An article was published today in the Clarion-Ledger titled “Senate Democrats press for approval of cold-cases bill,” and our campaign thought it was important to let readers know about Senator Cochran’s support for this bill which was not included in the article.  Senator Cochran was an original cosponsor of the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act which is a bill that provdies funding for new Justice Department efforts to prosecute old civil rights crimes.  He also helped introduce the bill in the last congress with Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Senator Jim Talent (R-MO). 

Here are a few excerpts from the article with details of the bill:

The Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act - named after a black teenager who was slain in Money, Miss., in 1955 - and dozens of other measures have been gathered into a 400-page bill by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada.

The bills have little in common. One would fund Washington’s subway system, another would create an electronic database of slavery records and post-Civil War reconstruction efforts. Most were blocked from votes by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., mainly because he wants open debate on the legislation and the opportunity to amend it.

Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut and other Senate Democrats lobbied for the Emmett Till measure at a news conference Wednesday.

The measure would authorize $10 million for the Justice Department to open a new office to investigate cold civil rights cases. The office would cost about $2 million a year to operate.

Click here to read the full article in the Clarion Ledger.

Talk to Power continued…

Talk to Power host Judy Woodruff interviewed Senator Thad Cochran in November of 2007 in response to hundreds of questions and comments from Yahoo readers.  Several topics were addressed. Today, the topic we are featuring is Senator Cochran’s view on the Role of U.S. Troops. Click here to read yesterday’s topic, “The Future of the GOP.”

The Role of U.S. Troops:

MS. JUDY WOODRUFF:  First of all, Senator Cochran, thank you very much for participating in Talk to Power.  We had a large number of comments come in from our viewers, our visitors to the Yahoo site, a large number of thoughtful comments.  We tried to choose a good cross-section, and I’m going to begin with Iraq because it is the question that keeps coming up.

This is a reader who describes himself as a naval officer, and here’s what he wrote:  “All I hear about in the news is how we (reporters, politicians, civilians) want our troops to come home from Iraq.  What do you say, Senator, to the tens of thousands of military personnel currently serving our country that believe they are doing the right thing and are scared we are going to be forced to leave Iraq, making everything we and those who have fallen, pointless?” 

SEN. COCHRAN:  Well, the first thing I would say is thank you.  Thank you for serving in the armed forces of our country.  I was a naval officer myself, so I understand the feeling.  I was lucky not to be involved in any combat operations, but nonetheless we were trained and ready to serve and ready to go wherever we were deployed, and I know that’s your situation too.  Thank you for being in uniform and protecting the security interests of our country.

(more…)

Talk to Power host Judy Woodruff interviewed Senator Thad Cochran in November of 2007 in response to hundreds of questions and comments from Yahoo readers.  Several topics were addressed including:

The Future of the GOP
The Role of U.S. Troops
Saving Social Security
No Child Left Behind
The State of Education
Defining Victory in Iraq
Bringing the Troops Home

Stay tuned this week for excerpts from this interview.  First, Senator Cochran addresses the Future of the GOP.  Read the transcript below.

Future of the GOP

MS. JUDY WOODRUFF:   From the South, and, again, in this vein, a reader writes:  “I am wondering about recent comments in the news media after the mid-term elections that the Republican Party will primarily be a Southern-based party.  Your recent election to minority leadership positions of primarily Southern senators plays this out.  Will the Republican Party be able to appeal to the broader nation in future elections, with this Southern-based leadership and outlook?  Will the Southern conservative values and perceptions be able to win broad appeal across the nation and return the party to power?”

SEN. COCHRAN:  Well, it’ll be interesting to see about the transition and how much farther it goes in terms of realignment of states with political parties.  When I was growing up, we didn’t have any local Republican elected officials.  It just didn’t happen.  But back in the Civil War days, the Republicans were the ones who were reforming the federal government, and the Democrats were sort of the old Confederates from the Civil War, and it took a long time for that transition to be made. 

(more…)

Senator Cochran released the following statement yesterday urging action on comprehensive energy legislation:

“The Democrat-led Congress is currently preventing the consideration of comprehensive energy legislation that would result in reduced gasoline prices.  It would be irresponsible for Democrats to allow Congress to adjourn for August recess without providing mechanisms through which to ease the burden that has been placed on Americans because of skyrocketing gas prices. 
 
“The United States has been dependent on foreign oil for too long.  We must take action to explore the oil reserves that are in our own country and to find alternative sources of energy.  The Gas Price Reduction Act lays the groundwork for real energy independence for our nation.  I urge Congress to work together on this legislation to provide real and immediate relief for Americans.” 

Also, read the article by the Daily Journal below on the issue:

EDITORIAL: Energy policy work

7/17/2008 4:53:46 AM
Daily Journal
 

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Tupelo, Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Jackson/Oxford, and 1st District Rep. Travis Childers, D-Booneville, appear to have considerable common ground in their goals for short- and long-term energy supply and energy independence action by Congress.

All three said this week they support opening drilling for additional oil off the Outer Continental Shelf (which includes waters off Mississippi), opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s reserves to production and immediate action on developing alternate, non-petroleum energy sources.

