Latest entries in Politics Watch
Political updates from Columbia, Jeff City and Washington by The Maneater's political reporters.
June 25, 2009
Forsee reacts to Nixon's budget cuts
Exercising his line item veto power, Governor Jay Nixon announced this morning that he would cut or withhold more than $400 million dollars from the state budget for Fiscal Year 2010.
According to a budget summary obtained by The Maneater from the Governor's office, $100 million of these cuts are permanent and include $12 million for ethanol funding in FY2012 and FY2013 and $10 million for a highway interchange in Jefferson City.
The release stated nixon also withheld $300 million in other funds that could be be added back into the budget if state revenue figures exceed current expectations. These withheld funds include money for the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center and cuts an additional 200 state employees from the budget. Overall, more than $100 million of funding for MOHELA projects were either cut or put on hold by the governor.
Reacting to the news, UM System President Gary Forsee said in a news release that the University of Missouri System was disappointed by Nixon's decision.
"These construction and renovation projects enjoy wide public support and address long-standing problems with aging facilities that no longer serve the purposes for which they are intended," Forsee said. "We fully understand the state is facing challenging financial times, but eliminating or delaying funding for shovel-ready projects represents a missed opportunity to stimulate the economy by providing jobs and better education and health care services for Missourians.”
Nixon said the current economic situation required sacrifices.
"All across our state, families are having to make tough financial decisions – putting off things they want, just so they can afford the things they truly need," Nixon said in news release. "In short, more than ever, Missourians are having to tighten their belts and prioritize. Just as Missouri families are required to tighten their belts, so too must state government. Missourians are fiscally conservative people, and especially in these tough economic times, we must not turn our backs on that value."
June 18, 2009
Obama extends benefits to same-sex couples
Yesterday, President Obama expanded benefits already offered to the spouses of federal employees to include same-sex partners. The Presidential Memorandum extends benefits without requiring any existing laws to be changed. Obama said he wished he could do more, but he said existing federal law does not allow for any further changes.
"Unfortunately, my Administration is not authorized by existing Federal law to provide same-sex couples with the full range of benefits enjoyed by heterosexual married couples," Obama said in a White House news release. "That's why I stand by my long-standing commitment to work with Congress to repeal the so-called Defense of Marriage Act. It's discriminatory, it interferes with States' rights, and it's time we overturned it."
The memo allows federal employees to take sick days to care for partners and it allows for partners to be counted as household members when housing arrangements are determined for state department employees stationed overseas.
Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese said this memo was an important first step in a statement released before the memo was signed.
"Today’s presidential signature is the first brick in paving what is a long path toward equality for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans."
May 26, 2009
Obama reveals Supreme Court nomination
President Obama announced his nomination for the Supreme Court of the United States today during a morning news conference. A White House press release stated Obama has chosen Sonia Sotomayor as his nominee to fill the position vacated by retiring Justice David Souter.
Sotomayor, 54, has served 11 years on the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and if confirmed she would be the first Hispanic to serve on the Supreme Court.
In a transcript The Maneater received from the White House, Obama said Sotomayor is a qualified addition to the court.
"Over a distinguished career that spans three decades, Judge Sotomayor has worked at almost every level of our judicial system, providing her with a depth of experience and a breadth of perspective that will be invaluable as a Supreme Court justice," Obama said.
While Republicans are expected to resist the nomination, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said the GOP would have to closely examine her legal views before taking any action.
"Supreme Court vacancies are rare, which makes Sonia Sotomayor's nomination a perfect opportunity for America to have a thoughtful discussion about the role of the Supreme Court in our daily lives," Steele said in a press release. "Republicans will reserve judgment on Sonia Sotomayor until there has been a thorough and thoughtful examination of her legal views."
May 15, 2009
Economic development bill passed
The Missouri Legislature passed the economic development bill during its last day in session today. The bill, which was first proposed in the House and sponsored by Rep. Tim Flook, R-Liberty, has been held up in the Senate since early February. Passing the legislation has been one of Gov. Nixon's top priorities, and once signed it will give various tax incentives to small businesses.
