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Welcome To The Empower Podcast
Empower Mississippi is committed to helping all Mississippians rise by removing barriers to opportunity. In this podcast, we talk with state and national experts about ways the Magnolia State can grow and thrive. These conversations help shape the debate for future legislative sessions and highlight policy changes that are necessary to make Mississippi the best place in America to live, work, and raise a family.
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Interview Library
Lt. Governor Delbert Hosemann: Whistle While You Work 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,…
Listen NowDavid Bahnsen: Author of “Full-Time: Work and the Meaning of Life” 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…
Listen NowState Rep. Fred Shanks: Rankin Countian with Jackson Roots 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…
Listen NowJamie Holder: Small Towns, Population Shifts, and School Choice 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 mostly…
Listen NowRuss Latino: Veepstakes, Punditry, and Neshoba Dust-ups 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…
Listen NowDr. Kymyona Burk: Mississippi’s Historic Literacy Gains 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…
Listen NowCapitol Chat Library
Capitol Chat: Week 13 In the Sine Die episode of Capitol Chat, we’re wrapping up the 2025 legislative session, which finished a bit ahead of schedule. However, lawmakers did not agree on a budget before adjourning, which means a special session is on the horizon. We break down the key details, potential impact, and…
Listen Now Capitol Chat: Week 12 The countdown is on! Only 9 days remain in the legislative session. This week, the Governor signed House Bill 1 into law, and this weekend is crunch time on appropriations and revenue bills. All that, and more, on this week’s episode of Capitol Chat.
Listen Now Capitol Chat: Week 11 A little luck of the Irish helped push an income tax elimination bill over the finish line this week. We’ll dive into House Bill 1 and what it means for you, as well as what’s next in the legislative session, on this week’s episode of Capitol Chat.
Listen Now Capitol Chat: Week 10 Week 10 was filled with excitement and acronyms! On this week’s episode we cover DEI, PBMs, and THC, as well as everything else you need to know from this week at your state Capitol.
Listen NowCapitol Chat: Week 9 Dead or alive? That’s the key question this week as another big deadline has come and gone. With yet another key deadline on the horizon, we’ll highlight some of the bills that are still moving forward this session – at least for now.
Listen Now Capitol Chat: Week 8 Taxes, taxes, taxes. That and other news from the Capitol this week, including a new entry on “how a bill really becomes law – or doesn’t.”
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