August 14, 2014

Where is Governor Jay Nixon?


@darth says it all

@darth says it all @darth/Twitter

Five days ago, Ferguson, MO, cops shot and killed unarmed teenager Michael Brown, and the outrage of area residents—and the country—has grown day by day. Jay Nixon, the Democratic governor of Missouri whose name has been floated as a possible 2016 candidate (VP or, if Hillary doesn’t run, even presidential), has been notably absent. Yesterday he finally issued a brief statement. And today, as St. Louis County Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas canisters at protestors and arrested reporters from the Washington Post and the Huffington Post, he’s been silent on the conflict.  So I wondered:

And I’m far from alone. Here’s a small sample:

Update: Looks like he finally heard all the criticism:

Update: Governor Nixon has released a statement:

“The worsening situation in Ferguson is deeply troubling, and does not represent who we are as Missourians or as Americans. While we all respect the solemn responsibility of our law enforcement officers to protect the public, we must also safeguard the rights of Missourians to peaceably assemble and the rights of the press to report on matters of public concern.

“I have been closely monitoring the situation and will continue to be in communication with local leaders, and I will be in north St. Louis County tomorrow. As Governor, I am committed to ensuring the pain of last weekend’s tragedy does not continue to be compounded by this ongoing crisis. Once again, I ask that members of the community demonstrate patience and calm while the investigation continues, and I urge law enforcement agencies to keep the peace and respect the rights of residents and the press during this difficult time.”

Sure I’m not the only one wondering why he isn’t in north St. Louis County tonight.

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PLEASE—BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things it doesn’t like—which is most things that are true.

We’ll say it loud and clear: At Mother Jones, no one gets to tell us what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please do your part and help us reach our $150,000 membership goal by May 31.

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