Lost+Found Coffee Company @ 248 South Green Street, Tupelo,MS. inside Relics in Downtown Tupelo. Open Monday through Saturday from 10:00am till 6:00pm.
With most any restaurant or coffee house, it’s a balance between atmosphere, menu, and know how. For a coffee shop, Lost & Found has it going on!
You could spend the better part of a day just strolling through both floors of the antique building looking at all the treasures. When your ready for a coffee break, the knowledgeable baristas can help you choose the perfect pick me up!
They have everything from a classic cup of joe to the creamiest creation you could imagine! From pour overs to cold brews. From lattes, mochas, to cappuccino’s, Lost & Found Coffee Company has got ya covered!
So the next time you want to hunt for lost treasures, or find the perfect cup of coffee, Lost & Found Coffee Company has got ya covered! See y’all there!
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Do you thrive on the unexpected? Are you waiting for the next fire to crop up?
Have you ever noticed that you can plan something so intricately and you are still going to catch the glitches when life throws you a curve ball? It is one of the beauties of life that we can never prepare for. The unexpected. The only difference is our response to the unexpected. Do we have a knee jerk reaction that finds us swerving to gain back control of our life? Or do we instead just go with the flow and decide to embrace the scenic route life decided to take us on? Our response to life can cause us more stress or we can just enjoy it for what it is in that moment of time. I used to thrive on the unexpected. It was part of my career for many years. The never knowing what “fire” was going to sprout up that day and how I was going to need to put it out. Even this week as we launched our newest book in my publishing company. I thought I had it all planned out only to run into major “hiccups” within 72 hours of the launch. I could either stress out or take it in stride.
Slow and Steady
As my dad retired I watched him take a different approach to life than I had ever seen him take before. I mean, all you have to do is climb up in the cab of his king ranch Ford pick-up and see he is a changed man. He drives slower than anyone should even be allowed to drive out on the roads these days. He knows how to drive, so don’t go yelling at him next time you are stuck behind him. Trust me, my mom does enough yelling for all of us at him about that! He just takes life these days. His sentiments are that he lived in the fast lane his whole life. Rushing to be on time to work, rushing to come home to his family, the constant busy we get entangled with as adults…now, he doesn’t have to be busy and he is going to enjoy that. Truth is, I can’t even be mad at him for that. Now that I am an adult out here rushing from one thing to the next, I totally could use some driving twenty miles per hour in my life some days. Took me getting to nearly forty to even be able to say that though.
The lesson in his wisdom can be heard by all. Some things we lose it over won’t even amount to anything five years from now, yet we gave them so much energy in the moment. All the things we think are so important that we must do and do now. Most will not really matter years from now, yet we poured our soul into them. What would change if we took the time to just enjoy life? To just flow with things as they happened? When hit with something we didn’t expect, we embraced it instead of fighting it? What would happen? I dare say we might have more peace? I probably would be a lot calmer. I probably wouldn’t lose my temper near as much. I probably wouldn’t have anxiety or stress on the daily. I would probably take time to enjoy life more. I certainly wouldn’t yell at the slow driver in front of me.
What about you? Next time you get behind someone driving slowly…take back the name calling and curse words. Maybe take back all of the assumptions that they don’t know how to drive. Maybe use it as a reminder to take a moment, roll down your window, soak in the sunshine. I can promise you that wherever the heck you are going, you will still get there. Maybe that person figured out life and you can use their wisdom too. If they are driving a blue king ranch Ford truck, I can assure you that he is just enjoying his day and he would want you to enjoy yours too. Matter of fact, I wish I had listened to his wisdom a lot more in my earlier days instead of waiting until now.
Here is a plain, searchable text version (most other versions we found were Images or PDF files) of City Of Tupelo Executive Order 20-018. Effective Monday June 29th at 6:00 PM
The following Local Executive Order further amends and supplements all previous Local Executive Orders and its Emergency Proclamation and Resolution adopted by the City of Tupelo, Mississippi, pertaining to COVID-19. All provisions of previous local orders and proclamations shall remain in full force and effect.
