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Akin wants more F/A-18s

June 24, 2009 By

A Missourian who is one of the top minority members of the House Armed Services Committee says the Obama administration’s shortsightedness could hurt hundreds of Missourians.

Congressman Todd Akin of Town and Country represents a lot of people who make airplanes for Boeing…He says some defense budget issues are partisan in nature…and others are differences of opinion between the administration and Congress. The continuation of the F/A-18 production line in St. Louis is the latter…

The administration sees the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter as the plane of the future. But Akin says the Super Hornet is the plane for today. He says the Navy is facing a growing shortage of aircraft and the Super Hornet is the only real fighter that flies from aircraft carriers.

Akin and other members of Missouri’s congressional delegation supporting the Super Hornets say the F-35 is behind schedule and over budget. He says the Armed Services Committee has had trouble getting straight answers from the Pentagon that justify the administration’s emphasis on the Joint Strike Fighter.

He says Congress needs to be able to analyze what the administration thinks defense needs are but the Defense Department is not providing the information.

 

toddak3] :29 mp3

Listen to Akin comment (:29 mp3)

Filed Under: Military

Treasurer says audit re-enforces his ethics proposal

June 24, 2009 By

The new chairman of the Missouri Housing Development Commission says the state audit of the commission re-enforces his belief that it needs new standards of conduct.

State Treasurer Clint Zweifel proposed new ethical standards for the commission on Tuesday and Wednesday found himself reading the state audit critical of the commission.

The audit points out that commissioners are not required to recuse themselves from real or perceived conflicts of interest. The State Auditor’s Office identified two commissioners who appeared to have at least the appearance of conflicts of interest, but did not recuse themselves from voting on the projects. Another commissioner participated in projects involving an individual with whom he had a limited partnership.

News reports disclosed that Columbia developer Jeff Smith two years ago bought property from commission member Bill Luetkenhaus for $1.7 million, though Luetkenhaus paid only $932,000 for the piece two months earlier, something Zweifel says needs to stop.

"I find that to be a conflict in my eyes," Zweifel told the Missourinet, "And I think to prevent that from ever happening again we have to have a strengthened standards of conduct policy that prohibits that sort of behavior."

Zweifel, as the new chairman, has proposed new standards of conduct for the commission; standards he says need to be implemented before moving forward. He acknowledges the commission has work before it.

"This is a priority for me. I believe and hope that this is a priority for rest of the commission members. I believe it is," Zweifel says.

Zweifel says he has received positive response from other commission members about his proposals.

The proposals Zweifel is pushing would prohibit commissioners or MHDC staff from having personal financial relationships with anyone receiving money from the commission. Anyone applying for funding through the MHDC would have to disclose all business relationships with the commission. Former commissioners or employees would not be able to work with those seeking MHDC assistance for a period of time and anyone who violated the new standards could be banned from working with the housing agency.

The Missouri Housing Development Commission is a mixture of public officials and lay leaders. The Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General and Treasurer are members of the commission. Six lay leaders are appointed by the governor, subject to approval by the State Senate. There are two vacancies now on the 10-member commission. It provides housing assistance to the poor and the elderly.

Zweifel says the ethical cloud now hanging over the commission has overshadowed some impressive work. He points out the MHDC has provided the assistance needed to help 77,000 Missourians buy their first home. The commission also has invested $4 billion in the state economy. He says it was the first in the nation to latch on to the $8,000 new house buyer incentive program offered through the federal government’s economic stimulus package.

Download/listen Brent Martin reports (1:15 MP3)

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With:

Wanna carry the Show Me Games torch?

June 24, 2009 By

The Show Me State Games is looking for torch carriers for their opening ceremonies on July 27 th .  It will start at noon in Jeff City and head up to Columbia.  You can run a half mile or bike 2-3 miles.  If you are interested contact Emily Peurrung at 573-882-2105 or peurrunge@missouri.edu .

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Montee audit of Missouri Housing Development Commission

June 24, 2009 By

Susan Montee State Auditor Susan Montee today released her office’s findings after reviewing the Missouri Housing Development Commission.

The audit states that while the commission’s Standards of Conduct policy does not require full public disclosure of conflicts of interest, two commissioners — Bill Luetkenhaus and Rob Fulp — voted on decisions or projects when there was at least an appearance of a conflict of interest.

"In addition, there appears to be a perception that political influence and campaign contributions to elected officials on the commission influence and the project selection process," the audit states.

The audit also looked into employee complaints that the commissions management practices contribute to low employee morale, and suggests that some hiring practices need to be improved.

Montee says her staff found many concerns about the commissions expentitures of public money, employee related expenses, management of public records and capital assets.

View the complete audit on the State Auditor’s Web site .

To listen to Montee’s presentation of the findings, click the audio link below.

Auditor Montee presents audit findings [Download/listen Mp3 - 17 min.]

Filed Under: Politics & Government

Pineiro near perfect in New York

June 24, 2009 By

Joel Pineiro tossed a two hit complete game shutout for a 3-0 win over the Mets.  Pineiro got 22 ground outs and used just 100 pitches.  He also singled and doubled at the plate.  Albert Pujols, had a two run single in the 7 th to add some cushion.  The rest of the division lost so the Cardinals added distance on the entire NL Central and are up two games on Milwaukee.

When Pineiro has his sinking fastball working, he is one of the toughest to hit.  Granted, the Mets are without three of their big bats with Jose Reyes, Carlos Delgado, and Carlos Beltran on the DL, but it was still an impressive performance.

The Cardinals really didn’t do much against Livan Hernandez.  The Mets’ starter falls to 5-2, but pitched well enough to win.  He did run into trouble in the third when Pineiro led off with a double and moved to third on a bunt single by Brendan Ryan.  He then scored on a force out.

Hernandez ran into trouble in the 7 th .  Ryan batting in the 9 th spot singled (2 for 4) and moved to third on Skip Schumaker’s ground rule double.  After Chris Duncan walked, Pujols singled up the middle to score Ryan and Schumaker.

I know Tony LaRussa has been criticized for batting the pitcher 8th, but I really like the strategy.  How many times have we seen the pitcher come up with a big hit or the number nine hitter get a big hit to roll over the top of the order.  As much as LaRussa likes to double switch and use relievers late in the game, having the pitcher’s spot come up in close situations past the seventh inning really doesn’t have an effect on the lineup.  The move certainly worked Tuesday night.

Filed Under: Sports Tagged With: ,
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