@ISSUE

Host Wilson Stribling interviews Drew Hawkins, the Gulf States Newsroom reporter who has closely covered Mississippi’s opioid addiction crisis and the state’s use of its opioid settlement funds. Analysts Brandon Jones and Lucien Smith then discuss the actions of the legislature, attorney general, and the opioid settlement advisory council as they plan how to spend the $400 million Mississippi will...

Host Wilson Stribling welcomes analysts Brandon Jones and Rebekah Staples for a look back at the recently concluded Mississippi legislative session. What were the biggest successes, failures, surprises, and lessons learned? With Republicans in control of state government, are the real battles now not between the parties, but between House and Senate, or even between the Legislative and Executive b...

The final week of the legislative session is upon us. Analysts Brandon Jones and Rebekah Staples join host Wilson Stribling to discuss the state’s $7.4 billion budget agreement, a smaller-than-hoped-for teacher pay raise, and the SHIELD Act, designed to ensure all voters are U.S. citizens. They also look at Governor Tate Reeves’ veto of a winter storm relief measure, and the confusion caused by a...

Analysts Rebekah Staples and Brandon Jones join host Wilson Stribling for a look at multiple bills, almost all of which are now in conference committees. Highlights include a proposed amendment to the Children’s Promise Act creating new tax credits for special needs education, an explanation of Local & Private bills, and a look at the Jackson water system bill, and what it might mean for other...

House Education Committee chairman Rob Roberson (R-Starkville) sits down with host Wilson Stribling to look at the competing teacher pay raise bills and reflect on a difficult 2026 session. Then, analysts Brandon Jones and Rebekah Staples discuss the House and Senate teacher bills, the likelihood of a special session, and MDOC Commissioner Burl Cain’s contentious meeting last week with the Legisla...

The House unanimously passed a substantial education bill Friday, raising teacher and staff pay, and making changes to the Public Employees Retirement System. Analysts Rebekah Staples and Brandon Jones join host Wilson Stribling to look at the strategies in play, and the continued friction between House and Senate leadership. Wilson also sits down with Senator David Blount (D-Jackson) to discuss t...

Senator Bradford Blackmon (D-Canton) joins host Wilson Stribling to discuss his two artificial intelligence bills. One would require political ads using artificial intelligence to acknowledge the use of AI. The other would protect Mississippians from having their names, images, and voices used without permission. Then, analysts Rebekah Staples and Brandon Jones look at the legislative calendar, th...

House Bill 2 is dead, but a special session on school choice may be ahead. Analysts Brandon Jones and Rebekah Staples join host Wilson Stribling to discuss the prospect of a special session and recall how former Governor Hailey Barbour used special sessions strategically.  Wilson also interviews House Minority Leader Robert Johnson (D-Natchez), getting the veteran lawmaker’s perspective on th...

A major legislative deadline last week saw thousands of bills die while hundreds of others survived. Among those still alive are bills dealing with school prayer, immigration enforcement, abortion-inducing drugs, school attendance officers, literacy intervention, and prison health care. Senator Jeremy England (R-Van Cleave) and host Wilson Stribling discuss the challenges to reviving the ballot in...

The Senate Education Committee unanimously votes down House Bill 2, the omnibus education package. And Rep. Becky Currie takes on the Department of Corrections with multiple prison reform bills. Analysts Brandon Jones and Rebekah Staples join host Wilson Stribling to review these and other actions at the Mississippi legislature. In this week's interview, Senate Minority Leader Derrick Simmons...

As the first major legislative deadline approaches, analysts Rebekah Staples and Brandon Jones join host Desare Frazier for a wide-ranging discussion of pending legislation.  Topics include immigration enforcement bills, a registry for domestic abusers, expanded roles for certified nurse midwives, elections for all school boards, and much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for...

Host Wilson Stribling interviews Speaker of the House Jason White, discussing House Bill 2, the Mississippi Education Freedom Act. Then, analysts Rebekah Staples and Brandon Jones debate some of the bill’s more controversial provisions and talk about its prospects for passage in the Senate. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Mississippi House and Senate both hit the ground running in the first week of the legislative session, but with very different strategies for school choice and other education legislation. Host Wilson Stribling welcomes political analysts Brandon Jones and Rebekah Staples to discuss the Senate’s multiple bill approach, as well as the House’s mammoth, 553-page House Bill 2. Hosted on Acast. See...