LOCAL EXECUTIVE ORDER 20-018
The White House and CDC guidelines state the criteria for reopening up America should be based on data driven conditions within each region or state before proceeding to the next phased opening. Data should be based on symptoms, cases, and hospitals. Based on cases alone, there must be a downward trajectory of documented cases within a 14-day period or a downward trajectory of positive tests as a percent of total tests within a 14-day period. There has been no such downward trajectory in the documented cases in Lee County since May 18, 2020.
Hospital numbers are not always readily available to policymakers; however, from information that has been maintained and communicated to the City of Tupelo, the Northeast Mississippi Medical Center is near or at their capacity for treating COVID-19 inpatients over the past two weeks without reopening additional areas for treating COVID-19 patients. The City of Tupelo is experiencing an increase in the number of cases of COVID-19. The case count 45 days prior to the date of this executive order was 77 cases. That number increased within 15 days to 107, and today, the number is 429 cases. The City of Tupelo is experiencing increases of 11.7 cases a day. This is not in conformity with the guidelines provided of a downward trajectory of positive tests. By any metric available, the City of Tupelo may not continue to the next phase of reopening.
Governor Tate Reeves in his Executive Order No. 1492(1)(i)(1) authorizes the City of Tupelo to implement more restrictive measures than currently in place for other Mississippians to facilitate preventative measures against COVID-19 thereby creating the downward trajectory necessary for reopening.
That the Tupelo Economic Recovery Task Force and North Mississippi Medical Center have formally requested that the City of Tupelo adopt a face covering policy.
In an effort to support the Northeast Mississippi Health System in their response to COVID-19 and to strive to keep the City of Tupelo’s economy remaining open for business, effective at 6:00 a.m. on Monday, June 29, 2020, all persons who are present within the jurisdiction of the City of Tupelo shall wear a clean face covering any time they are, or will be, in contact with other people in indoor public or business spaces where it is not possible to maintain social distance. While wearing the face covering, it is essential to still maintain social distance being the best defense against the spread of COVID-19. The intent of this executive order is to encourage voluntary compliance with the requirements established herein by the businesses and persons within the jurisdiction of the City of Tupelo.
It is recommended that all indoor public or business spaces require persons to wear a face covering for entry. Upon entry, social distancing and activities shall follow guidelines of the City of Tupelo and the Governor’s executive orders pertaining to particular businesses and business activity.
Persons shall properly wear face coverings ensuring the face covering covers the mouth and nose,
1. Signage should be posted by entrances to businesses stating the face covering requirement for entry. (Available for download at www.tupeloms.gov).
2. A patron located inside an indoor public or business space without a face covering will be asked to leave by the business owners if the patron is unwilling to come into compliance with wearing a face covering
3. Face coverings are not required for:
a. People whose religious beliefs prevent them from wearing a face covering. b. Those who cannot wear a face covering due to a medical or behavioral condition. c. Restaurant patrons while dining. d. Private, individual offices or offices with fewer than ten (10) employees. e. Other settings where it is not practical or feasible to wear a face covering, including when obtaining or rendering goods or services, such as receipt of dental services or swimming. f. Banks, gyms, or spaces with physical barrier partitions which prohibit contact between the customer(s) and employee. g. Small offices where the public does not interact with the employer. h. Children under twelve (12). i. That upon the formulation of an articulable safety plan which meets the goals of this
Executive Order businesses may seek an exemption by email at covid@tupeloms.gov
FACE COVERINGS DO NOT HAVE TO BE MEDICAL MASKS OR N95 MASKS. A BANDANA, SCARF, T–SHIRT, HOME–MADE MASKS, ETC. MAY BE USED. THEY MUST PROPERLY COVER BOTH A PERSON‘S MOUTH AND NOSE.
Those businesses that are subject to regulatory oversight of a separate state or federal agency shall follow the guidelines of said agency or regulating body if there is a conflict with this Executive Order.
Additional information can be found at www.tupeloms.gov COVID-19 information landing page.
Pursuant to Miss. Code Anno. 833-15-17(d)(1972 as amended), this Local Executive Order shall remain in full effect under these terms until reviewed, approved or disapproved at the first regular meeting following such Local Executive Order or at a special meeting legally called for such a review.
The City of Tupelo reserves its authority to respond to local conditions as necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens.
Honeyboy and Boots are a husband and wife, guitar and cello, duo with a unique style that is all their own. Their sound embodies Americana, traditional folk, alt country, and blues with harmonies and a hint of classical notes.
