Arnold Archives - Missourinet

St. Louis Democratic legislator wants Missouri House to investigate Giuliani

January 13, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

A St. Louis Democratic state lawmaker is calling on the Missouri House to investigate whether former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani committed perjury at a heated December House committee hearing in Jefferson City.

State Rep. Peter Merideth, D-St. Louis, speaks on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on January 12, 2021 (photo courtesy of Benjamin Peters at House Communications)

State Rep. Peter Merideth, D-St. Louis, says 20 of his Democratic colleagues have joined in his call.

Republicans control the Missouri House 114-47, and Representative Merideth says he’s sent a letter to House Speaker Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, requesting an investigation.

On December 14, Giuliani testified via zoom before the House Special Committee on Government Oversight in Jefferson City. Merideth notes Missouri House rules require that witnesses testifying before House committees sign an affidavit that their testimony, to the best of their knowledge, is true on penalty of perjury.

Mayor Giuliani and Representative Merideth clashed multiples times during the December hearing, when Giuliani alleged fraud in both Pennsylvania and Georgia in November’s presidential election.

Both accused each other of being dangerous, and spoke over each other multiple times. The hearing got so heated that then-Committee Chairman Robert Ross, R-Yukon, had to bang the gavel three times, to restore order.

Former Mayor Giuliani, who led the Trump campaign’s post-election legal challenges, described Philadelphia that night as a “crooked Democratic machine,” and alleged fraud in Georgia as well.

“I think we’re right to be upset about this action and about your spreading of misinformation and lies that are inflaming things across our country, at a time when we need to move on and accept the results of an election. Thank you,” Merideth told Giuliani that night.

“Obviously, you have no interest in the truth. All you have an interest in is lecturing me,” Giuliani responded.

“I have no interest in more and more lies from you,” Merideth said. “I am tired of your lies. America is tired of your lies, and they are dangerous, sir. They are dangerous.”

“You are very dangerous, because you’re covering up a massive election fraud,” Giuliani responded.

The two continued to speak over each other, until Chairman Ross hit the gavel multiple times.

Giuliani testified that night that GOP inspectors were not allowed proper access to view absentee ballots being counted in Pennsylvania.

Representative Merideth says he’s also sent a letter to the New York State Bar Association.

New Missouri House Speaker focusing on education and adoption: “I will work with any member from any party”

January 7, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri House on Wednesday elected the first Speaker in state history from eastern Missouri’s Arnold. House Speaker Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, was elected Speaker on his 44th birthday, with his wife Amanda and their five children in the chamber in Jefferson City.

A law enforcement color guard presents the flags at the Missouri House in Jefferson City on January 6, 2021 (photo courtesy of Ben Peters at House Communications)

Education was a primary theme during Vescovo’s address to the House. He says he was ridiculed by other students and by some of his teachers while growing up, due to his ADHD and other learning challenges. ADHD is attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Speaker Vescovo says it’s important to learn from students who struggled within the education system.

“As a student who struggled, I believe I do have valuable insight on what works and what doesn’t. I believe it is time our system of education listens to these students, including me, who have seen firsthand how the system can and should improve,” Vescovo tells the House.

He says Missouri’s teachers need the time, resources and flexibility to be able to work with children on a personal level.

Vescovo wants to provide parents with the option of sending their children to schools that will best serve their needs. He says the COVID pandemic has taught parents across Missouri an important lesson.

“Every parent wants to keep their kids safe and healthy, but we have also learned that teachers are more effective as educators in person, and that kids must be in school to learn effectively, in school,” says Vescovo.

House Republicans in the chamber stood up and applauded that call.

New Missouri House Speaker Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, shakes hands with House colleagues after being elected Speaker on January 6, 2021 (photo courtesy of Ben Peters at House Communications)

Vescovo says the Legislature must continue to examine ways to give schools the resources they need to stay open.

He’s also challenging the Legislature to make a stronger commitment to early childhood education. Vescovo says the General Assembly must support policies that focus on empowerment, rather than imprisonment.

“If we want to better serve the people of our state, we must invest in our young people on the front end, rather than pay the cost of incarceration on the backend when our system fails them,” Vescovo says.

That line received a bipartisan standing ovation from the House.

Vescovo, who was adopted, is also calling on the Legislature to expand Missouri’s adoption tax credit, so that families who want to adopt a child aren’t blocked from doing it simply because of cost.

State Rep. Rusty Black, R-Chillicothe, nominated Vescovo for House Speaker. Black says Vescovo is focused on helping others and has worked to make a difference for Missourians. Vescovo was sworn-in as House Speaker by Judge Darrell Missey of the 23rd Judicial Circuit Court in Hillsboro. Vescovo and Judge Missey both live in Jefferson County.

