The Empower Podcast

This week, host Grant Callen sat down with Alesha Judkins, Mississippi State Director at FWD.us to discuss Mississippi’s criminal justice system and our high imprisonment rate – the highest in the nation. Alesha has over 16 years of criminal justice advocacy in Mississippi and Alabama. Alesha and Grant discussed Alesha’s journey into advocacy, why she is passionate about criminal justice reform, and how her faith fuels her work. They discussed ways to improve public safety and decrease the number of people behind bars through reforms like presumptive parole, parole, expungement, and drug courts. They discussed ways of setting people up for success once they are released from prison, so they are more likely to become active members of their communities and not recidivate. They celebrated the progress that Mississippi lawmakers have made in recent years that have made Mississippi a model for reform and improved public safety. And they talked about some of the opportunities on the horizon in Mississippi to keep moving the needle in the right direction. Tune in!

This week, Empower’s Senior Vice President, Wil Ervin, took over the Empower Podcast and sat down with Lucien Smith to talk all things politics – from the 2024 national election to the Mississippi governor’s race and everything in between. Smith is certainly no stranger to Mississippi politics – he has served as a senior advisor for two governors, served as Chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party, and is currently a Government Relations Practice attorney in Jackson.

With the presidential election a week away, there was much to discuss – what’s going to happen in the 2024 election, who will be the 47th president of the United States, which party will control the House and Senate, what are the key states to watch, and how quickly can we expect to find out who won? In Mississippi politics, the 2027 governor’s race doesn’t seem that far away, and there’s a lot a speculation on who will be running when Tate Reeves’ tenure is up. Also, with the 2025 legislative session around the corner, what will be the big issues at the State Capitol? Wil and Lucien break down all the speculation and even mix in a little school choice in this week’s episode. Tune in!

This week, host Grant Callen sat down with columnist Bill Crawford to discuss his recently published book “A Republican’s Lament: Mississippi Needs Good Government Conservatives.”  Callen and Crawford talked about why Crawford got involved in Mississippi politics in the 1970s and the profound influence that G.V. "Sonny" Montgomery and Gil Carmichael had on Crawford’s political worldview. Crawford told stories about these two East Mississippi political giants and how their “Good Government Conservative” ideas continue to have influence long after both have passed. Crawford wrote this book as part personal memoir, but even more so, a memoir to the ideas that Gil Carmichael championed like the need for a new state constitution, a strengthened executive branch, government to be made more efficient and effective, and the need to build a more diverse Republican party. This conversation covered that and so much more. Tune In!

Show Notes:

For comments, questions, or guest ideas email us at: [email protected]

“A Republican’s Lament: Mississippi Needs Good Government Conservatives” https://www.upress.state.ms.us/Books/A/A-Republican-s-Lament

This week, we took the podcast on the road, recording in the beautiful Mississippi State Capitol. Host Grant Callen sat down with Mississippi’s 33rd Lieutenant Governor Delbert Hosemann to discuss all things related to work and the Magnolia State’s economy. Historic low employment, record private capital investment, billions paid off in debt, and a fully-funded rainy day fund are all worthy of celebration. Yet, despite all this growth, too many Mississippians still aren’t working, as indicated by the nation’s lowest labor force participation rate. Hosemann shared his ideas on causes and potential policy solutions that ran the gamut from education, to criminal justice reforms, to tax policy changes and more. Tune in!

Show Notes:

The topic of “work” has been in the news a lot lately since Mississippi has record low unemployment and the lowest labor force participation rate in the nation. So, this week host, Grant Callen sat down with author, David Bahnsen, to discuss his most recent book “Full-Time: Work and the Meaning of Life.” David makes the case that America is in a crisis of despair and much of that malaise is rooted in the reality that vast swaths of able-bodied adults have left the workforce. Nationally, the workforce participation rate for prime-aged men (aged 25-54) this last decade is lower than it was during the Great Depression, and it’s even worse in Mississippi. The sad reality is that during the Great Depression it was largely a problem of finding jobs, while today the issue is finding workers. This fast-paced conversation covered the importance of productive work to human flourishing, the benefits of work on the worker, changing cultural attitudes towards work, public policy implications, potential solutions for increasing labor force participation, and much more. Tune in! 

