Back at the turn of the century, as Chair of the Missouri Advisory Council On Alcohol and Drug Abuse, I appeared before committees working-up the state’s mental health budget.  The legislature maintained this great fiction that they controlled state operations down to one percent of every state employee’s time.  Using their power, a committee – thence the whole legislature – might slash a line item from 12.45 FTEs [Full Time Equivalent employees] down to 10.75 FTEs.

Of course, that mythical level of oversight never happened.  Still, it made the elected Representatives and Senators think they accomplished something.

And, even in these Republican times, the Missouri Legislature holds hearings and goes over the thick budget books for state departments in intricate detail.  Even expending just a trifle of money ($10,000 or $25,000 in a $30 billion budget) leads to debate, negotiations and tremendous angst.

Not this week.

The same legislature which traditionally sweats nickels gave accidental Governor Mike Parson unprecedented authorization to seek and spend over $6 billion without further or meaningful oversight.

Also, the Missouri legislature, by law, must pass a balanced budget for the new state fiscal year in early May.  Nope.

The latest plan has the governor calling a special session – probably in mid to late June – to pass a kinda budget.  Instead of detailed hearings and intricate review, the House and Senate will listen to a quick overview from bureaucrats and pull-out the rubber stamp.

Meanwhile, in Washington, Congress gave the Federal Reserve Board broad power to act in virtual secrecy. Politico reports:

The new law would absolve the board of the requirement to keep minutes to  closed-door meetings as it deliberates on how to set up the $450 billion loan program. That would severely limit the amount of information potentially available to the public on what influenced the board’s decision-making. The board would only have to keep a record of its votes, though they wouldn’t have to be made public during the coronavirus crisis.

Remember, the Federal Reserve already acts deep in the shadows.  How they “find” trillions of dollars to prop-up the economy on short notice is pretty much a head scratcher. Yes, they do, after all, print money.  Still, it would be a nice to believe that somehow people elected by their neighbors get to review and question how our economy is manipulated.  Not this year. The current president sees the Fed as just another loyal serfdom obligated to respond to his whim,.

Donald Trump, alas, ignores rules—and truth—every day.  Note how when he signed the latest stimulus bill, he refused to abide by its oversight provisions.  And, his new hobby is firing federal Inspector Generals, even the ones he appointed.

Donald, like Mike here in Missouri, prefers to rule by decree. “I know what’s best for you” ought to be on both their business cards. Dictate, don’t negotiate. If it works for Vladimir Putin or Recep Erdağon it ought to work for Trump and Parson.

Too bad it is working.

For decades, historians have charted the move towards an imperial presidency in this country. Yet it continues. And, Missouri governors of both parties have yanked more power to their office—the disposal of Eric Greitens being the rare exception to that trend.

My fear?  When COVID 19 heads to the history books, the extra control seized by government executives “during the emergency” won’t go away. Kind of like today’s Federal Assembly in Russia.  What began almost 30 years ago as a true parliament has reverted to the old Supreme Soviet, existing to say yes to the tyrant’s whims (including changing the law so the tyrant can rule as long as he wants).

Remember, Republicans elected to Washington and Jefferson City voluntarily ceded much of their power.  Will their successors ever get that power back?  Probably not

The post Are we witnessing the end of representative government? appeared first on Occasional Planet.

The Missouri House Republican Campaign Committee (HRCC) seems to have a thing for scary words like socialism, state-controlled healthcare, atheists, liberal professors, progressive and, gasp, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton.

Much of what you will find if you Google the phrase “Paid for by House Republican Campaign Committee, INC., Eddy Justice, Treasurer” will not be pretty. In fact most of the search results lead to downright nasty negative ads slamming Democratic candidates for various Missouri House races. Many of these pages have urls that look like the candidates’ official sites.

The House Republican Campaign Committee was formed as a political action committee. The official HRCC website claims that it is “Building MO’s GOP Majority Since 2004.” It’s treasurer is Eddie Justice. He’s been in that role since 2010. He was one of Eric Greitens’ nominees to the state school board. The state senate blocked him from that post.

There is no high road with the HRCC. Not even a chance of a civil conversation.
Of the web offerings by the HRCC, only three are positive sites pushing Republican candidates. At least seven are scare sites with the message that the named candidates are evil and that you should vote “NO.” No reference is made to the candidates for whom they would like you to vote.

