St. Louis Rep. Jeanette Mott Oxford, a Democrat, was none too pleased that the House GOP rushed through approval of HJR 41 this afternoon, ignoring Democrats who were hoping to speak to the issue. The bill, pushed by Chesterfield Rep. Jane Cunningham, a Republican, would place a constitutional amendment on the ballot in November that would, if passed, ban state judges from ordering tax increases. No state judge in Missouri has ever ordered a tax increase, but Cunningham says she fears it might happen some day.

Before being part of a GOP majority that limited debate on the issue, Cunningham had stood in the House Lounge with actor/producer Ben Stein to promote the diversity of ideas and more debate in the academic world. Hmmm.

Below is the context of an angry missive sent out by Oxford after HJR 41 passed with the minimum amount of yes votes possible:

Since the GOP has once again cut off debate with Democrats standing at the mikes ready to speak on a bill (and an important one that calls for amending our constitution at that), I thought I’d share with you what I wanted to say if I’d had the opportunity to speak before the PQ:

1) What’s happened to the quality of work in this Legisalture? Last year’s crash and burn mess around the economic development bill had many editors speculating that it’s time to get rid of term limits down here because clearly unskilled novices are in charge. This is yet another example as Rep. Jane Cunningham and GOP-supporters constantly said “There are some problems with the language of this bill, but we’ll fix it on the Senate side. Trust us!” Whatever happened to getting it right the first time?

2) The real agenda behind this bill is clear if you read Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism, a respected book that was honored in recent years as one of the best examples of investigative reporting. I think the author is Michelle Goldman. The chapter on the courts spells out how groups with a radical theocratic agenda are working a coordinated plan to muzzle the courts until they can take over the courts.They are currently training students with the intent of moving them into positions as the legislators, judges, and Supreme Court justices of tomorrow. (Some of the groups involved - trusting my memory here since the book is on the table by my bed in St. Louis - are Generation Joshua, Focus on the Family, Jerry Fallwell’s organization, and Patrick Henry University.)

Interestingly enough, numerous pieces of Rep. Cunningham’s legislative package (and that of other GOP sponsors) are profiled in other chapters of the book - like intelligent design (for which Cunningham honored Ben Stein and his movie that was shown in the Rotunda yesterday!) and the “intellectual diversity bill.” Many of her bills, including those that undermine public education, are based on model legislation in the christian nationalist playbook.This coalition of theocrats would re-write US history and initiate a government based on their religious and political doctrine, clearly violating the religious freedom clause of the Bill of Rights established by our nation’s founders (and clearly in contradiction to what many other christians believe as well).

Hopefully HJR 41 WILL be fixed in the Senate - fixed by killing it dead as a doornail.