INTRO: Welcome back to Flyover View, a member of the Heartland Pod family of podcasts and a look at heartland news from 30,000 feet, from the gateway arch to the rocky mountains, I’m your host, Kevin Smith. I have two parts to today’s show: the Heartland Headlines segment, where I cover the BIGGEST stories of the week, followed by the Lightning Round- where I cover the rest of our favorites in rapid succession.
HEARTLAND HEADLINES
HEADLINE 1: COVID RATES ARE UP AS DELTA VARIANT SPREADS
Link:https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/missouri-covid-cases.html
https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/vaccine/map-covid-19-vaccine-hesitancy-st-louis-missouri-illinois/63-551df1ce-a195-48c3-bd44-6fce604d7f38
https://account.kansascity.com/paywall/registration?resume=252480233
In the heartland states we are seeing a troubling trend emerge as vaccination rates stall out while new COVID cases rise.
In Missouri, the 7 day average for new cases has risen to almost 1,000 again, after dipping as low as 375 in March of 2021. Rural counties in the SW of the state have seen the steepest increase, but numbers all around the state continue to climb.
Meanwhile in Ohio, new cases are down to rates not seen since early April of 2020.
The biggest difference on paper? Vaccination rates. In Ohio, 45% of all residents are fully vaccinated, and 55% of those 18 and up are fully vaccinated. In Missouri, those numbers are 39% for the general population and only 49% for those 18 and up. In Missouri, only 73% of those 65 and up are fully vaccinated, while in Ohio that number is at 80%
In Colorado, where the overall rate is 52% and 18 and up is at 63%, numbers remain on the downward trajectory as well. While in Oklahoma, with numbers like Missouri at 38% overall and 49% for 18 and up fully vaccinated, the cases are up with a 37% increase over the last 14 day period
In a story from early June of 2021, over ⅓ of Missourians in suburban St. Charles county showed hesitancy to get vaccinated at all, and in rural counties that number is higher.
All in all it points to a simple reality: A failure to have a vaccinated population could lead to more cases, with the faster spreading and deadlier Delta Varient, as vaccine rates stall out. It is impossible not to point to the leadership in the states where rates of new cases are up and vaccination rates are suppressed and wonder where they are on this issue. In Ohio you may recall the vaccine lottery, which saw a great response. Meanwhile, in Missouri many legislators and Statewide officials seem to ignore the need for vaccinations.
Missouri Governor and noted sentient goldfish, Mike Parson, in what is best described as a complete 180 from his prior statements, is now urging folks to get the vaccine and walking back his prior comments comparing COVID to merely the seasonal flu. And now a report comes form the KC star that Gov. Parson has requested federal help for containment efforts.
Nothing like some good old fashioned leadership from behind.
Time will tell just how much of a difference it all makes, but the early indications show that many heartland states could be headed for a catastrophic second wave of the pandemic. If only we had seen something like this 100 years ago… oh wait, we did, with the spanish flu which had a second wave that eclipsed the first in scale for deaths. At least this time no one is telling us to drink bleach.
HEADLINE 2: Iowa Permitless Carry Law Goes Into Effect
Link:https://www.desmoinesregister.com/news/politics/
Death rates up: https://apnews.com/article/ia-state-wire-iowa-gun-politics-business-laws-656a5ba4382a64f2d93790f56050ce3c
Iowans can now buy and carry handguns without first getting a permit, after a new law went into effect Thursday.
For the first time, the law makes having a permit optional for adults 21 and older to buy a handgun or carry one in most public places. Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the Iowa law, which advocates often refer to as "constitutional carry" or "permitless carry," in April. More than a dozen states - including Missouri - have similar laws.
The new law won't change the rules for long guns, like rifles and shotguns, which didn't require a permit under the previous law. Customers will still need to pass a background check when buying long guns and handguns from a federally licensed dealer.
Meanwhile, in 2020 gun deaths in Iowa are up by 23% from 2019, making back to back record breaking years in Iowa for gun deaths.
When Missouri passed a similar law in 2007, gun related crime rates spiked nearly instantly.
They must still pass an instant federal background check to buy handguns at retailers, but face no such requirement if buying through private sellers. They will not need any permit to carry guns on themselves or in their cars in most places, including the Iowa Capitol, and they no longer need to take an online training course on gun safety and self-defense.
Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the bill in April following pressure from conservative activists. She previously said the permitting system was “reasonable and responsible” and should remain.
Supporters say the Iowa law will prevent law-abiding citizens from having to apply to the government and pay a $50 carry permit fee to exercise their gun rights, while allowing them to quickly obtain handguns for self-defense.
“The relationship between your state government and the citizen is going to be flipped 180 degrees,” said state GOP Sen. Jason Schultz, who noted that the push to loosen Iowa’s firearm rules has taken decades. “You can bear that firearm without permission from the state in the form of a concealed weapon permit or in violation of any open-carry laws.”