Here’s a sampling of some of the HRCC vitriol:

Peggy Sherwin. 104th District, running against Adam Schnelting.
The 104th is in central St. Charles county. Sherwin is a retired professor and has taught newly released felons transferable skills related to re-entry into society. She has been endorsed by Missouri NEA, NARAL and various labor groups. Here is Sherwin’s real campaign site.

Using the url, peggyproblems.com, the HRCC claims:

• She’s a socialist extremist who wants government run healthcare, higher taxes, open borders and wants to take away our 2nd amendment rights.
• Peggy supported both Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election.

Jessica Merrick. 20th District, running against Bill Kidd (incumbent.) The 20th is near Kansas City, north of Blue Springs. She believes everyone should have access to affordable healthcare and that our public education system is drastically underfunded.  Here is Merrick’s real facebook campaign page.

Using the url, realjessicamerrick.com, the HRCC screams:

• Our faith. Our Freedom. Nothing is sacred to Jessica Merrick.
• Too Extreme. Too Far Out of Touch. Vote NO on Jessica Merrick.

Michella Skelton. 50th District, running against Sara Walsh (incumbent.)  The 50th is south of Columbia. Skelton favors paid family leave, improved healthcare for all, the rights of workers to unionize and bargain for higher wages and better working conditions. She has a long list of endorsements from a variety of progressive sources. Here is Skelton’s campaign website.

Using the url, extremistskelton.com, the HRCC declares:

• Michela Skelton’s campaign is backed and funded by liberal professors that defended Melissa Click during the campus protests that led to a decline in enrollment, lost tuition revenue and fewer jobs in our community.

Brady O’Dell. 11th District, running against Brenda Shields. The 11th is in southwest Missouri around St. Joseph. O’Dell calls himself a blue collar worker who is against “Right to Work” legislation and is for raising the minimum wage.  Here is his real campaign facebook posting.

Using the url, bradyodell.com, the HRCC claims:

• Vulgar Brady O’Dell’s progressive policies are wrong for Missouri
• Brady O’Dell wants to bring socialism to Missouri. This destructive system will kill jobs, raise taxes, and expand failing, inefficient government programs.
• Brady O’Dell clearly doesn’t like our tax cuts. Socialist Brady O’Dell will try to repeal your tax cuts and increase government spending by MILLIONS.

The HRCC has not restrained itself to web postings. They also are sending out direct mail like this one slamming O’Dell. The socialism quote allegedly came from a 2013 facebook post.

And then there’s this direct mail piece which displays masterful Photoshop work on  Mike Labozzetta who is running against incumbent Republican Jean Evans in the 99th State Rep District in St. Louis County

The HRCC mailer was an over-the-top hatchet job that made Labozzetta look like a depraved Jack Nicholson from The Shining. In reality, Mike is a friendly attorney who works with entrepreneurs, business owners, non-profits and startups. On his website, he says his goal is, “to create a government that invests in its citizens by investing in their education, in their healthcare, and in creating a diverse economy that provides opportunities for all.” Here is Labozzetta’s campaign website.

All of these targeted candidates are reasonable people with high ideals. One has to wonder if their Republican opponents are really on board with these ugly HRCC postings. When asked if she condoned the negative mailers about Labozzetta, Jean Evans stated only that she would not run negative ads and that she has no control over the ads produced by the HRCC.

If these negative offerings hold sway, it will be sad commentary on Missouri voters.

The post MO GOP PAC goes low with scary words and images appeared first on Occasional Planet.

It’s now a law in Missouri that, if you’re on Medicaid, and you miss your doctor’s appointment without notifying the doctor 24 hours in advance, you can be charged a fine. The charge for the first missed appointment is $5, the second is $10 and the third is $20. Way to go, state legislature: You’ve just added a new poverty crime to the books.

The new law also allows providers in Missouri Health Net [Missouri’s name for Medicaid] to refuse to schedule new appointments until the missed appointment fee is paid.

Those fees may not sound like a lot to someone earning a middle-income paycheck or above, but they count. They’re a way of nickel-and-diming people who can afford it least. And they can be a barrier to healthcare for people who are financially disadvantaged.

