jjacob@themeridianstar.com
Former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove made a campaign stop in Meridian Thursday, visiting a board of supervisors meeting, Rush Foundation Hospital, and taking a tour of the Lauderdale County Courthouse.
Musgrove is running against U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker for the senate seat formerly held by Trent Lott. Wicker was appointed to the post by Gov. Haley Barbour last year when Lott announced his retirement. Musgrove and Wicker will compete for the position in a special senate election Nov. 4.
Musgrove appeared before the board of supervisors to talk about out of control spending in Washington.
"We've got to stop out of control spending," he said. "We need to stop the partisan politics in Washington and get things moving."
He blamed problems with the economy largely on trade agreements, saying that NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement) "just took jobs out by the droves."
In an interview, Musgrove said politicians in Washington are hurting the country by granting favors to insiders. "Our focus needs to be on people," he said. "Washington has forgotten what its business is. It's the people's business, not special interest."
He said that, as a Democrat, he believes he will have a stronger influence if Mississippi military facilities come into BRAC (Base Realignment And Closure hearings. "All of the political pundits have predicted that the Democrats will widen the margin in the Senate and the House," he said. "I think it's important to have a voice on the majority side to fight for our people here, to make sure that our bases in Meridian and Columbus remain here. And I will do that."
Musgrove said he wants to see an energy policy that makes use of domestic oil, creating alternative sources of energy, and increasing automobile efficiency.
"If our students at MSU could make an SUV with better mileage, then I'm sure our engineers (employed by vehicle manufacturers) can," he said.
He added that he wants a two-fold energy plan, which will reduce oil prices in the short term and provide energy independence in the long run.
Musgrove also spoke of immigration, saying: "We have no real immigration policy ... We need a real fence built, and we need real border security."
Ryan Annison of the Wicker campaign responded to Musgrove's comments, Thursday by saying: "Ronnie Musgrove's idea of a stump speech is to bash Roger Wicker. He can't run on his own record, so he has to attack."
"Unemployment today is eight and a half percent in Mississippi," Musgrove said. "Mississippi people are hurting ... Washington is broken and not working. It needs to work again for our people."
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