MISSOURI POLITICS

[Note to Readers: It is almost a contradiction of terms to speak of bipartisan politics, but the conduct of government by those elected by the voters can, and should, be addressed from time to time. Thus we begin what will be an occasional series of columns on politics, approached from -a bipartisan viewpoint, since the men and women engaged in partisan competition directly affect the government under which we live and the laws that govern our lives. This is the first in an occasional column on events in Missour's political arena and the men and women who occupy its center stage.]

Missouri's largest metropolitan area once again finds itself outside looking in as the state prepares for its biennial off-year election, which this year will feature only two races for statewide offices: U.S. senator and state auditor. Only one major candidate has any long-standing ties to St. Louis, while the remainder of the hopefuls have little or no connection with an area that furnishes about 30 percent of the population.

The only certifiable St. Louisan is Gerald Ortbals, a local attorney who once served as Joe Teasdale's chief of staff and now seeks the Democratic senatorial nomination. But Ortbals is hardly a household name in state politics, and at the moment appears to be running far behind the three other major candidates in the contest, two of whom are from Kansas City and one with an outstate residence.

The only other candidate with a casual St. Louis link is the certain Republican nominee for Jack Danforth's soon-to-be-vacant seat in the Senate, former Gov. John Ashcroft, who since early last year has been living in St. Louis, practicing some law with a county firm and biding his time until he could return to the political arena.

The two leading candidates from both parties for state auditor only visit St. Louis on occasion. Incumbent Margaret Kelly was born in Jefferson County but has spent most of her life in central Missouri, while Democrat Steve Danner has lived in both Northwest and Northeast Missouri and is hardly familiar with geography east of Interstate 270.

This is not to say St. Louis won't elect its usual number of federal and state representatives and state senators in November, but it has not been successful in seating many of its political sons in statewide office for a number of years. The incumbent officers include Carnahan from Rolla, Wilson from Columbia, Moriarty from Sedalia, Holden from Kansas City and outstate areas, and Nixon from Jefferson County.

I think part of this lack of representation in state offices can be attributed to Missourians' negative, skeptical view toward politics as its practiced in St. Louis, particularly around City Hall where most politicians are spawned, and the plethora of political factions in both St. Louis city and county. This latter point makes it difficult for the area to agree on a suitable candidate and push his or her candidacy by the time elections roll around.

LEADERSHIP LAG: Anyone who takes a serious, halfway objective look at the Republican minorities in the General Assembly has to be alarmed at times by the glaring absence of real leadership. This might not seem important to the average voter, and particularly to a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat, but the leadership vacuum in the State Capitol from the loyal opposition is a serious matter that merits more publicity than it has received.

For several years now, Republicans in both the House and Senate have been viewed as poor relations who only were tolerated because the Constitution requires it, but this eventually works not only against the GOP but the entire state.

One of the basic requirements for good legislative government is a strong majority leadership and a strong opposition voice that will correct the intemperance that comes with party domination after a certain period of time. Well, the Republicans have certainly played the role of opposition over a long period of time, and only occasionally have they chosen leaders who were capable of forging a reasonably strong opposition. Sometimes Republicans, particularly in the House, appear to be a polyglot collection of grumpy old men, who nitpick their way through a legislative session, primarily because they are painfully aware that whatever they have to say will be ignored by the majority party. Their mistreatment by the majority does not merit a United Nations inspection team but it sometimes seems to border on the side of humiliation.

Frankly, I don't think this is the best way to run the General Assembly, and if I were the Democrats I would begin to insist on more humane treatment for the enemy. After all, one of the principal roles of the opposition is to block bad legislation, which currently it is often unable to do. But poor laws are blamed on the majority party, and it behooves Democrats to protect their own interests by doing more than ignoring the grumpy old men from the Grand Old Party . I won't hold my breath until that happens, however.

INCUMBENCY INSURANCE: Missourians seem to have some reluctance about removing members of their congressional delegation from office. An occasional member, such as Joan Kelly Horn and Tom Coleman, is dumped from time to time, but generally congressmen from safe districts stay in office about as long as they wish. This year, for example, not a single member of the state's delegation in Washington appears in serious danger of losing his or her seat in the House.

Rep. Alan Wheat of the 5th District is leaving to run for the Senate, but Bill Clay, Jim Talent, Dick Gephardt, Ike Skelton, Pat Danner, Mel Hancock, Bill Emerson and Harold Volkmer don't appear to be targeted for extinction, either in the primary or general election. This is not to say some don't have some serious opposition, either in August or November, and Volkmer could have his hands full in the general, although it's hard to imagine his being ousted after watching him tend to constituent affairs since 1976.

We Missourians may not like Congress as a collective body but we certainly like our congressmen on an individual basis, seldom holding them to account for the sins of the rest.