As Monday fast approaches, some of Mississippi’s GOP leadership will be heading to Washington D.C. to watch President Donald Trump’s inauguration.
The ceremony, which has now been moved indoors due to freezing temperatures expected on Monday, will take place in the Capitol rotunda rather than the West Front of the Capitol.
Of Mississippi’s Republican Party members, several elected and party officials will be attending.
Mississippi GOP Chairman Mike Hurst and Executive Director Rance Bilbo will both be in attendance, Rance said.
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“Important issues like closing the border, tax cuts, energy independence and safer communities is one reason why a lot of Republicans are interested in coming, and it’s the first president to win the popular vote for Republicans since, I think, 2004 so, I mean, it’s a big deal, and a lot of people are excited,” Bilbo said.
As for office holders, Attorney General Lynn Fitch and State Auditor Shad White will also be in attendance.
“Attorney General Fitch is looking forward to attending the inauguration of President-elect Trump,” Attorney General Office Communications Director Maryasa Lee said. “She remains committed to working closely with the new Administration to advance important policy initiatives and, in turn, build a bright future for our state.”
White and Fitch were recently in a bit of a political tussle over whether White could conduct a multi-million-dollar government waste study, which White countered by calling out her use of the state airplane to attend a Mississippi State University men’s baseball championship game in Omaha.
“I’m going because President Donald Trump is the greatest president of my lifetime, his team invited me and I want to support him,” White said.
Republican Gov. Tate Reeves’ office did not respond to calls or messages seeking comment on whether he was attending the ceremony in Washington D.C. by press time on Friday. State Treasurer David McRae said he will not be attending, and Secretary of State Michael Watson’s staff confirmed he would not be there.
Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann and House Speaker Jason White, R-West, will not be attending due to scheduling conflicts, they both said.
“President Trump’s inauguration marks the beginning of an exciting chapter for our nation,” Hosemann said. “I join my fellow Mississippians in celebration of our optimistic future under his leadership, as his vision for economic growth and support for hardworking Americans reflects the values we cherish in Mississippi.”
Former Mississippi Division of Medicaid Director Drew Snyder seems to have been tapped as the next leader of the Medicaid division of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Snyder in October resigned from his position and joined Capitol Resources, a Jackson based multi-state lobbying firm, as the leader of Health Resources LLC, its health policy branch. Capitol Resources has been known for donating swaths of cash to Republican leadership in Mississippi.
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Early last week, Politico reporter David Lim posted to X.com that Snyder was in line to run Medicaid under Trump’s incoming administration. In the days following, news reports have also said he has been tapped for the role.
Snyder did not respond to calls and messages seeking comment by press time on Friday.
Snyder helmed the Magnolia State’s Medicaid division for seven years under two Republican governors. He steered the program through an increase in Medicaid recipients during the COVID-19 pandemic and the disenrollment of Medicaid patients over the last two years.
If he were to have the position, Snyder would also be in a powerful position at a time when Mississippi leadership in the House and Senate are both mulling how to proceed with Medicaid expansion and whether it will be boon or boondoggle for Mississippi.
Both Hosemann and White told reporters last week they were willing to have the debate but are hesitant to jump at Medicaid expansion this year because of speculation that Trump will cut the incentives offered for expansion states.
On Friday, the White House announced outgoing President Joe Biden intends to commute the sentences of 2,500 people serving long sentences for nonviolent drug convictions.
In 2021, the Mississippi Center for Justice estimated that about 250 people in prison at that time were serving 20 years or more for nonviolent offenses, and most of them were drug-related crimes.
Actual numbers for the state have not been announced.
Grant McLaughlin covers the Legislature and state government for the Clarion Ledger. He can be reached at gmclaughlin@gannett.com or 972-571-2335.
