Saturday, August 13, 2022

DHS Update: Boot Camp Blowup?

 This post is a reprint of Anna Wolfe's story in Mississippi Today. 

Mississippi’s former welfare director said he was acting on behalf of then-Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, text messages indicate, when he funneled $1.3 million into a fitness program that the state is now targeting in its civil lawsuit to recoup millions in misspent federal dollars.

Reeves’ longtime personal trainer and buddy Paul Lacoste is a defendant in the suit – the state’s primary response to the blockbuster scandal uncovered in 2020. The lawsuit has an uncertain fate now that the Reeves administration has fired the attorney bringing the case and Reeves made clear he is calling the shots in the litigation, which is now stalled.

Over the last decade, Lacoste ingrained himself in Mississippi politics, prompting the state’s welfare program to strike a lucrative partnership with his foundation. Not only was the expenditure a violation of federal regulations, auditors and attorneys eventually argued, but emails obtained by Mississippi Today allege Lacoste also paid himself upwards of $300,000 in bonus paychecks from the program.

The trainer was so gung-ho about getting his grant funding from the state, he even told former welfare director John Davis that he’d bring the hammer down on Reeves and another lawmaker in their workout if they didn’t give Davis the budget he wanted. And that the politicians agreed to oblige....

But during the 2019 Legislative session, Lacoste was pushing Davis for meetings with Reeves, who wielded great control over appropriations in the Legislature, and other lawmakers to “share our hearts with them and to get them on board with us politically and financially.” One proposal suggests a 10-year, $13 million commitment from the welfare program for his fitness classes.

Lacoste told Davis that Reeves had selected a date and location for their meeting, and that Reeves wanted to meet with the two men alone before the full meeting to discuss the project. “Tate wants us all to himself!” Lacoste wrote.

Two days after meeting with Reeves, Davis asked his deputy to find a way to push a large sum of money to New’s nonprofit without triggering a red flag in an audit, so that the nonprofit could fund Lacoste’s boot camp. Davis called the project “the Lt. Gov’s fitness issue.”

Auditors say Lacoste’s organization Victory Sports Foundation improperly received over $1.3 million in funds from a federal welfare program called Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF, to conduct free boot camp-style fitness courses for well-to-do community members. ... Rest of article.

57 comments:

Anonymous said...

Tater Tot had a longtime personal trainer?

Anonymous said...

The plot thickens!

Big thanks to Anna Wolfe working to expose the Mississippi good ol' boy network conspiring to defraud taxpayers and screw over poor people.

Anonymous said...

Mississippi leadership - year in and out - is dirty as its rollin' river namesake.

Anonymous said...

LOL
Tate is neither fit nor a lawyer nor does he have anything but a B.A. degree.

Anonymous said...

This is troubling but not really surprising. Corruption has always been a big problem in Mississippi, one of the things holding the whole state back. I think Reeves has done a mostly positive job as governor, but if it turns out he broke the law then he needs to be in prison, no question.

I was reading a Facebook post by a woman whose grandfather was the sheriff in the county I grew up in (1970's), talking about what a fine, honest man he was. Little does she know. I knew some people who had a store out in the county that sold beer on Sundays, it was their main source of business. Once a month his wife would watch the store for a couple of hours while he rode to town and paid his "fine" for being allowed to sell the beer without interference by the SO. It wasn't a big amount of money, but I would bet by the time that the amounts from every store that was paying "fines" were added up it was a tidy sideline business.

Anonymous said...

Tate, Gunn, and many other elected officials participated regularly in the bootcamps. For many years.

Anonymous said...

Corruption running wild in MS state government.Thank you Anna Wolfe,thank you Miss. Today. The Clarion-Ledger would never have put the resources into investigating this very complex story.

Anonymous said...

If this is true, it’s sad for sure. @ 10:21. “Poor people”. Poor people are thin and hungry. Mississippi has the fattest poor people in the country. Most “poor people” in Mississippi work the system just like the good ole boys do. Both sides waste tax payer money.

Anonymous said...

