Parson, Wallingford wrong on special session

Gov. Mike Parson came through the area last Tuesday (again), this time to celebrate his failed special session of the General Assembly.

Gov. Parson and my House District opponent, lame duck Sen. Wayne Wallingford, have provided a pitiful response to the epidemic of gun violence. Their "solution" is to make it easier for children to be given guns by extended family members and to allow first responders to move outside the jurisdictions they serve. Can someone please explain how these measures help reduce gun-related violence in our communities?

Gov. Parson and Sen. Wallingford lead GOP super-majorities in the General Assembly and they still cannot get it done for the people of Missouri!

Meanwhile, we experience intolerable levels of gun violence right here in Cape Girardeau, and my supporters demand real solutions! The fact that Parson's witness protection law is not funded is just one more sign that he and his GOP cronies are merely using the issue as a political prop.

Perhaps the greatest irony is that while our governor was chiding the political left for allegedly wanting to "defund the police," it was him behind closed doors quite literally defunding the police. According to a Missourinet.com article, Missouri House Minority Floor Leader, Crystal Quade, stated: "Parson defunded police and other emergency responders over the summer by unilaterally slashing $2.66 million in funding from the Missouri Department of Public Safety's budget, including eliminating $1.81 million allocated to the State Highway Patrol."

We believe our un-elected governor owes the taxpayers a refund and an apology for his blatant misuse of public funds spent on a failed special session (and multiple statewide media tours), which doubtless were designed only to provide a platform for him to shamelessly grandstand on this hot-button issue in a cynical effort to bolster his faltering campaign.

If you have had enough of the useless "solutions" put forth by Gov. Parson and Sen. Wallingford, please join our campaign for Missouri House District 147 by contacting us at LeightonForMO@gmail.com or visit our website at Upballot.com/Andy-Leighton.

Together we can do better Cape Girardeau!

Andy Leighton, Cape Girardeau

Paid for by Leighton For MO, Roy Leighton, Treasurer