Drew Blackwell, a true Southerner raised in the heart of the black prairie in Mississippi. First picked up the guitar at fourteen, he was greatly influenced by his Uncle Doug who taught him old country standards and folk classics. Later on in high school, he was mentored and inspired to write (and feel) the blues by Alabama blues artist Willie King. (Willie King is credited for bringing together the band The Old Memphis Kings.)
Drew has placed 3rd in the 2019 Mississippi Songwriter of the Year contest with his song “Waiting on A Friend” and made it to the semi finalist round on the 2019 International Songwriting Competition with his song “Accidental Hipster.”
Honeyboy (Drew) can also be found belting out those blues notes as the lead vocalist for the Old Memphis Kings and begins everyday with a hot cup of black coffee!
Courtney Blackwell (Kinzer) grew up in Washington State and comes from a talented musical family. She began playing cello at the age of three taking lessons from the cello bass professor Bill Wharton at the University of Idaho. Her mother was most influential in her progression of technique, tone quality, and ear training. Since traveling around much of the South, she has enjoyed focusing on the variety of ways the cello is used in ensembles. When she plays, you will feel those groovy bass lines making way to soaring leads create an emotional and magical connection between you and her music.
Courtney enjoys working in the studio, collaborating with artists and continuing to challenge the way cello is expressed.
They have opened for such acts as Verlon Thompson, The Josh Abbott Band, Cary Hudson (of Blue Mountain), and Rising Appalachia.
Honeyboy And Boots have performed at a variety of venues and festivals throughout the southeast, including the 2015 Pilgrimage Fest in Franklin, TN; Musicians Corner in Nashville; the Mississippi Songwriters Festival (2015-2018); and the Black Warrior Songwriting Fest in Tuscaloosa, AL (2018-2019). They also came in 2nd place at the 2015 Gulf Coast Songwriters Shootout in Orange Beach, FL.
They have two albums, Mississippi Duo and Waiting On a Song, which are available on their website, iTunes, Amazon, and CD Baby.
The duo also just released their fourth recording: a seven-song EP called Picture On The Wall, which was recorded with Anthony Crawford (Williesugar Capps, Sugarcane Jane, Neil Young). It is now available on Spotify, Itunes, Google Music, and CD Baby.
Who or what would you say has been the greatest influence on your music?
My Uncle Doug, because he began to teach me guitar and introduced me to a lot of great older country music.
Favorite song you’ve composed or performed and why?
“We Played On” because it’s about our family reunions, where we would sit around and play guitar and share songs.
If you could meet any artist, living or dead, which would you choose and why?
Probably Willie Nelson. He’s my all time favorite.
Most embarrassing thing ever to happen at a gig?
A guy fell on top of me while I was performing. I was sitting down. He busted a big hole in my guitar.
What was the most significant thing to happen to you in the course of your music?
Getting to perform at Musicians Corner in downtown Nashville. Probably the biggest crowd we’ve ever been in front of.
If music were not part of your life, what else would you prefer to be doing?
I don’t know, maybe fishing or golf.
Is there another band or artist(s) you’d like to recommend to our readers who you feel deserves attention?
Our friends, Sugarcane Jane. They are a husband/wife duo from the Gulf Shores area. Great people and great artist.
More than a year after President Joe Biden nominated Scott Colom to fill a vacant federal judicial seat in north Mississippi, the prosecutor’s nomination still appears stalled in the U.S. Senate.
Fresh off winning reelection to a third term as the district attorney in Clay, Lowndes, Noxubee and Oktibbeha counties, Colom has not withdrawn his nomination, and Biden has not put forward a new nominee.
But beyond the nomination being referred to a Senate committee for consideration, no federal official has offered major updates on the status of the pending nomination.
A White House spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on the status of the judicial seat. Colom also declined to comment.
The reason for previous gridlock over Colmon’s elevation to the federal bench is opposition from Cindy Hyde-Smith, Mississippi’s junior U.S. senator.
A spokesperson for Hyde-Smith, a Republican from Brookhaven, did not respond to a request for comment. But she previously said she opposes Colom’s nomination because of progressive organizations supporting his initial campaign for district attorney.
