It was a week of soul-searching in the Capitol. On Tuesday, I attended Auditor Tom Schweich's funeral, where former Senate Jack Danforth's eulogy focused on nastiness in politics. While I disagree with the venue, I agree with most of Danforth's sentiments.
Sen. Danforth said that public servants should strive "always to take the high ground and never give it up." He lamented that "politics has gone so hideously wrong" that we risk it becoming a place "only for the tough and the crude and the calloused," and that, when politics becomes a place where those who serve face personal attacks at every turn, "what decent person would want to get into it?"
Our state Capitol is festooned with pithy quotes. My favorite is on the main floor in the Rotunda. It says, "Ideas rule the world." Ideas, not the politics of personal destruction. In the House, we have rules to keep the focus on ideas, not personalities.
One rule prohibits members from making derogatory comments about other members. Another rule prohibits us from referring to another member by name. Instead, we call each other by our county. I am not Jay Barnes. Instead, I am the "Gentleman from Cole." This rule also reminds us that we represent a constituency, not ourselves.
These House debate rules do not, of course, govern our broader political culture. Political campaigns are messy, like life, and all too often devolve into personal attacks. Ironically, the nastiest campaigns are typically where the candidates are most alike.
This is nothing new. American politics have always been rough. In the election of 1800, Thomas Jefferson's campaign called John Adams a "hideous hermaphroditical character which has neither the force nor the firmness of a man, nor the gentleness and sensibility of a woman." Adams' campaign responded by calling Jefferson "a mean-spirited, low-lived fellow, the son of a half-breed Indian squaw, sired by a Virginia mulatto father."
These quotes suggest that politics is actually less nasty now than it was then. Seen any "hideous hermaphrodite" ads lately? And yet, it's also worse. They didn't have Facebook, Twitter, 24-hour news channels, and attack websites in 1800. Nor did they have a 15-minute news cycle. Less than 20 years ago elected officials enjoyed a bubble of privacy that social media has forever pierced; and from that spigot, negativity endlessly spews.
But politics isn't all negative energy: politicians are often surrounded by sycophants seeking favor by flattery. Today, they want to be your best friend; tomorrow, depending on your vote, they're plotting your overthrow. It's the prudent politician's prerogative to find balance between these competing forces - and to be able to leave office with the same personal dignity and morality possessed when they enter office.
The fact that politics has always been nasty doesn't mean we should simply accept it as "politics as usual." Just because something is does not mean it's right. We should always strive to improve government. Sen. Danforth is absolutely correct that nastiness drives good people out of politics.
Still, there is no legislative solution to this problem. More government is not the solution. It cannot solve all the world's ills. In this realm, making our state a better place starts and ends in each of our own homes. In this, I agree with the editors of this paper: "Attack ads will not end until they become synonymous with defeat at the polls."
Busy Monday - Rams stadium and Uber hearings
At noon on Monday, the House Committee on Government Oversight and Accountability will hear testimony regarding proposals for a new Rams stadium in St. Louis. The purpose of the hearing is to (1) analyze the economic benefit to Missouri from the presence of an NFL team in St. Louis; (2) determine taxpayers' ongoing liability for the existing dome; and (3) examine the tax revenues the St. Louis Rams generate.
This is a limited inquiry that will not reach whether government should finance a new stadium. Just because something may profit the government, does not mean it should be done.
Upon evening adjournment, a House committee will hear my legislation creating a statewide licensing scheme for innovative ride-sharing companies like Uber.
As with any other bill that upsets an existing monopoly, I expect that the special interests seeking to block competition will vigorously oppose the bill.
Senior Savings Protection and Telehealth bills moving
Two bills that I wrote about previously are moving through the legislative process. House Bill 636, the Senior Savings Protection Act, was voted nine to one out of the House Banking Committee and referred on to the Select Committee on Financial Institutions and Taxation. House Bill 319, which would improve efficiency in Medicaid by expanding telehealth, has also advanced out of its original committee by a unanimous vote. I'm hopeful that it will advance quickly to the House floor for debate.
State Rep. Jay Barnes, R-Jefferson City, represents Missouri's 60th District.