Citizens March on Barbour's Office

Our Governor has implemented "operation streamline" to cut the fat out of government. Unfortunately 65,000 of the poorest, sickly Mississippians are being streamlined out of their health benefits at the first of the month. earlier this week the governor adjourned the special session of the legislature before the program could be fully funded. some pretty valiant members of the House (Jamie Franks and Steve Holland) filed a Temporary Restraining Order to stop the governor from pulling the plug. this was a short victory which was overturned on appeal.

Some of the disgruntled citizens held a rally and press conference and Gov. Haley Barbour decided not to show despite being asked to appear. on top of that, he scheduled his own little press conference across the street (this is the governor's way of bullying the press away from press conferences that don't look too good for him--i've seen it all before).

Well, someone decided that if the governor wouldn't come to them...they'd take the protest to the governor! upon their arrival, the governor had the law enforcement bar the protestors from full admittance to the building and attempted to have his little press party.

Sarah Ritter of Jackson:

"We came over here today because we wanted to look him in the eye. We weren't able to do that because he turned tail and ran."

The crowd was led by Representative Steve Holland, saying:
"If he don't want to talk to me that's ok, but he needs to talk to the citizens of the state of Mississippi. He really owes all of these people an audience."

Yes it seems the cowardly lion had to hide. when he finally appeared (as reported by a local camera man covering the event), He refused to look any of the protesters in the eye. This all would have been averted had the Governor made funding this program a priority in the budget.

he didn't. apparently they just don't matter.