Wait a minute, the article says that the Tater did not respond to the texts from Lacoste. At that time, Lacoste was training and shaking down everyone from the Speaker to former Rep Steve Holland. This is a lame attempt to misdirect the focus from the alleged criminal behavior of John Davis, Nancy New, Gun Bryan and his cronies.

Anonymous said...

At this point, it’s pretty clear, we should elect Anna Wolfe to State Auditor.

I don’t know if Shad played football in high school, but if he did, I bet he was the punter.

Krusatyr said...

Davis and News family were grifters, likely Bryant as well. Bryant will be indicted after enough evidence from lower down conspirators/indictees. Have yet to see hands on evidence of Tate Reeves intentional complicity in misspending TANF funds. Remember Anna Wolfe has a radical/leftist agenda to the extent her blood is type L.

Anonymous said...

@11:09am

Where's your empathy brother? It's called Metabolic Syndrome now (sarc).

Anonymous said...

I find this latest post ironic, yesterday you ask your loyal followers to question the agenda of Barksdale, MS Today, Etc., and now today you are posting the latest Anna Wolf article … what’s up? I agree with 8:04 on the Barksdale post… and with your latest post you seem to be proving MIssissippi Today is not sparing anyone…

Curious post, impressive investors aside, the management and staff at Mississippi Today do not appear to pick winners and losers. They seem to report on relevant issues without regard to the ‘special status’ most local media seem to give Governors, Former Governors and their inner circles. Without their investigative reports many of us would be clueless about the corruption that appears to have taken place during the Bryant years.

August 13, 2022 at 8:04 AM

Anonymous said...

I wanna see what Clay Edwards has to say about this,since he always wanna talk down on Jackson politicians

Anonymous said...

TeeHee 11:30 - trying to picture skinny Shad playing any sport. Really can’t fathom him playing football, and finding a helmet small enough to fit, that wouldn’t crush those ears. Conversely, I can picture big strapping Speaker Gunn playing, and wearing an extra large helmet that clearly didn’t affect his ears. Leading me to imagine PFEEL taking time from his mechanic duties to play sports and finding a helmet to accommodate that bouffant hair and covering his pointy head. Thanks KF for a good humorous dose of posting on this hot Saturday.

Anonymous said...

Ironic, our state is the unhealthiest state in the country with the fittest/athletic political leaders. This is a joke, a volleyball stadium funded with TANF monies and now peronsal trainers. WOW
Please Feds help Anna recoup this money and reveal the truth!

Anonymous said...

11:37 Anna has done the state of MS a big service. I base my opinion on the facts,doesn't matter if she is a liberal or conservative.No smears necessary,please state what she has written in this series of stories that is false

Anonymous said...

12:20, Speaker Gunn played at Baylor.

Anonymous said...

11:00, them and many legislators. What you want to bet that their sessions were all “free”? While the desperate housewives paid out the wahoo for an hour with the dude

Anonymous said...

The PLS years were exceptional for some folks. I paid for every session and so did hundreds of others who did some remarkable training . There were years when some received a scholarship when teachers and health professionals were the target. I heard some remarkable testimonies about successes and obstacles the 10 week class was responsible for. Yes the legislators got a free ride if they attended regularly. That is if you consider running the bleachers, bear crawling , and doing burpee’s on evert 5 yard line a ride. I watched some legislators get mighty humble.Tate might not be in the best shape of his life now but I found him to be very competitive and quiet a good athlete. In his day I wager he could put most of you couch potatoes on this blog in the dirt.In case you think I’m a big Tate fan you’re wrong. His support and fantasy with that blow hard bully Trump is a big disappointment. I’m sure the lobbyist hated PLS. You can’t eat steaks and drink whiskey at night and be on the football field at 5 and 6 am the next day. First time we worked out with the legislators they had to put waste can around the gym at Millsaps for some (many) to throw up. So—-Paul has never been known as the sharpest knife in the drawer , his mouth sometimes works before his brain,and perhaps he did something dumb in this case however he was/is a legendary coach and an inspiration to some of us. Next Level!!!

Anonymous said...

"Curious post, impressive investors aside, the management and staff at Mississippi Today do not appear to pick winners and losers. They seem to report on relevant issues without regard to the ‘special status’ most local media seem to give Governors, Former Governors and their inner circles. Without their investigative reports many of us would be clueless about the corruption that appears to have taken place during the Bryant years."

