The latest shady texts from Brett Favre in the Mississippi welfare scandal reveal the Hall of Fame quarterback seeing the help of Governor Tate Reeves to pay for volleyball facilities that Favre had previously vowed to finance personally.
Ashton Pittman and William Pittman of The Mississippi Free Press broke the story Friday morning.
The Mississippi Department of Human Services sent $5 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Family welfare funds to Southern Mississippi, Favre’s alma mater, to build a volleyball facility on the campus his daughter planned to attend in the fall of 2017. Despite the generously illicit handout, Favre was still $1.6 million short in financing the project.
Texts obtained by The Free Press show Favre commanded former governor Phil Bryant, who left office weeks prior, to “think of anyone or any other way of getting funding for the remainder of Vball” in January 2020.
Favre concluded by saying he “just sent Tate a message,” referring to the new Mississippi governor.
However, requests of the governor’s office via the Freedom of Information Act only revealed a texting relationship between the two that started seven days later. From The Free Press:
“Hey bud we set to talk today at 2 Todd said,” Favre wrote to Reeves in the first Jan. 27 text. (It is not clear who “Todd” is). Reeves replied with a thumbs-up emoji. At 2:01 p.m., Favre asked Reeves if he was free to talk. “Yes sir,” Reeves replied.
Further texts reveal that the Hall of Fame quarterback and Reeves directly discussed financing the volleyball arena at later phone call.
“Failed to mention but there will be state programs using the facility like seminars, teen rallies, obesity campaigns etc…,” Favre wrote at 3:55 p.m. that day. “Again thanks I know you have many requests,”
Favre shared a parting thought 15 hours later, at 7:15 a.m. on Jan. 28, 2020: “And name it after Governor Bryant.”
The FOIA request did not reveal any response from Governor Reeves.
