Legislation aimed at keeping registered sex offenders away from state Conservation areas has been given final approval today (Thursday) by the Missouri Senate. Riddle notes current Missouri law bans sex offenders from being 500 feet of public parks with playground equipment, public swimming pools, and children’s museums. The only exception would be a […]
Tag: Senator
Former Police Captain David Dorn receives Congressional Medal of Honor Citizen Honors Award
The Congressional Medal of Honor Society announced retired St. Louis Police Captain David Dorn would be posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor Citizen Honors Award for his courage when he was mortally wounded while saving his friend’s business from looters during the riots in St. Louis last June. U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) nominated him […]
Eric Schmitt joins Missouri race for U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Roy Blunt
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt officially jumped into the GOP primary for the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, making him the second major Republican hopeful seeking to replace Roy Blunt. Schmitt’s decision comes after former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens jumped into the race earlier this week. Both made their announcements on Fox News. “Washington, D.C., needs more […]
Abortion amendment puts bill to finance Missouri Medicaid program in limbo
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri Senate leadership pulled a bill vital for funding the state’s Medicaid program from floor debate Tuesday after adopting an amendment barring the use of public money for common contraceptive treatments. The amendment, sponsored by Republican Sen. Paul Wieland, could endanger the state’s entire Medicaid program by eliminating a health care service required by federal […]
Lawmakers introduce legislation to protect rural health clinics from added financial strain during COVID-19 crisis
U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Mark Warner (Va.) introduced legislation to prevent further financial instability for rural health clinics and safeguard the care they provide to underserved communities. The bipartisan Strengthening Rural Health Clinics Act of 2021 would make a technical fix to protect existing rural health clinics from a sudden and unexpected Medicare […]
Biden calls on U.S. Senate to act on background checks after Colorado mass shooting
(Missouri Independent) – President Joe Biden on Tuesday urged the U.S. Senate to immediately pass legislation to close loopholes on background checks for guns and to ban assault weapons, following a mass shooting that killed 10 at a Colorado supermarket. “This should not be a partisan issue,” Biden said. “This is an American issue.” Biden’s […]
Audio: Former Missouri Governor Eric Greitens announces U.S. Senate bid
A former Missouri governor who resigned three years ago announced Monday on national television that he’s running for the U.S. Senate in 2022. Current U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R) will not seek re-election next year, which will leave the seat open for the 2022 election cycle. Republican Eric Greitens was elected as Missouri’s governor in […]
Audio: Blunt says “America does not need “alternative versions” of this year’s U.S. Capitol attack”
Missouri U.S. Senator Roy Blunt says America does not need “alternative versions” of this year’s U.S. Capitol attack. Blunt joined NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday to talk about the mob of former President Donald Trump supporters storming the Capitol in January. Blunt pushed back on fellow Republican Senator Ron Johnson calling the rioters […]
Audio & Video: More than 3,600 Missourians vaccinated on Friday at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium
Missouri’s governor says more than 3,600 Jackson County residents were vaccinated on Friday at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium, the largest state-supported vaccination event thus far in the state. A second day of vaccinations took place Saturday morning at 9 and continued until 7 p.m. Two Missouri National Guard teams were at Arrowhead on Saturday, and […]
Lawmakers call for judiciary hearing on Obama-Biden FTC’s “Sweetheart Deal” with Google
Senators Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) sent letters to Federal Trade Commission Acting Chair Rebecca Slaughter and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) calling for a public Judiciary Hearing into recent revelations that the Obama-Biden FTC failed to enforce antitrust law in a 2011 investigation of Google and […]
Lawmakers say President Biden is escalating border crisis by unlawfully freezing border wall funding
Amid the rapidly escalating crisis along the southern border, U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.) and dozens of his colleagues joined U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, in sending a letter to Government Accountability Office Comptroller Gene L. Dodaro highlighting President Joe Biden’s suspension of border wall […]
Hawley and colleagues reintroduce “Protect and Serve Act” to punish criminals for targeting law enforcement
Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and 16 of his colleagues reintroduced the Protect and Serve Act, legislation that would create federal penalties for individuals who deliberately target local, state, or federal law enforcement officers with violence. In 2020, more than 300 officers were shot in the line of duty and 47 officers were shot and killed, including […]
Senate confirms Haaland as first-ever Native American to serve in the Cabinet
(Missouri Independent) – U.S. Rep. Debra Haaland made history on Monday when she became the first Native American to ever be confirmed by the U.S. Senate to hold a position in a president’s Cabinet. In a narrow 51-40 vote, senators confirmed Haaland, a New Mexico Democrat, to serve as secretary of the interior, where she […]
Audio: Missouri’s Senate President Pro Tem praises Senate passage of gasoline tax legislation
Missouri’s Senate leader is praising senators in both parties for approving his legislation to increase the state’s gasoline tax by 12 cents per gallon, by 2025. Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz (pronounced like shots) says the state transportation system has billions of dollars in maintenance needs. The bill now heads to the […]
States question whether new federal stimulus law rules out tax cuts
(Missouri Independent) – President Joe Biden’s massive pandemic stimulus law pumps a welcome infusion of federal aid into state and local government coffers — but one brief section is raising questions about whether states are barred from cutting their own taxes if they accept the federal help. The Senate added language to the COVID-19 relief package […]
Jay Nixon comeback? Democrats lining up for shot at open Missouri Senate seat
(Missouri Independent) – Roy Blunt’s announcement that he won’t seek a third term certainly shook up Republican politics in Missouri, sparking nearly every GOP elected official in the state to publicly mull jumping into the campaign. Democrats aren’t immune from the speculation. While any Democrat would face an uphill fight, the chance of a messy […]
Lawmakers reintroduce U.S. military Right to Carry Act
Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Congressman Jason Smith (R-Mo.) reintroduced legislation in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to ease the burden active-duty military service members face when renewing concealed-carry licenses while stationed outside of their state of residency. The U.S. Military Right to Carry Act allows service members to renew their permits by […]
Senator Hawley calls for emergency Senate hearing on Biden administration’s handling of southern border crisis
Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) sent letters to President Joe Biden and Senator Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, calling for Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to testify at a full Senate hearing, to be scheduled as soon as possible on the growing crisis at […]