08/21/2026
Back on my Feet
Well, this has been an interesting summer since the legislative session ended. I developed pancreatitis and was hospitalized needing a second operation from a gallstone that broke off after my gallbladder had been removed. The surgeon warned me to minimize my schedule this summer, allowing the body time to heal or I would be back in the hospital. That is the bad news, but the good news is I now weigh less than I did twenty years ago. I would, however, not recommend what I experienced as a weight loss program.
Being a little restless, one day, I decided to walk to the mailbox and retrieve the mail. The lady across the street had been out and waved asking if I was feeling better. I told her I was extremely thankful for not having a primary opponent, so I could fully recharge my batteries. As I turned around to open the mailbox, my pants started slipping down enough that my neighbor got a free shot when I proceeded to shoot her the moon. Except for that humbling and embarrassing moment I am feeling so much better. Never staying overnight in a hospital or being knocked out for an operation to now experiencing two operations and two hospital stays in the last couple of months has been new territory for me. I am extremely thankful for so many people being concerned and reaching out. I want to give a shout out to Speaker Dr. Jon Patterson, a surgeon by trade, who reached out several times to check on my condition even though he was busy running in a Senate primary. As I have stated more than once in my Capitol Reports just how lucky and appreciative I am for the relationships developed at the capital. I feel comfortable saying that there is nowhere in the state now if traveling and stopping at Dairy Queen for a hot fudge sundae, the area representative would not meet me when called.
Now, let’s talk about Amendments 4 and 5. My solution minimizing the need to change the state constitution and encouraging voters to use initiative petitions for statutory law changes was to introduce a piece of legislation HJR 118. This legislation proposed a new constitutional amendment prohibiting changes to a statutory initiative petition measure approved by the voters by the General Assembly except under certain conditions. This was the biggest complaint I would hear from voters about why instead of passing a law reform, changing the constitution had been preferred. This was simply because the Missouri legislature in the past had overturned or changed what was done at the ballot box by voters. Unfortunately, my legislation being introduced in the first year was not referred to a committee for consideration, so I will refile the Bill next year if reelected. So, my choice during this past session was voting to allow the people a chance at the ballot box to consider and decide both Amendment 4 and 5. In my mind, if I had voted no trying to block a public vote, there would have been some screaming their constitutional rights were violated because of not allowing the people to decide. I believe this means the system worked, and the legislature knows with the overwhelming no vote, the citizenry did not like the solution. Regarding Amendment 5, in defense of the governor, I believe he would be the first to tell anyone who asked that during his gubernatorial campaign there was a promise to eliminate the Missouri income tax. The reason the promise had been made was simply because the economy of the state is flat as well as the population. The problem obviously still exists but the solution is not acceptable to the voters.
Since we were in grade school, all of us learned to recite the pledge of allegiance. The one line we all say is …To the Republic for Which it Stands. My teacher in grade school explained the line meant our country was not a true democracy but a republic. Her explanation was simple. In a true democracy we would all vote for basically everything. In a republic we elect representatives who vote on our behalf.
I believe my job as a state representative is to give voters whenever possible a chance to cast a ballot for any issue. I voted to place 4 and 5 on the ballot for the voter’s consideration and the same can be said for Amendment 3 dealing with abortion in November. The state of Missouri went from the strictest abortion law in the country to the weakest. The new Amendment 3 is somewhat in the middle. I am anxious to find out where Missouri voters are at this point on such a divisive issue. Being the son of an Italian/Catholic father and a mother who went to a Pentecostal Church, my prolife beliefs come natural.
The one thing I will never do, however, as a representative is vote to undo what voters did at the ballot box without it going back for another vote. The voters overwhelmingly voted for a higher minimum wage and family leave a couple of years ago. I voted no to overturn what the voters did even though many felt there were unattended consequences because of the referendum. I supported returning the perceived error so voters could once again cast a ballot to see if they agreed.
I am disturbed that the internet is saying we in the legislature voted for Amendment 4 and 5. We in the Missouri legislature voted to put the two referendums on the ballot. The voters overwhelmingly voted both amendments down, and as I have already stated, this assures everyone that the system absolutely, without equivocation, works as intended.
It is an honor and privilege to serve.
