5A • Daily Corinthian
State/Nation
Nation Briefs Associated Press
Medicare chief faces questions from Senate WASHINGTON — Under growing pressure, the administration refused repeatedly to state a position Tuesday on legislation formalizing President Barack Obama’s oft-stated promise that people who like their existing coverage should be allowed to keep it under the new health care law. Senate Democrats spoke dismissively of the proposals, signaling they have no intention of permitting a vote on the issue that marks the latest challenge confronting supporters of “Obamacare.” An earlier controversy appeared to be ebbing on a law that has generated more than its share of them. Even so, one strong supporter of the health care law, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R. I., good-naturedly told an administration official, “Good luck getting through this mess.” Whitehouse spoke to Marilyn Tavenner, the head of the agency deeply involved in implementing the law. She had assured lawmakers that initial flaws with the government’s website were systematically yielding to around-theclock repair effort. “Users can now successfully create an account and continue through the full application and enrollment process,” said Tavenner, head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. “We are now able to process nearly 17,000 registrants per
hour, or 5 per second, with almost no errors.”
Election Night: From governor races, to city Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie looked for a big re-election victory Tuesday night amid talk of a 2016 presidential run, and Democrats hoped for a sweep of top offices in Virginia topped by Terry McAuliffe in the governor’s mansion. New Yorkers chose a new mayor for the first time in a dozen years. In other, widely scattered odd-year balloting, Colorado was setting a tax rate for marijuana, Houston was deciding the fate of the Astrodome and Alabama Republicans were choosing between two of their own — from different wings of the party — in a special congressional runoff election in a conservative state. Across the country, voters also were choosing sides in a host of local elections and ballot initiatives. Turnout was expected to be relatively light — even in the most hard-fought races — given that it was not a presidential or congressional election year, and voters were primarily hard-core partisans. Not on the ballot, President Barack Obama took a pass on wagering any guess on outcomes, saying: “Never predict elections. That’s a losing proposition.” Taken together, the results in individual states and cities were expected to yield no broad judgments on how the American public feels about today’s two biggest
national political debates — government spending and health care — which are more likely to shape next fall’s midterm elections.
Senate moves ahead on gay rights bill WASHINGTON — Invoking the Declaration of Independence, proponents of a bill that would outlaw discrimination against gays in the workplace argued on Tuesday that the measure is rooted in fundamental fairness for all Americans. Republican opponents of the measure were largely silent, neither addressing the issue on the second day of Senate debate nor commenting unless asked. Written statements from some rendered their judgment that the bill would result in costly, frivolous lawsuits and mandate federal law based on sexuality. The Senate moved closer to completing its work on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act that would prohibit workplace discrimination against gay, bisexual and transgender Americans. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, DNev., said a final vote in the Senate is possible by week’s end. Senate passage of the bill would represent a major victory for advocates of gay rights just months after the Supreme Court affirmed gay marriage and granted federal benefits to legally married same-sex couples and three years after Congress ended the ban on gays serving openly in the military.
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State Briefs Associated Press
Parvin trial delayed in Monroe County ABERDEEN — The new trial for David Parvin in the shooting death of his wife has been delayed. The Mississippi Supreme Court threw out Parvin’s conviction and ordered a new trial earlier this year. Parvin, 74, is charged with murder in the 2007 shooting death of Joyce Parvin, 68, at their Monroe County home. He contends the shooting was an accident. Parvin was indicted by a grand jury and later convicted and sentenced to life in prison in 2011. In April, the Supreme Court overturned the conviction and said the judge was wrong to allow certain evidence to be presented during the trial. Parvin had been scheduled for a second trial Nov. 12. No new trial date has been announced. Parvin remains in the Monroe County Jail without bond. Circuit Judge Paul Funderburk granted the delay on Monday after considering the state’s motion to exclude certain new evidence or put off the trial’s start. District Attorney Trent Kelly said it is only right that his office have time to analyze new evidence to prepare for trial, which he speculated will occur in February. Last week, Parvin’s defense team filed a motion for a new analysis of the gunshot, which fired the fatal shot. In his previous trial, the defense insisted that Parvin was armed with a loaded gun to go outside and shoot beavers. Parvin
said the gun accidentally discharged and shot his wife when he tripped inside the house.
New vo-tech school being built in Horn Lake HORN LAKE — The DeSoto County school system will build a new vocational-technical education center in Horn Lake. School Superintendent Milton Kuykendall told The Commercial Appeal that the old vo-tech center will be renovated to provide more classrooms at Southaven high and middle schools. The new center site is 70 acres at U.S. Highway 51 and Nail Road in Horn Lake County school board members Monday have hired Allen & Hoshall as the architect for both the new center and renovation of the old facility. School Superintendent Milton Kuykendall said the projects will give western DeSoto County students a facility comparable to the new vo-tech facility in
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Olive Branch for eastern DeSoto County. He said it will bring much-needed relief to crowding in Southaven. “That’s where the biggest crowding problem is,” Kuykendall said of Southaven, where eight classrooms are already being added at Southaven Elementary. Kuykendall wasn’t sure how many classrooms would be added in the vo-tech facility renovation, but he said it would be enough to address crowding problems on the middle and high schools campuses for at least five or six years, maybe as many as 10. Kuykendall said his goal is to have the new facility open by August, although school officials were unclear if that goal can be met. He said the system is planning to do some “creative things” with programs at the new facility, which won’t necessarily offer the same courses as its Olive Branch counterpart.
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