Strange things have been happening at the Capitol this year. Party labels have been thrown out the window, and those with strong ideological leanings have been leaning the other way.
Legislators who have generally been thought of as liberal voted overwhelmingly for the largest tax cut in the state's history. And many who have been considered conservative voted against that tax cut, saying that the government needs all the money it can get.On private property rights, a liberal trial lawyer argued for free-market principles when he debated a bill that would limit the government's ability to take one person's land and give it to another in the name of economic development.
He was right on the issue, and most of the House agreed with him.But a few days later, the House voted against free-market principles when they voted for a speculative land-buying deal in north Mississippi called the "Wellspring" project.
If the state wants to buy land in hopes that it will be developed for job growth, the place to do it is on the Coast, where we already know businesses want to locate.
So keep your eyes and ears open; it could get interesting.