Jackson Jambalaya

Did I miss the line item for whiskey and whores?

Anon. 12:01, that goes under Travel & Entertainment.

Ok, I take that back now that I've actually scanned the report. Given that fringe benefits are typically 30-40% of salaries in a normal business, but are 100% or more of salaries for the legislature, I guess whiskey and whores go under fringe benefits.

12:01 - any such expenses as you question are not paid for by the legislators. When was the last time you saw one pay for his own drink?

The line item you speak of is in there somewhere.

What a bunch of self centered Bastards. We will continue to be #50 in everything if we don't find qualified candidates to run. The majority of the legislators can't run their own businesses and rely on the income from their elected positions to make ends meet. Some still have their hand in the till.

I can not name one legislator that I respect---can you ????

If it is a politician it does not deserve respect.
If it is a politician it is crooked.

Stop bitching and run!

Many politicians are nothing more than puppets for people who have money and power themselves. They send in politicians as their proxies. A few of the politicians think this doesn't apply to them but sadly they are fooling themselves. They get a per diem for food and lodging then get giddy when they tell how they share rooms and eat at cocktail parties, buffets or on the lobbyists dime. Most people don't know or care how the system works. Wish I didn't.

Back at home everyone kisses there ass to their faces then bad mouths them behind their back. Like a bunch of groupies.

Many politicians are nothing more than puppets for people who have money and power themselves.

Like the Sandersons.

Yet when we have a chance to elect better people we keep sending the same ones back...

2:58 - true! A more entitled, pretentious and cheaper bunch of asses the world has never seen.

This "report" from Pickering is so telling - it's telling in how Pickering thinks he's showing how much he cares and that he's being transparent with the posting of this budget. Stacey, you are a complete embarrassment. Can this type of report show how many hundreds of millions were siphoned off, or lost in the last few years WHILE ON YOUR WATCH? No. This "report" is self-serving of your cronies. You call yourself a Christian, and a leader. You are despicable in your vain attempts to present as wanting to "inform" the citizens. YOU DO NOT have the moral integrity to dig deep into the organizations to where this money flows, and is perpetually hidden and dispersed to the well-connected, to which you are apparently now one of. We need real men, who are real leaders. Not poseurs just stealing their retirement off of the backs of the citizens.

I hate to disagree with the many learned individuals posting here, but I will do so anyway.

There are plenty of legislators that fit the description above. But there are many that are totally different.

You want to see which are which, start with a description of their listed "occupation" in their official bio - those that claim to be a "consultant" probably fit your profile. But there are many that have real jobs - Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief, and others ---- business executive of XXX or YYY company, retired head of 'aaa' or 'bbb' operation.

Hate to bust the baloon of those ignorant but self-important commentators here, but the entire legislature is not a whore chasing, whiskey drinking, worthless, looking for a paycheck, bunch of ignorant hacks that could get elected. Some actually have real businesses back home, are giving up money to serve in the legislature, and actually have a clue about what they are doing.

Certainly not all. You can determine the difference with a little effort. I'm not one of them. I don't give a damn. But I do recognize the difference - and I am thankful for those that actually are in the legislature for the right reasons, even those that I philosophically disagree with.

7:41 - Perhaps a few are of the honorable, service before self, type. But please don't try to make it appear that this is the majority. It is not. Those of us that know many of these people know that far too many fail at xyz job or are actually hired by law offices or physicians groups simply because of their political clout. If it was giving up money for the sake of service, as you say, why do they stay so long? Why no term limits.

Doctors, lawyers, Indian chiefs you say. Yes, mostly attorneys who are mediocre when they enter and find a way to enrich themselves through back room dealings and partnerships only available to legislatures. It's adorable how naive you are.

@922 almost as naive as one of these "consultants" you rail on. Give specifvexamoles and I'll listen.?

September 20, 2017 at 7:41 PM.....sheesh, where to start?

