State elections are just around the corner, Nov. 5. It will be interesting to see if the Republican Party can continue dominating Mississippi politics despite population stagnation and weak economic growth compared to the rest of the nation.
The kooky, radical left-wing proposals of the current crop of Presidential Democratic candidates are not helping their Mississippi colleagues, most of whom tend to be far more conservative.
Such is one of the pitfalls of the two-party system operating on a national and state level. The current two-party system is very competitive nationally, with control constantly shifting back and forth. But it often leads to one-party domination at the state level. The Democratic Party’s domination of California is one example. The Republican Party’s domination of Mississippi is another.
Competition is the key to progress, so I hate to see one party dominate. I didn’t like it when the Democratic Party had an ironclad hold over the Mississippi government, and I don’t particularly like the current Republican domination. George Washington said political parties would be a curse on the nation, and I see what he meant.
When the Democrats dominated, we got a lot of red ink, runaway government spending and some small, crony deals like the beef plant. The Republicans have done a great job of balancing the budget, but now the roads are falling apart, our prisons are run by gangs and the crony deals like the Kemper power plant, Kior, Yokohama, Continental and the tourism retail sales scam (to name just a few) make the Democrats look downright naive.
That was not the kind of “business friendly” many of us had in mind when we supported the Republicans in the first place.
In the end, Mississippians are going to vote for the opposition if they aren’t happy with the way things are going. If the Republicans sweep yet again, then it will indicate that voters are feeling pretty good about things. I just hope Mississippi voters can separate the national Democratic looniness from our statewide candidates who are far more practical. It’s not fair to the many decent Mississippi Democratic candidates to judge them based on the national left-wing looniness that is being popularized in the national media.
As usual, I will not issue the typical exhortation to go vote. If you aren’t interested in politics, stay home. An uneducated, random vote is worse than no vote. As the old saying goes, you may not be interested in politics, but politics is very interested in you. Educate yourselves about the candidates. Take just an hour or two to read the resumes of the candidates. This is so easy to do in the age of the internet.
The race for state treasurer pits Republican David McRaeagainst Bolton alderman Addie Lee Green. McRae will win this one.
One thing I like about McRae: he’s wealthy. As such, I hope he won’t be tempted to enrich himself in office. The state treasurer has a lot of influence over how state bonds are issued. This used to be a competitive bidding process but the Republicans have made it more collegial. Let’s hope McRae brings more competition back into this billion-dollar process.
Green is a JSU grad and serves on the executive board of the state Democratic Party. She was a delegate to the Philadelphia Convention for Hillary Clinton.
A mother of three sons and a grandmother of six, Green has been a solid citizen of Bolton for decades, but her lack of fundraising doesn’t bode well for her chances.
I know journalists are supposed to view politicians as opportunistic skalawags intent on padding their pockets and promoting their careers at all costs.
Sorry about that. Can’t do it. Most of the politicians I encounter are decent, hard-working, smart people worthy of high office.
Wyatt Emmerich is president of Emmerich Newspapers, which owns the C-P and about 20 other newspapers, mostly in Mississippi. Reach him at wyatt@northsidesun.com.
