Harper on Obama Budget: "Horrible...socialism"

Gregg Harper spoke to the Meridian Star calling President Obama's budget "horrible" and a "major step toward socialism."

"It spends too much, it borrows too much, and it taxes too much," he said in a phone interview while on his way to view storm damage in Simpson County on Friday. "What I'm seeing is we're spending money on some areas that really shouldn't be talked about."

He took particular issue with the cap and trade system, or as he called it the "cap and tax" system, which is proposed as a way to reduce carbon emissions. "It will increase everybody's utility cost," he said. "It's an indirect tax is what it is... What they're proposing does not help us become energy independent."

"We are spending money we don't have. It's deficit spending at its worst... This is worse than anything they used to complain about under Bush. The plan will tax small business owners at a much higher rate" by raising taxes on people who make at least $250,000 a year, he said.

"Sixty-four percent of those who make that amount are small business owners," he said. "I never had a poor person hire me in high school or college."

"At least we have a chance to discuss it," he said, "even though it's a horrible budget."

He said the budget is "a major step toward socialism for our country," because, "Anytime you're doing things that call for a redistribution of wealth... where you're taking from other people and you're sending it somewhere else, you have to be careful of how and why you're doing it."

Monday Roundup

Gregg Harper will speak at the Madison County Foundation's 2009 Mid-Year Meeting on April 8 from 5:30pm-7pm at the Annandale Golf Club.

Bennie Thompson announced nearly $4 million in funds for the Mid-Delta Airport in Greenville.

Travis Childers gave 60 soldiers from the 1-230th a send off saying, "This is an overwhelming crowd and it says a lot about our area. Northeast Mississippi is a very proud and supportive community and this shows it."

Bill Poe of Starkville discussed diabetes with Gregg Harper and Travis Childers.

Travis Childers and Bennie Thompson honored Lowndes Coundy Supervisor Leroy Brooks:

“Mr. Leroy Brooks and I go back a long way,” Childers said. “He’s been my friend and I’m happy to be here honoring him tonight.” “I’m glad to see the community of Lowndes County coming out and saying they appreciate his 25 years of service,” Thompson said. “I was a county supervisor in Hinds County before I went Congress, and Leroy and I were inseparable. When I first ran for Congress Leroy came to my district and campaigned just as hard for me as he does himself.”

Friday Roundup

Roll Call says Alan Nunnelee and Merle Flowers may be considering a challenge to Travis Childers in 2010.

Southaven Mayor Greg Davis (R), who lost to Childers in both the special election and in the November general election rematch, said last week that he has no interest in challenging Childers again in 2010. And now Magnolia State Republican insiders have turned their attention to GOP state Sens. Alan Nunnelee and Merle Flowers.

Nunnelee, who chairs the state Senate Appropriations Committee, acknowledged his interest in the 1st district race on Monday but said he probably won’t make a decision on a Congressional bid until after the state budgeting process is complete.

Nunnelee said his biggest concern with Childers is the Congressman’s ties to the more liberal leaders of his party. And while Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is currently “giving [Childers] free reign on the tough votes ... anytime she needs his vote it will be there.”

Flowers expressed similar concerns with Childers but said it is too early to talk about whether he’d challenge the Congressman in 2010. Nunnelee said that considering the close relationship that he and Flowers have, “I can’t see any scenario where Merle and I would run against each other” in a GOP primary.

Gene Taylor has a townhall meeting in D'Iberville on April 6.

When it comes to helping our deployed military, our country has "an abysmal record" says Gregg Harper.

Bennie Thompson is pleased at the selection of Ray Mabus as Secretary of Navy.

Did Thompson, Childers, Taylor vote for mandatory public service?

Justin Head writes "The new volunteerism" in The Daily Mississippian.

Things could really start getting interesting in Washington with the passage of HR 1388 by the House of Representatives. If there ever was cause for alarm in the minds of young people, this should be it. The name alone is yet another misleading government acronym created specifically for the purpose of confusion on the bill’s actual implications. Deviously entitled the Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education (GIVE) Act, this legislation vastly expands on AmeriCorps. It is estimated to cost $6 billion over five years and increase the current national volunteer program by 175,000.