You must be a part of that corrupt inner circle, or are clearly a very immature and naive individual. Nobody is saying that they aren't "intelligent" or accomplished, etc. What the concern is about, is the Mississippi legislature, Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Judges, Senators, etc. etc. are all absent a SPINE. They do not have the courage to LEAD. They just purchase their retirement on the backs of the taxpayers just trying not to get any of their friends (or themselves) indicted for malfeasance and fraud. WHY do you think the State of Mississippi is at the bottom of most performance indicators? BECAUSE their is NO leadership.....it's non-existent. It's just a big good ole' boys/girls club of amateurs, hicks, and yes - HACKS.

Noticed on Melanie Sojourner Facebook page she is calling for the draining of the swamp. But when the swamp was drained of her , she mimicked her sidekick Chris McDaniel, cried, and took none of the blame on herself and her poor performance. Now it's time to drain swamp of McDaniel.

7:41,
Certainly not all. You can determine the difference with a little effort. I'm not one of them. I don't give a damn. But I do recognize the difference - and I am thankful for those that actually are in the legislature for the right reasons, even those that I philosophically disagree with.

You may recognize the difference but to the citizens you are just another crooked politician. You need to understand. We judge you by what you do. Not by what you think about yourself. We, the people, do not recognize the difference even with quite a bit of effort.

Now I am not a McKlaniel fan. But at least he calls out the hyprocrisy of his fellow members wagging a finger at DC, but pulling the same budget moves with the state.

9:34 - I think you said the same thing I was saying. And, by the way, I am far from being naive in this subject - will set my creds against anyone on this site to be at least an equal.

The point is that not all the elected officials are the sorry bastards that has been said by the self-centered judges above. There are plenty - and I did not say all, or even a majority - that are in it for the right reason, aren't doing it for the money, even some that are taking a monetary loss because of their elected position. This is true from city/county office up.

There are plenty as are described - in it only for themselves, or incompetent, or for the money, or for the job, etc. etc. I am not, and didn't, support them. But I find it absolutely stupid to try to dump them all into the same pot only because they share one trait, having been elected to a public position.

5:20, the only thing we have to go by is past experience with politicians. There may be a couple that are in it for the right reason but if they stay a full term and try to be re-elected they are in for a different reason. All a person has to do is look at all of the examples of incompetence or crookedness. They share more than one trait. Incompetence, dishonesty, laziness, greed, are some more of the traits they share.

9:34 Sigh. So, a person is a "self-centered judge" if he/she attempts to identify the bad apples? Wow. That's the kind of unified bullying that goes on throughout Mississippi government. It's the conspiracy of silence. By the way, remember the saying: One bad apple can spoil the whole bunch..?....how about if there's dozens and dozens of bad apples? Nobody want's to threaten the gravy train of a cushy gubmint job with a pension, so they remain silent. And those that do remain silent (number one - Stacey Pickering) are just as evil as the one's who knowingly and brazenly carry out their misdeeds, and fleece the taxpayers like locusts - until this state is bankrupt. Which functionally, it's sounding like it already is when it doesn't have the money to pay for the most basic services mandated in our Constitutions: INFRASTRUCTURE.

Pickering should be ashamed, if there is "no money" - it's his job to find out where it went, why, and prosecute who is responsible. He's just as guilty or perhaps incompetent as those who misuse/lose the actual funds.

Direct link to all Legislative Budget Reports 2003-2017
http://www.osa.ms.gov/documents/legislative-rpt/

9:27 PM This is humorous.....like it could have been posted by Pickering himself. These "reports" show the people nothing. NOTHING about operational control and disbursement of funds. Pickering is probably scrambling to appear to show that he was on top of things. Looks like he wasn't even aware of many bank accounts or flows of money. Follow the dollars....every last penny and we'll find out where it all went. Remember the Department of Corrections just lost a billion.....how much do you thing the MDE is capable of hiding? Three times that amount.