To the person that made this post, well stated.

One-party rule, means no one can hold the people in power accountable, unless the press does it.

But when they are in on the gift, like Super Talk, then you really have a conundrum.

Anonymous said...

Disclaimer. I have never met Lacoste. But, yelling at middle age, overweight folks, requiring burpees and boot-camp drills at 5:00 a.m. is not the best way to get that demographic in shape. One such overweight, middle-ager lasted through his program but told me stories about his treatment, belittlement of folks who simply could not handle it. Perhaps he has matured and softened (wisely) his approach during these sessions.

Irrespective of these comments, if he did wrong, if the governor did wrong, if the former governor did wrong, if whoever did wrong, PLEASE Shad White bring them to justice.
RMQ

Burke said...

Kingfish leans right, Wolfe leans left, but I follow both because they are good journalists. They are relentless in drilling down, and they write well.

Mississippi Today is a state paper, but I wish they would train their sights on the situation in Jackson. Kingfish could use some help carrying the load.

Anonymous said...

So legislators worked out for free with welfare funds? Who were they?

Anonymous said...

2:36–When the legislators worked out when I did there were sponsors and it was well known who they were not state welfare money. 2:07- Your friend and those that could not have handled it could leave at any time.Not like in 1969 at Fort Campbell when the drill sergeants had control for 24/7.Paul was a pussy cat compared to those guys. And to this day you can call me a RINO,JPS graduate and say my momma wears army shoes and I will only laugh in your face.Some folks just ain’t cut out for rigorous training and life can be scary sometimes when you’re over sensitive.

Krusatyr said...

12:52
Never said she made false statements, but she's biased hard left so that influences how she presents/shades her story.

Anonymous said...

Weird that a “ longtime personal trainer and buddy” of Reeves had to “push[] Davis for meetings with Reeves“ in 2019. It’s little sprinkles of Wolfe’s bias like that throughout her articles that make them hard to read. The story is good enough on its own. Just tell it straight.

Anonymous said...

Clarion Ledger tried to begin, but their readers not intellectually challenged by simple fraud. I’m on the right side of being conservative, but these good ol boys need to be punished.

Anonymous said...

Question: How does Anna Wolfe legally get access to Tate Reeves’ and Phil Bryant’s text messages?

Anonymous said...

4:43, the Clarion Ledger has readers?

Anonymous said...

Anna Wolfe will go after anyone, regardless of politics. KF wants to consider himself important and only prints what certain folks behind the scenes allow.

Kingfish said...

Such as?

Anonymous said...

" I wanna see what Clay Edwards has to say about this,since he always wanna talk down on Jackson politiciansz'

Nope.

He loves Jackson as much of any of us that grew up there does.
(no matter what part of town).

All of us native Jacksonians hate to see what that city has become under many years of Democratic "rule".

Mr. Edwards only speaks the truth that the woke crowd refuses to even mention.

Anonymous said...

I know Lacoste very well and he is a fraud. Always has been. Runs and hides when he gets caught. Sounds about right.

Anonymous said...

"Paul Lacoste Jr."

Why is anyone surprised that name is now
mentioned in this cluster f*#k ?

On a side note, for a few weeks now ...
I've been wondering why Gunn has started to down-play
making a run at Reeves in a primary.

This giant spider web may trap more than a few before it's over.

Anonymous said...

Sorry KF, but some folks think your scared of Lynn Fitch, or that you're already "cooperating" with her - that's why you don't post a lot of our comments.

Kingfish said...

You're funny.

Anonymous said...

11:09
Nails it! Realistically this money would have been wasted anyway if Lacoste didn’t get it . At least some folks got healthy and didn’t game the system and benefited from their own tax money.

Anonymous said...

5:06, probly because they have taxpayer paid for cell phones. You could get access also.

Anonymous said...

@6:11

How do you cooperate with someone who is missing?

Anonymous said...

Lacoste had big tie-in with st. Dominic and a failed initiative brought forth by Lester diamond….