Welcome to @ISSUE 2026! Host Wilson Stribling and political analyst Brandon Jones welcome new analyst Rebekah Staples to the @ISSUE team. Rebekah gives a baseball-themed explanation of the legislative process, then the team dives into the issues of school choice, the ballot initiative process, and concerns about federal budget cuts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The two-day Special Session of the Mississippi Legislature picked up where the Regular Session left off: with more controversy and heightened tensions between House and Senate. Host Wilson Stribling recaps last week’s events. Analysts Austin Barbour and Brandon Jones join Wilson to discuss the legislative proceedings and the outlook for the state of Mississippi. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priv...

Analysts Austin Barbour and Brandon Jones join host Wilson Stribling to discuss the surprising ending of the 2025 Mississippi legislative session. The House and Senate have gone home without passing budget bills for state agencies and services. Governor Tate Reeves will surely call a special session, but what else could be on the table when the legislators return to Jackson? The team also looks at...

Governor Tate Reeves signs House Bill 1, effectively eliminating the personal income tax in Mississippi. We recount the surprising events of the past week leading up to this historic moment. Host Wilson Stribling interviews Jared Walczak, a state tax policy expert from The Tax Foundation, a Washington-based think tank. Analysts Austin Barbour and Brandon Jones joined Wilson to discuss the tax cut...

What a week. The Mississippi House surprises many by passing the Senate’s more cautious income tax cut bill. But a typo in that bill could bring income tax elimination even faster than the House called for. Host Wilson Stribling interviews Senate Finance Committee Chair Josh Harkins (R-Flowood), then debates tax cuts and state spending with analysts Brandon Jones and Austin Barbour. Hosted on Acas...

Will the House and Senate find a compromise for their competing tax cut plans? What would the total elimination of the state income tax mean for Mississippi? How can the multiple agencies serving public health better cooperate and collaborate? Host Wilson Stribling covers these topics and more with this week’s guest, Senator Hob Bryan (D-Amory), and analysts Austin Barbour and Greta Kemp Martin. H...

This week the House and Senate took up each other’s bills, and the sparks did fly. School choice and PERS reform appear dead, while presumptive eligibility and mobile sports betting are still alive. And the House and Senate tax reform bills are still on a collision course. Our @ISSUE team looks at these topics and more. We also pay tribute to the late Robert Clark, who served in the House from 196...

Join host Wilson Stribling and analysts Austin Barbour and Brandon Jones for another lively episode of MPB’s @ISSUE. This week, Senate Republicans pass their tax cut bill and now defend it from both the right and left. Ten Senate districts are redrawn after a successful NAACP lawsuit. Casinos may see a tax increase, and a Jackson casino bill dies. Legislators push for hemp product regulation. A Mi...

This week we look at a wide range of bills, dealing with everything from tax cuts and parental leave to hemp product regulation and wine and liquor sales. Wilson Stribling interviews Speaker of the House Jason White about his chamber’s most important legislation. And our roundtable team, Austin Barbour and Brandon Jones have a spirited debate on House Bill 859, legislation that would allow advance...

This week we talk about the Senate’s newly unveiled tax cut proposal, the apparent failure of the House’s school choice bill, passage of the Domestic Violence Fatality Review bill, controversy over the Senate’s Early Voting bill, the death of the ballot initiative measure, and much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we look at the House’s school choice legislation; two anti-Diversity, Equity and Inclusion bills; a constitutional amendment restoring certain felons’ voting rights; a bill creating a domestic violence review board, and more.   Host Wilson Stribling and analysts Austin Barbour and Brandon Jones discuss the new ballot initiative proposal and a bill that would protect agricultural pes...

This week the team discusses Governor Tate Reeve’s annual State of the State address, and his emphasis on Mississippi’s economic growth, energy production, and tax cuts. Our featured interview is with Rep. Rob Roberson (R-Starkville), chair of the House Education Committee. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.