Best Mississippi Governor Since 1970

[lamarrebel]

Who has been the most effective Mississippi Governor since 1970 (post Civil Rights era)? Explain your choice.

[Tully Mars]

Fordice without a doubt. He pretty much made everyone mad that he came into contact with but managed things with the budget and the legislature quite effectively.

[Lylabean]

My vote is for Kirk Fordice. He wasn't a politician but a businessman. I remember working at WJTV in Jackson when he was in office. He always spoke his mind and was very geniune, he was good for the State.

I hated that he divorced Pat Fordice, who I really think a lot of. I was glad she was there for him in the end. What a great first lady and I love she has continued to have an active public role.

Lynn

[lamarrebel]

I was torn between Haley and Kirk on this one, but ended up voting for Kirk Fordice.

Haley and Fordice are much alike in that both have strong convictions and are willing to make tough, and sometimes unpopular, choices in the best interests of the state. He has done a remarkable job in holding the line against tax increases in spite of the tough budgetary times. I admire this Governor for his commitment to family, for instance, he is going to speak at the Lamar County Recognition Dinner this October, but he insisted that we hold the dinner on Thursday rather than a weekend, because he tries to keep as many weekends clear as possible for Marsha and his family. I have to respect that. Still, as far as performance, it's too early to really judge Haley in full.

Kirk Fordice, before the divorce with Pat, and still to a degree, remains my greatest political idol behind Ronald Reagan. Lyla is correct, he was not a politician, he spoke his mind and you always knew where he stood. Like Haley, he was excellent in terms of economic development and left our state in the best fiscal state Mississippi had ever seen -- A fiscal boon that Ronnie Musgrove squandered. Our state's economy grew like it never had before...it was truly the "Mississippi Miracle"

Pat Fordice is truly Mississippi's eternal First Lady. She showed such class in spite of the devesatation and humiliation she experienced during the divorce, and showed even more so by taking care of and making peace with Fordice at the end. She was a wonderful ambassador for our state, and I admire her in every way.

[JB2379]

My vote is for Ronnie Musgrove!

[lamarrebel]

I'll give Musgrove credit for the teacher pay raise, not raising taxes, and for allowing minimal tort reform to be passed (which he seriously lacked leadership on during the 89 day special session of 2002). However, on state budget matters he was a flop, by allowing runaway state spending to continue, which has come to roost in the Barbour years.

[JB2379]

in some cases, the Barbour administration has also been guilty of runaway state spending, or just simply cutting funding for many state agencies and departments. But just to remain on the subject, I agree with you that Musgrove wasn't a perfect governor and he could have done a lot of things better, but i do have a lot of respect for the guy for the things he did accomplish while in office. Other than Musgrove, Fordice was also a pretty decent governor.

[Omerto]

This is going to come across as heresy, I know, but Kirk Fordice was a friend of mine. Pat taught me Sunday School at Crawford Street United Methodist church in Vicksburg. I remain close to just about all his major staffers.

He was a real disappointment as Governor.

He had three golden opportunities that, I hoped, would be his legacy:

First,as the first GOP Governor since Reconstruction, he had the opportunity to build the party from the grassroots up, developing a "farm team" of candidates for the Party for years to come, much like the Democrats have had for generations. He was a dismal failure at that, even after serving as Treasurer of the State Party for all those years.

Seond, as the first Governor eligible to succeed himself (that ran and won) he had the opportunity to change forever how state government is structured. He could have done it along partisan lines (point one) or he coould have decided to change the composition of Boards and Commissions to reflect his own conservative beliefs regarding regulation, taxation, etc. that would have impacted the real daily operation of State governement.
He never got that.

Third, as the first businessman Governor in decades, he had the opportunity (with succession) to change the state's entire budget process. I know this will offend some, but it was Kirk who allowed the state's bonded indebtedness to increase exponentiallly during his administration. He use to criticise Musgrove for squandering the cash reserves Kirk claimed to have left in the coffers, but most of the reserves went to begin paying off bonded indebtedness that sky-rocketed during Kirk's administration. He never appied his "business principles" to state government--not even to the Executive Branch appropriations that also sky-rocketed during his terms.

Truth be known, he didn't want to run for his second term, and his actions in office those last four years proved that to be true. He simply "went through the motions" for four whole years.

Great guy, yes. Colorful character, absolutely. But good Governor? Not hardly, not when you consider the opportunites he had that he didn't capitlaize on.

[Omerto]

/QUOTE]

Fordice's biggest "farm team" player would be Phil Bryant, a USM alum and State Auditor. He has ran and been elected to two full terms as Auditor and now is likely to be the next Lieutenant Governor or perhaps Governor in the not to distant future."

Phil ran and was elected more with George Dale's help than with Kirk's. When I say "farm team" I'm comparing what William Winter did for Mabus, Molpus, and Moore, to the "nothing" that Kirk did to put in place and promote folks that could be potential statewide candidates based on their exposure gained from having served in Kirk's administration.

