Politics / Govt Archives

Missouri Senator: Parson defying Trump by continuing to accept refugees

January 21, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

Sen. Bob Onder, R-Lake St. Louis

State Senator Bob Onder, R-Lake St. Louis, says Gov. Mike Parson and other Republican governors have been “guilted into” continuing to welcome international refugees to their states. Last September, President Donald Trump issued an executive order requiring states and local governments to submit written consent if they want to continue letting refugees resettle in their communities.

Onder, a member of the Senate Conservative Caucus, says Parson and the other governors have issued “a big rebuke” to Trump.

“President Trump expended considerable political capital to give governors the opportunity to choose whether or not the refugee resettlement program is right for their states,” he says. “By governors saying ‘No, we’re going to side with the status quo over our president, I think in many cases they did not do what’s best for their states.”

Onder says accepting additional refugees costs too much social welfare money and the state has more pressing needs.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson speaks to the Capitol Press Corps after being sworn-in as governor on June 1, 2018 in Jefferson City (file photo by Tim Bommel/UPI)

“Refugee resettlement programs – they’re very lucrative for the social service agencies that participate in them,” says Onder. “But they impose big costs on the taxpayers of those states – social welfare costs, costs of multi-lingual education when the refugees don’t speak English. We know we’re at a time when we have teachers who are very poorly paid and we’d like to pay them more. The governor talks all the time about needing more money for transportation infrastructure and workforce development. And law enforcement needs our support – we have record high murder rates in St. Louis and Kansas City.”

Onder, in his final Missouri Senate term, says Trump is committed to revamping the federal immigration system.

“We have a backlog of 330,000 asylum seekers that aren’t processed. They’re approximately one million people around the world waiting to immigrate in an orderly way,” says Onder. “Between chain migration, the visa lottery, birthright citizenship, now mass waves of so-called refugees and asylum seekers, we have really disturbed the traditional orderly immigration process, where immigrants who play by the rules have a chance to come and become Americans.”

Parson says refugees boost the state’s workforce and add value and diversity to Missouri’s cities.

Snow-related crashes close westbound I-70 near mid-Missouri’s Rocheport (AUDIO)

January 20, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The National Weather Service (NWS) says the highest snow totals from Monday’s winter storm extend from the Kansas City suburb of Lee’s Summit to Sedalia.

The National Weather Service is urging motorists to slow down in the snow (January 20, 2020 map courtesy of NWS Pleasant Hill Twitter page)

NWS Pleasant Hill meteorologist Sarah Adkins says while snow is ending north of the Missouri River, it’s still snowing in many locations across western, west-central and mid-Missouri.

“We’re seeing the Kansas City area over to Warrensburg and Sedalia into Columbia, Jefferson City and again down into the Lake of the Ozarks and over west in Clinton,” Adkins says.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol also says highways in Jackson, Clay and Platte counties in the Kansas City metro have been slick, because of snow. Blowing snow has also been causing visibility issues.

Meantime, the Highway Patrol says about a dozen vehicles are involved in several snow-related crashes on westbound I-70 near mid-Missouri’s Rocheport. Several tractor trailers are involved, and westbound I-70 is closed there.

The I-70 Rocheport bridge is heavily-traveled. U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler, R-Harrisonville, has said more than 12 million vehicles cross the bridge annually, including three million trucks.

Rocheport is just west of Columbia.

As for Adkins, she’s urging motorists to slow down and to give themselves extra time.

“It is accumulating on the roadways and that is going to make them slick,” says Adkins. “So while we don’t anticipate multiple inches of snow, still take it easy. It’s going to be slick.”

Some areas have received an inch of snowfall. Missouri state troopers are urging you to stay focused on the road.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full interview with National Weather Service (NWS) Pleasant Hill meteorologist Sarah Adkins, which was recorded on January 20, 2020:

KMRN: Five tractor trailers jackknifed Friday on icy I-35 in northwest Missouri (AUDIO)

January 17, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Law enforcement officials in northern Missouri’s Harrison County are asking residents and travelers to stay off the roads there, until heavy freezing rain and sleet stops.

A Missouri state trooper assists a motorist who slid off the road in mid-Missouri on January 17, 2020 (photo courtesy of MSHP Troop F Twitter)

National Weather Service (NWS) Pleasant Hill meteorologist Andy Bailey notes heavily-traveled I-35 runs through Harrison County.

