“It is time to start believing Democrats.” — Ray Reed, Missouri House Representative, District 83
The West County Democrats hosted a candidate forum today at the Des Peres Lodge. It was very well attended and the response was enthusiastic for all of the candidates who presented themselves. Good change is in the air. Voters are beginning to realize our current legislators are more interested in restricting citizen participation than solving real problems that face our County, our State and our Country. And we have problems, problems that could be solved if we have the will.
All three Democratic primary candidates seeking to unseat Ann Wagner in Missouri’s 2nd Congressional District were present. Tim Bilash, Joan VanDras and Fred Wellman discussed their qualifications and their priorities; and took open questions from the audience, something Ms. Wagner has failed to do even once during her entire tenure in Congress.
Two candidates for St. Louis County Assessor presented; Doug Clemens and Tommie Pierson Jr. The St. Louis County Assessor’s office has only been an elected position for about 15 years and it’s a unique role that affects the financial interests of residents and the funding of the county government and school districts within the county. Both Democratic candidates have the depth of experience in governance and fiscal responsibility to serve the citizens of our County well.
Four first time Democratic candidates for Missouri House districts took their turn at the microphone; Brian Troop (District 89), Matt Vitale (District 96), Paul Lentz (District 101) and Meredith Sumenek (District 95) collectively represent a large patch of West St. Louis County. All of them understand that our current elected officials are failing to represent the will of their constituents. All of them are running grass roots campaigns with small donor support. None have been corrupted by corporate interests or big money lobbyists. Isn’t it time we fired the officials who only serve themselves and replace them with folks like this? As Sumenek says, ‘Stop the Stupid.’
The candidate forum was rounded out by Connie Steinmetz (District 87) and Ray Reed (District 83) both of whom are currently serving in the Missouri House, and both are running for reelection this year. Connie and Ray have served as bulwarks against some of the most egregious legislation proposed by the Republican controllers of the Missouri House, but have also made significant contributions to progressive legislation considered in the past two years. We need more people like them representing us in the state house. Ray made a particularly thoughtful speech about the future of our state and the status of the Democratic party. We need to be proud of not just being the resistance, but we are the party that pushes for fair taxation, supports organized labor, wants to strengthen Social Security, promotes better Healthcare and a stronger Educational system, and advocates for keeping politics out of health care decisions. Above all, we are the party with initiatives to make living in Missouri attainable and more affordable for all of our citizens.
All of these candidates seek your support– at the polls and in advance of the elections. If you’d like to lend a hand, you can follow the links for these candidates by clicking on their names. Missouri legislative districts have been changing, and if you’re confused about in which district you live or your registration status, you can find that information here.
Of course, there are two awful constitutional amendments on the April 4th ballot. Nancy Price with the League of Women Voters lead a discussion regarding the issues with Amendments 4 and 5. Amendment 4 will essentially eliminate the future possibility of a state-wide citizen’s initiatives by imposing onerous requirements on the process. This Amendment will strip our right to petition the government for common sense legislation and frees the party in power to act against the will of the people. Amendment 5 will eliminate the State income tax entirely to be replaced with some other form of sales taxation to be named later. Currently $8.5 Billion of State revenue (or 64% of the entire State’s budget) is funded by income taxes. That revenue loss would be made up with massive increases of new sales taxes– even on services previously exempt from taxation. Moreover, it scraps the Hancock Amendment of 1980 which required fiscal responsibility and explicit approval of the people for any new taxes. (And despite the ads otherwise, this amendment does NOTHING to protect School funding.)
VOTE NO on 4 and 5!
Glenn Koenen presented his current Federal and State legislative report which will be linked here as the his notes are available.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:00 noon by Karen Cloyd, the chair of the West County Democrats.
REMINDER: The West County Democrats will not meet in August. Our next meeting will be on Monday, September 14th and the Manchester Justice Center, beginning at 10:00 am.