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DEF is a non-partisan, independent political blog based in the
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Before his rally at Union Station Friday, Presidential Candidate Barack Obama met with a group of local elected officials at his Washington Ave. campaign office.
Local electeds in attendance included: Congressman Lacy Clay; State Auditor Susan Montee; St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley; President of the Board of Aldermen Lewis Reed; License Collector Mike McMillan; Aldermen April Ford-Griffin and Frank Williamson; State Senator Rita Days; State Reps Rodney Hubbard, Robin Wright-Jones, and Ted Hoskins; Chairman of the City Democrats, Brian Wahby; U-City Councilwoman Hazel Erby; former St. Louis mayor Vince Schoemehl; and former state representative Betty Thompson.
This morning, nearly 200 people from St. Louis and surrounding areas will ride out of town on the 6:00 am Amtrak train to Chicago, or as they call it, the Peace Train.
The passengers are going to the Windy City to take part in the Mobilization to End the War, a demonstration against the war in Iraq. Chicago is one of eleven cities taking part in the Mobilization, and it will serve as the Midwestern hub for those taking part in the protest.
170 Peace Train tickets were available, and all were sold by Friday afternoon.
For more details about the demonstration, click here.
School officials attending a conference this weekend at the Lake of the Ozarks may get a political message on their drive to the Tan-Tar-A resort.
A group called Americans for Prosperity - Missouri has bought a billboard attacking the nearly 300 school boards, including St. Louis Public Schools' and its Special Administrative Board, for supporting a lawsuit against the state seeking more money for public education.
Carl Bearden, the former state representative who left the House to accept the state director position with the group, says many of the state's school districts are guilty of a "misguided effort" to funnel tax revenue to lawyers in an unsuccessful effort to force the state to increase state aid to public schools.
Bearden said that if the school districts prevail in court, "the state would either have to raise taxes by $1 billion, cut services by that amount or a combination of both."
The billboards direct people to a website which outlines the group's position on the school funding lawsuit.
Americans for Prosperity calls themselves "the nation's premier grassroots organization committed to advancing every individual's right to economic freedom and opportunity." According to campaign finance reports, AFP spent $25,000 last year opposing the proposed tabacco tax increase.
The Service Employees International Union, Local 2000 will be endorsing Chris Koster's campaign for Attorney General.
Koster finally formally announced his bid for AG yesterday in Harrisonville, MO. He held another announcement today in Independence. And late yesterday, a third stop was added to his cross-state announcement tour — St. Louis City — or more specifically, the headquarters of SEIU Local 2000. That press event is scheduled for Monday at 10:30 AM.
PubDef.net is scheduling interviews with all four announced Attorney General candidates. Check back next week for our interviews with Senators Mike Gibbons (R) and Chris Koster (D), and State Reps Jeff Harris (D) and Margaret Donnelly (D).
Just a couple of days after opening a campaign office here, Senator Barack Obama will be in St. Louis today at a rally at Union Station.
Organizers say they are undertered by the sprinkles of rain. "I think it's going to be a great crowd and a great event," said Mike Dorsey, the Obama campaign's state director for Missouri. "Rain or shine, we're fired up and ready to go!"
Doors open for the St. Louis "Countdown to Change" rally will at 5:00 PM at the south parking lot of Union Station. Tickets are $25 ($15 for students).
Also tonight, city Democrats — young and old — will be putting on the make-up and wigs for their annual Halloween Party.
The St. Louis Democratic Central Committee and the Young Democrats of Greater St. Louis host their annual party tonight from 6:00 to 10:00 PM at the Glazier's Union Hall, 5916 Wilson Ave. (Southeast of Hampton and I 44). Tickets are a less-than-frightening $15 per person.
And now the exciting conclusion of our interview with affirmative action opponent Ward Connerly.
Connerly has come to Missouri to support a proposed amendment to our state constitution to "ban affirmative action programs designed to eliminate discrimination against, and improve opportunities for, women and minorities in public contracting, employment and education."
