If this past session did anything, it showed us where our cracks are–as a party, I mean. Lobbing bombs at each other, Republican against Republican, became commonplace. I’m guilty of this as well. As someone who grew up in the trailer parks, I don’t sit still for unworthy attacks; against me, or anyone else. It’s just who I am.
That is the point of this blog today.
Many good people, who are strong conservatives that have fought for the many wins that we have gotten over the past few years, have absolutely and continually, been wrongfully attacked. I only wish I would have written this before the primary. But nevertheless, the most recent calls for a truce–from the very people who have abused their power over and over–is all just a little too rich for me to stay quiet.
Follow the Money
Getting into politics originally was a pretty weird deal for me. I had never even been around it until I was asked to speak on a bill in Jefferson City that would affect the industry that I worked in, cable television. I was well into my 30s at that time. One reoccurring comment that I heard over and over when working on that bill, and the many others since, was “follow the money”.
Following the money isn’t as easy as it used to be because most of the negatives are done through outside PACs now. Like the “100 PAC”. Many of you have seen the “Missouri Senate Scorecard” put out by the 100 PAC in May, calling many Republicans “RINOs”.
Oh, it’s a crafty piece, that’s for sure. But it’s as bogus as the day is long–theater at its best. Public deception at its core. Let me explain.
The 100 PAC is run by a person that was employed by a few senators at the Capitol until he stopped working on the taxpayers’ dollars to work for the PAC. The senators that raise the money for the 100 PAC that pays this guy to trash fellow Republicans, are the same senators that were paying him when he worked at the Capitol.
So–he is still getting paid by them. Alas, follow the money.
Interestingly enough, they all scored really well on that scorecard! They failed to put anything in it about tort reform or expanding gambling machines in our great state. Policies those same senators, when compared to our Party’s state platform, wouldn’t have scored so well on. Hummm…
Below you will find just a few of the misnomers that these senators continue to spread misinformation about. I say “Senators” because again, these few senators are paying the guy running the 100 PAC to put this information out there.
1. “7-1 Redistricting Map” – The “7-1” debate was actually only about changing the redistricting map to put St. Charles County fully in its own congressional seat, damn the need to shore up any of the districts in the rest of the state. It was pushed by senators from St. Charles County, who by the way, wanted to run for Congress. Same senators running the 100 PAC–trying to manipulate a congressional district map to favor their own future aspirations. Politicians.
2. They also put out that many Republicans voted against banning men from playing in women’s sports. Blatantly false. An amendment was offered onto the “Fast Track” bill for this. That amendment would have killed the underlying bill and would have only applied to college sports–so it would have taken up floor capital and then still failed, all while killing the Fast Track program. I don’t vote for the Fast Track bill; however, killing a program by being dishonest about what you are doing is certainly not what I feel God honors. We absolutely needed to pass the actual bill that banned men from playing in women’s sports–all grade levels–not just college. This amendment action was nothing more than an attempt for airtime for their speeches.
3. Banning CRT in colleges. Same reason as above. Poison pill amendment. If attached, the Democrats would have filibustered killing the Fast Track bill and the amendment. We had a bill to ban CRT–in all grade levels. The process these guys attempted on the Fast Track bill was simply to get attention and kill the Fast Track program.
4. HB11 – This is our social services budget. First, we have to fund our social services, our elderly, our veterans, and our disabled depend on it. HOWEVER, it did DEFUND Planned Parenthood–and they voted against it.
5. SB690 – Syringe access programs. This year, these senators say it is free needles paid for by the government. It is not. Zero tax dollars were attached to it. I’ve carried it for several years and these same senators all voted for it last year, on a non-election year of course. This year they changed their vote so that they could trash other senators. It’s pretty sad, but they put others down to build themselves up often. This bill, however, simply removes the paraphernalia charge for any place that has the syringe programs. They are funded privately, and this is actually a Trump policy. Missouri has 13 counties at risk right now for outbreaks of HIV and Hep C. Syringe access programs are the #1 mitigation tool when an outbreak occurs.
6. HB3020 – Supplemental budget bill. This budget bill includes money to expand our technical programs in our high schools, as well as many other long-term projects. The senators who voted against, actually all got a list of projects into the bill that they wanted in exchange for them to not filibuster.
Sooooo–they voted against it for show, so that they could put out social media trash like their 100 PAC “Missouri Senate Scorecard”, yet they made sure they had their list of “pork” in it first–like $3 million for a mostly private airfield in St. Charles County. Unbelievable.
They are the epitome of politicians–slick in their talk, assuming we are all too dumb to see and understand their actions.
Now after all of the primaries are over, some they won, some they lost, they want to “seek unity” in the Republican caucus of the Senate. Now after they have lied to the people of Missouri, lied on their Senate colleagues, they want us to believe they are interested in “unity”.
Well then, I’ve got some oceanfront property in Arizona I’d like to sell…
In closing, I just caution everyone to look into social media posts when you see them. Many are put out with the intention of being sensational so that they can get “likes” and “engagements” to grow their campaign grassroots. This “scorecard” mentioned above was put out, and paid for, by the very ones who disrupted and shut down the Senate, week after week, at a price tag to taxpayers of at least $30,000 a day!
Actions speak louder than words.
There are several national organizations that put out scorecards each year–Americans for Prosperity, Club for Growth, and CPAC–that can all be found online. Organizations that we have trusted for years and that have no politically motivated individual self-interests.
So back to the final curtain call that I started with–it would be tremendous for all Republicans to work together. To do that, the theater of lies and self-promotion must end. You do not get to lie on folks and ruin good people’s reputations, all for a political win, and then start singing Kumbaya because it works for you politically at the moment.
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