Fortunately, the fee is unlikely to win approval from the federal government.

“They’ve consistently told states they cannot impose a missed appointment fee. I’m not sure that will ever be approved,” said St. Louis University School of Law Professor Sidney Watson of the Center for Health Law Studies.

But in Missouri, passing a law that is unconstitutional, or inhumane, or in violation of federal rules typically does not deter the Republican-dominated state legislature. Apparently, in their quest to pander to the worst instincts of their voter base, they like to go on record as being in favor of these extreme measures. Case in point: The Missouri legislature just enacted—over Democratic Governor Jay Nixon’s veto—a law that removes the need for a permit or any training if you want to carry a concealed gun. The law also institutes the “castle doctrine” or “Stand-Your-Ground” principle that allows you to shoot first, and ask questions later, if you feel—in any way—threatened.  That law resulted in national media dubbing Missouri the “Shoot-Me” state.

The new missed-appointment fee is only the latest in the laundry list of poverty crimes that plague low-income people in Missouri, and elsewhere. Around here, you can pile up lots of fees—traffic fines, court costs, appearance costs—then get arrested for non-payment and put behind bars until you bail yourself out for a few hundred dollars. Then you get fired for not showing up to work, and lose your paycheck, which puts you back into the non-payment cycle.

Moral of the story: Don’t be poor in Missouri. But don’t count on your elected officials to help you, either.

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The National Rifle Association will make the override of Senate Bill 656 their top priority in the country this week as the omnibus gun bill continues to gain momentum as the most high-profile legislation at stake on Wednesday, says an article in the Missouri Times.

The pro-gun group will launch a once-in-a-decade lobbying effort to override Gov. Jay Nixon’s veto of a bill that has drawn fervent support and opposition from all corners of the country.

As part of their efforts, the NRA has flown in several staffers to help lobby lawmakers, launched television ads, and sent mailers to key targeted districts. Whit O’Daniel, who lobbies on behalf of the NRA, said he’s been texting the entire Republican caucus to inform them that the NRA ranks SB 656 as the biggest priority in the country. It’s also their biggest priority in Missouri since 2003.

Imagine that! The NRA thinks that giving any and all Missourians unregulated rights to buy, own, sell guns and shoot their neighbors at will (as in stand-your-ground) is one of the biggest priorities in the nation. It’ll be good for NRA sponsors I suppose, as in the get-rich-quick kind of good.

Just to provide a little counterpoint,  I also want to share  this tidbit  from an article posted on the Turner Report:

A former Tarkio R-1 High School student who brought a loaded semi-automatic pistol to school, causing the school to be locked down, pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally possessing a machine gun that was found at his residence.

[…]

According to court documents, Knoth – who came to school on Feb. 11, 2016, wearing military-style clothing, boots and ballistic body armor – displayed a fully loaded magazine to another student that day. That student alerted a teacher, and the school contacted the Tarkio, Mo., Police Department. School officials then discovered a loaded Glock 9mm semi-automatic pistol in Knoth’s backpack, along with four loaded 9mm pistol magazines, three loaded .223- or .556-caliber magazines, a spring-assisted knife, a seatbelt cutter and a window punch.

Knoth was arrested and handcuffed. The school was placed on lockdown.

Investigators searched Knoth’s vehicle, which was parked in the school parking lot. They found two loaded 9mm magazines and 15 loaded .223/.556-caliber magazines.

Investigators also searched Knoth’s residence. During a search of the southwest bedroom, investigators found a loaded machine gun in the closet – an AR-style .223/.556 pistol, containing no visible serial numbers or manufacturer stamp. They found a second machine gun, an UZI-style 9mm firearm (unknown manufacture), in the dresser. Investigators also found numerous rounds of ammunition and numerous loaded .223/.556 and 9mm magazines throughout the residence.

So are unstable young men with a fetish for guns and violence among the persons whose priorities the NRA is spending so much money to support? You better bet they, and their ilk will be among the beneficiaries.Of course, if the NRA gets its best-of-all-world druthers, teachers and administrators, along with each kid in Knoth’s school would all be sporting “good guy” guns in order to ward off attack. Possible outcomes? Draw  your own conclusions.

