Spring is upon us and that means Missouri’s spring turkey season is here. Missouri boasts one of the largest wild turkey populations in the country, making it a destination for spring turkey hunters.

Senate Bill 91 would protect children from registered sex offenders. This legislation seeks to prohibit sex offenders from being present or loitering within 500 feet of athletic complexes or facilities that exist primarily for use by children, a Missouri Department of Conservation nature or …

COVID Relief Bill: Bad Policy, Bad Faith

How is the first hundred days of a presidency like Valentine’s Day? Valentine’s is a Hallmark concoction; the first hundred days is a news concoction — a reason for papers, magazines, broadcasters, narrowcasters, social media and anti-social media to ramp up entire sections of their papers a…

Voters in the Northland are used to making difficult choices when it comes to tax increases. Sometimes we approve new taxes that build new schools, spur infrastructure construction or support our police and firefighters. Other times, we feel the plans presented could be scaled back or fine t…

As Christians, we are in the midst of the journey of the Lenten season — the 40 days prior to the celebration of Easter, which is the promise of new life and the resurrection.

The Missouri Senate spent a great deal of time discussing a measure that comes in response to some of the protests and other activity we have seen over the past year. Despite the fact the goings on have not taken place — for the most part — in northwest Missouri.

The impact of the pandemic will be felt for years by the 2020 and 2021 students. Closed in-person learning, virtual classes, spotty access to the internet and more have changed the way students learn. Newspapers in Education is a resource that is reliably available through your local newspap…

As a lawmaker, one of my top priorities has been to support legislation that helps provide jobs to the men and women serving our country in the military. Over the years, the Missouri General Assembly has crafted legislation with this very goal in mind. This year, we have an additional piece …

In my opinion, looking after our most vulnerable citizens is the most important job of state government. We have been tested as much as we ever have been since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through it all, I think our state has survived as well as can be imagined, but we still have cha…

It’s no secret that we have an infrastructure problem in Missouri and there’s no place we’ve seen this failure more clearly than on our roadways.

My first column introducing myself to Courier-Tribune readers mentioned how I accepted this job already knowing how passionate Kearney, Liberty and Smithville are about their high school teams.

There have been a lot of questions about safety protocols at the Capitol this year as the coronavirus pandemic stretches into its second year. Rest assured, there are a lot of great people working hard to make sure every precaution is taken to not only keep everyone safe, but to keep things …

It’s been said that the state legislature can be both equally exhilarating and frustrating. I quickly learned that to be true in the first full week of the session. The week began with the pomp and circumstance of Missouri’s Bicentennial Inauguration. Mike Parson was sworn in for a full term…

During the last couple of months of 2020, I started asking people I was interviewing, “What lessons have you learned during this tough pandemic-ridden year?” To my joy, I received many positive and informative comments.

Lawmakers have returned to Jefferson City for the first regular session of the 101st General Assembly. For all of the issues we see each year, there are always new challenges and this year is no different. At the same time, we also are seeing some familiar items that seem to have a long shelf life.

It’s a new year! The beginning of the new year is a time we often set aside for reflection upon the last year and stating changes we want to make in the coming year. In past years, my often flippant remark to the resolution question has been, “My resolution is to not make any resolutions. Wh…

The start of Missouri’s legislature during the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic raises questions about how lawmakers will adjust to the realities of this rampant virus.