The final version of the bill would cap the controversial historic preservation tax credits at $140 million and would raise the spending cap on the Missouri Quality Jobs Program from $60 million to $80 million. Flook said the legislation would help create jobs in Missouri.
"We want to create these jobs and get Missouri in the right direction," Flook said during debate on the House floor. "If we don't get those jobs going, gentlemen, I think we all agree nothing else is going to work."
May 6, 2009
Mo. House rejects health care expansion
Following a highly contentious debate over an appropriations bill that would have expanded state health care coverage to more than 30,000, the Missouri House rejected the measure 75-85, with the vote split along party lines.
In a subsequent vote, the House elected to send the bill back to conference to work up a new agreement.
About half an hour after the vote, Gov. Jay Nixon issued a release denouncing the House vote. The expansion of state health had been one of Nixon's campaign promises:
“Missouri has a 25-year high in unemployment and a little more than one week remaining in the legislative session, yet the Republican-led legislature has done virtually nothing to improve our state’s economy," Nixon said in the release. "By voting today against providing health care to 35,000 Missourians at no extra cost to the state, House Republicans rejected a plan that would have pumped $145 million in new money into our economy at no cost to taxpayers. While this proposal to spur economic growth through health care expansion enjoyed broad bipartisan support in the Missouri Senate, the Missouri House let flawed ideology stand in the way of progress. House Republicans should explain to Missourians immediately why they allowed politics to interfere with our state’s opportunity to make health care more affordable and accessible. Turning down health care is not the way to turn around Missouri’s economy.”
The plan to include the new recipients would have been provided with funds that are normally used to compensate hospitals for visits by uninsured patients, which would have qualified the state for additional federal funds.
A conference committee formed between the House Budget and Senate Appropriations committees had agreed to include the provision. But House Budget Chairman Allen Icet said he wanted to encourage his fellow Republicans to vote against the bill on the floor.
"It puts more people on a dysfunctional and a broken system," Icet said in comments made on the floor, which I obtained from live audio on the House Web site.
April 28, 2009
McCaskill film features tax credits, talking house
On Monday, U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., announced the release of a shiort film on YouTube that puts a little humorous twist on a tax credit for first-time home buyers that the senator touted in Columbia on Saturday.
Here is our story on McCaskill's appearance and the tax credit, and here is McCaskill's video.
In a release from McCaskill's office, the video is called a spoof on the eHarmony ads. Which has never been done.
However, the prospect of a talking house might be a little creepier to some Missourians.
April 27, 2009
Steelman takes aim at the Feds
Former State Treasurer Sarah Steelman has not officially announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate, though she has gone as far as forming an exploratory committee for a possible run against U.S. Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo. Regardless, she is already taking shots at some of the brass on Capitol Hill. This is a letter that Steelman distributed today:
Dear Friends, If anyone questions why the American people have lost faith in those who represent them in Washington, one need look no further than the front page of Thursday's (Apr. 23) Wall Street Journal. The above the fold headline reads "Lewis Says U.S. Ordered Silence on Deal" referring to Bank of America's purchase of Merrill Lynch which triggered the bail out of B of A. Who in the U.S.? None other than Hank Paulson, former Secretary of the Treasury and Ben Bernanke, current Chairman of the Federal Reserve. Mr. Lewis, the CEO of Bank of America. He testified under oath that he was told not to disclose to shareholders of Bank of America the full financial loss of Merrill Lynch Brokerage prior to shareholders voting to approve the purchase of the brokerage. In other words, he was ordered by the U.S. Government to not tell the truth to the shareholders of the company. And, unfortunately, he did what he was told to do.
This government ordered failure to disclose is precisely why we are in this financial mess. Not only is it absolutely wrong and unfair to the shareholders of Bank of America, this lack of disclosure is what contributed to the collapse of the credit markets. Markets cannot operate without credibility and trust. All financial information that is materially important to financial decision-making by the investor and shareholders must be disclosed or else that trust is violated and credibility is lost. If the public thinks that public companies are hiding information - guess what - they aren't going to invest in them.
As State Treasurer, I changed our investment policy in December of 2007, prohibiting investments in short term commercial paper issued by financial institutions because of my concerns about transparency and full disclosure. My job was to protect taxpayer investments and I no longer believed that the major financial institutions were disclosing the full amount of their toxic assets nor did I know which institutions were credible and which ones were not. Therefore we stopped investing in all of them.
However, what I did not realize was that those who were charged with regulating the securities industry would arguably break the law and order silence about information that was materially important to shareholders. This is absolutely outrageous and should not be tolerated.
The stock market and our economic system work because investors rely on financial information that is required by law to be disclosed allowing individual and institutional investors to draw their own conclusions about whether it is a profitable investment. It is this requirement that ensures that our markets our free. Freedom has never meant no laws or regulation - that would result in chaos. It also requires that there are consequences for not doing the right thing - that's called justice. Capitalism works because we require disclosure of accurate information to individuals about publicly traded companies. Efficient markets reflect information about the company in share price.
This kind of reckless behavior by Paulson and Bernanke undermines the very institutions that they are suppose to be regulating and they should be held accountable for their actions. But since, government officials cannot be sued in most instances because of sovereign or official immunity, retirees who have seen their pensions disappear will have to seek restitution by keeping their fingers crossed and hope that their Congressmen or Senators will correct this wrongdoing and provide a meaningful remedy for these losses. Americans must send the message to Washington that they cannot trample on shareholders rights, destroy credibility in the markets, and then demand more money from the American taxpayer to subsidize bad decisions and interference by regulators. It is not right - it is not fair - and it must be stopped.
Sincerely,
Sarah Steelman
April 23, 2009
Nixon signs executive order to reduce energy consumption
Gov. Jay Nixon signed an executive order this morning that will reduce energy consumption at all state agencies by two percent per year for 10 years. He made the announcement at the Missouri Energy Summit, held at Jesse Hall.
"We have a responsibility to set the example for state employees, businesses and citizens across the state," Nixon said in a news release from the governor's office. "This will be good for taxpayers and the environment, and lead the way toward a brighter, cleaner energy future for all of us."
The energy-saving measure, Nixon said, will save Missouri taxpayers $1 million in the first year. According to the news release, taxpayers spent $54.7 million on energy costs at state agencies last year.
Energy conservation will come from weatherization of buildings, replacement of energy-inefficient light, implementation of more efficient means of heating and cooling buildings and other measures, the news release stated.
Below is a press conference with Nixon held immediately after he announced the executive order.
April 14, 2009
House OKs bill for campus buildings
The Missouri House has given preliminary approval to a bill that would provide $700 million for building projects in colleges and universities across the state.
The bill is sponsored by Rep. Chris Kelly, D-Columbia, but has found support from both side of the aisle, as Rep. Steven Tilley, R-Perryville, has co-sponsored the bill. According to a report from the Columbia Daily Tribune, when the bill was up for perfection before the entire House, there was nary a peep in opposition to the measure.
If passed, the bill would place a question on next year's ballot that would voters to authorize the legislature to issue bonds for building projects on campuses across the state.
Possible projects on the MU campus that could use the funds include the construction of the new Ellis Fischel Cancer Center on campus, and renovations for Lafferre Hall on the northeast side of campus.
April 13, 2009
Biden in Missouri this week
Vice President Joe Biden will be in Missouri this week, however, exactly where and when that is going to be is still somewhat unclear.
It has been confirmed that Biden, who last appeared in Missouri on the campaign trail for a debate with 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, will be at the University of Missouri-St. Louis on Friday to give a lecture on college affordability called "Making College More Affordable for Our Families." The location and time have not been released.
According to a White House news release, Biden's appearance is the third of a series of meetings of the Middle Class Task Force. The release stated that Biden should make an appearance in Central Missouri sometime on Thursday to discuss implementation of federal stimulus dollars.
If I were a betting reporter (which I am not) I would put some money on the idea that Biden's staff might choose a city where a large crowd came out for his campaign appearance, and an even bigger one for an appearance by his running mate. Somewhere like, maybe, Columbia?
Keep checking back with us for the latest on this appearance.