Of course, to call this “volunteerism” is a misnomer. Current AmeriCorps volunteers typically receive college scholarships and stipends after completing one of the programs. This idea of government funding and rewarding acts of charity runs contrary to the idea of charity and places morality in the hands of government while taking away private incentives to give back to their communities. The government will pick which areas they believe are in need of the most help, and all “volunteers” will go to work. This, of course, feeds off the idea government has a better understanding of what is best for a local community than the community itself. Not to mention, this is yet another form of criminality on the part of the American government.

The bill creates what is known as a Congressional Commission on Civil Service. This commission will, among several topics, explore, “whether a workable, fair and reasonable mandatory service requirement for all able young people could be developed and how such a requirement could be implemented in a manner that would strengthen the social fabric of the nation.”

The bill creates a commission to explore the feasibility of implementing mandatory social service, otherwise known as slavery.

And yes, Barack Obama is very much in support of this bill. It is scary to read his comments made last July at a campaign rally where he stated, “We cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we’ve set.
We’ve got to have a civilian national security force that is just as powerful, just as strong, just as well funded.” Just what national security objectives has this man set? According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), American military expenditures in 2007 made up 45 percent of the entire world’s military expenses. The U.K. came in second making up only 5 percent. This is not to mention that our military expenditures have obviously grown since then.

We have the world’s largest military establishment with military bases in over 140 counties and combined troop totals of over 2.5 million worldwide. In 2007, the military budget far exceeded $500 billion and has since grown.

This makes me wonder how we are unable to meet national security objectives when our government spends more than nearly every other country in the world combined on defense. And how does Obama propose to match the funding of the military on this national security force of slaves?

I would also like to point out that Bennie Thompson, Travis Childers and Gene Taylor all voted for this bill.

Tuesday Roundup

The Hattiesburg American supports Gene Taylor's insurance policy proposals

Weekend at Bennie's II - Guest Star: Allen Stanford

Gregg Harper to host Military Academy Day at Madison Central

Gene Taylor pushing wind-policy bill

Bennie Thompson parties with Janet Jackson

Salt dome still a target for Gene Taylor

Bennie Thompson critical of airport security procedures

Gregg Harper says "When you find out you’ve dug yourself a hole, you should quit digging, but we’ve brought in heavy machinery, and we’re making the hole so deep that we’re not going to be able to get out of it.”

Travis Childers explains why he wants an Office of Rural Policy

Smoot, Perry disagree on Thompson

Fred Smoot was in DC and is a fan of Bennie Thompson.

Does Smoot frequently visit the Hill? Once every 10 days or so in the offseason, he said, which wasn't the answer I was expecting.

"You know, I'm a business man," he said. "Plus I've got my guy congressman Bennie Thompson down here from Mississippi, so I always come down and visit him. Then I'm always with Darrell [Green], and Darrell's always down here, so this is a place I'm very much used to....I've got a couple business partners, lawyers. They'll call me, 'Come down here, go to the restaurant, have a little dinner or something.' "

So, the secret to success on the Hill?

"You've got to have personality," Smoot said. "You've got to be a peoples' person. You've got to know how to fit in, in between. You've just got to know how to mix it up, be a good mixer."

The Madison County Journal's Brian Perry? Not so much the fan.

For the next three years, New York Carib News funded trips for Thompson to Panama (2006), Antigua and Barbuda (2007), and St. Maarten (2008). According to Washington DC's The Hill newspaper, "The trip is closely associated with the [Congressional Black Caucus]; only CBC members are invited each year."

The Stanford Financial Group, as recently as 2008, was a supporting sponsor of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (giving between $15,000 and $30,000). The foundation sponsors trips including a 2003 trip to Puerto Rico for Thompson.

On the 2005 IAEC trip, Stanford hosted a reception for lawmakers on his yacht. He hosted another yacht reception for the 2007 trip that included an appearance by Bennie Thompson who "chatted" with Stanford "about a sailing event the billionaire sponsored." Thompson's chief-of-staff told the Politico newspaper he "was not sure whether Thompson flew on Stanford's jet for the 2007 trip."

The 2007 conference agenda scheduled Thompson to speak on "National Security: A Pre-Condition for Success" sponsored by the banking firm HSBC and "Port & Airport Security" sponsored by Macy's.

The 2008 conference at the Sonesta Maho Bay Resort & Casino on the island of St. Maarten occurred about a month after Congress approved the $700 billion financial bailout package. Citigroup (who would receive $45 billion from the bailout package) sponsored the event to the tune of $100,000. Other corporate contributors included AT&T, Verizon ($35,000), Pfizer, Macy's and American Airlines who donated travel. The National Legal and Policy Center has requested an investigation of the event by the special inspector general of the financial bailout package.