Show notes:

“Why Aren’t more Mississippians Working?”

David Bahnsen’s Book “Full- Time: Work and the Meaning of Life”

For this episode of the Empower Podcast, host Grant Callen sat down with State Rep. Fred Shanks, Chairman of the Rules Committee, to discuss nearly a dozen legislative topics including: the ballot initiative, suffrage bills, the new education funding formula, police officer safety and training, the “Goon Squad” assaults, replacing the Mississippi statues in the U.S. Capitol, school choice, and tax reform. Fred talked about his childhood growing up in south Jackson, which fuels his passion today for creating a thriving capital city. Fred shared a few stories about his late father, Coach Doug Shanks, former Jackson City Commissioner, baseball coach, and FBI provocateur. Don’t miss this deep dive with one of the House’s key leaders and a rising political star.

Bay Springs, Mississippi is like a lot of communities around the state, it has desirable schools and less desirable schools, but no meaningful avenue for parents to exercise school choice. According to Jamie Holder, President and CEO of Hol-Mac Corporation, that employs over 900 people in Bay Springs, this reality has led to population decline within the city and made recruiting talent by the business community increasingly difficult. Jamie reached out to Empower and asked us to participate in a community forum with legislators, city officials, school leaders, and engaged citizens about the benefits of school choice for this community. Jamie is convinced that school choice is the most important reform the legislature could pass for the city of Bay Springs, local schools, employers, families, and most importantly, the children of this community. Before the forum, host Grant Callen and Jamie spent some time behind the microphones talking about the potential impact of choice on small towns across the state. Tune in for a fresh and fascinating conversation with one of Mississippi’s largest employers! 

It’s been a crazy few weeks in politics: an assassination attempt on a presidential candidate, Biden announced he is not running again, Trump picked his running mate, the RNC Convention occurred, and last week was Mississippi’s Giant House Party, the Neshoba County Fair, with all the accompanying political speeches. So, who better to break all this down and give us an analysis than the Founder & CEO of the Magnolia Tribune and former Empower team member, Russ Latino. We covered a range of topics including the public policy opportunities Russ sees on the horizon like tax reform, school choice, and addressing the fatherlessness epidemic. Don’t miss this fast-paced episode!

This week, host Grant Callen sat down with Dr. Kymyona Burk, formerly the State Literacy Director at the Mississippi Department of Education, who oversaw implementation of the Literacy-Based Promotion Act of 2013, a bill championed by then Governor Phil Bryant. Often when great policy gets enacted, the implementation of the law leaves a lot to be desired. But in this case, the implementation of the act is a big part of its success.

Between 2011 and 2019, Mississippi’s fourth grade reading scores on the NAEP exam, often referred to as the Nation’s Report Card, increased by 10 scale score points (the equivalent of a full grade level), the largest gain of any state in the nation during that time period. In 2022 and post-pandemic, Mississippi scored higher than the national average for the first time. As a result, Mississippi has improved from last to 21st in the nation in fourth grade reading achievement. The New York Times dubbed it the “Mississippi Miracle” and now Dr. Burk is helping other states that are trying to replicate Mississippi’s amazing gains in reading. Tune in!

Part two of the series with the party chairmen, host Grant Callen sat down with the recently elected chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party, Mike Hurst. A Newton County native, Mike discussed growing up in rural Mississippi, raising a large family, and the momentum Mississippi has. Grant read different sections of the GOP and Democratic party platforms and Mike shared his thoughts. As expected, Mike found plenty to disagree with the Democratic party platform, but also surprised himself by finding agreement with a few areas. If you want to understand the core differences between the two parties, this episode is for you. And stick around to the end of the episode to hear Mike’s bold prediction about who will be the Democratic nominee for President this year. Tune in! 

Show notes:  

Mississippi Republican Party Platform

Mississippi Democratic Party Platform