The post Who benefits from NRA’s push for MO guns-everywhere law? appeared first on Occasional Planet.

The post Legislative pickpockets: What 2016 right-wing laws cost MO taxpayers appeared first on Occasional Planet.

It has always been hard to unseat an incumbent candidate. The advantages of already possessing a legislative title like State Representative or State Senator are immense. But you know what makes unseating incumbents even more difficult? Allowing them to run unopposed.

In Missouri this year, 72 incumbent candidates for seats in the State Legislature are running without an opponent in the general election. Of those, 53 are Republicans, and 19 are Democrats.  The Missouri legislature has 163 total members. Currently, 117 are Republicans, and 45 are Democrats.

That’s a lot of non-competition in a country that calls itself a democracy.

Missouri’s legislature is dominated by Republicans, who wield their veto-proof majority like a weapon of mass destruction. Our Democratic Governor, Jay Nixon, has been virtually powerless to stop some of the incredibly short-sighted, unfair and damaging legislation passed by the Missouri House and Senate. Examples? This year, Missouri lawmakers passed a Stand-Your-Ground law that is the first such piece of legislation passed anywhere since the ignominious George-Zimmerman-Trayvon-Martin shooting of 2012. They also passed a no-permit-needed-concealed-carry law. Missouri has officially joined the ranks of the most right-wing legislatures in the country.

Clearly, some Missouri legislators need replacing. The usual factors stand in the way: blatant gerrymandering of legislative districts; the built-in name recognition and institutional power of incumbency; the connections to lobbyists, power-brokers and funders.

But by far the best way to get elected is to not have an opponent. So, it’s sad to see that, in so many of Missouri’s state legislative districts, no one has stepped forward to offer opposition in the general election. In so many cases, the stopper is a sense of hopelessness: the belief that there is simply no way to win. Plus, why put yourself out there—exposing yourself and possibly your family to the public abuse that has become a routine part of campaigns– if you’re just going to lose, anyway?

Money is a big issue, too, and campaign costs are escalating. Even the most local races are spending more than ever. Some candidates for state legislative positions are amassing campaign war chests of unprecedented size. I’m guessing that some are piling up the money as a way of demonstrating that opposition is fruitless. Also, knowing that they don’t really need all that money to run against nobody, many will probably share the bounty with other like-minded campaigns, as a way of building power alliances that will come in handy later.

Here are a few numbers [from Missouri Times]:

Sheila Solon, running uncontested in the general election for a safe Republican seat in House District 31 has $93,084.13 in her campaign fund.

Mike Bernskoetter, running uncontested in the general election in the overwhelmingly Republican 59^th House District, has amassed $63,379.72 in campaign funds.

Bonnaye Mims, running uncontested in the general election in the predominantly Democratic 27^th House District, has $32,656.95 in her campaign treasury.

Of course, uncontested elections are not confined to Missouri. Unfortunately, they may be on the rise, and some observers say that gerrymandering is the main culprit.

• According to Richard Winger, of Ballot Access News, in 2012, there were 5,984 regularly scheduled state Senate and House races. About 2,000 of those were in districts where the candidates ran unopposed. Winger says that about 33 percent of all state legislative-district elections in 2012 had only one candidate per seat in the race—and  it’s likely that the vast majority of those candidates were incumbents running unopposed. Many of those races can be won with a mere 3,000 to 5,000 votes or so, depending on the year.
• In 2014, one-third of candidates for the Texas legislature ran unopposed, according to Burnt Orange Report.
• In 2016 elections in Illinois, “even if Republicans win every race where they have a candidate, they cannot win back control of the chamber. That’s because there are too many races where Democrats have an unopposed candidate,” Ballotpedia says of House elections.
• In the Illinois Senate this year, “of the 40 districts up for election, 30 have already been decided because of unopposed candidates,” says Ballotpedia.

I understand why people, on both the Democratic and Republican sides, choose not to run. I wish, though, that Democrats—especially progressive Democrats– would at least try—if only to counteract the right-wing message that dominates Missouri elections and politics. This year, especially with Donald Trump at the top of the ticket, there may be an opportunity for Dems to switch some seats—but that won’t happen when there’s no one listed on the Democratic side of the ballot. It’s sad for Missouri and for small-d democracy, too.

