Democratic Insider
January 7th, 2022
Friends,
Jefferson City is back in action!
Naturally, drama ensued on opening day of the Missouri Legislature with Justin Hill in the House, insurrectionist support in the lobby and then we have the super secret special caucus situation over there in the Senate. Regardless of their noise, House and Senate Democrats stood in unified power and hope.
The first few weeks of session will be focused on redistricting and the supplemental budget package and House Democrats announced their main priorities moving forward:
Remembering January 6th
“You can’t love your country only when you win.”
– President Biden in a speech on Thursday.
In the year since the dangerous insurrection, instead of working with Democrats to protect our democracy, House Republicans, led proudly by Sen. Josh Hawley, have spent each day gaslighting the American people about January 6, continuing to spread false 2020 election claims, voting to block critical investigations into the assault, and even protecting and celebrating the violent rioters themselves. All while Democrats have remained committed to taking action and uncovering the truth about this unprecedented attack on our democracy.
No matter our color, background or party, most of us believe that people who commit treason against our nation and endanger our lives have no business leading this country. We cannot forget about this day, even though many will remember this as a day of fear, destruction and shock, we must work to make sure it never happens again.
Check out this informative thread from NPR about where the investigations stand now.
Next, I sincerely apologize that there’s a crazy man screaming at you right now – that is the thumbnail the New York Times chose that I wish I could change. Trust me though, it worth the watch.
COVID-19 Spikes
The Omicron variant of COVID-19 has officially overtaken the previous records seen since the Delta surge. Steve Edwards, the President and CEO of CoxHealth in Springfield, reported last fall that their single highest day was 182 cases.
Wednesday he saw 317 cases. Thursday, 412. That is nearly twice the amount as the Delta variant. COVID-19 “fatigue” is high in all of our communities, but we must stay vigilant if we ever want this to end.
Vaccine efficacy depends on the community. Unfortunately, it isn’t enough to just be vaccinated yourself. We need all of you to encourage your friends, family, neighbors and coworkers to get vaccinated or fully vaccinated with the booster. Regardless of vaccination status, masks in indoor settings are HIGHLY encouraged.
IN THE OFFICE
Last fall we started a segment keeping you all in the loop about what we are up to. Your donations go directly toward us being able to do this work and prepare Missouri for the future. After holiday “break,” we at MDP are hitting the ground running – including our newest staff member, the Managing Finance Director, Matthew Patterson!
Matthew’s first day in the office was this week and we are so happy to welcome him. Not only do we need a finance and fundraising expert, it is always good to have another hand on deck. He finished a lot of onboarding and has already started budgeting with Randy.
Randy has been hard at work with partners on voter registration efforts. MDP’s goal is to register 200,000 new voters leading up the 2022 election. The votes are there – and they are BLUE! Randy also participated in a White House discussion on African American inclusion during the week.
You all can probably guess what Andy has been up to…redistricting. HE might turn into a map soon! On top of that, Andy has been working on a VAN/VoteBuilder guide for local parties (read: YOU!)
Sara Beth continues to keep us all alive and the lights on. Right now she is focused on setting up Town Halls through the spring. While we haven’t officially announced this series yet because we are still working on COVID-19 arrangements, here’s the insider scoop: we will be coming to Joplin, Maryville, Kirksville, Hannibal and Columbia. Are you in those areas and have suggestions for us? Let us know!
And then there is me, Bailey. My attention has been pulled in many directions lately! I hope you all saw the Buy Local video with Wes Shoemyer right before Christmas. I continue to learn more about Biden’s agriculture policies and how it will affect prices this season. Of course, I was pretty zoned in on January 6th coverage as well. Pulling all that content together, looking at Josh Hawley’s face too much…honestly, it was a rough day! I’m looking forward to focusing on more positive projects next week.
It’s 2022. Let’s make this our year.