“Lots of slide offs, lots of accidents there and Harrison County has actually put out a request for people not to travel,” Bailey says.

Harrison County is located on the Missouri-Iowa border. Impacted towns include Bethany, Brooklyn and Gilman City.

The freezing rain also caused conditions to deteriorate Friday morning on I-35 between Cameron and Kearney. Reporter Jeremy Shields from Missourinet Cameron affiliate KMRN (AM 1360) reports he saw five tractor trailers jackknife this morning in that area. Shields says truck drivers struggled in the ice.

The NWS warns that road conditions across northern Missouri will be treacherous throughout the afternoon, because of heavy freezing rain and sleet. Bailey is urging motorists to stay off the road, if possible.

“If it is still snowing in northeast Missouri, that will probably change in the coming hours as that warm air overspreads the area turning things over to freezing rain up there,” says Bailey.

Freezing rain has also been happening in Trenton today.

As for mid-Missouri, Bailey says temperatures in Jefferson City and Columbia will stay at or below freezing until about 5 p.m., when they are expected to go above freezing. He emphasizes that one degree is critical.

Ice has been reported across central Missouri today, including Jefferson City, Columbia and Boonville.

Bailey also says overpasses and side streets were problematic earlier today in the Kansas City metro. A Lee’s Summit fire truck overturned this morning.

Meantime, the National Weather Service (NWS) in Springfield has issued a flood watch through Saturday morning, across the Ozarks. Impacted towns include Springfield, Branson and Lebanon.

More than an inch of additional rainfall is possible tonight, into Saturday.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s interview with National Weather Service (NWS) Pleasant Hill meteorologist Andy Bailey, which was recorded on January 17, 2020:

National Weather Service warns Friday’s commute will be hazardous across much of Missouri (AUDIO)

January 16, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a winter weather advisory for northern, west-central, western and southwest Missouri.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Pleasant Hill has updated their forecast for January 17, 2020 (map courtesy of NWS Pleasant Hill Twitter)

NWS Pleasant Hill meteorologist Scott Blair says Kansas City, St. Joseph, Sedalia, Columbia and Jefferson City will see snow and ice on Friday.

“What we’re looking at is a wintry mess out there and really it’s going to be a transition of precipitation types throughout this whole event,” Blair says.

He says the storm system will be moving from southwest to northeast Missouri.

The storm is expected to begin Friday morning in the 3-8 a.m. time frame. Blair tells Missourinet that Friday’s morning and evening commutes will be hazardous for Kansas City, Warrensburg, Columbia and Osage Beach.

“What we’re going to be seeing is snowfall starting out in these places Friday morning,” says Blair. “And as a little bit warmer weather moves into the area we’ll see that precipitation type change to a little bit of sleet and then eventually some freezing rain,” says Blair.

Springfield, Lebanon, Rolla and West Plains are also expected to see ice on Friday.

The Highway 63 corridor will see the heaviest amounts of ice, with up to a quarter-of-an-inch expected in Jefferson City, Columbia and Kirksville. Far western Missouri’s Butler and Nevada could also see up to a quarter-of-an-inch of ice.

The NWS says northwest Missouri will see the heaviest snowfall on Friday, with more than three inches expected in Maryville and Bethany.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist Scott Blair, which was recorded on January 16, 2020:

Major winter storm to bring ice, sleet, snow and freezing rain to Missouri (AUDIO)

January 10, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

At least 30 school districts across northern Missouri dismissed classes early Friday afternoon, to get students home before roads deteriorate during a major winter storm.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Pleasant Hill has updated the timing of the winter storm that will impact much of Missouri (January 10, 2020 map courtesy of NWS Twitter)

The National Weather Service (NWS) says freezing rain has started in northwest Missouri, part of a winter storm system that will impact much of the state this weekend. State transportation officials say roads in northwest Missouri are already covered or partially covered in snow or ice.

NWS Pleasant Hill meteorologist Scott Blair says the complicated system is bringing a combination of sleet and snow to far northwest Missouri.

“What we have ongoing right now is some freezing rain and that is going to cause quite a lot of problems as we continue on in the afternoon hours through those evening hour time frames,” Blair says.

Maryville and Bethany are expected to see five to eight inches of snow.

Mr. Blair says a line stretching from Kansas City to Chillicothe to Kirksville should see rain, freezing rain, sleet and snow.

“And as that colder air arrives after sunset we will start seeing that potential for both freezing rain and then eventually sleet to move into the area,” says Blair.

