Sen. Rob Schaaf tells Scott Faughn on This Week in Missouri Politics that the system in corrosive.
“The thing is, we have it hard-wired into our brains [the] psychological need to reciprocate when somebody does something nice for us,” Schaaf says. Lobbyist and companies “wouldn’t be giving gifts if they did work.”
He is pushing to restrict gifts to a $5 limit, put a 2-year restriction on becoming a lobbyist after serving in the General Assembly, and limit gerrymandering. But as the end of session approaches, Schaaf predicts that the joinder bill will be a hot topic.
“Joinder is a freedom you have that helps you in order to make your case and get justice through our court system,” he said. “They want to take that away from you. It is a freedom issue.”
The opinion maker panel also dives into legislation, focusing on MONA, Missouri Nondiscrimination Act.
“It’s a work in progress still, it’s been going on for 20 years,” Rep. Tom Hannegan says. “The time is now.”
It is still illegal in Missouri to fire someone based on sexuality, Rep. Kevin Engler reminds people. He says they will make some incremental changes moving forward, but the panel — which also included Reps. Tracy McCreery and Greg Razor — projects it is something that will happen in the next five or so years.
The governor, the budget, opioids, and more come up on TWMP. Check out your local listings to see the full episode.
Alisha Shurr was a reporter for The Missouri Times and The Missouri Times Magazine. She joined The Missouri Times in January 2018 after working as a copy editor for her hometown newspaper in Southern Oregon. Alisha is a graduate of Kansas State University.
