phil bryant – The Mississippi Link

AP analysis: Former Gov. Haley Barbour still effective at shaping Mississippi policies

JACKSON, Mississippi (AP) — Once a governor, always a governor in Mississippi. The title never fades, even when the time in office expires.

However, with his recent re-entry into public policy discussions about energy, Haley Barbour appears to be wearing “Gov.” as more than an honorary title.

Call him Shadow Gov. Barbour — a person who still pushes ideas that, for better or worse, might shape Mississippi’s economic future.

When Actual Gov. Phil Bryant was in Brazil on an economic development trip this past week, fellow Republican Barbour earned headlines with a speech… […]

AirGuide celebrates grand opening in Clarksdale

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CLARKSDALE – Gov. Phil Bryant, officials from AirGuide and local officials recently celebrated the grand opening of the company’s manufacturing operations in Clarksdale. The governor and company officials announced last August AirGuide’s plans to locate in Clarksdale.

The new facility will create 40 full-time jobs with a company investment of $720,000. […]

Songwriter Johnny Russell gets country music marker in Moorhead

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Country music singer-songwriter Johnny Russell was the latest recipient honored with a marker on the Mississippi Country Music Trail. The marker unveiling was at 101 East Delta Avenue in Moorhead.

Governor Phil Bryant, who was born in Moorhead, offered remarks during the ceremony.

John Bright “Johnny” Russell (1940-2001) was born and raised in Moorhead and went on to become a star of the Grand Ole Opry and a popular country recording artist, with such hits as “Catfish John” and “Rednecks, White Socks and Blue Ribbon Beer.” […]

Nissan breaks ground on $50 million new supplier park

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Nissan expanded its U.S. manufacturing footprint this week with Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant joining Nissan employees to break ground on a reportedly one million square foot, $50 million new supplier park at the company’s Canton, Miss. vehicle assembly plant.

The project will support more than 800 jobs, including an expected 400 newly created supplier jobs as well as 400 employees that Nissan has hired since June 1 in anticipation of the project.

The State of Mississippi has reportedly given Nissan more than a billion dollars in incentives. […]

Bryant: Medicaid special session starts Thursday

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Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant said Monday that he’s calling lawmakers into special session at 10 a.m. Thursday to keep the state’s Medicaid program alive and funded once the new state fiscal year begins July 1.

The Republican is not asking lawmakers to expand Medicaid, which is an option under the federal health care law that President Barack Obama signed in 2010.

Many Democrats have been pushing to expand Medicaid or to allow low-income working people to use federal subsidies to buy insurance on the private market.
However, Republican leaders say the state can’t afford to add another 300,000 people to Medicaid, and they don’t want to increase people’s dependence on government programs. […]

Grammy Museum groundbreaking at Delta State

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– A groundbreaking ceremony for the new Grammy Museum was held at Delta State’s Derrall Foreman Golf Course near Highway 8 in Cleveland on Tuesday, June 11.

The event was organized by Cleveland Music Foundation.

Gov. Phil Bryant presented a check for $2 million to the project. Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves and Sen. Willie Simmons were scheduled to speak. Deputy Director of Grammy Museum at L.A. Live in Los Angeles Rita George was also scheduled to address the crowd. […]

CertainTeed restarting production in Meridian

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CertainTeed joined local and state officials Monday to announce the company is restarting its ceiling tile manufacturing operations in Meridian, in the same facility it purchased in 2005.

The project represents a $24 million company investment and will create 110 new jobs by 2016.

Production is expected to resume during the second quarter of 2014. Once operational, the facility will produce a range of ceiling tiles and acoustical wall panels used in commercial construction applications. […]

Group says it will defend new Miss. prayer law

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A nonprofit conservative group says it will provide free legal representation to Mississippi schools or districts if a new school prayer law is challenged in court.

Liberty Counsel attorney Steve Crampton told The Associated Press that the group believes the law is “perfectly within the bounds of the First Amendment.”

Republican Gov. Phil Bryant signed the law in late March, and it takes effect July 1. It says all Mississippi school districts must adopt a policy to allow a “limited public forum” at school events such as football games or morning announcements, to let students express religious beliefs. […]

Miss. governor says he'll sign DUI ignition bill

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Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant intends to sign a bill aimed at strengthening laws against drunken driving, his spokesman said Monday.

The response from the Republican governor came the same day the American Beverage Institute, based in Washington, D.C., urged Bryant to veto House Bill 481.

The group said it represents 80 Mississippi restaurants. It said if the bill becomes law, it would be expensive to enforce and would create too much work for Mississippi probation officers.

The bill is expected to hit Bryant’s desk in the next several days. With his signature, the bill will become law July 1, 2014. […]

Tornado rips through Noxubee and Kemper counties; 1 dead

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Gov. Phil Bryant declared a State of Emergency Thursday for Kemper and Noxubee counties due to the impacts of severe storms and tornadoes that injured many and left one person dead.

A command post has been set up in downtown Shuqualak after a tornado ripped through the area around noon Thursday. Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) director Robert Latham was in town as part of the effort to help following the tornado.

MEMA spokesman Greg Flynn says the fatality was reported west-northwest of DeKalb, near Mississippi Highway 493, in Kemper County. […]