It would be understandable to be weary of discussion about the 2010 midterm election results and what this volatile election cycle portends for the direction of this country, the Democratic Party, the administration of President Barack Obama and the African-American community.
As a result of being reduced to the minority in the U.S. House of Representatives and a more diminished minority in the Missouri House of Representatives, Democrats have reached out to some new leaders. This consequence of the Republican victories may have great potential for good in our community.
The decimation of Democratic representation in these legislative bodies took its worst toll in the more conservative-leaning districts, where conservative Democrats were replaced by much more conservative Republicans. As we all know and have said, this will make a progressive agenda more difficult in Washington and leave progressives in Missouri all but defenseless in the Legislature. However, it also means that Democrat caucuses now need to rely much more on their remaining progressive members, many of them African-American. Where they are not virtually the only Democrats left standing, progressives are the group of more veteran and secure Democrats left in office.
In Missouri, we saw signs of this change recently, when second-term State Rep. Tishaura Jones – who represents District 63, in the heart of St. Louis – was elected assistant minority leader of the state House. This week, we saw more evidence of this trend, as U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay was elected to serve as one of 12 House Democratic Deputy Whips – his most senior leadership post in 10 years of congressional service.
Clay, always a strong advocate for this president and his agenda, hit the floor of the House running, vowing to defend Democrats’ “hard-fought victories on healthcare reform, Wall Street reform and consumer protection” and to “ensure the stability of Social Security and Medicare.” Clay knows he has our unwavering support on each and every one of these agends items, which are so crucial to our community.
As for Jones, she is the daughter of former Comptroller Virvus Jones, one of the most bold and effective leaders black St. Louis has ever nurtured. While we expected her to continue her father’s formidable legacy, we are especially encouraged to see her rise to the battle immediately against Proposition A, a defining project of billionare financier Rex Sinquefield.
Prop A, which paves the way for eliminating the crucial earnings taxes in the cities of St. Louis and Kansas City, passed by the largest statewide margin on the Nov. 2. ballot. The caliber of Democrats who were just defeated might have counseled cowardly caution on an issue where statewide sentiment was so strong, but Jones already has taken action by pre-filing a bill that could greatly reduce Prop A’s negative impact on the state’s two major cities, while leaving unchanged the aspect of the initiative that appealed out-state: namely, it leaves untouched the provision that says other municipalities can’t enact an earnings tax.
Jones has little leverage to compel her Republican colleagues to support this bill, and can expect determined opposition from Sinquefield – whose previous campaign contributions to Jones of $1,300 are being returned by her this week, an admirable and revealing gesture of political courage and independence.
This city, state and country – and especially its African-American citizens – desperately need strong, able and politically skillful leadership now. Clay and Jones must make good use of these new leadership positions for the greater benfit of the people who elected them.