Four to six inches of snow are expected in Chillicothe and St. Joseph. Cities like Columbia and Moberly could see up to a quarter-of-an-inch of ice. Jefferson City could see some ice as well.

The NWS and the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) are also warning you to be on the alert for refreezing of roads Saturday night into Sunday morning, across central, northern and western Missouri. Blair urges you to be cautious.

“The key point takeaway is don’t worry so much about the exact amount of snow forecast,” Blair says. “Just remember that this is going to be a combination of both a glaze of ice, followed by snow on top of that.”

Missourinet Cameron affiliate KMRN (AM 1360) reports more than 25 schools in northwest and north-central Missouri are dismissing early today. They include the St. Joseph, Gallatin and Princeton School Districts. Our Moberly affiliate KWIX (AM 1230) reports four districts have dismissed early in their listening area, including the Green City and Milan School Districts.

The NWS says a flash flood watch is in effect for southern and central Missouri, including Columbia and Springfield.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologist Scott Blair, which was recorded on January 10, 2020:

HUD Secretary Carson says proposed changes will not rollback fair housing regulations

January 10, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson is proposing changes that he says will not scale back fair housing enforcement, unlike what critics say. Carson, who was the keynote speaker at Thursday’s Governor’s Prayer Breakfast in Jefferson City, says the current system is too complicated. He says the Obama-era regulations led to 63% of HUD submissions getting rejected or having major changes.

From left: Gov. Mike Parson and U.S. HUD Secretary Ben Carson

“It wasn’t solving anything,” says Carson. “So we had to go and say ‘What is the real cause of segregation?’ It’s economic. People cannot afford to live anywhere else. So we have economic segregation.”

He says the proposed rule would reduce the burden on local governments to meet current regulations.

“They have to demonstrate what are the three things what are precluding the development of affordable housing and then give us a reasonable plan for how they are going to address that. Future funding obviously will be influenced by what they’re able to do. It doesn’t roll back anything,” he says.

Carson says the Fair Housing Equal Opportunity Office is more active than it’s ever been.

“All you have to do is go and look at the cases. We’re not rolling back anything,” he says. “But we’re talking about doing things in a logical and an effective way. I know that ruffles a lot of feathers. People like to do stuff the way that it’s been done. But coming from a scientific background, I’m for looking at evidence – not for looking at how things actually work.”

Fair housing advocates tell the Washington Post the changes would reduce the financial pressure on municipalities to end residential segregation, as required by federal law. Diane Yentel with the National Low Income Housing Coalition tells the Washington Post the proposed rule entirely ignores the racial desegregation requirements of the 1968 Fair Housing Act.

Meanwhile, Carson says there will be consequences against a Kansas City property company under federal investigation. He would not elaborate about the situation involving TEH Realty, which has failed to meet federal guidelines for 81 residences. KMBC-TV reports the properties have major safety and health concerns and the company problems could end up forcing residents to move.

Missouri Congressmen weigh in on Trump’s call to attack Iranian general

January 6, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer

Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer backs President Donald Trump’s decision to order last week’s airstrike killing Iranian General Qassem Soleimani. The East-Central Missouri Republican tells Missourinet affiliate KWIX in Moberly that the president’s call sends a strong message to Iran.

“It wasn’t necessarily a reprisal for Iran killing some folks earlier in the week and for the raid on our embassy,” says Luetkemeyer. “This is something that they have been looking at for quite some time. Soleimani has been responsible for lots of planning and various terror attacks over the years. The numbers are horrific that they equate to him or give to him for his actions.”

Luetkemeyer says Trump made the right judgement call.

U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City (September 2018 file photo courtesy of Congressman Cleaver’s office)

“Apparently he (Soleimani) was in the process of planning another series of attacks on some of our embassies and some of our places where some of our American folks meet,” says Luetkemeyer. “You had two choices – either allow him to do this or to take him out and stop this nonsense. Knowing that your information is and then looking at past history about at how this guy operates, knowing that he is going to be doing these things, let’s stop this and protect American lives and property.”

Fellow Missouri Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, a Kansas City Democrat, says he fears Trump’s decision is a grave miscalculation. He says Trump’s “monumental escalation” in tensions with Iran, without consulting congressional leadership and America’s allies abroad, could be disastrous.

Spring trial set for mid-Missouri “highly toxic poison” case

January 2, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

An April trial has been scheduled in U.S. District Court in Jefferson City for a mid-Missouri man who’s accused of trying to purchase a “deadly chemical.”

