Capitol Calling

KBIA Commentary: Wolf Like Me

My KBIA commentary this week takes a look at Gov. Jay Nixon's decision to exercise his line-item veto pen. It also looks at his decision to withhold funding from a number of projects - including the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center.

Here it is:

Kinder pans bonding plan

Gov. Jay Nixon has warmed up to a proposal that would issue hundreds of millions of dollars worth of bonds to pay for capital improvement projects.

But that support apparently doesn't extend to Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder.

Kinder released a statement a few minutes ago panning the proposal, calling it "nothing more than another government bailout that will put our state in debt for nearly a quarter of a century."

"This bonding initiative is merely a debt plan that will fail to put any Missourians back to work in the near future," Kinder said in a statement. "The risk of failure is too great."

Kinder's statement added that the governor should "utilize the one time funds available in the state's bank account and fund the construction projects that legislators authorized just a few months ago." 

"THAT is a plan that will truly make a difference for hardworking Missourians,” Kinder said.

While Kinder dubbed the proposal as "the governor's bonding initiative," it was prominently championed over the legislative session by Rep. Chris Kelly, D-Columbia. Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, handled the measure in the Senate.

Kelly argued that issuing bonds to construct capital improvements made sense, especially with incentives emanating from the federal stimulus plan. The plan would have to be approved by voters in order to be put into effect.

While the proposal passed the House, it was filibustered in the Senate.

Kelly took questions about the plan last week, soon after Nixon announced a string of line-item vetoes and withholdings:

ADDENDUM: I just received an e-mail with the following quote from Schaefer:

"My support of the original bonding measure was to fund bricks and mortar projects that would get Missourians back to work. At the end of this legislative session, that goal was greatly accomplished with the passing of House Bill 22. The money to fund many of the Lewis and Clark projects, with the priority being the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center, is available for the Governor to release today. I still support a bonding proposal that allows the voters of Missouri to decide whether the State should incur debt for capital improvement, and I'm glad the Governor now supports it too. But, I have no intention of supporting a measure that enables the Governor to spend the one-time, job-creating, capital improvement money we gave him on his annual operating budget while at the same time asking tax payers for more." 

The Biggest Catch?

U.S. Rep. Roy Blunt has wrangled up a bunch of endorsements over the past few weeks. But today's pair might be the biggest catches of all.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-KY, backed Blunt's bid for the U.S. Senate today. Only one other person running for an open seat - Florida Gov. Charlie Crist - received a similar endorsement.

"He is traveling the state, engaging voters, and offering solutions to the economic, health care, and education needs facing Show Me State voters," said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. "While the likely Democrat nominee prefers to remain silent or undecided on the challenges confronting our country, Roy Blunt is - as he always has - providing critical leadership at home and in Washington."

The NRSC is a major third-party group in charge of providing resources and assistance to Senate candidates. A counterpart group - known as the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee - has assisted probable Democratic nominee Secretary of State Robin Carnahan.

The move could freeze out potential GOP challengers - such as former state Treasurer Sarah Steelman or state Sen. Chuck Purgason, R-Caulfield - from being about challenge Blunt financially. Blunt has also received backing from essentially every major Missouri Republican political figure in the state.

Still, Crist's endorsement from the NRSC hasn't been without detractors. Some national figures are breaking with the decision and endorsing former House Speaker Marco Rubio's Senate bid.

Whether this news causes something similar to occur in the Show Me State remains to be seen

Supremes overturn Sotomayor decision on reverse discrimination

There is much buzz today over a Supreme Court decision on a reverse discrimination case emanating out of New Haven, Connecticut.

The 5-4 decision overturned a decision that had been penned by Judge Sonia Sotomayor, President Barack Obama's nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court.

From the Washington Post:

The Supreme Court today narrowly ruled in favor of white firefighters in New Haven, Conn., who said they were denied promotions because of their race, reversing a decision by Judge Sonia Sotomayor and others that had come to play a large role in the consideration of her nomination for the high court.

The city had thrown out the results of a promotion test because no African Americans and only two Hispanics would have qualified for promotions. It said it feared a lawsuit from minorities under federal laws that said such "disparate impacts" on test results could be used to show discrimination.

In effect, the court was deciding when avoiding potential discrimination against one group amounted to actual discrimination against another.

