Observers say Mississippi GOP feud echoes 1990s clashes between Musgrove, McCoy

Observers of the Mississippi Legislature say a recent rift between House and Senate Republicans over education legislation resembles earlier clashes between former Democrats Ronnie Musgrove and Billy McCoy.

The tension flared this year after the Senate Education Committee voted to kill a House bill that would have sent public funds to private schools, observers said. After the committee action, House Education Chair Rob Roberson moved to block consideration of Senate education bills, and some school choice supporters, including House Speaker Jason White, voiced strong objections, observers said.

State records show McCoy served as the last Democratic speaker of the Mississippi House from 2004 to 2012. Musgrove was the state’s last Democratic lieutenant governor from 1996 to 2000 and served as governor from 2000 to 2004. The two also served together in the Legislature and clashed in the 1995 session when McCoy, then chair of the House Education Committee, killed a Senate bill that Musgrove backed, Musgrove recalled.

Musgrove, now an Oxford resident, said he killed House education bills in response to make sure the Senate had a voice. Legislative leaders eventually reached compromises, and the Mississippi Adequate Education Program became law in 1997, a change credited by education experts with helping the state avoid costly school equity lawsuits. Musgrove and McCoy later worked together on measures including historic teacher pay raises and a 1-cent sales tax dedicated to education, Musgrove said. McCoy died in 2019.

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