At the annual Mississippi Press Association convention on the Coast in late June, a pair of Coast legislators — Democrat Dave Baria of Bay St. Louis and Republican Brice Wiggins of Pascagoula — were part of a panel discussion on the controversial 2016 legislative session.
Generally, interest in the doings of the Legislature ends almost as soon as the lawmakers leave Jackson in April. That the 2016 session is still being talked about is a sure sign that this session stood apart, and not for good reasons.
The session was the first for the Republicans to have a super-majority in both chambers, which allowed them to pass (or not pass) legislation without any Democratic support (or interference).
During the forum, Baria charged that almost all of the decisions made in the session were made by a much smaller group than that.
Essentially, the super-majority meant that a handful of key people make virtually all the decisions about what happened during the session.
The result was the passage of HB 1523, which allowed for discrimination against the LGBT community under the guise of protecting religious liberty (a law struck down last week by a federal judge as unconstitutional), a record-high $415 million tax cut (much of it for corporations) and yet another gun law (allowing church personnel to arm themselves). Meanwhile, efforts to amend what is widely considered a scandalous campaign finance system and address a dire need for repairing the state’s highways and bridges were left unattended.
It was so bad that even Wiggins, a member of the super-majority, agreed with Baria that the responsibility for what came from the session should be charged to the “leadership,” a sign that even some rank-and-file Republicans were uneasy with what came out of the session.
When “leadership” is mentioned it is a direct reference to Speaker of the House Phillip Gunn, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves (who presides over the Senate) and key committee chairmen.
It is against that backdrop that Rep. Jeff Smith, a Republican from Columbus, addressed the Columbus Rotary Club on Tuesday at Lion Hills Center.
Smith is very much a member of that elite and powerful leadership, something he freely acknowledged.
“If you are not on a money committee, you really don’t have any power,” Smith told the Rotarians.
As chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Smith has control over the purse strings. It is a position he has used to provide millions in bond money for projects in his home county. As it is set up, bond funding originates in Smith’s committee. This year, Smith had a compromise to make. When Reeves threatened to block his bond package unless he agreed to the aforementioned tax-cut, Smith acquiesced.
Those sorts of compromises do little to alter Smith’s sunny disposition, though.
In his 24 years in the Legislature, he has developed a reputation as a pragmatist. He is no ideologue or party purist like fellow Lowndes County representative Gary Chism. He seems to hold no real commitment to any particular policy, as Tuesday’s tepid defense of the decisions made by the Legislature in the last session clearly attests. Mainly, he trotted out the talking points of Gunn and Reeves, although he did take responsibility for killing the House’s version of campaign finance reform, saying what had been a good bill was rendered “stupid” by last-minute changes from Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann, a man who has no reputation at all for “stupid.”
That’s about as far out of the shadows as you are likely to see Smith operate, though.
He is a man who much prefers to fly under the radar, where he is allowed to make deals, form alliances and skillfully use his superb knowledge of the inner workings of government without the uncomfortable glare of public scrutiny.
He is, in the end, a politician’s politician — not particularly gifted as a speaker and rarely, if ever, a banner carrier for any cause. What he does best is play the percentages.
What Smith believes in most, it seems, is being on the winning team.
Until five years ago, Smith was a Democrat in a state run by Democrats. When that tide turned and the Republicans seized power, he didn’t stand and fight like other area Democrats such as Steve Holland and Hob Bryan. No, Smith took a long analytical look at the landscape and switched parties. It was the smart play for a man who loves winning and the power that comes with it.
By virtue of his position, Smith has been good for the county, but how good he is for the state, especially in light of this year’s session, is a more difficult question.
Somehow, though, you get the feeling that, if the tide should turn again, Smith will happily ride the wave rather than swim against it.
It’s the smart play, after all.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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