Vescovo takes over for Springfield Republican Elijah Haahr, who termed-out of the House after eight years.

During his address, Vescovo also emphasized that he’s committed to working with both sides of the aisle to find legislative solutions to problems.

“I hope my time in the Floor Leader’s office has made it clear that I will work with any member from any party,” says Vescovo. “That will not change when I am Speaker. My door will be open and my time will be yours if and when you need it.”

Republicans control the Missouri House this session 114-47, and they control the Senate 24-10. The GOP has supermajorities in both chambers, and Governor Mike Parson is a Republican.

Missouri House chooses Vescovo as Speaker

January 6, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri House on Wednesday elected State Rep. Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, as the first House Speaker in state history from eastern Missouri’s Arnold.

Then-Missouri House Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, (left) speaks to House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, in the House chamber in Jefferson City on November 10, 2020 (File photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Vescovo was first elected to the House in 2014, and is starting his fourth term.

The 2021 legislative session started Wednesday at noon in Jefferson City.

Republicans have supermajorities in both chambers again this session. They control the Senate 24-10, and have a 114-47 majority in the House.

Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R) presided over the House, until the Speaker was elected. He also delivered a speech, critical of how elections were conducted in Georgia and Pennsylvania. Ashcroft also says “Clean Missouri” was rammed through by special, wealthy out-of-state interests in 2018.

Missouri’s 2021 legislative session starts Wednesday; Rob Vescovo set to become House Speaker

January 5, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri lawmakers will return to Jefferson City on Wednesday for the start of the 2021 session. Both the Senate and House will gavel-in at noon.

The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to be the major issue again this session, like 2020. Missouri’s current operating budget is about $38 billion, which includes two major supplemental budgets with federal money.

State Rep. Steven Roberts (D-St. Louis) will be sworn-in to the Senate on Wednesday. He’s seen here on House floor on April 27, 2020 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Republicans will control the Missouri Senate 24-10 this session. That’s a supermajority.

11 newly-elected state senators and six returning state senators will be sworn-in on Wednesday. Several of the new state senators are moving over from the House. They include State Reps. Greg Razer, D-Kansas City, Holly Rehder, R-Scott City, Mike Moon, R-Ash Grove, and Steven Roberts, D-St. Louis.

Razer, Rehder, Moon and Roberts were elected to the Senate in November.

The Republicans also have a supermajority in the Missouri House this session, 114-47. There is one vacancy that was created when then-State Rep. Kip Kendrick, D-Columbia, resigned to become chief of staff for Senator-Elect Razer.

The House Wednesday is expected to elect the first Speaker in state history from eastern Missouri’s Arnold. State Rep. Rob Vescovo (R) has served as the House Majority Floor Leader for three years. Vescovo was first elected to the House in 2014 and will be starting his fourth term.

Vescovo is a former member of the Jefferson County Port Authority.

Springfield Republican Elijah Haahr served as Speaker from November 2018 until last Thursday, and has termed out of the House.

Missouri House Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, stands on House floor on May 15, 2020. He’s set to become Speaker on Wednesday (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R) will briefly preside over the House on Wednesday, once session begins. The House will then elect a temporary speaker from the chamber, who will preside over the vote for Speaker.

All Missouri House members will be sworn-in on Wednesday. That will include 46 new members who have never served before. It also includes the six members who were elected during November 2019 special elections. They are State Reps. Yolanda Young, D-Kansas City, Rasheen Aldridge, D-St. Louis, Mark Sharp, D-Kansas City, Trish Gunby, D-Manchester, Mike Person, D-Ferguson and Scott Cupps, R-Shell Knob. Young, Aldridge, Sharp, Gunby, Person and Cupps were re-elected in November.

There will also be three new Missouri House members who served in the chamber previously. They are State Reps. Joe Adams, D-University City, Wayne Wallingford, R-Cape Girardeau, and Bill Owen, R-Springfield.

Owen will return to the Missouri House for the first time since 1981-1982. He served one term, after being elected in 1980.

There will also be a bipartisan legislative prayer service Wednesday morning in Jefferson City, to mark the start of session. It will take place at 9 a.m. at Concord Baptist Church, which is across the street from Capital Mall. There will not be a breakfast this year.

Haahr anticipates addition of COVID liability to Missouri’s special session (AUDIO)

November 11, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri’s House Speaker anticipates that the governor will expand his special session call to include COVID-19 liability.

Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, presides over the House on November 10, 2020 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, made his comments to Missourinet, during a Tuesday afternoon interview in his Capitol office in Jefferson City. He expects the Missouri House to be in session in December to work on COVID liability.

