Fire McCoy . . . and the boys

Dear Readers,

With the swearing in of the new Mississippi Legislature composed of a majority of conservative, Republican legislators and the election of the first Republican Speaker in 140 years, Tuesday, January 3rd, officially marked the end of our campaign to bring true conservative change to the Mississippi House of Representatives.

Over the past year we have had the opportunity to meet so many of you as we carried our message of conservative change around the state. We appreciate the warm receptions and kind words. Your hospitality and encouragement will be forever remembered.

Our campaign – ‘Fire McCoy and the Boys’ – has been an outlet to help spark conversation and highlight the difference between conservative ideology and the liberal mindset creeping into our state and local governments. We appreciate all who embodied our message and voted for conservative change in November.

With your emails, texts, calls and comments, you have helped us create a narrative in Mississippi that otherwise would have been swept under the rug once again. Thanks to many of you out there, we made liberal Democrats in Mississippi uncomfortable and sought out to encourage true conservatives to step forward in the Republican Party. We all made a real, lasting difference in Mississippi in 2011 and now in 2012.

We will leave this site active for a period of time as all conservatives reflect on our historic achievement, however, it will soon be closed as we all move our attention from campaigning to governing.

Ricky will now be focusing on the U.S. Senate races at his new site www.rickybishop.net.

Frank is already writing for Yall Politics at www.yallpolitics.com.

As we end this campaign and look to the future, we must all continue to be engaged and aware of what is happening in the halls of government at every level. We must be diligent to support and elect visionary, passionate conservative officials for the betterment of our communities, state and nation. It is only through involvement that change comes. We must not shy away when the arrows come our way or when the press is unkind; we must stay the course and be the voice even if it is the lone cry in the wilderness.

You can make a difference in the political world around you – we all proved it this year.

Thanks again for the support, prayers and encouragement. May God bless each of you and may God bless the great State of Mississippi.

Sincerely,

Frank Corder and Ricky Bishop
Founders of ‘Fire McCoy and the Boys’ campaign

For those of you that were as disappointed as we were that the Mississippi Legislature live web feeds were down today you will be able to watch the proceedings tonight at 10 p.m. on your local Mississippi Public Broadcasting channel.

The Mississippi House of Representatives have been sworn in and Republicans are now officially in the majority.

Rep. Phillip Gunn is now Speaker Phillip Gunn.

What a difference a year makes!

Thank you all for helping make 2011 and now 2012 years to remember.

Now, let’s get down to business…

Outgoing House Clerk Don Richardson, who has held the position under Speaker Billy McCoy, signed off this morning on his Facebook.

Richardson wrote, “When on door closes, another opens… After 30+ years of legislative/government service, and 8 years in this position, today is my last day as Clerk of the Mississippi House of Representatives, and it has been a great ride! Now, I am trying to decide which of those doors to open and enter…”

Richardson also congratulated Rep. Phillip Gunn (Speaker nominee, Rep. Greg Snowden (Speaker pro tempore nominee) and Andrew Ketchings (Clerk nominee). He wished them the best in their new roles.

Jackson Jambalaya has posted a release from the Mississippi House Democratic Caucus announcing their new minority leadership team.

The release states, “Succeeding Rep. Tyrone Ellis as Caucus Leader will be Rep. Bobby Moak of Bogue Chitto. Serving as Deputy Leader will be Rep. Bryant Clark of Pickens. Floor leaders were selected based on Mississippi’s three Supreme Court districts. These include Rep. David Baria of Bay St. Louis, Rep. Kelvin Buck of Holly Springs, and Rep. Adrienne Wooten of Ridgeland. Members decided that the fourth floor leader will be selected by the Caucus Leader at a later date.”

Moak had been campaigning for the Democratic Speaker nomination prior to the Republican win and would surely have been their nominee.

Moak said in the release, “As in previous elections, the vote in November sent a clear message that you have to pay attention to what Mississippians are saying. Our Caucus takes the lessons of November seriously and we are looking forward to the opportunity to work with our Republican colleagues toward real solutions.”

You have to wonder if Moak and this leadership team IS paying attention to what Mississippians are saying. There is no evidence to think they are at this point given their legislative records.

As for Baria, many believed a couple of reasons he left the Senate to run for the House was 1) he saw the writing on the wall in the Senate, that he would never be in a leadership position, and 2) he believed he could be in leadership in the House. Whether that’s true or not, both have become reality, but Baria’s still in the minority party.

Clark was a consistent member of the McCoy leadership during the previous term, as was Buck and Wooten. All three are strong leaders in the Legislative Black Caucus as well.

It may be telling that Rep. George Flaggs and Rep. Steve Holland are not mentioned in the leadership. Both have come out publicly stating that they will vote for Republican Rep. Phillip Gunn for Speaker.

Read the full release by clicking here: http://kingfish1935.blogspot.com/2012/01/moak-named-head-of-house-demomcrats.html?spref=fb

It has been a great year for conservatives in Mississippi!

We thank you for staying focused and involved this year. You, the voters of Mississippi helped make 2011 a year to remember in Mississippi politics, and we thank you for that.

As we enter 2012, we look forward to watching how state government develops under these new conservative leaders, especially in the state House.

May we all stay involved and continue to hold our officials accountable as we press on with the conservative cause.

Happy New Year to you all!

Hello 2012!

It looks as if Speaker-in-waiting Phillip Gunn will release two important members of his leadership team in short order.

Rep. Greg Snowden could be the new Speaker Pro Tempore and Andrew Ketchings could be the next House Clerk.

We’ll await an official release to confirm.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

Thank you for your support this year. We appreciate your encouragement and am thankful for your efforts.

May we all remember that first Christmas and why we celebrate as we share this day with our family and friends.

Have a blessed day!

Democratic state Rep. Steve Holland put to rest the rumor of his resignation this morning on Supertalk’s Paul Gallo Show.

Holland said he would complete his new term but would not seek reelection in four years.

State Representatives George Flaggs and Steve Holland, both Democrats who served in the leadership team of outgoing Democratic Speaker Billy McCoy, appeared Tuesday morning on Supertalk’s Paul Gallo Show.

Both Flaggs and Holland stated that they would support Republican Speaker nominee Phillip Gunn.

Flaggs went as far as to encourage other Democrats to do the same.