George Soros, a New York billionaire who backs some criminal justice reform efforts, gave money to Mississippi Safety and Justice, a political action committee that supported Colom’s 2015 race for district attorney. Soros did not contribute to Colom’s personal campaign.
Colom later wrote to Hyde-Smith in a letter that he never requested the donation from Soros and did not know he contributed to his campaign until a news outlet reported it.
Despite the senator’s opposition, a bipartisan group of former Mississippi politicians and current officials in Washington still publicly support the nomination.
“Congressman Thompson believes there is no other qualified person than Colom and highly recommends him,” Yasmine Brown, press secretary for U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, said in a statement. “If there are any problems with the nomination, Congressman Thompson is sure they can be solved.”
U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, a Republican from Tupelo, and the state’s senior U.S. senator, returned a blue slip for Colom and his office recently told Mississippi Today that he still supports the nomination.
The New York Times also reported that former Republican Gov. Phil Bryant, the person who first appointed Hyde-Smith to the Senate, and former Republican Gov. Haley Barbour also support the prosecutor’s elevation to the federal bench.
Hyde-Smith is able to thwart the nomination because of a longstanding tradition in the U.S. Senate that requires senators from a nominee’s home state to submit “blue slips” if they approve of the candidate.
If both senators don’t submit a blue slip, the nominee typically does not advance to a confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, could upend the blue slip tradition and ignore Hyde-Smith’s opposition by conducting a confirmation hearing for Colom.
A spokesperson for Durbin’s office did not respond to a request for comment, but his office told Mississippi Today in April that Durbin is “extremely disappointed” in Hyde-Smith’s decision to block Colom.
A native of Columbus, Colom is a Democrat and the first Black prosecutor in the circuit court district, winning that seat in 2015 by defeating the long-serving incumbent Forrest Allgood.
He ran unopposed for reelection 2019 and won reeleection in November by capturing more than 56% of the total votes cast, according to results from the Secretary of State’s office.
Colom was nominated in October 2022 by Biden to replace U.S. District Judge Mike Mills of the Northern District of Mississippi who is stepping down from full-time service on the federal judiciary.
Mills, who is still hearing cases, has previously said he would like for a replacement to get confirmed soon so he could begin overseeing a reduced number of cases — and, he said, so he can spend more time touring with his band.
The state and attorneys representing two men on death row are in conflict about whether legal options still exist for them to challenge their convictions or to proceed with their executions.
In court documents, attorneys from Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office said Willie Jerome Manning and Robert Simon Jr., who have each been on death row for 30 years, have exhausted their legal options at the state and federal level, so it’s time to set their executions.
But attorneys representing them from the Office of Post-Conviction Counsel disagree, saying the men’s post-conviction relief petitions are still making their way through the court system and note that the Supreme Court, by law, is not required to set an execution if there is pending litigation.
“If a death-row inmate whose state and federal remedies have been exhausted could create an impediment to setting an execution date simply by filing another successive PCR motion, the State could never carry out lawful death sentences,” Fitch’s office wrote in its motion to set Manning’s execution.
On Monday, a spokesperson from Fitch’s office cited statute and case law, saying those determine the number of appeals a person is entitled to, and the courts ultimately decide whether someone has exhausted all of their legal remedies.
It would appear the court and even the AG’s office already did decide these two death row inmates haven’t exhausted them.
Last week, all nine justices of the Supreme Court agreed that it would not set Manning’s execution date until his post-conviction relief petition is reviewed. With the state’s Dec. 29 deadline to respond to Manning’s petition and his attorney’s 15-day deadline to respond, the earliest his execution could take place is mid January 2024.
In an April hearing for a federal lawsuit challenging the state’s lethal injection protocol that Simon has joined, the state recognized Simon was pursuing post-conviction relief.
“Until that habeas (post-conviction) petition is filed and resolved, the State would not move for execution in his case,” Special Assistant Attorney General Gerald Kucia told U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate.
A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office did not comment specifically about how attorneys from the office determined that dates should be set for Manning and Simon despite ongoing legal action.
One remaining avenue for relief is clemency from Gov. Tate Reeves, who during his first term in office has not granted it to anyone.
