Jackson Jambalaya

And exactly what would Mr. Moak and the Democrats do differently besides accept ACA and make it increasingly difficult for the State to balance its budget in 3 years.

Mr. Moak is correct.

What would Bobby do, open casinos on the Pearl River?

And exactly what would Mr. Moak and the Democrats do differently ...

They couldn't do much worse than match the mess 3 successive terms of GOP Governors have produced.

But don't worry Thad Cochran is going to solve all of these problems by bringing home MORE debt financed pork.

Any time the Dems want to offer a positive contribution I'd be interested.

Increasing our dependence of handouts, e.g., Medicaid, is not a way to improve our financial situation, especially if the subsidies will disappear in 2 or 3 years.

Dems ran MS for about 135 years and we were last the entire time. Moak was in power while the Dems ran it.

Its Mississippi...we cant attract much cause we have little to offer. Some states are like that and it will never change no matter how many tax incentives we give out.

3:04 ding ding. right answer. MS takes in more federal dollars than it pays out. I know that is hard for some teabaggers to understand but the federal gov. is our sugar daddy and will be for many moons to come. Thank God for Cochran and the Democrats or our poor state would dry up and blow away

Moak is right. To have turned down free-to-the-State Medicaid expansion for 2 years was insane. The state has already produced enough new revenue to cover the additional Medicaid cost for years 7-10. But the Republicans turned this down - thereby hurting thousands of needy Mississippians, many of them the working poor. Now they want to give another tax cut to wealthy folks? I think we should get a tax cut only after they expand Medicaid, fully fund MAEP, make financial provision for repairing our streets, roads and bridges, and fully support higher education, so further tuition hikes won't be required. Bobby Moak is right, and the Republicans are wrong.

To decrease unemployment you first must have an unemployed that wants to get off the government dole and go to work.

The Barbour EchoChorus here wants all the pork money Thad the Adulterer can get Mississippi from the Federales BUT they don't want to accept a stinkin' penny to help the working poor. Just another status quo day in GOP La-La-Land.

You can twist numbers around to paint any picture that you like. Both parties are guilty of doing this. In reality, Mississippi's unemployment rate has dropped from 8.7% a year ago to 8.0% this year. That is not out of line with the rest of the country. Mississippi was passed by 5 states (CA, MI, IL, RI & NV) who all had rates above 9.0% a year ago but their rates dropped at a faster rate than MS. What's misleading about using unemployment rates as an indicator is that nationwide there is a trend of people finding jobs at lower salaries than their previous employment. Plus, record numbers of people are dropping out of the workforce which lowers the unemployment rate too.

Funny that the MS republicans have been governor for the last 16 of 20 years, controlled the senate & we are still blaming democrats. Then democrats are blaming republicans. Sounds like we need a third party in MS is not bought off by the Corporate Lobbyists of MMA.

9:58

Obama does it pretty well. If the shit fits...

Moak must be bored in Annandale to spit this piece out. They are truly the party of NO and No Ideas other than Uncle Obama. I am just fearful that the tea baggers will help to ensure he is speaker next cycle.

"The state has already produced enough new revenue to cover the additional Medicaid cost for years 7-10."

Sounds like we're doing something right, economic development-wise.

The Medicaid money would amount to more economic development than what the state is pissing away on things like Kior and various other failures. The Democrats are actually right about this one.

Who was in charge during the cull cow fiasco? Couldn't be Democrats because everything I'm reading here they are always right.

My question is - who was in charge during KIOR funding. It's going to make the Beef Plant look like peanuts!

The sum total of Barbour economic development debacles dwarfs the cull cow screw up. None bigger than the $600 million dollar 'Port of the Future' failure.

I am a republican, who agrees completely with Moak on this. The casino business in this state will all but be gone in 10 years, and with it jobs, and millions in revenue. Why? Republicans in power are afraid of a political backlash from giving them tax incentives, that will keep them here.

Kior is just the tip of iceberg! Have you been up to Prentiss County and seen the road to nowhere??? A four lane road with Millions spent on a road that dead ends into nothing. No house or business for miles! Money spent so Barbour and Bryant's buddies could build business's that now have shown will never happen.

The group in power now will make sure the rich get richer, and the poor will stay poor, as long as it benefits them most of all at the end of the day.

8:29 PM The casinos are not failing from the lack of tax incentives, they are failing for a number of reasons in many states not just Mississippi. Blame a weak economy, more competition and the rise of internet gambling but don't blame the legislature for not providing more tax incentives to an industry that is definitely on a downward slope.