Cory Wilson Named Senior Advisor to Treasurer Lynn Fitch

Seasons change. That concept finds strong support these days among all voters polled in the Wilson household. As the Global Warming Winter of 2014 (surely the coldest I can recall in Mississippi) gives way to spring time, the idea of green grass and warmer temperatures sounds really nice.

Seasons of life change too. I am about to transition to a new season of service. So, this will be my last column, at least for a while. There are some fairly harsh blog commenters (usually named “Anonymous”) who may be disappointed, but I hope most folks have appreciated my columns. If any of them got you to thinking, all the better.
John Lennon said that “life is what happens while you are busy making other plans.” A higher authority says it better, in Proverbs 16:9: “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama sparred over who was more qualified to answer that phone call that came in at 3:00 a.m. (turns out neither was, really). But for most of us, it is the unexpected phone call that comes in the middle of a workday afternoon. It’s the same now, for me.
A few weeks ago, my phone rang. That call led to a meeting, and then another. While I was not looking to “come out of retirement” so to speak, and return to state government just yet, that’s what I am doing.
Mississippi Treasurer Lynn Fitch has asked me to serve as Senior Advisor to the agency. In that capacity, I will assist the Treasurer with development of policy initiatives relating to her duties, oversight of state and national legislative affairs, communications, and implementation of Treasury rules, regulations, and strategic planning.
It’s a full portfolio of responsibility, but it also is a chance to serve Mississippi, alongside Lynn Fitch, whom I both like and respect. Fitch is the quintessential happy warrior for improving government, and improving Mississippi. We have that in common.
Almost a year ago, Governor Phil Bryant appointed me to serve on the College Savings Mississippi Board of Directors. That has given me the chance to work closely with Fitch and with Treasury staff on improving the MPACT program. While I have submitted a letter of resignation to the Governor as to board membership (I cannot serve at both Treasury and on the College Savings Board, which Fitch chairs), the new role will still allow a significant impact on MPACT (pun, in this case, intended). There are a number of other important things the Treasurer does, and I look forward to diving in (and to balancing my firm’s law office while I am “on loan” to Treasury).

An unexpected interruption in life, but also an opportunity for public service worth pursuing.
When I started writing commentary three years ago, I hoped to achieve a couple things. One goal was simply to “get it out of my system” once a week or so. But the other was to add a conservative voice to the discussion over where we are going as a state and as a country.
One observation from three years of writing is that there is a real hunger for balance in the media. I think people, to the extent they liked my columns, really just appreciated hearing a conservative perspective. That perspective is almost always lacking nationally, outside FoxNews. Conservatives: take heart, there are a lot of us out there. We may be frustrated and at times appalled, but we are not discredited.
That is something significant. Conservatism works, and is working even in unlikely places like Wisconsin and New Jersey. Big government liberalism is what’s failing and flailing, writ large.
A related observation is that Republicans need, desperately, to set forth their positive vision for where they want to take the country. America remains a mostly right-leaning country, and expansive government is being discredited daily by Obama liberals. But most voters will not replace “something” with “nothing.”
Republicans need to be confident and comfortable with conservative principles. But the GOP cannot rest assured that everyone remembers Reagan or understands why less government means more liberty and prosperity. And, we need to remember the “happy” and not just the “warrior.” We can be conservative without being mad about it.
The future’s looking up, so long as conservatives engage the battlefield. For this happy warrior, it’s on to the next front. Thank you again for reading.
Cory T. Wilson is a Madison attorney with Heidelberg Steinberger Colmer & Burrow, P.A. Follow Cory on Twitter, @CoryWilsonMS, or email cory@corywilson.ms.