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The closing days of Missouri’s legislature were among the most dysfunctional I’ve covered in more than one half century.
Filibusters by Senate Republican conservatives blocked action …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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5/31/23
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Missouri’s Republican legislators might want to give a second thought to their party’s push to impose higher vote requirements to amend the state constitution.
If some of these …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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5/10/23
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Missouri represents an interesting perspective for the vote of Tennessee’s House to expel two of its members for disrupting a House session trying to highlight firearm issues.
As far as I …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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4/19/23
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Missouri’s Gov. Mike Parson has engaged in escalating restrictions against journalists covering Missouri’s Capitol.
His hindrances on statehouse reporters is unprecedented in the five …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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3/8/23
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The 50-year golden anniversary of Missouri’s Sunshine Law has led me to reflect on what could be done to restore the vision of Missouri’s original Sunshine Law sponsors.
Recent news …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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2/1/23
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The fall of 2023 will be the 50th anniversary of the legislative birth of Missouri’s Sunshine Law that provides the public with sweeping rights to documents, voting records and meetings of …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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1/11/23
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This column is written in the aftermath of two recent fatal shootings in mid-Missouri. One was two deaths in Jefferson City and the other in Columbia.
Those incidents renewed questions …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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12/14/22
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The recent party caucuses of Missouri’s legislature provide an example for the U.S. Congress of a more civil and productive approach to dealing with changes after a general …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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11/23/22
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Missouri’s legislative special session dealing with tax cuts is a reminder of how often in past decades tax-cut bills have become food fights for getting tax burdens reduced for a variety of …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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10/5/22
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One of the major aspects of Missouri’s recent primary was the number of races for which there actually was no contest.
In more than half of the 180 state legislative districts on the ballot, …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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8/17/22
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This column was inspired by a discussion with Missouri Independent reporter Rudi Keller the day after the 2022 legislative session adjourned.
We reminisced about earlier years when there seemed to …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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5/25/22
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The 2022 regular session of the Missouri General Assembly was the most dysfunctional I can remember in more than 50 years covering the statehouse.
Endless Senate filibusters stalled action for …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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5/18/22
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Missouri’s legislature enters its final days of the 2022 legislative session facing an unusually large pile of partisan and ideological divisive issues.
In an election year, it is not …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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5/4/22
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After so many decades covering the legislative process, I’ve gained an appreciation about Senate filibusters.
So many times, I’ve seen benefits from the power of a senator or two to …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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4/20/22
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This year’s process to redraw Missouri’s legislative districts represents the danger of handing that responsibility to partisan politicians.
Every 10 years following the national …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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4/6/22
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The Russian invasion of Ukraine promises to be a fascinating issue for Missouri law makers in the session’s closing weeks.
Already measures have been filed to prohibit state and local …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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3/23/22
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Missouri’s governmental and political discourse on several major issues has descended from words of inspiration into hateful partisan and ideological rhetoric that leaves little room for …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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3/9/22
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The extended Missouri Senate filibusters about congressional redistricting is a reminder about how bitter and divisive this issue can be.
This year it has involved an historically long Senate …
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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2/23/22
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The decision of Missouri’s legislative leaders to send members home because of the impending snow storm reminded me the last time a winter storm of such magnitude disrupted the legislature.
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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2/16/22
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The decision of Missouri’s legislative leaders to send members home because of the impending snow storm reminded me the last time a winter storm of such magnitude disrupted the legislature.
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By Phill Brooks, Contributing Columnist
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2/9/22
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