“We’ve been in long talks with the (Capitol’s) second floor (the governor’s office) on that for several weeks now and those talks have gotten pretty serious, and I think we’re at a place where we’re comfortable moving forward,” Speaker Haahr says.

The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry is also urging the governor to include COVID liability in his special session call, saying January is too long to wait to shield businesses, schools and hospitals that follow public health guidelines from COVID suits.

Chamber President Dan Mehan describes COVID-19 liability protection as an important step towards re-opening the economy.

“There’s a lot of employers out there that are a little bit concerned about opening for fear of being sued on frivolous grounds for COVID, by customers, by employees, that sort of thing,” says Mehan.

Mehan says more than 800 Missouri employers, mostly small businesses, have signed a letter requesting it. He says that includes a skate park and a pizzeria.

Mehan also says many of Missouri’s neighboring states have passed similar legislation.

“We’ve seen six of the eight contiguous states, the border states, adopt something in this light. Most recently Iowa signed it into law,” Mehan says.

As for Governor Parson, he supports the COVID-19 liability proposal and has publicly stated at several Capitol press conferences that he would include it during the special session, if there’s a path for it to pass.

House Majority Floor Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, who will be Speaker in January, has also written a letter to the governor, asking him to expand the special session call.

“Right now there are numerous small businesses afraid to open because of the threat of litigation tied to COVID-19,” Leader Vescovo writes. “Additionally, many of our hospitals and health care professionals are asking us to help them to better be able to do their jobs by passing commonsense COVID-19 liability protections.”

Speaker Haahr tells Missourinet that many businesses across the state have reached out, adding that lawmakers are working to keep the language tight.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full interview with Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Dan Mehan, which was recorded on November 6, 2020:

Wilson: Governor Carnahan was one of the most positive political figures in Missouri history (AUDIO)

October 16, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Friday is the 20th anniversary of the deadly plane crash that killed then-Governor Mel Carnahan (D), his son Randy and campaign aide Chris Sifford.

The Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City

Their plane crashed during a storm and fog in the small town of Goldman, in eastern Missouri’s Jefferson County. Lieutenant Governor Roger Wilson (D) became governor for the last three months of Carnahan’s term. The crash made national news for several days.

He says Mel Carnahan was one of the most positive political figures in Missouri history.

“His attention to elementary, secondary and higher education has only been matched by one or two governors,” Wilson says.

Governor Carnahan championed the Outstanding Schools Act, which passed in 1993. Wilson also says agriculture and corrections were two other major priorities for the governor. Governor Carnahan guided the state through the historic flood of 1993, and joined President Bill Clinton at a major flood summit in 1993 in Arnold, south of St. Louis.

Carnahan’s funeral service that week in 2000 drew thousands of people to the State Capitol in Jefferson City, including President Clinton, First Lady Hillary Clinton and Vice President Al Gore. Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-South Dakota, U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Massachusetts, and Governor John Engler, R-Michigan, also traveled to Jefferson City for the service. So did U.S. House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-St. Louis County.

At the time of the crash, the Democratic governor was finishing his second term, and was locked in a heavyweight U.S. Senate race against Republican incumbent John Ashcroft. Wilson is proud of how Missourians handled the tragedy, and he praises Ashcroft as well.

“The rancor that you see now in politics was not evident,” says Wilson. “John Ashcroft suspended his campaign ads.”

Missouri voters elected Carnahan to the Senate posthumously. Governor Wilson appointed Carnahan’s widow, Jean, to the Senate seat. During a Thursday interview with Missourinet, Wilson says she was the only reasonable person to appoint to the position.

“The reason being is that she was politically astute, she was Mel’s partner, she knew every in and out of the large decisions that were being made,” Wilson says.

Wilson says Jean Carnahan didn’t have much time to grieve. When Governor Carnahan was elected posthumously, Wilson wanted to give her as much time as she needed to decide whether to accept the appointment. He says Jean Carnahan said yes to Mel’s legacy, adding that she served the state extremely well. Wilson says he will always be grateful.

Mel Carnahan was born in southern Missouri’s Birch Tree, and served in the Missouri House from 1963-1967. He was elected state treasurer in 1980, serving from 1981-1985.

Carnahan was elected lieutenant governor in 1988, and was elected governor in 1992, beating GOP Attorney General Bill Webster. Carnahan was re-elected governor in 1996, defeating Republican Auditor Margaret Kelly.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full nine-minute interview with former Missouri Governor Roger Wilson, reflecting on the 20th anniversary of Governor Carnahan’s death and on Carnahan’s legacy. The interview was recorded on October 15, 2020:

Missouri House GOP leaders will handle crime bills as single-subject bills; full House to return August 24

August 11, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The top three Republican leaders in Missouri’s GOP-controlled House say they intend to simplify the process during the special session on violent crime, with single-subject bills.

Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, addresses Capitol reporters on May 15, 2020 in Jefferson City (Tim Bommel at House Communications)

All Missouri House committee hearings originally scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday have been canceled, and the full House isn’t scheduled to return to Jefferson City until Monday August 24.

“In an effort to protect the integrity of the lawmaking process, and to ensure these important issues are thoroughly vetted, we intend to simplify the process with single-subject bills so we can focus on the merits of each bill individually to produce legislation that makes our streets and neighborhoods safer. Given the fact the governor expanded the call as one of our committees (the House Judiciary Committee) was considering the bill he originally proposed, we think it’s important to take a step back and give additional thought and attention to each part of the plan. This will provide a more deliberative process that will allow us to craft the kind of policy that will better protect Missourians from the scourge of violent crime,” the statement from House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon and Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, reads.

The committee hearing that Haahr, Wiemann and Vescovo referenced took place Monday afternoon. Late Monday afternoon, Governor Mike Parson (R) expanded his special session call on violent crime, to include a provision to help with what he calls the growing backlog of murder cases in St. Louis.

The governor wants Missouri lawmakers to allow the state attorney general’s office to take on some murder cases that haven’t been prosecuted yet by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner (D). The governor emphasizes that this isn’t about taking away authority, and that it’s about fighting violent crime. Governor Parson says there have been 161 murders in St. Louis City this year, and that charges have been filed in only 33 cases.

Circuit Attorney Gardner issued a statement on Monday, criticizing the governor’s plan.

“This allows the governor and his cronies to make a mockery of judicial checks and balances and demolishes any notion of a free and independent judicial system,” Gardner’s statement reads, in part.

The Missouri Senate approved the crime bill last week, by a bipartisan 27-3 vote.

Speaker Haahr tells Missourinet that he spoke by phone with Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden, R-Columbia, earlier today, before the Haahr announcement. Rowden told Haahr that he would speak to Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, to fill him in.

The governor has emphasized that the special session is about violent crime.

St. Louis has had 163 homicides in 2020. The city had 194 murders in 2019. Across the state in Kansas City, there have been 122 homicides. There were 90, at this point in 2019 in Kansas City.

Witness protection and eliminating the residency requirement for St. Louis Police officers are top priorities for the governor.

A key proposal in the governor’s January State of the State Address was $1 million in funding for witness protection. Despite bipartisan support in both the Missouri Senate and House, the measure did not pass this year.

Missouri Legislative Black Caucus Chairman State Rep. Steven Roberts, D-St. Louis, has asked the governor to call a special session on police reform. Governor Parson has told Capitol reporters he’s focusing on violent crime, and wants to wait until January’s regular session to take up police reform.

Other Democrats, including State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, D-Kansas City, have called on the governor to address the root causes of crime, such as poverty.

Missouri lawmakers describe nurses working in pandemic as superheroes (AUDIO)

April 14, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri Legislature’s bipartisan St. Louis delegation has started a campaign to buy each St. Louis area nurse a gift card to a local restaurant, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

State Rep. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, waits for her turn to vote on a $6.2 billion supplemental budget on April 8, 2020 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

State Rep. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, a delegation co-secretary, says the aim is to provide each nurse with a $50 gift card.

“The nurses on the front lines of coronavirus are our true superheroes,” Coleman says. “And we love our local restaurants and want them to survive the crisis too, and this is an effort to combine both.”

Coleman says there are about 5,600 nurses in active service in the St. Louis region. The St. Louis-area delegation’s fundraising goal is $280,000.

“Working with Mercy and BJC, with St. Luke’s and the SSM System, and so doing everything that we can to try to make sure that those who are on the front lines are able to receive the service,” says Coleman.

Coleman says 100 percent of donations will be used for gift cards, adding that lawmakers’ campaigns in both parties will handle administrative expenses.

She emphasizes that this is a bipartisan effort. State Reps. Ian Mackey, D-St. Louis, and Tracy McCreery, D-Olivette, are also leading the effort.

“As we all work to provide support for our neighbors during this difficult time, we’ve decided as friends and colleagues to join together and support those risking their lives, and the health of their families, to keep the rest of us safe,” Representative Mackey says.

Anyone interested in donating can contact Rep. Coleman at (573) 751-3751 or Rep. Mackey at (573) 751-0100. Rep. McCreery’s Capitol office number is (573) 751-7535.

State health officials announced Monday afternoon that there are now 4,388 confirmed coronavirus cases in Missouri, along with 114 deaths.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full interview with State Rep. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, which was recorded on April 7, 2020: