Everyone can breath a sigh of relief this week.  The Missouri General Assembly is on spring break.  Missourians get a reprieve from being late night fodder for attempting to repeal child labor laws.  We are spared senseless debates prevent Sharia law from invading our courts and working families can rest easy knowing their jobs are safe for at least another week.

As you know, the legislature is dominated by Republicans, some who are truly interested in making Missouri a better place, and many that are more interested in making headlines and advancing their crazy right-wing agenda that does nothing to fix the problems in Missouri.  I’ve put together a wish list of legislative items that I hope the can be stopped dead in their tracks by the few remaining Democrats in the Senate and the rational Republicans in the House. Continue Reading

The news today from the Democratic National Committee announcing Charlotte as the site of the 2012 Convention was not what we all wanted to hear, but we offer sincere congratulations to Charlotte and look forward to being there in September of 2012.
Despite our disappointment, this nearly year-long effort to win the Convention was a useful exercise for our region.  We proved that St. Louis should swing for the fences.  Clearly, we have what it takes to do big things.  The significant investments we’ve made in ourselves and our city in the last quarter-century are part of what make us a great region.  We have fantastic infrastructure, including light rail, world-class hotels and convention facilities.  We have an ever more vibrant downtown, leading-edge institutions including Forest Park, City Museum, and of course the iconic Gateway Arch.  But none of these compare to our greatest asset – our people.  St. Louis’ convention effort attracted the most enthusiastic and vocal support from its people than any of our competing cities.  Thousands of you signed up to volunteer and thousands more joined our Facebook page. Continue Reading

Below is a list of Candidates that are seeking the Democratic nomination in the Municipal Primary Election.  You can view the Democratic Sample Ballot here. Continue Reading

St. Louis, Mo.— The Democratic National Committee (DNC) today announced via a blog posting that St. Louis is one of four finalists bidding to host the 2012 Democratic National Convention.  The city last hosted a national convention in 1916, re-nominating President Woodrow Wilson.

St. Louis submitted its bid on 21 May, along with several other cities.  St. Louis is a strong contender for the Convention, given the region’s central location and unique attributes as a family-friendly and diverse city capable of hosting the 50,000 delegates, press and other visitors in 2012.

If successful, St. Louis will enjoy a significant economic benefit from the Convention.  In 2008, the Convention boosted Denver’s regional economy by $266 million.  For comparison, the 2009 MLB All-Star Game boosted the St. Louis economy by some $60 million.

The DNC’s Technical Advisory Group (TAG) will conduct site visits to each finalist city this summer.

“I’m proud St. Louis got short-listed,” said St. Louis Mayor Francis G. Slay.  “We demonstrated we are a first-class city capable of holding an event of this magnitude.”

The community can follow the St. Louis bid online and sign up to help at stl2012.org, via Twitter @stldnc2012 and on Facebook at facebook.com/stldnc2012.