Robert Simon is on death rwo for capital murder in the killing of the Parker family in Quitman County. Credit: Courtesy of MDOC
Simon, now 60, was convicted with co-defendant Anthony Carr, who is also on death row, of killing the Parker family in Quitman County in 1990. Simon and Carr broke into the home of Carl and Bobbie Jo and their two children while the family was at church. They shot the family members when they returned home and set the house on fire.
Simon and Carr received death sentences for killing the Parker parents and 12-year-old Gregory. Simon was separately convicted for the murder, kidnapping and sexual battery of 9-year-old Charlotte and received a life sentence.
In October, the Mississippi Supreme Court appointed the attorneys from the Office of Post-Conviction Counsel to represent Simon, and his attorneys said he has a constitutional right to effective assistance of post-conviction counsel and to file a successive petition for relief because his previous post-conviction legal team was ineffective.
Over the years Simon has had multiple attorneys, including one who was disbarred. Others moved out of state or no longer work on capital murder cases.
His attorneys say previous legal teams didn’t retain an expert to evaluate Simon’s mental health and they failed to seek funding for a proper post-conviction expert to delve into Simon’s history of trauma, head injuries and exposure to toxins.
Experts were also not hired to determine whether Simon is intellectually disabled under the U.S. Supreme Court case Atkins v. Virginia, which prevents the execution of intellectually disabled people, according to court records.
He had previously been scheduled to be executed in May 2011, but a federal appeals court ordered a stay to determine whether Simon was mentally incompetent from a brain injury and memory loss from a fall, according to court records. The Mississippi Supreme Court later rejected Simon’s claim.
Simon’s attorneys on Nov. 21 filed a successive petition for post-conviction relief and raised claims about his mental competency and whether he can be executed, ineffective post-conviction counsel and a lack of experts to evaluate his mental health and present potential mitigating evidence.
“Simon has never had the opportunity to challenge the ineffectiveness of post-conviction counsel—until now,” the petition states.
Based on the claims raised, Simon’s attorneys are asking for his death sentence to be reversed.
Willie Jerome Manning is on death row, convicted of killing Mississippi State University students Tiffany Miller and Jon Steckler in 1994. Credit: Courtesy of MDOC
Manning, now 55, was convicted of shooting Mississippi State University students Tiffany Miller and Jon Steckler in 1994. He has maintained his innocence.
Two days after asking for an extension to respond to Manning’s September post-conviction relief petition, Fitch’s office asked the Supreme Court to set an execution date and dismiss his successive petition.
Manning’s attorneys said in court records that state law provides a remedy for newly discovered evidence, and that the state was wrong to say that the statute prohibits successive post-conviction relief petitions.
His petition documents discoveries of new evidence about recanted and testimony by witnesses and questionable firearms evidence used in his case.
Manning has been allowed to test additional DNA and run additional analyses since 2013, when a stay was ordered for his execution, but in court documents the state argues that those results have beeninconclusive and he is now exhausted his legal options.
The Mississippi Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on Feb. 6, 2024, in a case challenging the constitutionality of providing public funds to private schools.
The Supreme Court will hear an appeal by the state of an October 2022 ruling by Hinds County Chancery Court Crystal Wise Martin who found it unconstitutional to provide public money to private schools.
The state, led by the office of Attorney General Lynn Fitch, is appealing Wise’s ruling.
The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Democracy Forward, and the Mississippi Center for Justice on behalf of Parents for Public Schools, a Jackson-based nonprofit. The lawsuit was filed after the Mississippi Legislature in the 2022 session provided $10 million in federal funds to private schools.
The lawsuit pointed out Section 208 of the Mississippi Constitution states that public funds could not be given to a school “not conducted as a free school.”
In its entirety, Section 208 reads, “No religious or other sect or sects shall ever control any part of the school or other educational funds of this state; nor shall any funds be appropriated toward the support of any sectarian school, or to any school that at the time of receiving such appropriation is not conducted as a free school.”
The state has argued that the appropriation is constitutional because the Legislature appropriates the money to the Department of Finance and Administration that then would disperse it to the private schools.
“The state cannot avoid compliance with our Constitution simply by delegating the power to disburse appropriated funds to an executive agency,” Martin wrote.
Stewpot Community Services was started over 40 years ago by people like you and me who saw a growing need in Jackson and decided to work together to respond. One of our greatest strengths is that we are, and always have been, locally owned.
