JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – With the second round of special sessions getting underway next week, Governor Eric Greitens is wasting little time in getting out and about to rally Missourians to the cause.
The governor’s call for a special session, announced on Wednesday, is set to focus on anti-abortion legislation, in particular St. Louis’ new pro-abortion rights city ordinance.
Greitens on Thursday toured Our Lady’s Inn, a pregnancy care center in St. Louis, one that the governor said is under attack by the city’s new ordinance.
But that’s just the first stop for the governor. On Friday, Missouri’s top executive statewide official will embark on a three-stop tour of the Show-Me State to promote his goals for the special session.
Greitens will be stopping for rallies in Springfield, Joplin, and St. Charles. He’ll be accompanied by former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee on the first two stops.
Here’s the addresses and times for each event:
Springfield Rally with Mike Huckabee
University Plaza | 333 S John Q Hammons Pkwy
Springfield, MO 65806
Time: 11:30 am
Joplin Rally with Mike Huckabee
Butcher’s Block Event Center | 499 W Fountain Rd
Joplin, MO 64801
Time: 2:00 pm
St. Charles Rally
St. Charles | 1410 S 5th St
St Charles, MO 63301
Time: 6:00 pm
Last month, Greitens was joined by Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin while signing labor reform legislation. This week, Huckabee joins him on the trail.
But another interesting facet to add is that the list of rally stops was not issued by the governor’s office, but by his campaign and the nonprofit organization established to promote his agenda, A New Missouri.
Greitens’ last call for special session consisted of campaign-style events in the Bootheel, as well as a rally at the state capitol in which A New Missouri paid to bus dozens of supporters to Jefferson City.
Democrats say the whole process is indicative of the governor’s lack of knowledge about the legislative process while questioning whether a special session is necessary.
“Missourians structured the General Assembly to be a part-time, citizen legislature with tight restrictions on when it has authority to act. Special sessions are supposed to be called only on ‘extraordinary occasions’ when immediate action is necessary. The governor’s failure to enact his agenda during the regular session falls well short of that high standard,” House Minority Leader Gail McCann Beatty, D-Kansas City, said. “Instead of wasting more taxpayer dollars on another expensive special session, Governor Greitens should take the coming months to learn the legislative process and develop relationships with lawmakers so that he can competently do his job by the time the General Assembly reconvenes next year.”
The special session begins Monday, June 12.
Benjamin Peters was a reporter for The Missouri Times and Missouri Times Magazine and also produced the #MoLeg Podcast. He joined The Missouri Times in 2016 after working as a sports editor and TV news producer in mid-Missouri. Benjamin is a graduate of Missouri State University in Springfield.