The membership of the 24th Ward Regular Democratic Organization voted last night to work against the proposed recall attempt of Mayor Francis Slay. PubDef is told the vote was unanimous.
"It was decided, after much discussion, that our ward organization would not sit silent while recall proponents pass the petition around the 24th Ward without the benefit of information from the ward association," said John M. Corbett, the group's president.
"We feel our collective voice must be heard in this matter, as it should always be the task of any ward organization to speak out in regards to issues of interest to ward voters," he said in an email to PubDef.
The 24th Ward, located in south St. Louis, has an 87.5% white population and voted overwhelmingly for Slay in the last primary. Given those facts, it is unlikely recall organizers would target the 24th as one of the 19 wards it must collect signatures in.
Aldermanic President Lewis Reed*, State Representative Rodney Hubbard*, and Vice-Chair of the City Democratic Party Yaphett El-Amin helped the Barack Obama Presidential campaign open their St. Louis headquarters yesterday.
On Tuesday, the man appointed by the governor to turn-around the city schools met with the SLPS Parent Assembly for the first time.
SLPS CEO Rick Sullivan immediately opened the floor for questions, most of which were about the Special Administrative Board's plan to improve the schools. Sullivan, a suburban homebuilder, said the SAB's plan will soon be ready and available in its full form for parent review.
Other questions focused on legal actions, school conditions and parent apathy. The meeting ran nearly 45 minutes past its scheduled closing time of 8:00 PM.
In related news... Sullivan, who still has not been confirmed by the senate, will testify Wednesday morning in Jefferson City before the Joint Committee on Education on his first 100 days as CEO of the district.
The headline could have read: "Hometown Boy Makes Good".
St. Louis' President of the Board of Aldermen was featured Tuesday in his hometown newspaper, The Herald News, which serves Joliet, Illinois, the town a young Lewis Reed started his journey from wrestler and part-time janitor to the second-highest elected official on our city.
The current president of the Board of Aldermen for the City of St. Louis was a wrestler at Joliet Central High School, but he didn't spend much time picking himself up after a match. A mainstay of the Steelmen teams of the late 1970s and early '80s, he moved to the varsity as a freshman and wound up earning a third-place trophy in the state competition in his senior year.
"I went through a transformation as a person in those years," Reed said. "The lessons that Coach Mac (Eural McLaughlin) taught are the same lessons I used to get where I am today. He said everything in life is a matter of preparation and execution, and I've never forgotten that."
Reed, now 45 and well over the 155-pound weight class in which he used to compete, had to prepare himself to unseat a better-funded, better-known 20-year incumbent to win the election for the second most powerful position in St. Louis government. His campaign signs were blue and gold in tribute to his days as a Steelman.
Last week, I sat down with Ward Connerly, the controversial founder and chairman of the American Civil Rights Institute, a national non-profit organization created to oppose racial and gender preference, commonly known as affirmative action.
In 1996, Connerly was instrumental in getting Proposition 209 passed in California. The controversial initiative amended the state's constitution to prohibit public institutions, such as universities, from taking race or gender into consideration in hiring or admissions.
Connerly has now come to Missouri. He has been brought in to be the spokesman for a group based out of Grain Valley, Missouri which is organizing to get an initiative passed next year which is very similar to the one passed in California.
The California initiative passed by 54%. In this much more conservative Midwestern state, supporters of affirmative action are up for a fight — one that will likely be settled on the very same ballot that decides who will be the next President of the United States.
And now, part 1 of my interview with Ward Connerly...
U.S. Senator Kit Bond announced today that Jason Van Eaton and Matt Roney will be heading up his 2008 political operations. The senior Republican is not up for re-election until 2010, but he appears to be preparing to take a leading role in Republican campaigns for president, governor, and other statewide offices.
From the press release:
COLUMBIA, MO – As this session of Congress nears an end, U.S. Senator Kit Bond today announced key staff restructuring in his personal and political operations. State Director, Jason Van Eaton, and Director for the Western Missouri District, Matt Roney, will move over to the political arm of Bond's operation.