The post Uncontested: One of the worst words in a democracy appeared first on Occasional Planet.

If you had an abortion in Missouri between 2010 and 2015, you’re on Missouri State Senator Kurt Schaefer’s hit list.

Schaefer, a Republican, demanded that  Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region turn over the list. He made the same demand of a St. Louis-area pathologist.

Schaefer’s excuse? He’s “investigating” those already-proven-bogus allegations that Planned Parenthood sells fetal tissues for profit.  Missouri’s Attorney General has already examined those charges against Planned Parenthood, and found no wrongdoing. Not to mention that the creator of the maliciously edited videos circulated to “prove” the case has been indicted in Houston, TX for creating the misleading videos.

Need I mention that a federal law passed in 1996 sets up strict guidelines for healthcare facilities and providers to protect the private of patients’ healthcare records? It’s a well-known law called HIPAA. And should Schaefer try to say that Planned Parenthood should be exempt from HIPAA protections, he’d be contradicting his party’s own view of Planned Parenthood. In other actions related to Planned Parenthood, Republican lawmakers have made it clear that they view Planned Parenthood as a medical facility. They’ve insisted on a vast range of changes that generally apply to healthcare facilities: hospital-admitting privileges for doctors performing abortions, ambulances on call, hospital-like hallways and driveways. There’s no question that HIPAA applies.

But none of these things has stopped Schaefer. He has not specified what he would do if he got the names, but it’s a scary prospect. One can imagine the abortion-shaming that would follow. And make no mistake, previous actions by Missouri Republican lawmakers demonstrate that they are quite capable and willing to go to extremes.

A St. Louis Post-Dispatch editorial called this latest Republican gambit “a thinly veiled effort to expose the identities of abortion patients as a means of shaming and discouraging other women from exercising their constitutional rights.”

We can only hope that Schaefer is not really serious about this strategy: After all, he’s running for Missouri Attorney General, so attacking Planned Parenthood is good for arousing the base.  And one would expect cooler legal heads to prevail in the courts when this outrageous demand is challenged.

So far, Schaefer has not backed down, and he’s supported by the Missouri Senate’s Rules and Ethics committee, which last week approved a resolution to compel Planned Parenthood’s CEO to “appear before the whole Senate to explain why they should not be punished for failing to comply with the demand.”

He has threatened the CEO of Planned Parenthood with “contempt,” if she does not produce the desired list. That’s pretty ironic. What’s really contemptible is Schaefer’s behavior.

The post MO legislator wants names of women who’ve had an abortion appeared first on Occasional Planet.

Millions of words have been written about Medicaid, and the failure to expand it, in Missouri. The words have fallen on deaf ears. Maybe we need to buy our legislators hearing aids? Or, maybe instead of words, we need to add lights….cameras….action, as in this two-act morality play about those who have misplaced their morals.

TIME: Spring, 2015

PLACE: Small town in Missouri

ACT I: Our hero is walking down the street carrying a heavy backpack. It is stuffed with money. On the corner he meets a man and woman who are having a bake sale. They are shivering in their threadbare sweaters and look frail and vulnerable.

MAN: “Would you like to buy a cookie? We’re trying to raise money so I can have surgery for my leaky heart valve.”

WOMAN: “We hate to ask for charity; we both work. I’m a home health aide and he’s a stocker at Walmart. We don’t have any health insurance through work and we make too much for Medicaid.”

MAN: “It would be nice to have a doctor so we don’t have to go to the emergency room all the time.”

WOMAN: “How about some pie? This is a new recipe for a pie called ‘humble.’”

Our hero ignores them, although the money is making his backpack very heavy. He goes to another corner, where he sees a man in a Brooks Brothers suit and highly-polished Gucci shoes with a Louis Vuitton briefcase open in front of him.

MAN: “Hey! Would you like to buy some managed care? We have some on sale today! And just for you, we are offering some real deals. Phone apps, to remind our clients of their doctor’s appointments (if they can find a doctor, of course). And exercise videos! And gift cards for celery for our overweight clients! But those phone apps, man! They are a real deal! But first, you may need this:”

The man whips out his checkbook and writes a big check to our hero, who stuffs it in his pocket. He then opens his backpack and dumps the entire contents into the man’s Louis Vuitton briefcase.

