2020 Missouri Governor Race

This is a picture of Missouri children in line to get the lunch they would normally get at school. Because they were (and some still are) out of school due to COVID-19 pandemic these kids would not have had a lunch to eat if school districts, community groups and volunteers hadn’t worked together to feed them.

One critical and under-recognized area of impact of a governor is child welfare. Many states have developed State-level children’s coordinating bodies–often known as children’s cabinets–which bring together state and sometimes private agencies whose work promotes the wellbeing of children and youth.  Missouri is not one of those states.

Mike Parsons is a nice guy, he is a law and order candidate whose policies speak well to a lot of conservative Missourians. He has been in an elected position in Missouri since 1992. The problem is that these law and order policies are not deterring crime. Missouri violent crime has continued to rise during the time he has been in Jefferson City and he supports continuing on the same path. During this time of pandemic and children in need he has cut spending to the Children’s Division, in the same week that he signed a bill that will cost the taxpayers 1.6 million (??) to build new prisons and put in more mandatory sentencing requirements. Missouri is notorious for the school to prison pipeline and he wants to make that pipeline stronger and more rigid. WE NEED A NEW APROACH TO STOP THE VIOLENCE across ALL OF MISSOURI – IT IS NOT JUST IN THE BIG CITIES!

Nicole Galloway understands that the people, the families of Missouri, must first, must be prioritized above corporations and above lobbyist and above political party. Safer Communities – “In 2017, the last year there are statistics for, there were 952 overdose deaths­­­ involving opioids. 1,307 Missourians died from gunshot wounds. These are our children dying from gunshots in their own yards, these are farmers who lost everything who take their own lives, these are workers who got hooked on prescription drugs when they were hurt on the job. Governor Parson has done little to end the opioid epidemic. Governor Parson has said that he has to “stay in his lane” when asked about the rise in gun-related deaths. The lack of hope that changed over 2,259 of our families living in our communities is a direct result of public policy failure in Jefferson City. It is no wonder that our children see no optimism when they are living in communities that have been devastated by trauma. To succeed as a state, we have to restore optimism, we have to call out the problem and acknowledge the pain. Together we can restore hope for the future. “

Jerome Howard Bauer (VOTE411.org) most compelling policy challenges if elected are “The big problem is wealth inequality. If elected, I would work cooperatively to build worker- and consumer-owned coops and a universal basic income in exchange for universal basic service. Let’s bring back the Civilian Conservation Corps and establish affordable education and vocational training for all, student loan debt forgiveness and money-back tuition guarantees.”

Rik Combs (VOTE411.org) top three priorities for Missour are Slash taxes. Cut spending. Protect personal property.

Where and how we spend out tax dollars in Missouri is a big issue for me and because it is hurting the kids. 2021 Budget has allocated $803,858,727 to the department of Corrections while the Children’s Division is allocated 585,873,110. Children’s Division is the one that is responsible for investigating child abuse, advocating for children, making sure they have a place to live, providing treatment to help them overcome being beaten, sexually abused, left alone with no food by the adults who are supposed to care for them. When taught by THE SOCIETY AROUND YOU that you do not count, you have no voice and that you just need to do what you are told by the adults around you, you are going to grow up hopeless or angry or both. When you are hopeless and desperate is when you will cross the line and commit the crime.

WHAT WE ARE DOING IS NOT WORKING! WE NEED A NEW APROACH TO STOP THE VIOLENCE across ALL OF MISSOURI – IT IS NOT JUST IN THE BIG CITIES!

I am writing this and other blogs to share my understanding based on research I have personally done over the last few months. I am an independent voter and I support candidates in 3 different parties for the 2020 election. I am disengaged from the presidential election because I believe that we need to focus on what is happening right here in Missouri. As we (the voters) take back control of our local and state elected officials we will make a difference. There are no perfect candidates, we can only try to bring balance and common sense into the process.