Check out what happened to every judicial appointment Fordice made when it came time for them to run.

Fordice was also stymied in many ways by the continued dominance in the Legislature by Democrats. Fordice's vetoes were routinely overridden, while now under Haley , the Democrats can't even get their agenda through both Houses, let alone set up a gubernatorial veto.[/QUOTE]

I agree about the Legislature, but prior to Haley and his good fortune with Amy Tuck being in office and term-limited, all the Governor had was appointments and "the bully pulpit".

What Haley has done for the Party in 24 months, what Haley's done with appointment of Republicans to staff positions, boards and commissions, Kirk could have done.

I may be wrong, but I think the only Fordice staffer who now serves in elective public office is Madison County Supervisor Andy Taggert.

[Omerto]

I've already said how close I was to the guy. I'm not trying to besmirtch (sp) his character or memory. You started the thread and entitled it "Best Governor Since 1970".

Let me put it this way . . .

What do you consider to be the top ten legacies that historians will look back upon as being the greatest accomplishments of the Fordice Administrations???

[Sir Mickey Mouse]

I honestly can't understand how anyone could choose Haley "Special Session" Barbour as our most influential governor. Fordice I can see, Musgrove I can see, but Barbour? He begins his fourth special session just to get legislation passed. Unless, of course, you count the influence of splitting this state in half.

[lamarrebel]

Look at Haley's special sessions..generally speaking, they have been successes.

[lamarrebel]

Fordice's legacy will be in the following areas:

1) Being the first Republican governor in over 100 years and the first to succeed himself in over 100 years. Helped build Mississippi into a two party state.

2) Being a highly effective Governor in terms of economic development

3) Leaving our state with the highest unallocated budget surplus in state history

4) Being perhaps the most unique public official of his era, refreshingly honest and true to his core convictions in every way. You never had to guess where Kirk stood.

[noway]

Im off topic but what does a special session cost? And why are we having them so much. Im really lost when in comes to state politics and what all this stuff means. I know they had one for the budget. I know it might take a 2 hr course to learn the special session concept. well hubbarrister post answered enough for me. How about the cost

[lamarrebel]

Off of the top of my head, a special session costs $30K plus for the first day and $20K plus for each additional day.

[JB2379]

Haley and his special sessions, can we please spend the taxpayer's money on something more important?

[Lylabean]

How many special sessions did Ronnie Musgrove called? If you ask me, I think it's the only way the legislature knows how to get business done by being forced to work together, knowing they are not going anywhere until they reach a solution.

Lynn

[JB2379]

well, you do make a good point Lynn. In order for this state to get business done in Jackson, we need to get someone up there who is not a politician and who knows how to balance a checkbook. We need people up there who know how to crunch numbers and make sure all of their bills are paid each month. We need an average Joe up in Jackson to show the current legislature how to conduct business without all the politics.

P.S. Haley still loves those special sessions.

[lamarrebel]

Because the Governor's office is constitutionally weak, special sessions are his turmp card in getting legislation he wants passed. Only there can he control the agenda and get his initiatives passed. I agree that special sessions are aggrevating and if we can take over the House in '07, there will be much fewer of them, but they are serving their purpose -- getting the people's business done.

[HubCityMan1912]

Honorable Kirk Fordice was/is the best Mississippi Governor since 1970 because foundationally he was instinctively "patriotic"/loyal to the Sovereign and Illustrious State of Mississippi! Unlike Mabus, and others, he rightly didn't care or worry about what a bunch of misfinformed/uninformed hyprocrite yankees "up north" unfairly thought or wrote about our Great State or its precious People! In other words: He was no anti-South/anti-American "scalawag"/"carpetbagger"! (You younguns who didn't pay proper attention in history and/or social studies class can go look those choice words up.) And these are the fundamental convicitions from which sprang his "policies"/priorities/actions. (And, by God, he had the COURAGE of his convictions!) That is to say, for example, he understood the proper Constitutional/lawful relationship between the Federal Government and a Sovereign State (i.e. see the 9th & 10th Amendments [aka "State's Rights"] in the U.S. Constitution of 1789 [aka "The Bill of Rights"]...From this simple yet profound bedrock American principle he proceeded to serve his High Office "politically" correctly--not with the disgustingly wrong "politically correct" mode many of our elected officials operate in today (like Mabus/Muskgrove/Winter, et al)...And yes, Mrs. Fordice was/is the classiest Mississippi First Lady we've had in my lifetime (since the '50's). A true Southern Belle/Steel Magnolia! (I was present at a huge and very key convention on the Coast right after Mr. Fordice had announced to run for Guv--nobody knew him, but "Miss Pat" addressed that influential throng in his behalf--and believe me, he was an instant contender/winner from that day forward!)...

It's hard for lightening to strike twice, but I can only hope and pray that Gov. Barber is more like him than not (and I believe that he generally is).

Kirk Fordice: An authentic American Patriot Gentleman Christian! May he rest in Peace...

[JB2379]

Haley, please stop those special sessions! Pretty please!