They also said they want Congress to stay in session and work toward passage of effective energy legislation, rather than take the usual August recess, or as long as it takes.

We agree generally, and we hope their separate but similar positions signal an emerging bipartisan consensus in both chambers of the U.S. Capitol that business as usual isn’t acceptable in the treacherous energy and economic climate our nation faces.

The Daily Journal and other newspapers reported Wednesday that steadily climbing food and energy prices shoved consumer prices during June at one of the fastest rates since the early 1980s.

Click here to read the full article in the Daily Journal.

Check out the 3 articles below which provide details of the recent funding that the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee approved for the state of Mississippi. Senator Cochran, Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, helped secure these funds for several areas of the state. The legislation must now be submitted to the full Senate for consideration.

Senate panel OKs $35M for Miss. housing- Associated Press
Wicker, Cochran announce grants- Daily Journal
Senate committee OKs $20M for Delta group- Associated Press

GAS PRICE REDUCTION ACT OF 2008

Thursday, the Gas Price Reduction Act of 2008 was introduced on the U.S. Senate floor by Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and 42 Senate Republicans.  Senator Cochran is a cosponsor of this bill and is confident that the measures included will reduce the cost of gas for Americans and lessen the United States’ dependence on foreign oil.   

The proposed language includes several measures:  opening new areas for deep sea exploration and oil shale development in the Rocky Mountain West, expanding research for alternatively-powered vehicles, and enhancing the capabilities of the commodities futures market.

“FIND MORE, USE LESS”

Republican Senator Lamar Alexander says, “Our bill can be summed up in four words: Find more, use less.”

Republican.senate.gov says “To find more, the bill allows coastal states the option to explore for oil and natural gas offshore and lifts a federal moratorium on oil shale in western states.  To use less, the bill provides incentives for plug-in electric cars and trucks so that we no longer need to use as much gasoline to power our vehicles.”

Summary of provisions of Gas Price Reduction Act 2008:

(more…)

View WLOX-TV video footage from yesterday’s event dedicating two new Seemann Composites NOAA research catamarans and also the ribbon cutting ceremony for the expansion of the Seemann Composites facility by clicking here.

Read below to find out more information on this event in which Senator Cochran attended on Monday.
 
Seemann Composites Expanding In Gulfport
 
GULFPORT (WLOX) — There was plenty to celebrate Monday at Seemann Composites. The 20-year-old company unveiled two catamarans that will be used in NOAA’s Marine Sanctuary Program.

“They’re being used for research mostly. The program is a program which protects these very valuable resources off our coastline, very beautiful places that need to be studied and maintained. That’s what NOAA’s doing, and these jobs help them get out their and do their job,” said Bill Seeman, President of Seeman Composites.

There was also a ribbon cutting for the company’s new facility. The 50,000 square foot expansion marks the third site for the Gulfport-based company.

Click here to read the full article.

“The Supreme Court has affirmed that the Constitutional right of U. S. citizens to bear arms means what it says, and that the citizens of the District of Columbia in particular may not be prohibited from having a gun in their home, ” said Senator Cochran in response to the Supreme Court’s ruling.

Article written by the Associated Press in the Clarion-Ledger on the decision:

Supreme Court strikes down D.C. gun ban
The Associated Press • June 26, 2008
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Americans have a right to own guns for self-defense and hunting, the justices’ first major pronouncement on gun rights in U.S. history.

The court’s 5-4 ruling struck down the District of Columbia’s 32-year-old ban on handguns as incompatible with gun rights under the Second Amendment. The decision went further than even the Bush administration wanted, but probably leaves most firearms laws intact.

The court had not conclusively interpreted the Second Amendment since its ratification in 1791. The amendment reads: “A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.”

Click here to read the full article written by the Associated Press.

A landmark ruling was decided by the Supreme Court today which overruled the 32-year-old ban on handguns for District of Columbia residents.  Click here to read the Associated Press article for information about this decision.

Check out the article in The Conservative View written by a local blogger.

Mississippi U.S. Senator Thad Cochran

Tupelo, MS-The Conservative View

Every now and then, you run across that person that’s just something special in their chosen field. You know them by their first names. Some such as Elvis, Willie, Cher, Ringo, Oprah, and Waylon come to mind. All you have to do is say that first name and you immediately identify with that person. You know who is being talked about and you know their accomplishments.

The same is true with Thad Cochran. Whether in the Pine Belt, the Coast, the Delta, the Yazoo clay area, or the hills of north Mississippi, all you have to do is say “Thad” and folks immediately know who you’re talking about. Even get out of Mississippi and his name is readily recognized. In a trip to Washington a couple of years ago, I was talking to the taxi driver and he asked where in the south I was from. I told him Mississippi and he said “oh yeah, that’s where Thad’s from right?” I was proud to say he was my U.S. Senator.

While at the state Republican convention recently in Jackson, Mississippi, the introduction of Thad Cochran was that he was as comfortable behind a concert piano and a soy bean field as well. A truly great American and Mississippian can be found in Thad Cochran.

Read the full article by clicking here.