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@ISSUE • School Choice Special Session ahead? • Infant Mortality Review Board • ABC Troubles • Opioid Settlement Funds • Rep. Robert Johnson interview
Season 5, Ep. 7
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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 the current session. In the week’s news, we look at the proposed infant mortality review board, problems with the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control system, and bills addressing the use of opioid settlement funds.
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8. @ISSUE • Information Technology • Artificial Intelligence • Cyber Security • Legislative Deadlines • Sen. Bradford Blackmon Interview
28:59||Season 5, Ep. 8Senator 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, the upcoming deadlines for bills to survive or die, and the process for passing the State’s annual budget.6. @ISSUE • Sen. Jeremy England interview • Ballot Initiative • School Prayer • Immigration Enforcement • Abortion Drug Criminalization • School Attendance Officers • Literacy Intervention • Prison Health Care
28:30||Season 5, Ep. 6A 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 initiative in Mississippi. Roundtable regulars Rebekah Staples and Brandon Jones then join Wilson for a spirited debate about the pros and cons of the ballot initiative process.5. @ISSUE • Senator Derrick Simmons interview • Senate Education Committee kills HB2 • Prison reform • Ballot initiative • Immigration laws
28:30||Season 5, Ep. 5The 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 talks with MPB's Elise Gregg about the Senate Democratic agenda4. @ISSUE • Immigration Enforcement • Domestic Abuser Registry • Midwife Practice • Elected School Boards • And more…
29:00||Season 5, Ep. 4As 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.3. @ISSUE • HB 2, the Mississippi Education Freedom Act, passes in the House.
29:00||Season 5, Ep. 3Host 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.2. @ISSUE • School Choice • Teacher Pay Raise • Funding PERS • House Bill 2: The Mississippi Education Freedom Act
29:00||Season 5, Ep. 2The 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 2.1. @ISSUE • The 2026 Mississippi Legislative session begins • Legislative Process • School Choice • Ballot Initiative • Budget Concerns
29:01||Season 5, Ep. 1Welcome 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.12. @ISSUE • Special Session Edition • Budget bills pass, but not without controversy
36:14||Season 4, Ep. 12The 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.