The court's conservative majority said in a 5 to 4 vote that is what happened in New Haven.

"Fear of litigation alone cannot justify an employer's reliance on race to the detriment of individuals who passed the examinations and qualified for promotions," wrote Justice Anthony M. Kennedy.

Read the rest here.

You're Tearing Me Apart, David Catanese!

As the world continues to come grips with the death of singer Michael Jackson, an editorial cartoonist for the Missouri Record is poking fun at one of the Show Me State's most prolific political bloggers.

Cartoonist Bryan Stalder created this cartoon poking fun of KY3 political reporter David Catanese's penchant to Twitter. Although he's not directly identified, a cartoon version of Catanese asked a mustached politician to repeat his quote in "140 characters or less."

The cartoon can be found here.

While known to most people as a television reporter covering politics in southwest Missouri, Catanese also gained fame when he won a simulated presidential election in 2006 against GOP political consultant Jeff Roe.

R.I.P. Billy Mays

Forsee rips Nixon withholds

Gov. Jay Nixon's decision to withhold or veto a number of higher education projects did not elicit a positive reaction from University of Missouri System President Gary Forsee.

In a statement, the head of the four-campus system characterized Nixon's actions as "disappointing:"

"The University of Missouri System is disappointed that the governor has chosen to withhold funding for Ellis Fischel Cancer Center in Columbia and Benton/Stadler Halls at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, as well as eliminate funding for the agricultural experiment station projects across the state. As a practical consequence, all planning for these projects must come to a halt as the university re-evaluates its options.

These construction and renovation projects enjoy wide public support and address long-standing problems with aging facilities that no longer serve the purposes for which they are intended. We fully understand the state is facing challenging financial times, but eliminating or delaying funding for shovel-ready projects represents a missed opportunity to stimulate the economy by providing jobs and better education and health care services for Missourians."

State Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, called Nixon's budget decisions "devastating." He added that while it was positive that a veto of the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center was avoided, getting Nixon to relese the money could be a challenge.

In Limbo

Gov. Jay Nixon decided not to veto a $31 million allocation for the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center. But that doesn't mean the project doesn't face obstacles.

Nixon announced that funding for the University of Missouri-Columbia project - as well as three other higher education capital improvement endeavors - will be withheld. Nixon ended up vetoing a number of projects connected to the University of Missouri-Columbia in rural portions of the state.

The project is part of a seven-story "medical tower" on the University of Missouri-Columbia campus. The Ellis Fischel Cancer Center will encompass two floors of that structure.

On the one hand, Nixon's decision means the legislature won't have to reallocate the money or try to overturn the governor's veto. But by withholding the money, Nixon can effectively cling onto the funds for an undetermined period of time.

Nixon cited the worsening economy for his decision-making, arguing that he doesn't want Missouri to go through budget nightmares of other states.

"These are important projects, we hope to find a cost-effective way of moving forward on them," Nixon said. "But the dollars, in short, just aren't there."

Here's Nixon's talking about the project:

Because of Nixon's decision, Rep. Chris Kelly, D-Columbia, said people will know that the funding for the project "will be there, ultimately."

"And second, the possibility exists that we can get some of money released if it's needed to make the tower go," Kelly said. "So, I'm very encouraged."

When asked if the move would delay the construction of structure, Kelly said "I don't necessarily think that."

"It's possible, but not by any stretch of the imagination likely," Kelly said. "It's certainly possible."

Here's more of Kelly's comments:

Nixon swings budget ax

Gov. Jay Nixon vetoed $105 million worth of spending in the state budget and plans to withhold roughly $325 million.

The governor laid out his budget-making decisions in a news conferences a few minutes ago. He announced that roughly $24.7 million for a statewide police radio system was vetoed, as well as $16.5 million from various MOHELA projects.

But he also is "restricting" $91.3 million from existing MOHELA projects. That includes the $31.2 million allocation for the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center.

The withholding - which Nixon termed as "a restriction" - means that the governor can delay sending out the cash to fund the project.

Here's a video:

The Nixon Show

Gov. Jay Nixon is holding a media avail to talk about the 2010 fiscal year budget.

We all know that the $12 million for METRO will survive. But what will the guv cut?

Stay tuned...