildren having to pay for these politicians to party. I am ready for a change,” he added.
Jeppie's son Henry Barbour is running the pro-Cochran Super PAC “Mississippi Conservatives,” while his other son Austin Barbour is a senior adviser to Cochran’s campaign. Though Jeppie has a lower profile than his brother and sons, he still bears the family name—and has been a GOP political insider in Mississippi for years.
A McDaniel endorsement from the heart of Barbour's political empire is one of several signs the GOP Establishment here is awakening to the fact that McDaniel just might pull off his primary challenge of Cochran....
While some on Cochran’s team have stated they’ll endorse McDaniel if he wins, Jeppie Barbour’s not having any of that the other way around. “I will never vote for Thad Cochran again,” he said. “After 50 years wasted helping build the Republican Party, I’ll never do anything for the Party again until they get their ducks in a row. I don’t like the way it’s going and I’m not going to kiss and make up.”...
McDaniel campaign manager and state Sen. Melanie Sojourner of Natchez, MS, challenged the Cochran camp’s seniority argument during her own speech at Olive Branch’s City Hall.
“As we go forward, the one thing that our opponent’s camp keeps trying to convince you is that we can’t give up his [Cochran’s] seniority,” Sojourner said. “But as a freshman coming in [to the state senate], you guys remember when Gov. Haley Barbour led the eminent domain charge to take your private property. Chris (McDaniel) led that fight. They beat him [Barbour] on the floor, then he vetoed it. It came back and they had him [Barbour] beat again, but they purchased a few block grants overnight and the veto prevailed. Chris said ‘I’m sorry, this is not what the people want. We’re going to fight you.’ We ended up with a referendum on the ballot a few years ago—you guys remember that. The people of this state spoke by over 80 percent. He [McDaniel] led the charge, as a freshman.”
Jeppie Barbour said his sons and brother “are not happy about” his support of McDaniel, “but I’m right.”
“I think if Chris wins, there will be a parade [of GOP support behind him],” Barbour said. “I think the thing that makes a difference to me is his attitude about spending is different [than Cochran’s]. I just know we need a man in Washington who will not throw our money away.”
The Jeppie Barbour endorsement comes as former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin taped a radio ad for McDaniel, airing statewide. The Club For Growth also made more television and radio ad buys in Mississippi, something that’s happening all while Cochran has misstepped with local and national media. Cochran went to extraordinary lengths—pulling a “bait-and-switch” with two different vehicles—to avoid a CNN interview and is thus far declining to sit down with the Jackson Clarion-Ledger for an editorial board interview.
“He’s been running away from Mississippi voters for years,” McDaniel responded to Cochran’s media problems in a brief interview with Breitbart News in Olive Branch. “He owes us a debate. He owes the people of Mississippi answers to questions about his record. What he should be doing is talking to those cameras not running from them.”
Jeppie Barbour added that while this campaign “is plenty bitter, we’ve had worse,” and he pinned the source of the negativity on Cochran.
“I think the Cochran camp took a poll and they realized they had to do something—and now we’ve got the Clarion-Ledger carrying water for him,” Barbour said, noting however that “by now, everybody [on both sides] is bitter.”"....
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Comment: The US doesn't need a third political party. It needs a second one. For at least the past decade it's had only one party, the democrat.
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