With morning rush hour still crowding Telegraph Road, I walked to the grocer to get my produce for the day, then stopped at the bakery.
Alas, the bakery lacked muffins, many varieties of bagels, and other goodies. I asked the young lady if they had more items being baked: ‘This is all we have…it was really busy this morning. We have other things available.’
I left.
You see, for years I shopped the bakery early every Saturday morning getting goodies for me and my wife – until time and again I saw empty shelves and heard the same excuse. I stopped-by on a Thursday thinking ‘they have to have stuff to sell today.’ I was wrong. Still, I wouldn’t settle for what they had instead of what I wanted.
Back at home (muffin free), I listened to the Missouri House of Representatives as the baker’s dozen of Fiscal Year 2020 budget bills came up for final vote.
On each bill that small cadre of Democratic members spoke of harmful cuts and tried to offer alternatives. The majority remained largely unmoved.
Oh, at times even some Republicans lamented their budget. For example, a gentleman from St. Louis County complained that his metro area contributed $600 million a year to the Missouri Department of Transportation yet received barely $300 million in MoDOT services, calling that a ‘classic transfer of wealth.’ Still, that budget bill passed, including – for the first time in memory – stealing $100 million from General Revenue to pay for some rural bridges. That means, even the majority admitted, that some good programs will lose funding to pay for those bridges.
‘WE HAVE TO MAKE HARD CHOICES,” the GOP leadership demanded, repeatedly. “We have to work with the funds we’ll have.”
Wrong answer.
Remember, the members of the legislature are elected to serve the people. The state motto remains, “Let the welfare of the people be the supreme law.”
It is the duty of the legislature to provide the necessary services citizens need. If supporting that vital work requires more money, the legislature needs to raise that money. No one likes paying taxes but everyone understands that making the state work takes money.
Unfortunately, the current super majority sees their job as cutting revenue every year and thereby requiring ever more cuts to basic services.
Take for example the proposal for Missouri to accept its share of sales taxes collected from internet sales, basically better than $160 million in new, free money which could be used to help schools or vital services…
During an earlier floor debate, Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, R-Parkville, said the money from online sales could be used to eliminate the corporate income tax.
“I look at the tax relief that could be provided to all the small, family-owned businesses,” Luetkemeyer said.
Corporations before kids.
By the way, starving schools trickles down to every town in Missouri: “Chamois R-1 board members last week agreed with Superintendent Lyle Best’s recommendation that next year’s base salary be bumped by $350, which would move it to $28,000.” [Unterrified Democrat March 20, 2019, page 1] Yes, next fall a new certified teacher with a college education will make just $28,000 in Osage County.
As long as Missourians elect Republicans who place cutting taxes before educating kids and other critical needs, things will get worse. The time has come to stop settling for mediocre politicians unwilling to lead the state forward. Current elected officials must be told again and again that we want them to remember that state motto before every vote. Store their office numbers in your phone. Pester often.
I called the bakery’s toll-free customer service number last Thursday. (I have the number stored in my phone.) The lady on my call explained that they are committed to giving customers the products they want. Yeah. I bet they still ran out of muffins Saturday morning.
Glenn