ABORTION FOES DISPLAY THEIR CLOUT AGAINST THE SPEAKER

Recent maneuvering in the Missouri House of Representatives over abortion has been important for many reasons, not the least of which is the need for debate on a Senate-passed bill that would require women who seek to end their pregnancies to get counseling first.

But abortion foes, Republicans and Democrats alike, banded together recently to tie up House proceedings until Speaker Bob Griffin agreed to let the full House debate the abortion legislation. Nearly 100 representative chose to defy the powerful speaker rather than give in on a critically important issue. When Griffin saw that the deadlock was solid, he gave in, mainly because the end of the legislative session is only three weeks away with a massive load of bills he thinks are important yet to be handled.

Facing down Griffin isn't easy. The House speaker has the powers of a virtual dictator when it comes to managing the flow of legislation. He can, for example, consign bills to a legislative Siberia. Or he can place then so far down on the calendar that there is no chance they will surface before the end of the session. Or he twist enough arms to guarantee he will have sufficient support for any procedural votes that come along.

But not this time. Maybe some of the representatives were fortified by the show of force against Griffin that delayed the January start of this year's session. In that legislative imbroglio, presided over by brand-new Secretary of State Bekki Cook, Republicans came a hair's breadth from selecting a Republican as temporary speaker, which would have thrown the representatives into an interesting parliamentary quandary, because there is a Democratic majority.

The showdown in January, however, was clear evidence that Griffin's stranglehold as speaker was loosening. He has been under attack for his dealings with gambling interests wanting to do business with the state. And reports continue to surface regarding state and federal investigations.

As for the abortion foes, they are pleased with the cohesiveness of the issue. This is an issue that crosses party lines, and it is an issue every lawmaker knows is going to be watched closely by the folks at home.

The last time the anti-abortion legislators in the General Assembly won a major victory was in 1986, when they passed a law prohibiting the use of public funds for most abortions. That law led to the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark 1989 decision that said states have the power to regulate abortions.

There seems to be a new era of politics at every level of government. Voters are realizing more and more the power they have to control the destiny of government. They gave Republicans a majority in Congress. And they seem to have more clout in their dealings with state legislators, who are super-sensitive to what voters say.

The balance shift is past due. The notion that one legislator by virtue of being speaker can have inordinate control of major pieces of legislation has met its match in the power of legislators who combine, thanks to pressure for constituents, to push ahead.