Nettleton –  In the final seven days of the 2023 campaign season, the Presley for Governor campaign is unveiling a new press release series, “7 Days, 7 Ways Tate Has Failed Mississippi,” highlighting seven (only 7! sticking to 7 is tough!) ways Tate Reeves has failed the Magnolia State. On day five, we’ll highlight Tate Reeves’ failure to perform oversight over the state’s largest corruption scandal.

Tate Reeves has been caught up in the middle of the largest public corruption scandal in state history. Nothing Tate Reeves says or does from now until election day will change his deep links to the scandal and how he failed to do anything to stop the $77 million of Mississippians’ tax dollars lost, stolen, or squandered on his watch. Reeves’ own brother was caught as a backchannel messenger, texting the state Auditor to ask him to praise Brett Favre after Favre received misspent taxpayer dollars for speeches and events that he failed to show up for.

At the center of Reeves’ involvement in the corruption scandal is the fact that Tate Reeves’ own personal trainer received $1.3 million in misspent taxpayer funds and used the money to pay himself a nearly $11,000 per month salary and to buy himself a luxury vehicle. Mississippi’s former welfare director, who pled guilty in the welfare scandal, said the personal trainer pay-off was inspired by a meeting with Reeves and called this funding the “Lt. Gov’s [Reeves’] fitness issue.”  Reeves broke his promise to return thousands in campaign contributions from Nancy and Zach New, who pled guilty to charges of misusing public money. Reeves has continued to highlight his links to Nancy New, using footage from her shuttered school in several campaign ads. 

As the head of the state senate, Tate Reeves failed to perform oversight and looked the other way during the state’s largest corruption scandal. Former Governor Phil Bryant blamed the state Legislature, where Reeves had an outsized leadership role, for failing to meet its statutory obligation to monitor welfare agency spending. Reeves used his power as governor to stall the welfare scandal investigation. When the independent investigator got too close to Reeves’ campaign donors, he fired the investigator, and his administration replaced the investigator with a law firm that donated to Reeves’ campaign.

“Tate Reeves cannot answer for his involvement in the state’s largest corruption scandal, where $77 million was stolen, lost, or squandered and given to Reeves’ rich friends for things like a volleyball court, a horse ranch, and luxury vehicles,” said Michael Beyer, Communications Director for Brandon Presley. “Tate Reeves has been the most corrupt governor in Mississippi - and he will have to answer for his corrupt record at the polls Tuesday.”

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