[Tire Swang]

I don't think Haley likes the special sessions any more than the next guy. The problem is, he's faced with a legislature whose idea of "getting something done" is getting together for drinks at the Jackson watering holes.

A lot of folks voted for Barbour because they thought he could turn this state around. And while I believe he's taking steps in that direction, it's going to take a total overhaul of the legislature before anything meaningful is going to occur.

[JB2379]

tireswang, i agree that no governor likes to call special sessions, it just seems like Haley is always calling one. I don't put all the blame on him, just look at those idiots in the legislature he has to work with. Maybe Haley needs to call a special session to inform the legislature that he's tired of calling special sessions.

[Sir Mickey Mouse]

Why doesn't Haley keep them in Jackson over holidays and the weekend? He should have called the special session for Saturday, then they would want to get something done... if they adjourn, then call them back. It's simple... he does have a lot of power with special sessions. If our representative fails to work on the weekend, then so be it. That can be taken care of. A lot of us work or have worked plenty of weekends.

[wusmmik]

"I hated that he divorced Pat Fordice"

He was cheating on her..I'd say she dropped him...

[rapperman]

Kirk Fordice was the man!

[58ford]

I'm voting for Haley. He & Fordice were both good governors, but Fordice is so far out in front I'm gonna Give Haley a hand. After Katrina he really came through, unlike that wimpy chick from LA. Crying on TV? WTF? That shows leadership. Haley might have sounded like a redneck, but he did the job. Hell, we're Mississippians, we all sound like rednecks.

[Maggie-Doodle]

Sir Mickey, I agree with you...make them work on the weekends and this sh** will stop...I don't think they mind the special sessions, after all that is just that many more dollars in their pockets...they get paid VERY WELL for those special sessions...I wish I had a part time job that paid as well as theirs do....most of them make more in a year working part time than most city workers make working 40 hours a week year round! That is over and beyond what they make doing their regular jobs...and you know there is kickbacks to be had...and I would venture a good portion of those in Jackson probably accept them too, maybe instead of kickbacks they are considered "perks."

[daisy]

I voted for Bill Waller but almost voted for Ronnie Musgrove and don''t believe those rumors at all.

I was so ashamed of the crowd at USM when Ronnie Musgrove showed up at a USM game and several people booed him. Then I remembered most people had been tailgating and drinking. SO???

I may not like certain politicians or agree with them but I will show respect for the office. If I feel strongly enough about an issue I will go through appropriate channels and express my concerns.

[lamarrebel]

I've always heard the sure way to get yourself booed as a politician is to have your name announced on the PA system at a major college football game. Saturday, surprised me though. Both Lt. Governor Tuck and Supreme Court Chief Justice Jim Smith were announced at the USM game and I heard no booing from where I was sitting. I actually joked to the guy sitting behind me that this was the first time I'd ever heard two politicians not get booed after being announced on a PA system.

[politically incorrect]

How can anyone argue Bill Allain was the best Governor of this group? Because of the personal rumors about him, he was a lame duck almost from Day One. His greatest legacy was vetoing the Highway 4 laning program in 1986/87. If it had been up to him, Highway 98 might still be 2 laned from here to Columbia or Mobile. In terms of his overall record, he was probably one of the most undisguished Governors Mississippi has ever had.

I voted for Kirk Fordice for best governor, because I think he stood for conservative principles and tried to keep the liberal legislature in check. I had the pleasure of knowing Gov. Fordice and he was always gracious and enjoyable company.

Hub, Bill Allain was, and is, a friend of my family. The reason he was a "lame duck" from day one was because of the vicious, slanderous, and totally untrue attacks made against him by Republican operatives in the days leading up to the election in 1983. I believe he could have been a much more effective Governor had it not been for the character assassination done to him in the name of politics. The way that campaign was run is still a stain on the Mississippi Republican Party - and I say that as a Republican myself.

As for vetoing the Highway Bill in 1987, Gov. Allain said then that the Department of Transportation was wrong about the cost of the program and that it would actually cost billions more over the course of the program. Well, he was right. He was not against better highways, just against lying to the public about the costs.

Allain left the state better off financially than when he came into office and has a distinguished record of service as Attorney General and as an attorney for the Mississippi Department of Public Safety.

Was he a great governor? Sadly, no. But after Fordice and Barbour, I would say that Allain ranks as one of the "better" men we have had in the Governor's Mansion in the past 40 years.

[XC9]

I loved Fordice! He was truly for "his" people of the state and showed it. He was man enough to say what he wanted and everone else could kiss his grits if they didn't like it. His personal life as far as his marriage was probably no different than a lot of politicians. He stood up for what was right for our great state and we will not ever see another governor like him. I bet the crap with Billy Bob and fema would have been taken care of immediately. Even if it meant Fordice had to go and kick some butt-he would have done it! Old Haley couldn't even handle that. Fordice all the way!

[deidrehallfan4ever]

I say Kirk Fordice. Although I did not approve of his personal life he was a pretty good governor.