Last month we received a great honor: we were one of only 38 organizations in the United States to receive a leadership award from the Jeff Bezos Day 1 Families Fund. The Day 1 Families Fund focuses its giving toward the needs of homeless families with children. They take their vision from the inspiring words of Mary’s Place in Seattle: ensuring “no child sleeps outside.”
Stewpot has a long history of serving families experiencing homelessness, which is one reason why we were invited to apply. We opened our first shelter for women and children, Sims House, in 1984, and, over time, operated as many as five shelters at once. In that long history, we have helped thousands of homeless families with children find and maintain stability. And it has always been work that we have done together, as a community, neighbor reaching out to neighbor.
We are excited about the Day 1 award because it helps us do some new and impactful things. For instance, the city of Jackson currently has no transitional shelter for families with children. We were reminded during COVID how critical transitional shelter can be for a family to achieve stability since for some, a longer runway is the key to success. So, we will use Day 1 funds to help fill that critical gap in our area.
Additionally, the Day 1 gift stretches over five years, which means we can play the long game. We can establish creative partnerships that will leverage the funds for bigger impact. We can evolve with emerging needs. The field of possibilities opens up with Day 1’s multi-year commitment.
However, the Day 1 funds do not undergird the other essential ministries of Stewpot. Through four decades of growth and change, we now provide an array of important services to people in need: a Community Kitchen, a Food Pantry, Meals on Wheels, a Clothing Closet, a day shelter, a men’s shelter, after school and summer camp programming for kids and teens, a Legal Clinic, Chapel, and with our partners, HeARTworks art and St. Dominic Community Health Clinic. Between 400-500 people visit our campuses every day to find help and hope.
In the midst of our many struggles as a city, we should all feel proud of the recognition our homegrown effort has received by a national, high-profile foundation. You and I should be proud of the “compassionate, needle-moving work” we’ve done to help families experiencing homelessness as well as grateful for the opportunity to expand on that work.
But you and I are still being called upon to help feed the hungry, clothe the naked, welcome the stranger, and care for the at-risk child right here in our own city. The vast majority of Stewpot’s work still needs our support to continue.
So let us not grow weary in doing good. Some of our neighbors still struggle mightily, and we want them to know that we will not leave them to struggle alone. To find out more about what your gifts support, or to volunteer, visit our website at www.stewpot.org. We’re still in this work together…as people of faith, meeting needs, in our community.
”During a brief phone interview Sunday, Bailey repeatedly declined to comment. Told that several high-ranking deputies were involved in arrests that had sparked accusations of brutal treatment, he said, ‘I have 240 employees, there’s no way I can be with them each and every day.’” Read the article here.
Frederick Douglass founded and edited his first antislavery newspaper, “The North Star,” in Rochester, New York. The publication title referred to Polaris, the bright star that helped guide Black Americans escaping slavery: “To millions, now in our boasted land of liberty, it is the STAR OF HOPE.”
He explained in this first issue that he desired to see “in this slave-holding, slave-trading, and negro-hating land, a printing-press and paper, permanently established, under the complete control and direction of the immediate victims of slavery and oppression … that the man who has suffered the wrong is the man to demand redress,—that the man STRUCK is the man to CRY OUT—and that he who has endured the cruel pangs of Slavery is the man to advocate Liberty.”
The publication also sought to “promote the moral and intellectual improvement” of people of color. He championed not only for the freedom of those enslaved, but for women’s rights as well with the motto, “Right is of no sex. Truth is of no color. God is the father of us all, and all we are brethren.”
In 1851, the paper merged with the Liberty Party Paper from Syracuse and became known as Frederick Douglass’ Paper. The paper closed during the Civil War, and in 1870, he moved from Rochester to Washington, D.C., and became part owner of the New National Era, which attacked the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and the mistreatment of and violence against Black Americans throughout the nation. His sons ran the newspaper until it folded in 1874. Because of a fire, no known collection exists of all of Douglass’ newspapers.
Despite election problems in Democratic-voter rich Hinds County, Brandon Presley did not delay his concession speech to incumbent Republican Gov. Tate Reeves on the night of Nov. 7.
Reeves has not been as quick in the past to accept election results. In 2020, Reeves cast doubt on the loss by Republican incumbent President Donald Trump despite more than 60 court cases, many decided by judges appointed by Trump, validating the election and despite the election results being confirmed by numerous Republican state officials throughout the country.