INTERMISSION: Audience comments: “We would NEVER do that.” OFFSTAGE VOICE: “But you just did. You elected people to your legislature who just voted to deny medical coverage to 300,000 low-income Missourians and throw thousands more onto the altar of managed care, where one company reported a 90 percent increase in profits last year. Do I need to point out that this is taxpayer money?“

ACT II: Managed care guy takes a bill and wipes a speck of dust off his shoes. To an aide, he says, “Get the jet over here quick. I only made $19.3 million last year; I need to get back to work!”

On the other corner, the bake sale man and wife are packing up their home-baked goods and wiping up the crumbs.

The post Medicaid: A two-act morality play for Missouri voters appeared first on Occasional Planet.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch correctly identifies problems with the Missouri Medicaid program (“Medicaid missteps,” May 10). But citing the system as “broken” as a reason to deny Echo Garrett the health insurance she deserves is a red herring.

For three years we have talked with legislators, advocating on behalf of the 180,000 low-income Missourians denied coverage because of their refusal to expand Medicaid. The most common response from the deniers has been, “We can’t expand coverage until we fix the broken system.” When we suggested that the legislator meet with his/her caucus and propose legislation to fix the problems, we were told, “I am not a policy person.” In other words, “It’s not my fault, not my responsibility.”

Our Legislature delayed funding for the computer system that processes applications for coverage with the result of a large backlog in applications. To be “more efficient,” our state social services department closed processing centers where clients could meet with counselors. The result has been that clients wait to get called back from counselors and sometimes give up entirely. Our Legislature has a responsibility, a responsibility to fix the system and at the same time provide insurance for Ms. Garrett and the others who are pushed aside while our legislators delay taking action.

[This post originally appeared as a letter to the editor in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, on May 12, 2015. It is reprinted with the author’s permission.]

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It’s crazy time again in Missouri: the opening weeks of the legislative session. This is the time of year when legislators introduce their nutso ideas for new laws. Most of them go nowhere. But the fact that someone took the time to draft these things means that he or she somehow thinks they are good ideas. At the very least, these bills reflect some of the radical, right-wing “thinking” that dominates the legislature that rules my daily life.

Here are some examples of bills recently introduced. [Hat tip to Michael Bersin, at Show Me Progress, who diligently reads through the filings and keeps the rest of us aware of what’s going on.]

HB 826

…No domestic wine shall be sold at retail in the state unless it has been certified as having been produced by and with grapes harvested by verified United States citizens.

Clearly a xenophobic law pushed by an anti-immigration-reform Republican, this bill conveniently ignores the fact that there are many agricultural workers in this country who may not be official citizens, but who have legal status as Lawful Permanent Residents. According to federal statues:

“Any person not a citizen of the United States who is residing the in the U.S. under legally recognized and lawfully recorded permanent residence as an immigrant. Also known as “Permanent Resident Alien,” “Resident Alien Permit Holder,” and “Green Card Holder.”

Yeah, but they’re brown…

HJR 38

Section 38. All areas of this state shall be exempted from the daylight saving time provisions of 15 U.S.C. Section 260a. Beginning on the first Sunday in March of 2017, the state and its political subdivisions and agencies shall switch clocks to daylight saving for the last time and the use of daylight saving time for public purposes will be eliminated. After this time, daylight saving time will no longer be recognized as the official time of this state.

Does anybody really know what time it is in Missouri? While I have, in fact, wondered at times about the value of the agriculturally oriented notion of daylight saving time in the 21st century, this bill is probably more about the “freedoms” and “liberties” that right-wingers worry about than it is about the greater good. Why don’t we all just go back to the good old days of the 19th century, when there was no standard time at all?

And finally, HB 723, quoted without comment

The dog known as “Old Drum”, whose death became the subject of an 1870 Missouri Supreme Court case and the delivery of a famous speech as the closing argument to the case known as the “Eulogy to Old Drum”, is designated as the historical dog of the state of Missouri.

The dog known as “Jim the Wonder Dog” is designated as Missouri’s Wonder Dog.

The post The wacko world of state legislatures: Missouri 2015 edition appeared first on Occasional Planet.