Anonymous said...

No one will prosecute any of the big fish unless the Feds do. The AG won’t do a thing. The state auditor can’t prosecute.

Anonymous said...

Hard to see where Ms. Wolfe can claim that "text messages indicate" that Tater said to do this. The way I read it, LaCoste "told" his buddy Davis that Tater said he supported this, and the only 'text message' that Ms. Wolfe is depending on here is that Davis texted his staff and said do it, and that based on his buddy LaCoste's claim, Tater wanted this to be done.

LaCoste's gig with the state had been going on for a while by the time of this action, funded if I remember correctly by KF's favorite company, Blue Cross and then by a couple of other healthcare folks. Sounds like his gig was running out with them footing the bill for state employees to have a paid-for fitness program as a perk of being a state employee and he was looking for a piggy bank to keep his gravy train running.

Did Tater say he liked the deal? I'm sure. Tater probably thought what had been going on for a few years as an employee perk was well received, and therefore yes he supported it.

BUT where, oh where, does Ms. Wolfe find a connection that Tater supported this being paid for with TANF dollars? Nowhere that she has brought forward yet. Will such come out? Maybe, but unlike her reporting on the connections to Phil and his involvement - I don't see anything but hearsay evidence, and that is based on one of the loudest mouths in the city - Paul LaCoste.

Anonymous said...

All of us native Jacksonians hate to see what that city has become under many years of Democratic "rule".

While the power brokers in the Mississippi GOP rob the state blind.

This genius is chasing the squirrels in Jackson.

This state does not deserve nice things.

Anonymous said...

Lacoste didn’t do anything illegal. I don’t think Favre did either. It’s the people who steered the money who should have known better.

Anonymous said...

Every area of Miss government is a joke. Isnt it interesting how Tate wants to stop rental assistance...which I'm sure is being abused by some but how can he talk?? Using funds designed for people in need for a damn boot camp? He's just as seedy as Phil.

Phillbilly Bryant use to love to say state employees shouldn't get raises. Really??? Easy for him to say when you've stole millions from the funds you were
elected to protect.

Anonymous said...

Same half-dozen trolls, no more, barfing up the same stuff over and over again.

Yaaawwwwnnnnnn, SSSSssssnooorreeee, ZZZZZZzzzzzzzzz

Anonymous said...

Tate’s paid lackeys have had a busy weekend posting on this story attempting to deflect responsibility. Tate should heed the message given to Otter in the movie Animal House, “Look man, its ok. You f**ked up. You trusted us.”

Ray Epps said...

We need to storm the Capitol.

Anonymous said...

" Lacoste didn’t do anything illegal. I don’t think Favre did either" .

I agree.
They are good boys.

They might might accept shady money from ya, but they wouldn't directly steal from ya.

Anonymous said...

I would love to post a long comment with my thoughts, but I can't stop laughing. Then I look at the national news, and then I fall on the floor and keep on laughing.

Anonymous said...

“Shiiiiiiiiit, I’ll take anybody’s money if they giving it away” Clay Davis, The Wire.

Anonymous said...

Are there any other former or current DHS staffers who worked in the State St building? Who was the “personal trainer” that showed up every day around 2 to hang out in the entrance/gym? Was he a PLS employee? He regularly asked me to come work out/it’s free/the agency pays him blah blah blah. I never did, but I always thought it was strange.

Anonymous said...

LaCoste never was worth a shit at Mississippi State. Then he opened a gym with twelve dumbbells and a Schwinn Airdyne, got all ripped on steroids and got himself immune from Kryptonite.

Then he managed to crawl into Phil's pocket, or was it vice versa? The boy ain't as dumb as he might look.

The feds 'bout to kick sand in his face, it would appear.

Anonymous said...

Agreed 100% about Lacoste. He isn’t as dumb as he acts or portrays himself to be. He knew what he was doing. Definition of a Narcissist.

Anonymous said...

The term 'Jock-sniffers' was used, a while back, in another thread on this subject. That term sums-it-up, really well.

Anonymous said...

You know someones a narcissist when they had shirts made that said “I’ve Been Lacosted” for participants that attended PLS training.



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