Both the 2007 and 2008 trips occurred after Democrats passed new Congressional ethics rules banning corporate sponsorship of conferences like these island trips.

My concern is Thompson has been burned before. Ten years ago the "National Security Caucus Foundation" invited him to the Northern Mariana Islands for a few days. It turns out the real financer of the trip was Jack Abramoff. Thompson denied any knowledge of Abramoff's funding and I'll take him at his word.

But Thompson is Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee. He saw corporate executives all around him and corporate sponsors on the program, but he apparently maintained naïve innocence that this free trip to a tropical paradise was nothing more than a fact-finding mission where he might just happen to rub shoulders with billionaire Allen Stanford on his yacht.

Conservative Scores; Taylor Strips

Majority in Mississippi notes the American Conservative Union has released its scores of Mississippi congressmen.

Name - 2008 Score - 2007 Score - Lifetime Score
Travis Childers - 41 - NA - 41
Bennie Thompson - 8 - 0 - 10.3
Chip Pickering - 82 - 87 - 92
Gene Taylor - 24 - 72 - 66.11

Gene Taylor seeks to stip "the federal antitrust exemption from the insurance industry."

Thursday Roundup

The Galveston County Daily News praises Taylor's insurance legislation - Perils of separate hurricane policies:

U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor’s proposed Multiple Peril Insurance Act may not be the best way to untangle the knot of problems caused by the way we insure against catastrophe, but it’s worth a hard look, and at first glance appears better than the present situation.

And the bottom line is, if the industry wants to make a free-market argument, it should be lobbying to get flood coverage back into the private sector.

Until it does that, it’s arguments to keep windstorm ring a little false.

Yaller Dog Blog has more praise for Travis Childers. Maybe Yaller Dog should respond to this smack-talk against Childers' pages:

The Senate is the upper chamber, the gentleman's debating body. It takes a higher class of Page to refill the cognac in Sen. Jay Rockefeller's crystal flask than to top off the Mr. Pibb in Rep. Travis Childers' Big Gulp cup. It's night and day, really.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed Gene Taylor's bill to rename the McLain Post Office after Medal of Honor winner Maj. Ed “Too Tall” Freeman.

Meanwhile Gene Taylor unloads on AIG:

"Bilking American taxpayers is what insurance companies do. Why is anyone surprised?!”

Gregg Harper joined ten other Republican congressmen in a letter to the Department of Justice defending Sheriff Joe Arpaio's local illegal immigration enforcement efforts. Bennie Thompson held a hearing regarding possible civil rights violations in local illegal immigration enforcement.

Nancy Pelosi thanked Gene Taylor for his role in reversing the Obama Administration proposal to make veterans pay for their medical treatments with their private insurance first.

Travis Childers announced a $259,613 ARC grant for MSU's Project Smarter.

Bennie Thompson says FEMA is better inside DHS.

Melton points the finger at Thompson, who likes popcorn (and more in between)

WJTV reports that Jackson Mayor Frank Melton says Congressman Bennie Thompson is behind his reelection disqualification.

Melton says politics is behind the committee’s decision. He pointed a finger directly at U.S. Congressman Bennie Thompson. “The congressman has four people in this race and he’s not gonna run the city of Jackson the people are, not one congressman,” he said.

The YallerDogBlog praises Travis Childers:

I am so happy to see Congressman Childers standing up for rural America. I'm also really impressed to see that he's the Chairman of such a large and important caucus. He hasn't been in office that long. He must be doing something right up there. How can city folks have an office in the White House but rural Americans not have one? Show me the fairness? Show me what's right in that? Thank you Congressman Childers for standing up for rural America.

It seems some Texans are responding well to some of Gene Taylor's legislation:

U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor, R-Miss., who lost his home to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and joined hundreds of others in a lawsuit against his insurer for refusing to pay for property damage, has introduced legislation that would make windstorm coverage part of the National Flood Insurance Program.

The bill would create what amounts to a single hurricane policy, render moot whether flood or wind caused damaged and decrease both the likelihood of post-disaster litigation and the need for massive federal disaster aid programs, Taylor said.

Taylor’s proposed Multiple Peril Insurance Act of 2009 is a no-brainer for some county residents who didn’t have the right coverage when Hurricane Ike struck Sept. 13, pushing epic storm surge across the island and low-lying parts of the mainland.

