Winners
House Speaker Jon Patterson
There must have been a big smile on his face when he woke up Thursday morning to see that he will be the man who saves the Royals and the Chiefs for Kansas City and the Senate totally and completely capitulated in the deal. Now sure there is a pittance for St. Louis tornado victims, but his caucus is obsessed with St. Louis anyway and some reactor money for Mizzou which he is a fan of, but there is no way he could have realistically thought he would have gotten this deal in such a rout when the call was issued. He will return to the Capitol Monday just a gimme put away from the first KC speaker since the Civil War to become a KC civic hero.
House Budget Chair Dirk Deaton
There were a lot of put out by his killing of HB19, especially senators. There was also a lot of bluster from a lot of folks over it, especially senators. However, none of them did a thing to push back on him. He slapped the senate down and two weeks later their response was, “thank you sir may I have another.” Rep. Deaton has the Senate cowering and unless your district was stung by HB19, his caucus has to be thrilled at the smackdown he put on the upper chamber.
Governor Mike Kehoe
We told you at the start of the special session that he would win, and he is well on his way to winning. Now I honestly don’t think anyone could have predicted that he would get everything he wanted so cheap, but as we have said before, he is a winner.
Senator Kurtis Gregory
He carried one of the most complicated pieces of legislation in recent history through the Missouri Senate. He had to rely on his reputation that he built in Jefferson City as an honest and fair broker. He has an open line of communication with all 33 of his colleagues. He was the right man to carry this bill and the Chiefs and the Royals owe him a game ball.
The Commissioner of the Office of Administration
The commissioner of OA will be in charge of all the money for the stadium projects. Ken Zellers is now a super bureaucrat whose already large portfolio substantially grew last night.
Senate Leadership
While their members’ districts were essentially excluded from any benefit whatsoever in the I-70 special season you have to hand it to Senators O’Laughlin and Luetkemeyer for getting the senate portion done in 3 days. This thing could have easily spun out and taken forever and come up with nothing. However, they accomplished their goal of getting the Governor’s stadium bill done quickly and efficiently and received no blowback whatsoever from the double PQs that ended session.
Senator Rick Brattin
He has become a legislation machine this session including capping property tax rises for most of the red counties in Missouri.
Senator Stephen Webber
He had a deal during session for $50 million for the Mizzou research reactor, it was wiped out in the death of HB19, but he got back to even in the special session while still voting no on the bill.
Anyone living on I-70
You don’t have to vote for Republicans for the Missouri Republican Party to spend 99% of their time and efforts on you. The I-70 special session was special indeed for the urban parts of the state.
Chiefs and Royals
This legislation is very very team friendly and they managed to score a very generous subsidy in an age where public money for stadiums is getting more and more rare.
Meh
Senate Democrats
On one hand they got a billion dollars of investment 95%+ of which will be in Democratic districts so there is that. On the other hand they were two weeks removed from being double PQ’d in a special session where the republicans were 100% in need of their votes and they got some tornado recovery money unless FEMA comes in out of it. I tend to think there was more on the table there. Further why would the senate republicans have any fear of PQing them again next session if this is their response.
Republicans who voted for the stadium bill
I respect folks who do things that are for the greater good of the state, and voting for a taxpayer-funded stadium is something you have to believe is good for the state because it’s politically toxic and there is no other reason to vote for it.
However, it’s pretty easy to predict what the first attack and run against each of them will be in their next election.
Losers
Freedom Caucus
Confusing messaging early in the week being out in front saying no taxpayer money for stadiums then later that week voting for taxpayer money for stadiums.
Senator Joe Nicola
While a large portion of this state will benefit from his concept of capping property tax increases his district in Jackson County won’t. In short he got the shaft on the floor after he thought he had a deal. It kinda reminds me of a certain flat top haired St. Charles County senator who got his tax cutting bill killed in a very public way in his second year in the senate. Senator Bill Eigel returned the next January a changed man, will Nicola?
Rural Missourah
Rural republicans are the supermajority of the supermajority, but you would never know it from how they spend their time in the state capitol. The I-70 special session was exactly what it says: a special session exclusively for Missourians who live on I-70. No word yet on when the Hwy. 36 or Hwy 60 special sessions will be held to do things for the people that actually vote for these urban obsessed Republicans. If I had to guess folks who live on gravel roads shouldn’t hold their breath.
Scott Faughn is the publisher of The Missouri Times, owner of the Clayton Times in Clayton; SEMO Times in Poplar Bluff; and host of the only statewide political television show, This Week in Missouri Politics.