He said this would not harm public safety, calling it a “blessing on the citizenry and a problem for criminals because there’s more good guys armed out there.” But the new law is highly unpopular: two-thirds of those surveyed this month for the Des Moines Register’s Iowa Poll said they disapprove.
Yes, this law is part of the now traditional GOP response to voters, passing unpopular laws and ignoring the public at large.
HEADLINE 3: Missouri’s AG loses case to former AG candidate
https://missouriindependent.com/2021/06/29/missouri-supreme-court-state-cant-charge-attorney-fees-for-sunshine-law-requests/
In a 6-0 ruling, the Missouri supreme court has ruled that attorney review time for public records released by public entities cannot be charged for. Missouri attorney and former Democratic AG hopeful Elad Gross made what is often referred to as a “sunshine law” request under Missouri’s chapter 610 which requires public entities and governments to provide access to public records. The Parson administration provided the documents after redaction by attorneys but tried to charge $3,618.40 for the access to Mr. Gross. In the unanimous opinion, Judge Patricia Breckenridge wrote that the court concluded the allegations were sufficient to plead that “the Governor’s Office had an intent to violate the law.”
The case now goes back to the trial court for further proceedings. Said Gross in response to the ruling “Now there’s a very clear ruling that those practices have always been illegal, should never have been used to stop the public from accessing public records or members of the media for that point, too,” Gross said. “And hopefully those kinds of abuses will now be put to an end.”
Our own attorney, and Heartland POD host Adam Sommer said of the ruling: “This ruling is a clear message to not just the administration that it acted in bad faith, but to any and all Missouri governmental or other public entities that the Sunshine law of Missouri is not optional. People have a right to know what the government is doing and they have a right to have access to that information without it costing exorbitant fees. You shouldn’t need an extra $4,000 on hand, and a law degree, to get public records. It’s pretty simple. The law allows for some charges, mostly related to the actual costs for physical copies of a staff member to make those copies or search for those records and locate them. It doesn’t provide for the cost of a lawyer to review them for redactions. The government, and it’s lawyers, have a duty to do that work already, that cost cannot be passed on, we already paid for it with our tax dollars.”
The remaining case is part of an investigation into a dark money group best known for its connection to former Governor, and now Senate candidate, Eric Grietens.
HEADLINE 4: A Clean FRA Bill Heads to Governor in Missouri
https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article252476943.html
https://missouriindependent.com/2021/06/29/no-changes-in-committee-as-fra-bill-heads-to-missouri-house-for-debate/
On Wednesday Missouri lawmakers finally sent the renewal of the Federal Reimbursement Allowance, or FRA, a critical extension to the major source of funding for Medicaid in the state, to Gov. Mike Parson, just ahead of a deadline he imposed for enacting drastic budget cuts across the state. Missouri has had the tax, called the FRA, in place for about three decades, and its renewal has been routine. This year, hardline conservatives in the Senate sought to add provisions banning Medicaid coverage of certain forms of birth control, which they called akin to abortion, and block the program from making payments to Planned Parenthood. In a win for pragmatism neither provision was included in the renewal sent to the governor.
· GOP Supermajority failed to pass the extension during regular session
· GOP got what it wanted, hours of pontificating on the evils of Planned Parenthood and birth control
o Only 12 clinics in the entire state, 11 of which are only family planning clinics. Only one can be considered an abortion clinic
· In a statement, House Speaker Rob Vescovo, Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann and Majority Leader Dean Plocher said they had supported both the FRA and anti-abortion efforts.
o “We are proud of the work done by the House today to approve the FRA renewal so the vital programs that assist many of Missouri’s most vulnerable citizens can continue to be funded,” they said. “We’re also proud of our members for taking a strong stand in defense of the lives of the unborn as we approved House Bill 2 to prevent taxpayer dollars from going to abortion providers.”
· Minority Leader Crystal Quade
o “All it was was a political move,”
· Barring any funny business from Parson I’m happy to just be done talking about this.
BREAK: Really quick reminder for folks if you or someone you know has been on or is now on unemployment, the ACA coverage may be available to them free of charge for the rest of 2021, go to marketplace.org to learn more on that. For Monday, the heartland pod has special guest host Jessica Piper and a Mt. Rushmore draft of the best patriotic movies, plus a talkin politics about the Trump org charges and the Missouri special session.
Missouri Prison health care contract changes companies
https://www.thepitchkc.com/missouri-prison-healthcare-contract-won-by-company-accused-of-bid-rigging-in-tennessee/
Centurion Health, a Virginia subsidiary of St. Louis-based managed care company Centene, beat out four other bidders – including current provider Corizon Health – for a contract awarded May 28. Under the terms of the contract, Centurion would be paid $174.6 million for the year starting July 1. The initial contract term is three years, with four optional years, and Centurion’s bid totals $1.4 billion over the full period.
