Roses are red, violets are blue, lawmakers are busy, and we break it down for you on this week’s episode of Capitol Chat! Tune in to hear about the latest happenings from week 6 of the 2025 legislative session.

When Mississippians think about consequential leaders who have significantly impacted the Magnolia State over the last half century, it’s hard to name anyone who looms larger than Mississippi’s 63rd governor, The Honorable Haley Barbour. In this episode, host Grant Callen sits down with Governor Barbour to hear his perspective on leadership, the early days of the Trump Administration, some of the current policy battles unfolding under the Mississippi Capitol dome, and his legacy 13 years after leaving office. As governor, Barbour led the fight to get Mississippi’s fiscal house in order, the recovery of the state after Hurricane Katrina, and the tort reform wars, and he left office with an approval rating over 70%. We cover all that and much more. Do not miss this episode!

With a big deadline on Tuesday, floor action on DEI and school choice, and the death of a high-profile bill to limit the power of the State Auditor, Week 5 of the 2025 session was action-packed! Tune in to this week’s episode of Capitol Chat to hear about all this and more.

What do a critical deadline, State of the State address, and Presidential Executive Order all have in common? They’re all a part of this week’s episode of Capitol Chat! Be sure to tune in for the latest on all this and more from Week 4 of the legislative session.

Conservative activist, businessman, and Texas donor Doug Deason was our guest this week for an in-depth conversation about Doug’s work on criminal justice reform. Host Grant Callen asked him about his relationship with President Trump and son-in-law Jared Kushner, and how that relationship resulted in the passage of the landmark federal criminal justice reform package known as the “First Step Act”. We discussed that, plus what might be on tap for continued reforms during the second Trump Administration, and even some Dallas Cowboys breaking news. Tune in!

Things got crazy in a subcommittee hearing, some new and interesting bills were introduced, and the House passed PBM reform. Hear about all this and more as host Wil Ervin breaks down what happened in Week 3 of the legislative session.

Empower Senior Vice President Wil Ervin highlights what happened at the Capitol during week 2 of the legislative session, including the latest on tax reform, key legislative deadlines, and Empower’s new labor force participation report. Don’t miss it!

Empower's Labor Force Participation Report: https://empowerms.org/labor-force-participation-in-ms/

This week, host Grant Callen went to the Mississippi State Capitol to sit down with Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, State Representative Trey Lamar. Chairman Lamar is the lead author of newly introduced House Bill 1, the “Build Up Mississippi Act”, which would eliminate the state’s income tax over ten years, reduce the sales tax on groceries, increase the general sales tax and fuel tax, and make other substantive changes to Mississippi’s tax code. With a goal of making Mississippi’s tax code the most economically competitive in the nation, Chairman Lamar shared why he wrote this bill and why he believes it’s such a transformational piece of legislation. Don’t miss this conversation! 

Capitol Chat returns as the 2025 session is underway! Check out what happened at the Mississippi state Capitol during the first week of the legislative session.

Empower Mississippi's 2025 Legislative Session Guide: https://empowerms.org/session-guide/

Happy New Year! The start of the 2025 Legislative Session is only six days away, so host Grant Callen sat down with Wil Ervin, Empower’s own Tim Russert, to break down what we can expect from the coming session. Tax reform, Medicaid expansion, ballot initiative, and school choice are all poised to dominate the conversation under the dome this year. Additionally, Wil shared about a new show we are bringing to the podcast called Capitol Chat. Hosted by Wil, with new episodes dropping every Friday afternoon, this short show will recap the highlights from the week at the Capitol. You will still get a longform interview from Grant every two weeks that releases on Wednesdays, and during the session, every Friday you will also get an episode of Capitol Chat to close out your week and keep you on top of all the latest happenings from your State Capitol. Tune in!