Mississippi Edition

A week of snow, ice and frigid temperatures made commuting hazardous. We check in with MDOT for the latest on how Mississippi’s roadways are faring. 

Then, Wednesday night’s wave of winter precipitation resulted in power outages across the state. We hear from the public service commission on the effort to restore electricity.  

Plus, Mississippi Congressman Bennie Thompson shares more on his lawsuit against former President Trump, and his pursuit of accountability for the failed January insurrection. 

Segment 1:

A week-long winter storm is having lasting impacts on Mississippi’s motorways. Starting Sunday, wintery precipitation and frigid temperatures moved into the state, icing over roads and bridges. The Mississippi Department of Transportation began work early, salting roads and running plows. But, sub-freezing temperatures have not allowed the accumulations of ice to melt away, causing logjams on the highways and over 1,100 reported motor vehicle accidents. Jason Smith is Deputy Director of Public of Public Affairs at MDOT. He shares more on the status of Mississippi’s highways.

Segment 2:

Thousands of Mississippians are without electricity as layers of ice and falling limbs have downed power lines across the state. More than 170 thousand homes and businesses in Mississippi have gone without power this week, with the majority of outages occurring in central areas of the state. On Tuesday, some residents faced scheduled outages b y energy providers to save the power grid from prolonged failure. Energy providers are working to bring power back into homes, but as Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley tells our Kobee Vance, it could take several days.

Segment 3:

Mississippi Congressman Bennie Thompson is using a Reconstruction-era act as a foundation for a federal lawsuit against Donald Trump and the former President’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani. Thompson, who filed the suit with the NAACP, says the Ku Klux Klan Act was passed in the years following the Civil War to ensure outside parties did not interfere with newly elected Southern Congressmen’s ability to perform their duties. Now he is using it in an attempt to hold Trump, Giuliani, and extremists groups accountable for the January 6th insurrection. In part two of our conversation, Thompson shares more on his experience that day, and his goals for the suit.