Attorney General Jim Hood, speaking in McComb last week, acknowledged that he’s thinking about running for governor in 2019.
But Hood, the only Democratic who holds a statewide office, said his wife is not convinced such a campaign is a good idea.
Here’s the assignment: Family members and friends of Mrs. Hood need to spoil her greatly over the next year or so. Flowers, nice dinners, excessive compliments — whatever it takes to get her on board.
True enough, Hood would be the underdog to get elected in two years.
That “D” by his name will turn plenty of voters away. Plus, he is likely to face Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, who will have the state’s very strong Republican network in overdrive for him.
The real incentive for Hood to run is that he is one of the few serious and experienced Democrats who can offer a real-world alternative to Republican dominance of Mississippi politics. He can frame the debate to hold the GOP responsible for some of its missteps in recent years and offer competing ideas.
Mississippi desperately needs a multitude of ideas. The people would benefit from two strong candidates who compete for votes through the art of persuasion.
Democrats ran the state for a century and got nowhere. Now Republicans have been in charge for a decade and we’re still getting nowhere. It is true that some of the GOP’s tax cuts and smaller-budget philosophies need more time to percolate through the economy. But it is also undeniable that much of the rest of the country seems to be doing OK while Mississippi is standing still. How come?
Hood grew up in small-town Pontotoc County and, though he’s been a big wheel in Jackson for years, he still gets Mississippi. He speaks the language. He sees that small towns in rural areas are being left behind and that too many skilled, educated young adults have to go elsewhere to make a living.
It would be easy for Republicans to criticize Hood. He thinks the state should pay for community college tuition. He says universities are too expensive due to state budget cuts. He probably wants to raise taxes. He likes to sue companies, such as his current case against opioid manufacturers, for product liability.
But Hood’s comebacks would be just as easy. Tuition charts of the past decade would show how much more expensive college has become, and how much debt families are taking on. Why haven’t tax cuts goosed the Mississippi economy?
As for corporate lawsuits, they’re probably more helpful than listening to the Mississippi Development Authority and giving away millions of dollars to high-risk startup businesses that close without repaying the money — as happened last week in Hattiesburg for the fourth time in recent years.
Yes indeed, Hood would be the underdog. Mississippi is still a strong Republican state. But he is the rare Democrat who can compete with Reeves and his peers.
Such a campaign of ideas would be a huge benefit to Mississippi.
Somebody really needs to get Mrs. Hood to come around on this one.
