By Gretchen Garrity
"Pride is a shameful and terrifying thing, which even turned angels into demons! It drove us from Paradise to earth, and now it wants to send us from earth to hell." -- St. Paisios the Athonite
Printed before the election for Speaker |
The swearing in of new representatives and the election of a House Speaker in Jefferson City on January 8, 2024 was a sight to behold. Apparently, a two-page color printout of the representatives with Jonathan Patterson already noted as Speaker was handed out to media types before the election. HERE is Patterson taking the oath of office. Please note at the end as part of his oath he promises to "keep the secrets of the House." That last line of the oath is not in the Missouri Constitution. Under Art. VII, Sec. 11, it states, "Before taking office, all civil and military officers in this state shall take and subscribe an oath or affirmation to support the Constitution of the United States and of this state, and to demean themselves faithfully in office."
The House may want to revisit the Speaker's oath of office, as the People's business should be done in an open and public manner with no secrets or secretive behavior.
Naked power. Naked pride. It's so good to see it exposed in such a blatant manner. A short primer on why we are currently dealing with a tyrannical system in the Missouri House is ably explained here in this 8-minute video:
Missouri resident Jennifer Ann Explains the Problem with Missouri's Legislative Leadership and the Fight for House Speaker Between Patterson and Sparks. #moleg
— Rep. Justin Sparks (@JustinMSparks) December 28, 2024
She originally posted this video on FaceBook and it is re-posted here with her permission. It captures the perceptions… pic.twitter.com/q1aE6I1waf
Virtually all of the Democrats voted for John Patterson. The Democrat nominee (who withdrew in order to back Patterson) was effusive in her support of him. Of course, it's natural for a Democrat to back a RINO (aka Democrat) who supports their positions. What is unnatural is for Republicans to cheer wildly when a Democrat-supported RINO is elected House Speaker. And the cheers were LOUD.
That Democrats supported JP (as he is called by friends) is another huge blunder the Uniparty pridefully indulged in yesterday. A much better tactic would have been for Dems to support a Democrat candidate, thereby giving cover to the old 'Democrat versus Republican' tactic. The hubris of the machine in Jefferson City exposed them. We know they act as one--sold out to special interests and their lust for power. Now they proved it to us. It's so good to see the evil exposed so clearly. Thanks guys!
Ten brave representatives stood up for principle and the party platform over the Party Machine. The rest of the Republicans caved and voted for Patterson. Whether through fear, ambition, or misguided principles, it's pretty well known that important positions in the legislature are gained by large donations to the House Republican Campaign Committee Inc., (HRCC), a political action organization comfortably camped out in the Capitol.
The HRCC purports to help get Republicans elected. It wields a lot of power in Jefferson City because it has a lot of money. Power, but poor results for the Republican Super Majority that we so often hear about. The majority that manages to keep turning our state leftward in terms of taxes, bloat and constitutional changes that voters oppose. Patterson spoke about the need for unity and working with both sides of the aisle during his speech on Wednesday.
Jon Patterson, flanked by Alex Riley (R) and Chad Perkins (L) |
Why would a SUPER MAJORITY need to be unified with the opposition? Just ponder that for a moment.
Patterson has contributed a total of $217,500 to the HRCC since 2019:
3/28/19 – Contribution to HRCC: $25,000
11/6/2019 – Contribution to HRCC: $10,000
8/5/2020 – Contribution to HRCC: $12,000
8/4/2021 – Contribution to HRCC: $500
10/20/2022 – Contribution to HRCC: $100,000
3/30/2024 – Contribution to HRCC: $20,000
10/9/2024 – Contribution to the HRCC
The gentleman from Jefferson who nominated JP for Speaker thought nothing of talking about the impressive golf game he and Jon had played when they first met and how it proved Patterson was humble because he didn't mention he was a surgeon. I kid you not.
Taking a look at the new Majority Floor Leader, Alex Riley, we find he has made contributions to the HRCC to the tune of $165,389.83 since 2019:
Let's talk about Rep. Chad Perkins, who has been named Assistant Speaker of the House. Perkins, pictured above with Speaker Patterson and Majority Floor Leader Riley, has only contributed $8,420 to the HRCC. Perkins has other issues, though:
There’s THIS. From the article (2021):
“A Missouri lawmaker is accused of using his former role as a police officer to get a 'sexual favor' from an intoxicated teenage girl.
Republican state Rep. Chad Perkins, 42, allegedly accepted 'sexual favors from a teenage girl while on duty' back when he was a cop in 2015, according to a report from a local police chief.
His boss is also accused of later attempting to block a probe into the claims because of Perkins' run for political office.”
This is your Republican leadership, fellow Missourians. These are the Republicans your representatives are supporting.
THE TEN WHO STOOD UP TO THE MACHINE
Here in Christian County, two of our representatives had the courage and moral fiber to vote for Rep. Justin Sparks--Rep. Bob Titus of the 139th, and Rep. Burt Whaley of the 138th. Others who voted for Sparks include Rep. Mazzie Christensen, Rep. Dale Wright, Rep. Steve Jordan, Rep. Deanna Self, Rep. Keith Elliott, Rep. Lisa Durnell. Please thank these representatives for their principled stand.
These are the representatives leading the way forward. This is the beginning of overturning the Machine and electing representatives who actually represent the people.
Rep. Bryant Wolfin's nomination of Rep. Justin
Sparks, who spoke simply and eloquently about the
importance of representative government was in stark contrast to the fellow who nominated Patterson. Watch:
WE THE PEOPLE WERE RELEGATED TO THE BASEMENT
There's a saying that exposure of evil is two-thirds of the battle. The last third destroys itself. May all the secrets of the House Machine be exposed quickly!
Today after being told that they were committing political suicide - that their “political aspirations” would be over and that their committee assignments would be in jeopardy - 10 Representatives voted against the status quo anyway. They chose to listen to their constituents and… pic.twitter.com/LtFvtzq29v
— Rep. Justin Sparks (@JustinMSparks) January 8, 2025