Still, Reeves and other Mississippi election officials argued that the election was not secure and fair in states Trump lost, even though those states operated under the same rules as states that Trump won.
On social media in 2020, Reeves said: “a safe and fair election here in Mississippi — not upended by last minute schemes to radically alter voting methods. Election integrity is vital.”
Just as the math — and remember, Reeves says he is “a numbers guy” — confirmed Trump’s defeat in 2020, the math also confirmed Presley’s loss on Nov. 7.
Presley could have cited Hinds County election problems as a reason not to concede. But he did not. And that has proven to be the right decision.
Even if the Democrat Presley had garnered the level of support in Hinds County as Barack Obama did in 2012, he still would not have had enough votes to defeat Reeves.
In 2012, Obama received 76,112 votes in Hinds County — the most ever for a candidate there — in his successful presidential reelection campaign. On Nov. 7, Presley won 54,006 votes in Hinds County — 22,106 votes less than Obama garnered in 2012. Reeves defeated Presley by 26,619 votes, meaning an Obama level of support in Hinds would not have put Presley over the top statewide.
The vote in Hinds County is important for a couple of reasons.
First of all, it is the state’s largest county and by far the biggest base of support for Democrats.
Second of all, there were numerous election problems in Hinds County on Nov. 7. Multiple precincts — at least eight, reportedly — ran out of ballots. There were reports of people leaving after waiting in lines for hours and, in some cases, not being able to vote at all.
It is difficult to believe that Presley, despite his and his team’s effort to get supporters to the polls, could have outdistanced the turnout Obama received in 2012. It was a watershed year in terms of turnout for Mississippi Democrats.
Granted, if Presley got all the votes that Obama received in Hinds County in 2012 and Reeves did not garner all the votes that Republican Mitt Romney won that year in Hinds County, there would have been a runoff election. Remember, Obama got 22,106 votes more than Presley in Hinds County. Presley came up only 15,466 votes short of what was needed to force a runoff. But it is unlikely to believe that Presley could match Obama numbers in Hinds County for a number of reasons, including the fact the county has lost significant population since 2012. The U.S. Census Bureau reported Hinds had a 4.4 % population loss during just a two-year period from 2020 to 2022. Numerous studies highlight much larger losses since 2010.
We will never know for sure how many people did not vote in Hinds County because of the election problems, but it is safe to say the numbers were not enough to cost Presley the election or even the chance of a runoff.
It also should be pointed out that the people running the elections in Hinds County are locally elected Democrats. The problems that occurred were unfortunate. But it is reasonable to assume they were not intentionally sabotaging Presley.
Going back a few years, it can be and has been mathematically proven that local Democratic officials did cost Democratic nominee Al Gore the White House in 2000.
The infamous butterfly ballot was designed by Democrats and used in Democratic-controlled Palm Beach County Florida. In that county, many people — 15,000 or more — thought they were voting for Gore, but accidentally voted for Reform Party candidate Pat Buchanan because of the confusing design of the ballot or voted for both Gore and Buchanan causing the ballot to be disqualified.
In an interview just after the election, Buchanan admitted, “When I took one look at that ballot on election night … it’s very easy for me to see how someone could have voted for me in the belief they voted for Al Gore.”
Gore lost Florida and thus the White House by 537 votes.
Despite that math, Gore conceded.
Presley did the same on Nov. 7.
Reeves and other Mississippi elected officials did not in 2020.
Ole Miss guard Jaylen Murray moves the ball down-court during the game between the NC State Wolfpack and the Ole Miss Rebels at SJB Pavilion in Oxford, MS. (Photo by Kevin Langley/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)
OXFORD — Who knows where this basketball season heads for Ole Miss? Answer: Nobody. It’s early, like really early. No college basketball trophies that matter are awarded in December.
That said, Chris Beard’s first Ole Miss basketball team took a huge step – perhaps even a bounding leap – toward playing basketball that really matters here Saturday, knocking off a hugely talented Memphis 80-77.
Here’s what we do know for certain:
The Rebels are a battle-tested and perfect 7-0, having won numerous down-to-the-wire games including Saturday’s nail-biter.
