Politicians

                            
You will never find a politician without something to say. These are some of the dignitaries from the Missouri side of the river who attended the bridge opening and, of course, had a few comments.

Above, happy-go-lucky Missouri Governor Jay Nixon, wearing his Cardinals hat and a scarf to match. Next, Senator Claire McCaskill, much admired in the Crowe household.

Beneath the senator are a current and past member of the House of Representatives, Lacey Clay and Russ Carnahan. The latter was my congressman until last year. As American readers know, the 435 members of of our House of Representatives are re-apportioned among the states after each decennial census. Missouri's percentage of the national population went down a bit and, as a consequence, we lost one seat in the House. The Republican dominated state legislature re-drew the boundaries in such a way as to eliminate Carnahan's district, and thus a Democratic seat in the House. No idea what he's doing now. He looks a bit ghostly in the crowd beside the stage.                               

Legal Issues

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Someone had to maintain law and order among the morning drinkers at last weekend's parade. The St. Louis Police Department was up to the job. What do you think the two above were discussing? Maybe crowd control techniques, maybe the latest Harley-Davidson model?

My congressman, Russ Carnahan, below, has a different legal issue. Seats in our House of Representatives are reapportioned every ten years after the census. Missouri lost one seat in Congress due to population shifts. Carnahan is a Democrat. Our state legislature, controlled by the Republicans, drew a map that eliminated Carnahan's seat and favored Republican incumbents. The courts threw out that map. The legislature appears to be unwilling or incapable of revising it so judges may end up doing the job. It's still up in the air.

I like Carnahan. (Well, I'm a Democrat.) I once got to spend some time with him in his office in Washington when I was doing some lobbying for the Arthritis Foundation and I was impressed. For the moment, though, he doesn't know if he has a seat to run for.

STL DPB On The Road: Who I Met Yesterday, or, The Halls Of Power

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A remarkable thing about the United States is that ordinary people can have personal access to their congresspeople and senators. Our little group of Missourians from the Arthritis Foundation had appointments yesterday to see one of our senators, Christopher Bond, a Republican, above left, and the U.S. representative for the district where I live, Russ Carnahan, a Democrat. Neither had much time to spare (Carnahan had to run off for a vote on the floor) but both were congenial and welcoming. The House and Senate office buildings are open to the public. Anyone can walk in to petition their government.

Bond has been in the senate for 22 years. Today is his 70th birthday. He announced recently that he will not run for a fifth term when his present one expires in two years. Carnahan has been a member of the House of Representatives for four years. His father was governor of Missouri. Mel Carnahan ran for the U.S. Senate but was killed in a small plane crash during the campaign. His name remained on the ballot and he won. For the strange story of what happened after that, click here.

I'm giving the Thursday Arch Series a week off. There will be something or other from back in The Lou tomorrow.