"Thank God for Mississippi" is a phrase, heavy with sarcasm, that is commonly recognized among West Virginians.
It's mostly used when any kind of nationwide statistics or rankings are released regarding economic development, infrastructure, education, physical and mental health, quality of life and/or poverty, among other measures of prosperity. If West Virginia isn't dead last in any category, it's usually because Mississippi has managed to remain slightly worse.
Both states also have a thorny history when it comes to government officials or agencies blatantly refusing to do what's best for the people as those in power find ways to line their own pockets.
Mississippi is one-upping West Virginia yet again on the race to the bottom in this arena, with what some have called the largest fraud case in the state's history -- and part of it involves Brett Favre, the Hall of Fame NFL quarterback who played college football at the University of Southern Mississippi.
Favre allegedly worked with former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant and nonprofit manager Nancy New, among others, to divert $5 million in federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds intended for the poor to the construction of a new volleyball stadium at Southern Miss (where Favre's daughter plays for the Golden Eagles). If the "TANF" acronym sounds familiar, it might be because conservative legislators and members of Congress have pursued policies to drug test recipients they believe are somehow scamming the system. Hopefully, no one will drown in that heaping bowl of irony.
Favre isn't part of the criminal case of the misuse of more than $77 million in grant funds in Mississippi (New has already pleaded guilty to 13 felonies). Favre is not a part of a civil case centered on the matter, either. Reports of his involvement to help scam money for the stadium have been floating around prior to this year.
But the story is gaining more attention now because text exchanges between Favre and New, entered into court records this week, appear to demonstrate the former quarterback was very aware of the unethical, if not potentially illegal, implications of New's nonprofit paying him $1.1 million for doing publicity. According to news reports, this deal was a kind of false front used to justify giving Favre the money, which he would funnel back to Southern Miss to finish the stadium. At the time, $4 million had already been diverted to the project, but it was apparently getting trickier to keep federal money that expressly couldn't be used for capital projects flowing without suspicion.
"If you were to pay me, is there any way the media could find out how much and where it came from?" Favre texted to New.
Well, Favre has his answer. Known during his playing career for his reckless decisions, Favre is perhaps the only retired football player and member of the NFL Hall of Fame still throwing interceptions on a national stage.
The story pops because of Favre's name, status and hypocrisy, given his recent forays into conservative punditry. It also just looks bad that a millionaire, retired and revered athlete would go along with an elaborate scheme to defraud those in need in such a poverty-stricken state to build a volleyball stadium for his daughter. Favre could've just ponied up the cash himself or pursued other, legitimate ways to raise the funds. Favre has reportedly paid back some or even all of the $1.1 million.
As it pertains to the lawsuit and the scandal as a whole, the texts are more significant because they mention former Gov. Bryant and seem to indicate he was a facilitator and willful participant in the scheme. Bryant has denied he had anything to do with it, but texts show Bryant allegedly discussing the project with Favre.
Of course, West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice has been accused of using his position for all kinds of self-dealing while refusing to abide by government rules and norms. His process and lack of transparency in allocating federal aid in response to COVID-19 has produced some side glances. But, as far as we know at the moment, he's never directly raided welfare funds for a pet project.
So even Justice can look at this scandal down south and say, with every other West Virginian, "Thank God for Mississippi."
-- Charleston Gazette-Mail, Sept. 18