JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — With an expected veto of a tax cut bill just days away, House Speaker Tim Jones joined former Republican lawmaker Carl Bearden and founder of Americans for Tax Reform, Grover Norquist, to gin up support for an override vote.
Gov. Jay Nixon has strongly implied he will veto SB509, a tax cut bill that Republicans say will boost small businesses in the state and expand job opportunities. Democrats counter that the loss of revenue will hurt state services, and that the tax cut isn’t focused enough on low and middle-class income earners.
Republican leadership already promised to schedule an override of Nixon’s veto as soon as possible during the legislation session, preventing a summer’s long fight that could allow opponents to chip away at the Republican super majority, as they did last year in the fight over HB253.
Republicans need 109 votes to override Nixon. The caucus currently has 108 members, meaning at least one Democrat must buck the party line if the Republicans are able to hold all their members. Last year, 15 Republicans voted against overriding Nixon’s veto of HB253 and were swiftly dubbed “The Flimsy 15,” by Bearden and other conservatives on the radio and in print. Republican leadership in the House says all those members have been assuaged, and several of them confirmed their support of SB509 to The Missouri Times.
Norquist said SB 509 was a “consensus bill,” and said it would survive an override vote. Norquist also said that last year’s inner-party turmoil over HB 253 improved this year’s bill.
“This is a consensus bill,” Norquist said. “And last year as compared to this year just proves that the Governor is not serious about compromise, and that the concerns of some members can be addressed.”
A second failed override of a tax cut would likely signal turmoil within the House Republican caucus, but leadership has been publically confident that they have the votes. When asked how conservatives should respond if any Republicans vote against an override, Norquist replied that he would “recommend medication.”
“Or maybe it would be like that thing where the paddy wagon comes and takes you away,” Norquist said. “You’d have to be crazy to vote against this bill.”
Collin Reischman was the Managing Editor for The Missouri Times, and a graduate of Webster University with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.
