GOP Governor Mike Parson remains in the Missouri Governor’s Mansion in 2024 and Republicans will have supermajorities in both legislative chambers in the new session. It begins on Wednesday January 3 at high noon in Jefferson City. Republicans control the Missouri Senate 24-10 and the Missouri House 111-51. Missouri Senate Majority Leader Cindy O’Laughlin (R-Shelbina) joined us live on 939 the Eagle’s “Wake Up Mid-Missouri” to preview the 2024 session. Leader O’Laughlin expresses frustration with a term that’s used sometimes in Jefferson City: RINO. That means Republican in name only. Senator O’Laughlin tells listeners that some of her GOP colleagues don’t want to compromise, adding that you must compromise to get 18 votes in the chamber. Senator O’Laughlin also doesn’t think the controversial slot machine issue will be resolved during the 2024 session:
(LISTEN): Missouri’s Rowden, Hoskins clash again over sports wagering
Two Missouri GOP state senators who are running for secretary of state next year are blaming each other for the defeat of sports wagering legislation in Jefferson City this year.
Senate President Pro Tem Caleb Rowden (R-Columbia) spoke Saturday morning on 939 the Eagle’s “CEO Roundtable” program.
“We had the ability to cut property taxes, legalize sports betting and do some other things in the tax realm all in one fell swoop, and Senator Hoskins decided to kill all of that because they want slot machines in gas stations,” Senator Rowden says.
Senator Rowden tells listeners that the legality of these slot machines in gas stations is questionable, noting the issue is currently in litigation.
State Sen. Denny Hoskins (R-Warrenburg), who represents mid-Missouri’s Cooper County in the listening area, disagrees. He’s issued a statement to 939 the Eagle, which says “the Missouri Constitution says state tax revenue from gaming must be used for education and veterans and currently that tax revenue does not fully fund our veterans homes and cemeteries. As a veteran of the Missouri Army National Guard, I will continue to fight to find a dedicated funding source for our veterans homes and cemeteries. Unfortunately, as a former pop singer, Rowden’s loyalties lie with getting the best deal for casinos, not the best deal for Missouri veterans and taxpayers.”
Meantime, Senate President Pro Tem Rowden says term limits are good but that Missouri’s term limits are bad. Missouri voters approved term limits in 1992, and state lawmakers can serve up to four terms in the House (eight years) and up to two four-year Senate terms (eight years) for a maximum of 16 years in Jefferson City. Senator Rowden tells 939 the Eagle’s “CEO Roundtable” he’d like to see that tweaked and sent back to voters.
“I love the idea or I like the idea of saying ok you can just serve 16 years (in the Missouri Legislature) but you can do it wherever you want. Because instead of saying you can only serve eight and eight in either chamber, there’s a bunch of House members that are never going to run for the (Missouri) Senate, but if they’re there for 16 years they have the ability to really kind of put their roots down and figure out those ways to really serve their community well,” says Rowden.
You can listen to host Fred Parry’s full interview with Senator Rowden here.
(AUDIO): State Sen. Holly Rehder (R-Scott City) discusses her lieutenant governor bid on “Wake Up Mid-Missouri”
State Sen. Holly Rehder (R-Scott City) is a veteran lawmaker in Jefferson City. She’s served more than 11 years in the Missouri Legislature: eight in the House and three in the Missouri Senate. She’s launched her candidacy for lieutenant governor and says she wants to unabashedly protect sacred Christian and conservative values. One of her landmark bills that was signed into law in 2021 was bipartisan prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) legislation. Senator Rehder joined us live on 939 the Eagle’s “Wake Up Mid-Missouri”, telling listeners that more than 70 percent of Missourians support PDMP. She also says her constituents in southeast Missouri back her transgender bill that becomes law on August 28. It requires athletes to participate in male or female competitive sports based on their gender at birth, through the collegiate level:
(AUDIO): Missouri Lt. Governor Mike Kehoe Discusses 2023 Session and I-70 Funding on “Wake Up Mid-Missouri”
Missouri’s lieutenant governor says the one thing that is for certain in the Missouri Senate is that nothing is for certain. He’s referring to the chaos that happened Friday in Jefferson City on the final day of Missouri’s 2023 session. The final day featured finger-pointing and GOP infighting in the Senate. Lt. Governor Mike Kehoe (R-Jefferson City), who’s running for governor, says there are positives from the session. One of them is $2.8 billion to six-lane I-70 across Missouri. Kehoe describes that as a game-changer. He’s also pleased with a bipartisan bill that passed which will end state taxes on Social Security benefits starting in 2024. That bill is now on the governor’s desk:
(AUDIO): Missouri secretary of state and gubernatorial candidate Jay Ashcroft recaps 2023 session on “Wake Up Mid-Missouri”
Missouri’s GOP secretary of state and gubernatorial candidate Jay Ashcroft says Missourians don’t elect legislators for social media speeches but elect them to enact good policy. He’s disappointed with Friday’s chaos in the Missouri Senate, which featured GOP infighting. Ashcroft blames people putting politics ahead of policy. Secretary Ashcroft delivered a clear rebuke to the GOP-controlled Legislature on “Wake Up Mid-Missouri”. He says despite GOP supermajorities in both chambers, the Legislature did not deliver a parents bill of rights, a big tax cut and initiative petition reform. He says Republicans must stand up to the Democrats, who are outnumbered 111-51 in the House and 24-10 in the Senate:
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