“It makes perfect sense to roll them into one policy,” said King Schaaf, who with brothers Boo and Bill, owns island restaurant supply D&M Food Service, 4510 Broadway.

After weighing insurance costs and risks, Schaaf had opted to buy windstorm insurance but not flood. Both his business and home were flooded.

Had one policy been available, he would have bought it, he said.

But Taylor’s legislation is meeting heavy resistance from insurance industry trade groups that call it well-intentioned but misguided.

“I am appalled that they continue to fight this because they don’t want this business,” Taylor said. “In every instance, they forced state and local windstorm pools to assume the liabilities.”

Under Taylor’s plan, premiums for wind coverage would be risked-based and actuarially sound, according to the bill.

Long, expensive fights between insurers and policyholders after Hurricane Katrina greatly hindered recovery in Mississippi and cost taxpayers dearly, Taylor said.

A combined policy likely would be more expensive, Oliver said. The average windstorm policy is $1,000 a year.

“If you charged what is actuarially sound, the rates will go up considerably,” Oliver said.

Bennie Thompson got a lot of attention for his recent stimulus town hall in Jackson.

"There's a lot of interest," Thompson said. "Our goal was to get people to understand what they need to do to get some of this funding. I think we were able to do that." - Clarion Ledger: Congressman: Stimulus dollars for rural areas, too

"We're excited about it, that why I voted for it. Because we don't have much choice," said Thompson. - WLBT: Congressman answers questions about stimulus package

[Stimulus] “It's a jobs program that just ultimately as a byproduct we'll get better streets, safer drinking water and other things,” Thompson said. “Mississippi stands to benefit substantially from the stimulus program.” -- [Hinds vs Rankin/Madison] “I couldn't, along with others, figure out why Hinds County -- the largest county -- would receive less,” Thompson said. “So we asked for it to be reconsidered and we were told on Friday that a new formula had been put together so that Hinds County would receive its proportionate share of the money.” -- [AIG] "How are you going to, in good conscience, reward people who basically brought the economy of this country down -- and this notion that if we don't give them a bonus, they may go somewhere else,” Thompson said. “Well, if these are the same people who fiddled while the economy was burning, then they probably need to go.” - WAPT: Hundreds Pack Stimulus Town Hall Meeting

Fox40: Congressman Bennie Thompson to Rural Towns: The Money is There, Apply

Finally, it seems Bennie Thompson likes popcorn.

Thompson Pork

Bennie Thompson delivers stimulus money to the Boys and Girls Club.

The Boys and Girls Club of Central Mississippi must raise $300,000 in two weeks to save three club locations from closing. The organization discovered Monday that it will receive $50,000 from the federal economic stimulus package secured by the office of U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-District 2.

To which Gartalker says:

The city of Edwards Mississippi boasts a population of 1,317 people. If at least 20% of the population are, parents and 10% are grand parents and great grand parents. Then take another 10% of the population that would be either white children or blacks under the age of 5 and you have a total of 40%. This would leave Edwards with approximately 790 children to use their Boys and Girls Club. Bennie Thompson just got $900,000.00 in pork barrel spending to help with the club. That is a low estimate of $11,392.00 per child. Bolton/Edwards schools spend approximately $4641.00 per student. An average teacher teaches 17 kids there. Still after spending that much money not only on school but afternoon fun also, they can only expect to graduate about 70% of the students. Thank you Bennie Thompson for sending some more of my kids and grand kids money to Bolton. After all, it is going to help at least 553 of them.

Childers Card Check: 2009 No - 2008 Yes

Lots of blogtivity on Travis Childers and union policies. First the news from the Daily Journal - Senators, Childers voice opposition to 'card check' bill:

Sens. Thad Cochran and Roger Wicker, both Republicans, and 1st District Rep. Travis Childers, a Democrat, all confirmed Tuesday they will vote against the proposed Employee Free Choice Act.

"I plan to vote against the current card check bill," Childers said in a statement.

"In these uncertain times, I'm very concerned that a wide range of small business leaders believe this will hurt job creation and economic development efforts in our region. There may be parts of the country where this measure will not have the same impact it will have here in north Mississippi, but my job is to put the 1st Congressional District first."

Robert Shaffer, president of the Mississippi AFL-CIO, said in a telephone interview, "He (Childers) told me a lot of the people in his district were opposed to it."

Shaffer said the Mississippi AFL-CIO supported Childers in the 2008 general election. "How he votes (on card check) won't make any difference," said Shaffer, who called Childers "a good fellow."

MajorityInMississippi asks whether Chameleon Childers will be red or blue today on labor issues, and also posts a campaign flyer from 2008 that has Childers as pro-card check.

Either Childers lied to labor to get their support, or labor has been lying to rally their troops.

UPDATE: Majority In Mississippi has added this: Well, He’s A Good Fellow…

Taylor Calls Sierra Club sell-outs; takes criticism from Alabama

Gene Taylor says the Sierra Club and American Rivers are selling out their members to the Bermuda reinsurance industry. He says they have joined a front group called Americans for Smart Natural Catastrophe Policy to oppose his multi-perils insurance legislation. Read all about it: Slabbed: The Sierra Club Chips in With Bermuda Reinsurers, Opposes HR 1264. Here is from a press release from Taylor's congressional office.

Americans for Smart Natural Catastrophe Policy appears to be a front group funded by the Bermuda reinsurance industry and their investors and partners in the U.S. insurance industry. The lobbyists for the Sierra Club and American Rivers are selling out their members without giving them relevant information.

---

Al.com: Taylor defends stance on LCS, tanker

U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor of Mississippi isn't winning any friends across the state line in Mobile.

Taylor, a Democrat from Bay St. Louis, has antagonized Alabama officials on two key projects that could each have a huge impact on the Gulf Coast economy.

Taylor last week lit into the Navy's littoral combat ship program, aiming more than a few sharp words at Austal USA. The Mobile shipbuilder is bidding to become the contractor of choice for up to 55 of the cutting-edge vessels -- a project that could create 1,000 jobs and provide long-term stability for one of Mobile's largest employers.

Taylor ripped Austal for cost overruns on its version of the LCS, one of two designs the Navy is evaluating, and said the company "is not taking the steps needed to modernize its production."

Taylor has also frustrated area business leaders by refusing to help push for an aircraft assembly plant in Mobile.

The $600 million, 1,500-worker project hinges on Northrop Grumman Corp. winning a contract to build refueling tankers for the Air Force. Northrop and its backers are waging a fierce, politically charged battle against Boeing Co. for the tanker work.

Taylor's silence has vexed the Northrop side because the project could bring thousands of high- paying aerospace jobs to the Gulf Coast and across the Southeast.

So what gives?

Local speculation is that Taylor's criticism of the LCS program is motivated by a desire to help one of his biggest political patrons. Taylor's district includes Northrop's Ingalls shipyard, which could gain a piece of the LCS contract if it is opened to competition -- a move Taylor proposed during a congressional hearing last week.

Taylor's refusal to endorse Northrop's tanker, according to team members, is tied to a seemingly unrelated issue -- insurance reform. Taylor has led a crusade against the insurance industry for allegedly failing to meet its obligations following Hurricane Katrina.

Earmarking, Bennie Thompson Style

Y'all Politics and Majority in Mississippi have these posts about a Kosciusko Star Herald report:

City of Kosciusko Ward 2 Alderman Henry Daniel submitted a list of possible streets to be paved with funds from the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act – A Legacy for Users at the Tuesday, March 3, meeting. The funds were awarded to the city by Congressman Bennie Thompson.

The $250,000 was first awarded to Ward 3 and later changed to Ward 2.

At an earlier board meeting, Daniel said the funds were designated to his ward because he serves as Thompson’s campaign manager.

A letter has been sent to Thompson regarding the confusion over the funds.

Apparently, this has been an ongoing project for Henry Daniel as we read from this report from the Star Herald last month:

Paving roads in Ward 2 became a little more complex at the Kosciusko Mayor and Board of Aldermen meeting Tuesday, Feb. 3.

The $200,000 in federal funds was first awarded to Ward 3 in 2005 through the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act – A Legacy for Users and later changed to Ward 2 according to paperwork from Congressmen Bennie Thompson‘s office.

Mayor Jimmy Cockroft said there were several issues to resolve concerning the matter.

The paving project for Ward 3 was already under way and there are now an estimated $30,000 in engineering fees to be paid.

“State Aid needs to know how we intend to pay (city engineer Christian Gardner) for work he has already done in Ward 3,” he said.

Cockroft also said State Aid needed a letter from Thompson about the change in wards.

Ward 3 Aldermen Robert Ellis, who still wants answers on why the change was made, said, “It has killed Ward 3 but it’s fixing to hit the city of Kosciusko.”

“This is going to cost us money in the long run,” Alderman At-Large Tim Kyle said.

Ward 3 Aldermen Henry Daniel’s attempts to think of ways to by the funding didn’t pan out.

“As mayor, what am I suppose to do, you (Daniel) say it’s your money but Aldermen Ellis has the letter,” Cockroft said.

Daniel said the point is that Thompson gave this money to the city of Kosciusko.

“We paved streets in Ward 2 with the bond issue that didn’t get done in Ward 3 because we were going to use the grant funds,” Cockroft said. A $2.5-million bond issue was passed for paving and park improvements in the summer.

Cockroft asked Daniel to speak with Thompson on the matter and Daniel wouldn’t comment.

Kyle made a motion for Cockroft to draft a letter to Thompson asking for the funds to be moved back to Ward 3 and that both Cockroft and Daniel sign the letter.

“I can’t sign off on that,” Daniel said.

Finally, the board resolved that Cockroft would write a letter on the confusion over the moving of funds and he would also attach a list of streets in need in both Ward 2 and 3.

When asked by Ellis, why wouldn’t he sign off on the letter, Daniel replied, “I won't let you put me on the spot like that. I won’t answer that."

So Daniel says that is his money. He wouldn't comment on a discussion with Thompson. And he wouldn't sign a letter to Thompson asking to transfer the funds nor would he explain why. Sounds shady.

For the record, according to a Federal Election Committee report, Thompson's campaign committee, "Friends of Bennie Thompson," paid Daniels $5650 in October 2008 for salary and expenses including canvassing, gas, and food.

Roundup From DC

Bennie Thompson is the only Mississippian signed on to the labor union backed "Employee Free Choice Act". MajorityInMississippi has the details.

Gregg Harper is cosponsoring a bill which would exempt Washington DC residents from federal income tax. PikeCountyTimes has thoughts on this.

Gene Taylor plans to hold hearings on

A proposal that would force U.S. defense contractors to buy performance bonds...as a way of fighting arms' cost overruns...[Taylor] said he planned to hold hearings on the related costs and benefits as soon as possible..."The cost overruns cannot continue," Taylor, Democrat of Mississippi, told a defense industry conference. "And I can't think of a better alternative" than mandating performance bonds for new arms programs. If adopted, such bonds in effect would guarantee "that what you said you were going to build would be delivered on time at the proper price," he said. "If you failed to do that ... that bonded amount would go to the government." Last year, the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office found that 95 major Defense Department arms programs' price tags grew a total of $295 billion beyond their original cost estimates. Taylor, at the conference co-hosted by Aviation Week Magazine and McAleese & Associates, said performance bonds were standard procedure for companies doing business with state and local governments. "It works at those levels," he said. "And I see no reason why it shouldn't work at the national level."

Meanwhile Travis Childers' DC gun rights bill is in the middle of a fight over giving Washington DC a voting member in Congress.

Bennie Thompson is calling Rod Beckstrom's resignation from one of the federal government's top cybersecurity positions

the result of inefficient leadership, an unclear organizational structure and poorly designed roles and responsibilities within the federal government. The best way to handle the cybersecurity problem isn't to give more control to the NSA but instead to rely for leadership on a civilian agency "that interfaces with but is not controlled by NSA," Thompson said. However, he didn't specify which agency he thought should be placed in charge of the government's efforts. (via NetworkWorld)

While Thompson said he had been optimistic at Beckstom’s appointment, the Bush administration put him in a position without clear lines of authority or a budget, a “no-win situation.” Beckstrom “did not have experience working miracles,” he said – namely overcoming the domination of the National Security Agency in cybersecurity policy formation. (via BroadbandCensus)

Facing skepticism at home, some Democrats resist spending boost

Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss., has a hard time going home to Bay St. Louis and explaining why Congress wants to boost federal spending for the rest of this fiscal year by 8 percent.

"The police in my hometown make $10, $11 an hour" he said (although they actually make $12 to $13 an hour, according to the city). "How do I explain what we're doing here?"

"People may not understand all the nuances of this legislative process," said Mississippi's Taylor. "But they understand they're still hurting."

Harper vists district; Taylor calls for war on pirates

Not trying to contrast the two, obviously. I mean, any news sounds mundane compared to seeking a war on pirates. Travis Childers announces stimulus funds for school - or - Gene Taylor sends pirates to Davy Jones' locker. No contest.