"Jason and Matt have been essential to my official office operations. They are trusted members of my staff and I look forward to continue working with them on our political efforts in a very important election cycle," said Bond.
More on Eaton and Roney:
W. Jason Van Eaton was born and raised in Southwest Missouri. Jason has served in numerous capacities for Bond, most recently serving as Bond's State Director for over 7 years. Jason has also focused his efforts on appropriations projects, transportation policy, infrastructure, education, economic development, as well as several major development projects. On the political front, Jason worked on his first campaign in 1994 when John Ashcroft was running for the U.S. Senate. In 1998, Jason served as a Regional Director for Bond's reelection. During the 2000 election cycle, he was the Campaign Manager for now U.S. Congressman Todd Akin in his first run for Congress. Again in 2004 he served as Campaign Manager, this time, for Bond's reelection.
Matthew L. Roney was born and raised in greater Kansas City, Missouri. Matt has served in numerous capacities for Bond, most recently serving as Director for the Western Missouri District for the last 6 years. Duties included managing a district staff, coordinating appropriations requests, and coordinating governmental involvement in key economic development projects. Matt also served as Political Director for Senator Bond's successful reelection in 2004.
Reverend James Morris told the crowd of hundreds gathered in front of City Hall yesterday that he could no longer sit by in good conscience and allow this city to be divided for political gain.
"There is a time to pray," said Morris, a candidate for state representative. "Then there is a time to get up off your knees and go to work."
Sources tell PubDef.net that State Senator Chris Koster is going to make it official this week. Koster, who rocked the state's political scene when he switched from the Republican Party to become a Democrat back in August, announced today yet another labor endorsement for his still-unofficial bid for Attorney General.
Amalgamated Transit Union Local #1287, comprised mostly of Kansas City Area Transportation Authority workers, announced today they are supporting Koster for AG.
The Koster campaign was careful to remind the press in their release this morning that Koster now has the most labor endorsements and money of any of his opponents. But Koster's opponents in the Democratic primary have targeted his campaign coffers — and one contributor, in particular — to discredit Koster's independence.
The campaigns of both Jeff Harris and Margaret Donnelly have issued statements attacking millionaire Rex Sinquefield for his contributions to Koster. Sinquefield, a businessman and pro-school choice, pro-free market activist, has made no secrets about using his wealth and influence to change Missouri's political landscape. In recent years, he has donated millions to candidates from both sides of the aisle who support one or more of his ideas about education and business.
Last week, the Harris campaign produced the following video mocking Sinquefield's contributions to Koster:
According to the latest campaign finance reports, Koster has more cash on-hand than all three of his opponents — Democrat and Republican — combined.
In perhaps the most disgusting example of inaccurate, protective reporting ever witnessed, KSDK Channel 5 is reporting that only a few dozen people attended yesterday's rally to recall Mayor Francis Slay.
From KSDK.com:
Dozens of St. Louis residents gathered on the steps of City Hall Sunday, demanding a recall of Mayor Francis Slay.
The group of citizens, city and religious leaders say they support former Fire Chief Sherman George, and believe his demotion was the result of a racial divide in the mayor's office.
Watch PubDef's video from Sunday's event. We invite you to pause the video at the beginning and the end and do a head count for yourself. At its peak, there were easily 700 people in front of City Hall yesterday.
Nearly a thousand people protested outside City Hall on Sunday in support of former fire chief Sherman George and in support of removing from office the man who demoted the 40-year veteran, Mayor Francis Slay.
It looks like the Barack Obama campaign will be the first to open an office in St. Louis.
This week, supporters of the junior senator from Illinois' bid for President will open a campaign office in downtown St. Louis, in the Jack Thompson Square Building on the corner of Washington Ave. and Tucker.
The opening of the headquarters, which will likely occur on Tuesday Wednesday, comes just a few days before Sen. Obama comes to St. Louis for a rally on Friday at Union Station.
