Missourians for the Protection of Dogs

“It’s plain hokum,” a wise Harry Truman said long ago. “If you can’t convince ’em, confuse ’em. It’s an old political trick.” And hokum is just what Missouri residents are getting now from a narrow majority of state lawmakers who have voted to unravel Prop B, the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act. To read the full article, click here.   

It’s time for Gov. Jay Nixon to bridge Missouri’s rural-urban divide. The Democratic governor is a centrist who has angered some urban members of his party by adopting policies that appeal to rural voters, who generally vote Republican. He now faces the ultimate balancing act in deciding how to address another polarizing issue that divides the state into two camps: those who live in and around cities and those who make their living tied to the land.

There’s been some very ugly, unfair, cruel, and anti-democratic work in some state legislatures and in Congress over the past few days—some of the most deeply troubling stuff I’ve seen in two decades of advocacy for animals.

Do you know what the state motto of Missouri is? I'll tell you what it is not. It isn't "let the will of the people be the supreme law." The will of the people is best expressed through the initiative and referendum process. That is, when the voters show their intent by voting on an issue. Yet, recently our elected representatives and senators have chosen to ignore the voters' will. To read the full article, click here.

Two local state representatives on Friday indicated they are unlikely to support major changes to commercial dog-breeding regulations that Missouri voters approved last fall. Proposition B imposes rules on puppy mills, requiring that dogs be given fresh water, regular veterinary care and space to move around, and that their outdoor cages have some protection from the heat and cold. Many legislators have said those rules need to be repealed or greatly changed, and some have argued that the voters did not understand the issue.

Displaying signs such as "Keep you paws off my laws," "Respect the voters," and "R.I.P Democracy," about 50 supporters of the new voter-approved law tightening welfare standards on licensed dog breeders rallied midday Wednesday at the Capitol. To read the full article, click here.