The Missouri Court of Appeals in Kansas City has reversed a Cole County judge’s decision on the “Clean Missouri” initiative – leaving the extremely controversial measure on the November ballot, at least for now.
Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Dan Mehan, a plaintiff in the case, says he’ll appeal to the Missouri Supreme Court in Jefferson City. But the Supreme Court is not required to hear it, and next week is the deadline for Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, a Republican, to finalize ballot measures.
State Representative Charlie Davis says it’s a bait and switch initiative that talks about ethics but that the devil is in the details. “It is being passed around under the guise of ethics reforms but the whole purpose of it is to remove Republicans from office by changing the laws midstream as what they can do.”
Attorney Chuck Hatfield, who represents intervenor Clean Missouri Incorporated, says it’s very unlikely the Missouri Supreme Court will take the case.
Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel P. Green a 13-page ruling almost two weeks ago that the measure violates the Missouri Constitution’s requirement of having a single subject in a ballot proposal.
The proposed initiative is being funded by liberal billionaire George Soros with the majority of funding coming from outside the state.
“One of the most important things that I think you can do is look at who funds these initiative petitions and it will tell you if it’s good or not,” says Davis. “Planned Parenthood is funding this. The National Education Association is funding it. George Soros’ political arm is funding it and the Democratic Party is funding it.”
Hatfield says the measure doesn’t violate the single subject clause because every provision mentions and involves the Legislature.
As for Mr. Mehan, he issued a statement on Friday afternoon, which reads in part: “Today’s decision (by the Court of Appeals) not only keeps Amendment 1 on the November ballot, it also lowers the bar for the process we use to alter our state constitution.”
Mehan’s statement also reiterates what he told Missourinet outside the Cole County Courthouse on August 31: that they are prepared to campaign against it. He says “Clean Missouri” would mean higher taxes and more regulation.
Meanwhile, Soros, who’s meddling in the democratic elections of former communist countries in Europe, is being protested in the streets in many of them. The Chicago Tribune reported that, “his favored presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, lost to President Donald Trump, whose “America First” platform runs counter to the globalism Soros embraces.
The Tribune goes on to say that, instead of shrinking back, Soros is “doubling his efforts” around the globe to see his leftist policies instituted but that the emergence of grass-roots opposition is growing. He lamented “that everything that could go wrong has gone wrong.”
It will be up to Missouri voters to deny him another victory in his goal.
