The devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina along the Mississippi coast was fresh in Haley Barbour 's mind when he met with Sen. Thad Cochran and other members of the congressional delegation about aid in 2005 . Long ##time state senator has a tough runoff on Tuesday . The race has gotten ugly -- blogger posts photos of senator 's bedridden wife . Cochran says becoming a college cheerleader was first political ambition . Critics say he 's been in office too long and is out of touch .
Long ##time state senator has a tough runoff on Tuesday . The race has gotten ugly -- blogger posts photos of senator 's bedridden wife . Cochran says becoming a college cheerleader was first political ambition . Critics say he 's been in office too long and is out of touch .