Lawmakers appropriated $152.8 million for prison medical services in the coming year, the third year where the amount has been unchanged. The actual cost in fiscal 2020 was $149.9 million.
In the formal protest filed last week, Corizon wrote that it was treated unfairly in the scoring and that Centurion failed to report problems that cost it a Tennessee contract on May 10 — including that key personnel involved in its Missouri bid were fired over their involvement in the Tennessee scandal.
https://www.cpr.org/2021/06/30/covid-vaccine-incentive-uchealth-employees/
Anti-Vaxxers: FACED! UCHealth pays $500 incentive to employees who get the COVID vaccine
UCHealth plans to give $500 dollars to those among its 26,000 employees who are vaccinated. Contractors can also receive the bonus. The system operates 12 hospitals and about 700 individual clinics across Colorado, southern Wyoming and western Nebraska. The bonus applies to thousands of additional contractors, like those working as security guards or valets.
Those UCHealth workers who are now vaccinated will get the money in mid-July, and anyone who gets vaccinated between now and August 22 would get it on Sept. 3.
“UCHealth will mandate the vaccine for all of our employees and contractors at some point, likely later this year,” said Dan Weaver, Vice President of Communications for UCHealth, via email. He noted the system already requires employees to get the flu vaccine. “We want to provide the safest possible environment for our patients, visitors and employees, and requiring everyone to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in the same way we mandate influenza vaccinations will help improve safety for everyone.”
https://www.riverfronttimes.com/newsblog/2021/06/30/st-louis-mayor-tishaura-jones-80-million-relief-proposal-heads-to-board-of-aldermen
Mayor Jones Gives and Serves
Mayor Tishaura Jones’ $80 million direct relief proposal was approved by the St. Louis Board of Estimate and Apportionment, but faces a challenge for final approval with the board of alderman.
"The past year and a half has been devastating for St. Louis families and businesses," Comptroller Darlene Green, who is one third of E&A, said in a press release. "The relief package presented by Mayor Jones prioritizes addressing the most urgent needs for our residents, and I encourage everyone to work together so that we can quickly put these relief funds to work for our community."
Jones and Green both voted for the package, but E&A's third member, Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed, refused. Reed and Jones are frequent rivals and have quarreled throughout the process. The proposal passed by E&A, which has oversight of a swath of city finances, could clash with a separate proposal in the Board of Aldermen.
Reed called out Jones saying she cannot do the job of the Board, to which Mayor Jones replied: “You can’t do the job of the Mayor either, honey.”
EXXON Mobil in the hot seat
https://www.npr.org/2021/07/01/1012138741/exxon-lobbyist-caught-on-video-talks-about-undermining-bidens-climate-push
Exxon Mobil has been attempting a new face lately, obtaining new board members “focused on climate change” and claiming to finally be sensitive to the issue. However, a recent sting by the group Greenpeace finds one major lobbyist for Exxon sowing some doubt on that new branding. Keith McCoy, the oil giant's senior director for federal relations was caught on camera during what he thought was a job interview blatantly revealing that tactics to sow doubt on the science and protect profits by working with "shadow groups," and influencing senators to weaken climate elements of President Biden's infrastructure plan. Saying "Joe Manchin, I talk to his office every week," calling Manchin a "kingmaker"
Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California, says he will hold a hearing this fall about "climate disinformation & the coordinated attack on scientific truth among polluters and their lobbyists."
It should be an interesting hearing. Among McCoy's comments to the undercover activists, he said Exxon Mobil has a playbook for dealing with hearings like what Khanna plans. He said they usually send trade group representatives to be "the whipping boy."
Dark Money Is Just Fine, says the US Supreme Court
https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/19-251_p86b.pdf
In a 6-3 ruling, and bringing the term to an end, the US Supreme Court has ruled that people who donate to political nonprofits have a first amendment right to remain anonymous. The case, stemming from a california rule requiring disclosure of donors, similar to a political candidate, was one of the few this term that lined up exactly on the 6-3 right and left lines of the high court. The reasoning was that while a state may have an interest in preventing fraud in non-profits, these kinds of non-profits really don’t represent enough potential fraud to matter and that forcing disclosure of donor information could be chilling to the First Amendment right of free association. So there you have it folks, you have no protection for your information if you give money to a candidate, but as long as it’s to a hyper partisan nonprofit, you can give all you want and no one has to know. It will be our little secret.
Outro: That’s all the time we have, thanks for joining us. If you have a story you feel we should look into and possibly highlight on the show tweet us @theheartlandpod and visit us for links to all our shows and our merchandise shop at heartlandpod.com.
The Flyover View is a production of Mid Map Media LLC.
This week’s episode featured reporting from The Pitch out of kansas city, The Riverfront Times, The Missouri Independent, Colorado Public Radio, Associated Press, New York Times, KSDK St. Louis, The Des Moines Register, & Supreme Court.gov,
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