Madison County Herald - Harper visits with local leaders -

U.S. Rep Gregg Harper spent a recent recess from Washington on a tour of the 3rd Congressional District. He spoke at several events including one held by the Madison County GOP Feb. 16 to honor Senator Thad Cochran's 30 years of service, a breakfast held by the Natchez Chamber of Commerce Feb. 18, a meeting of the Rankin County committee of 100 and the Flora Chamber of Commerce annual banquet Feb. 19, and to both houses of the state legislature on Feb. 20. Congressman Harper met with officials from MDOT and the Mississippi Forestry Association. He also toured facilities at Raytheon in Forest and the 172nd Airlift Wing at the Air National Guard in Jackson to get a better understanding of what is needed to further their important missions. While visiting the Air National Guard, Harper witnessed the swearing in of a lieutenant on his way to flight school before meeting with Commanding Officer Major Gen. Erik Hearon. Major Gen. Hearon briefed Congressman Harper on the role the facility plays in the dual battlefronts in Afghanistan and Iraq.

TalkRadioNews.com - Punishing the Pirates -

The U.S. House Armed Services Committee today heard testimony from Vice Admiral William Gortney, Acting Principal Director of the Office of African Affairs for the U.S. Department of Defense, Daniel Pike, Ambassador Stephen Mull, Acting under Secretary for International Security and Arms Control for the U.S. State Department and Karl Wycoff, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs for the U.S. State Department on combating piracy on the high seas. Congressman Gene Taylor (D-Missi) asked Ambassador Mull whether a ship, targeted by pirates, baring the American flag, would be treated as committing an attack against America. Mull’s response was inconclusive, and Congressman Taylor and Chairman Skelton have asked the Ambassador to submit a written statement outlining in detail, to the committee how this crime is dealt with under international and domestic law.

Childers Tele-Town Hall; Taylor's Insurance Bill

You can call in to Childer's Tele-Town Hall Tuesday night:

U.S. Rep. Travis Childers will hold a live Tele-Town Hall Tuesday night to discuss the positive impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Mississippi’s First District. The Recovery Act was signed into law on Feb. 17. After his remarks, Childers, a Democrat, will take questions from participants. At 7 p.m. CT, Childers will call constituents to invite them, at no cost to the caller, to participate in the live event. Constituents should remain on the line to be instantly connected to the live Tele-Town Hall. The public may also participate by using the following call-in information: 1-877-229-8493, Passcode: 13909#, Participant Pin: 1.

Gene Taylor is reintroducing his multi-peril bill:

U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Bay St. Louis, plans this week to once again introduce a bill that would add wind insurance to the National Flood Insurance Program.

Last year the bill passed the House but stalled in the Senate Banking Committee.

Critics dislike Taylor’s plan because, they say, the flood program already is weighted with debt and other problems. They believe the addition of wind coverage would only exacerbate those problems.

Taylor said he is counting on continued support from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who visited Bay St. Louis along with Taylor and other House members for an insurance forum.

Taylor said several House allies have now moved over to the Senate.

Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the ranking Republican on the Banking Committee where the measure stalled in 2008, remains opposed to wind coverage through NFIP. Committee Chair Chris Dodd of Connecticut had pledged to work toward a solution, but Taylor said they have not conferred lately because Dodd has been caught up in issues over the economic crisis.

When he was campaigning in the South, then–Sen. Barack Obama said he supports the concept of wind coverage in the flood program, but only if the legislation encourages responsible development.

Martin said the bill encourages responsible development in two ways: Premiums are risk-based, not subsidized; and, to participate, communities must build to code recommendations.

Insurance executives from The Travelers Cos. have proposed an alternative coastal zone plan to provide coverage through the private market. Under the plan the federal government would sell to the insurance companies, at cost, reinsurance that would help them cover catastrophic losses.

But Taylor doesn’t see the solution in the private market. “I think we have the best solution,” he said.

Briefly, Gene Taylor understands the Marines desire for the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle but wants to see "more protection against IEDs on the vehicle before it goes into production."

The Vicksburg Post criticizes Travis Childers for trying to be both for and against spending, "The votes make him appear to be a big spender who’s against big spending unless, of course, it’s in his district. Some people have problems being for things they are against or against things they are for. But apparently it doesn’t take long to learn the ways of Washington, where that has never been a problem."