They are still getting to know one another, learning Beard’s system. They seem to play better each time out and are nowhere near as good today as they have a chance to be in March.
They have two seven-footers who doggedly defend the paint, mostly from high above the rim and will take away the inside games of many lesser teams.
Ole Miss fans are responding. They packed SJB Pavilion (9,416 strong), painted it red, and threatened to blow the top off in the second half when the Rebels erased an 11-point deficit.
Rick Cleveland
My big question about Beard’s first Ole Miss team was whether or not the Rebels would have the quality of point guard play a team must have to compete at college basketball’s highest level. Well, they for sure had it Saturday. Jaylen Murray, a junior transfer from Saint Peters, won the game for Ole Miss. That’s all he did. He won the game.
You won’t find many stat lines any better than Murray’s. He played all 40 minutes. He led all scorers with 22 points, which is nice but what follows is nicer still. He passed out nine assists while turning the ball over just once. He made four of the six three-point shots he took. He scored seven of those points in the last two minutes. He took over a game that Ole Miss was about to lose and won it.
A wise basketball coach, one who has made millions and millions coaching this crazy sport, once told me that he would always, if at all possible, recruit his point guards from the playgrounds of the big cities, places like New York, Philadelphia, Chicago. He wanted his playmakers to come from the playgrounds where, if you lose the game, you lose the court and have to wait sometimes hours to play again. Those guys, the old coach said, know what it means to win and will do whatever it takes.
Murray, it should be noted, is from the Bronx. He may only stand 5 feet, 11 inches tall, but he knows what it takes to win. Saturday, he did it. This was by far his best game as a Rebel. He came into the game having passed out 23 assists, compared to 13 turnovers. That’s not awful, but it’s not nearly as good as nine and one.
Beard was asked after his press conference whether it was overstating matters to say Murray had taken over the game. Said Beard, “He did what it took to win. I couldn’t be more proud.”
This Ole Miss team has a lot of weapons. Allen Flanigan, a senior transfer from Auburn, is a 6-foot-6 slasher, the son of former Auburn Tiger Wes Flanigan, now one of Beard’s assistants. The younger Flanagan can twist, contort and muscle his way to the hoop. He leads Ole Miss in scoring on the season with 19 a game. Just as his father was, Allen Flanigan is one tough dude.
Returner Matthew Murrell is the team’s sharpshooter and averages 15 per game. The Rebels will need to get more from 6-8 forward Jaemyn Brakefield, who transferred to Ole Miss from Duke two seasons ago, and has the potential and stroke to score more than the 7.8 points per game he currently scores and shoot more accurately than the 33.3% he currently shoots.
The trademark of Beard’s past teams, especially at Texas Tech where his team lost in overtime to Virginia in the 2019 national championship game, has been aggressive, tenacious defense. That apparently will be the case with this first Ole Miss team, as well. The Rebels give up just 66 points a game despite a fast-paced style. Opponents shoot less than 40% from the floor.
That percentage might get even lower, now that Oklahoma State transfer Moussa Cisse has become eligible. Cisse is 7 feet tall and athletic, yet he’s five inches shorter than the guy he currently plays behind. That would be Jamarion Sharp, a skyscraper who came to Oxford from Western Kentucky and has roughly the wingspan of a small airplane. He leads the SEC in blocked shots with 2.7 per game. Now comes Cisse, who blocked two shots per game in two seasons at Oklahoma State after beginning his career at Memphis. It will be highly difficult to score against Ole Miss in the paint. That’s a good start to winning basketball games right there.
No doubt, you have noticed a word that keeps being repeated with nearly every Rebel player. That word: “transfer.” And so it is with college sports these days, when coaches are learning to play musical scholarships. Where the Rebels are concerned, they have two post players who have played college basketball at six different schools combined. You have a point guard who last year played at Saint Peters. You have a wing man who started his career at Duke. You have a leading scorer who played four seasons at Auburn. And you have a coach who has won 11 of 16 total NCAA Tournament games at three previous schools.
So, no, we don’t where this baby of a season is headed at Ole Miss. But clearly there is potential for greatness. Nobody will have an easy time at The SJB Pavilion, where as Beard put it, “It got to the point today where we couldn’t hear each other.”
In college basketball that’s a good thing, almost as good as having two rim-protecting 7-footers and a point guard from the Bronx.