U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri Tim Garrison (2018 file photo courtesy of the U.S. Attorney’s website)

44-year-old Jason William Siesser’s trial is set to begin on April 20 at the Christopher Bond U.S. Courthouse in Jefferson City. U.S. Attorney Tim Garrison announced charges against Siesser in August 2018, saying Siesser allegedly tried to purchase a highly toxic poison over the internet to use as a chemical weapon.

The U.S. Attorney’s office spokesman, Don Ledford, tells Missourinet that Siesser remains in federal custody. Siesser lived in Columbia, when he was arrested.

Garrison says federal agents became alerted to Siesser during an undercover FBI investigation. Siesser is charged in federal court with one count of attempting to possess a chemical weapon.

“There is no allegation in the charging document, that any sort of public attack was planned,” Garrison said in 2018, when the charges were announced. “Federal agents maintained safeguards from the time they were alerted to a potential threat during an undercover FBI investigation, to the controlled delivery of a safe, inert substance to the residence in Columbia.”

Federal prosecutors have not specifically said what the chemical is, except that it’s a highly toxic poison “capable of causing death in minute quantities.” The federal affidavit alleges Siesser purchased enough of the substance to be capable of killing about 300 people.

Court documents say Siesser signed for a package in August 2018, a package he allegedly believed contained the chemical he had ordered online. The court documents say Siesser acknowledged to the seller that he understood the chemical was lethal. Federal prosecutors say the package actually contained an inert substance.

The 11-page criminal complaint from federal prosecutors said that at the time of the 2018 arrest, Siesser was employed by a group home that houses juveniles under contract with the state of Missouri.

The complaint filed by prosecutors in 2018 also quoted Siesser as allegedly telling someone that he wanted to be an assassin, and wanted to kill those who have wronged him in the past.

The FBI raided Siesser’s Columbia home in 2018, and court documents say writing found inside the home “articulated heartache, anger and resentment over a breakup and a desire for the unidentified cause of the heartache to die.”

The court document quoted one of the writings as stating, in part: “But it makes me feel so strong I dream about your ending you burn up in flames. You suffocate on your own blood your soul completely drained. Right now your (sic) happy but that won’t last. My anger is coming and you won’t die fast!”

The federal affidavit says Siesser also wrote fictional stories about men trying to exact vengeance on ex-girlfriends. Court documents say that in one story, Siesser allegedly wrote about a man locking a woman in scuba gear in a submerged box so she would die when her oxygen tank was depleted.

The FBI and Columbia Police investigated the case.

Missouri’s minimum wage rate officially increases

January 1, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

Photo courtesy of Jill Enders

The state’s minimum wage increased today by 85-cents to $9.45 an hour. Pay for workers receiving tips must also total at least the same hourly rate.

The law applies to private employers – not government workers.

The hike is part of a voter-approved plan to gradually boost the minimum wage by 85 cents an hour each year until the rate reaches $12 an hour in 2023.

New Year’s highlights focus on Missouri areas with large number of impaired driving crashes (AUDIO)

December 31, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri state troopers will be visible on highways Tuesday and Wednesday for both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day traffic enforcement.

A Missouri state trooper on-duty in 2019 (file photo courtesy of Missouri State Highway Patrol)

Missouri State Highway Patrol Lieutenant Collin Stosberg describes impaired driving as the most preventable crime there is.

“We have a zero tolerance so we’ll have troopers and our other law enforcement partners out there arresting those impaired drivers, to make sure that everyone gets to their destination safely,” Stosberg says.

This year’s 30-hour New Year’s holiday counting period begins tonight at 6 and runs through 11:59 p.m. on New Year’s Day. During last year’s 102-hour holiday counting period, 11 Missouri motorists were killed and another 447 suffered injuries in 1,301 traffic crashes.

“We’ll have troopers working all over, especially those areas that are known for a high number of impaired driving crashes and incidents,” says Stosberg.

This year’s counting period is 30-hours, because New Year’s Day is a Wednesday.

Lt. Stosberg encourages anyone who drinks alcohol to use a designated driver or to use a taxi or ride share service.

Troopers are also assisting motorists who run out of gas or need assistance for things like a flat tire. Anyone who faces a traffic emergency should call *55 on their cell phone.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and Missouri State Highway Patrol Lieutenant Collin Stosberg, which was recorded on December 27, 2019: