Latest entries in Politics Watch
Political updates from Columbia, Jeff City and Washington by The Maneater's political reporters.
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.
April 7, 2009
Voter turnout only 10.1 percent
Election judges wait to sign-in voters at the Christian Chapel Academy during Tuesday's municipal election. Turnout for the election, which includes decisions on two City Council and School Board seats, has been substantially lower than November's general election.
Less than 10.1 percent of registered Boone County voters cast ballots in Tuesday's municipal election.
The number is far lower than the 28.02 percent who cast votes in last April's municipal election. The November general election had a 83.65 percent voter turnout in Boone County.
It's the lowest voter turnout in an April municipal election in recent memory. The second lowest was a 11.52 percent voter turnout in April 2005.
More than 21,000 new voters registered before the general election in November last year.
Polling stations were empty midday at the Christian Chapel Academy, located at 3300 S. Providence Road.
Vermont allows same-sex marriage
Less than a week after Iowa became the first Midwestern state to allow the issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples, Vermont became the fourth state in the U.S. to allow such a practice.
To view the report from The Washington Post, click here, or here for a the report by The New York Times.
Vermont is the fourth state to allow same-sex marriage by legislative action. The other states to allow same-sex marriage did so through judicial action. The state's House and Senate initially approved the measure, but it was met with the Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas' veto pen. Both chambers of the legislature voted to override the veto with two-thirds majorities.
Vermont would have been the fifth state to approve same-sex marriage if California voters hadn't approved a ballot initiative in the 2008 election that amended the state's constitution to outlaw the practice. Massachusetts, Connecticut and Iowa allow same-sex marriage.
Last night, the Columbia City Council also took a step to enhance the rights of same-sex couples by unanimously approving a measure that would create a domestic partner registry in the city. Columbia joins Kansas City, St. Louis and Jackson County in municipalities that maintain registries. Click here to view the report by Maneater staffers Victoria Guida and Marty Swant.
Today, the city announced that couples who are both at least 18, mentally competent, not related and not married can begin registering at the Columbia/Boone Health Center at 1005 West Worley from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The cost to register is $25.
March 31, 2009
Missouri Scholars funding restored
One of the more contentious issues in regards to the state budget for higher education was proposed cuts to the Missouri Scholars Academy, which was proposed by House Budget Chairman Allen Icet, R-Wildwood.
However, this decision was just reversed tonight by the Senate Appropriations Committee. Initially, when the item was read before the committee, Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, indicated that he wanted to keep debate on that funding open.
However, the chairman of the committee, Sen. Gary Nodler, R-Joplin, said to the freshman senator, "Kurt, I'll do you one better" and promptly had the funding for the academy reversed back to the governors recommended total.
The program, along with the Missouri Fine Arts Program, were originally allocated $700,000, and are summer programs for K-12 students. The Missouri Scholars Academy is held at MU, and the Missouri Fine Arts Academy is held at Missouri State University in Springfield.
March 30, 2009
Groups continue to oppose CWIP
A coalition of consumer advocacy and environmental groups held a press conference in the state capitol today to voice their opposition to a bill that would allow a utility provider to charge ratepayers higher rates while nuclear plant is under construction.
The coalition, called Missourians For Fair Electric Rates, held a conference to oppose the bill, which would allow utility provider Ameren UE to charge customers for "construction work in progress" -- or CWIP -- while a second nuclear plant is built in Callaway County. In a news release, the group said ratepayers could see a 40 percent hike in their electric rates and could lead to job loss.
Susan Gallagher, a spokeswoman for Ameren, said pre-construction costs might drive rates up 1 to 3 percent before construction would begin in 2013. She said the biggest increase that ratepayers could see after the plant goes online might be as much as 12 percent.
The Senate version of the bill could come before the Senate Commerce, Consumer Protection, Energy and the Environment Committee as early as tomorrow, according to a news release from Missourians for Fair Electric Rates. The bill is sponsored by Sen. Delbert Scott, R-Lowry City, and has been languishing in the committee since Feb. 10. A similar House bill, sponsored by Rep. Edgar Emery, R-Lamar, was referred to the House Rules Committee on March 9, but no hearing has been scheduled.
Deaton, Watkins voice support for museum
MU Chancellor Brady Deaton and Columbia City Manager Bill Watkins issued a joint release today expressing their support for keeping the State Historical Society of Missouri in Columbia.
Click here to view the release.
SHS currently has a museum in the basement of Ellis Library at MU, but longtime concerns about space and accessibility to the museum set plans in motion to find a new location for the facility.
The city and SHS had long planned to build a new museum on property directly northwest of campus, which is bordered by Elm St. on the south, Locust St. on the north and Fifth and Sixth streets on the west and east, respectively. The property -- which contains Bengal's Bar and Grill, a laundromat and a private residence -- is owned by various private individuals, who expressed intentions to remain on the property.
According to a Mar. 29 report by the Columbia Daily Tribune, a real estate broker contacted the property owners on Friday and said the parties had found a new location.
The City Council will discuss this matter during a dinner this evening at City Hall, which begins at 5:45 p.m. and is located at 701 E. Broadway.
