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Missouri Democrat Gov. Jay Nixon stumbled in Ferguson. He's trying to blame anyone he can smear.
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Trayvon Missouri
Sep 9, 2014, 8:32:31 PM9/9/14
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A week ago, Jay Nixon was a Democratic governor with a promising
political future. Today, he�s a guy with a rocky recent past.
The second-term governor of Missouri has been thrust into the
harshest brand of national spotlight, thanks to the recent
turmoil in his home state -- and widespread grousing that he�s
done little to resolve the standoff between police and
protesters in Ferguson.
How Nixon handles the next few days could determine whether his
prospects of being a vice presidential contender -- or even a
presidential hopeful -- will recover, or evaporate.
Nixon spent Thursday in Ferguson. But, say political observers,
that's not nearly enough.
�Do more than just visit,� encouraged Michael Steele, a former
lieutenant governor of Maryland and ex-chairman of the
Republican National Committee. �You cannot just go there and
take a walkabout amid the destruction and the tension and then
go back to the state capital and say, �Well, I�ve done that.��
Nixon appeared to share that assessment, laying out a range of
new moves Thursday. He announced in the afternoon that he had
directed the state highway patrol to take over security efforts
in Ferguson, substituting for the embattled police force there.
He vowed all would see a �different tone� from law enforcement,
which has clashed with protesters since Sunday.
But in the eyes of many, it was too late.
Nixon didn�t intend to come to Ferguson until late Wednesday
evening. He�d been scheduled to appear at the state fair until
he scrapped those plans at the last minute as criticism mounted
and the skirmishes intensified. Confrontations between police
and protesters have been ramping up since Sunday, leading many
to question why the governor hadn't stepped in more firmly, and
far sooner.
Here�s a sampling of the heavy backlash Nixon faced on Twitter
Wednesday:
Michael Farrell @kullfarr
Follow
Police (?) completely out of control in #Ferguson. Where is
#JayNixon?
7:47 PM - 13 Aug 2014
Dave Jordan @DJNYC1
Follow
I would have expected @GovJayNixon to step up and do something
by now. #Ferguson #JayNixon
7:49 PM - 13 Aug 2014
Ronald Keith Gaddie @OUKeithGaddie
Follow
Time for #JayNixon to take over the situation in Ferguson.
6:30 PM - 13 Aug 2014
"Someone must step forward and take responsibility � both for
the law enforcement effort that�s currently underway and then
for the investigation that must follow," the St. Louis Post-
Dispatch editorial board wrote on Tuesday. "It will have to be
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, a man whose every instinct is to dodge
bad news whenever possible. Sorry, governor. But you asked for
the job."
Nixon won re-election by 12 percentage points in 2012, an
impressive feat in a conservative state. He's not a polarizing
figure. And he got high marks for his response to the tornado
that devastated Joplin in 2011.
That resume has made him a not-to-be-ignored political figure
ahead of the 2016 presidential election. He signaled his desire
to become a bigger player in national politics in an interview
with The Washington Post last year. And he's talked about the
importance of having the heartland's voice heard in Washington.
As a Democrat who can connect with conservatives, Nixon would
make an intriguing vice presidential candidate. If Hillary
Rodham Clinton decides not to run for president, his name would
have been expected to suddenly pop up on many presidential short
lists.
But backlash over events in Ferguson threatens to undercut all
that. These are the sorts of situations people tend to remember.
Nixon is trying to combat the perception that he was slow to
address a critical situation. The governor said Thursday he felt
it was important for local agencies to solve the problems in
Ferguson as much as possible. When he saw that wasn't working,
he said, he stepped in.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-
politics/wp/2014/08/15/missouri-gov-jay-nixon-stumbled-in-
ferguson-hes-trying-to-regain-his-footing/
Twitter is for idiots. If a politician bases his decisions on
the ignorant chatter of a bunch of twits, he deserves every bad
thing that happens to him.
�
political future. Today, he�s a guy with a rocky recent past.
The second-term governor of Missouri has been thrust into the
harshest brand of national spotlight, thanks to the recent
turmoil in his home state -- and widespread grousing that he�s
done little to resolve the standoff between police and
protesters in Ferguson.
How Nixon handles the next few days could determine whether his
prospects of being a vice presidential contender -- or even a
presidential hopeful -- will recover, or evaporate.
Nixon spent Thursday in Ferguson. But, say political observers,
that's not nearly enough.
�Do more than just visit,� encouraged Michael Steele, a former
lieutenant governor of Maryland and ex-chairman of the
Republican National Committee. �You cannot just go there and
take a walkabout amid the destruction and the tension and then
go back to the state capital and say, �Well, I�ve done that.��
Nixon appeared to share that assessment, laying out a range of
new moves Thursday. He announced in the afternoon that he had
directed the state highway patrol to take over security efforts
in Ferguson, substituting for the embattled police force there.
He vowed all would see a �different tone� from law enforcement,
which has clashed with protesters since Sunday.
But in the eyes of many, it was too late.
Nixon didn�t intend to come to Ferguson until late Wednesday
evening. He�d been scheduled to appear at the state fair until
he scrapped those plans at the last minute as criticism mounted
and the skirmishes intensified. Confrontations between police
and protesters have been ramping up since Sunday, leading many
to question why the governor hadn't stepped in more firmly, and
far sooner.
Here�s a sampling of the heavy backlash Nixon faced on Twitter
Wednesday:
Michael Farrell @kullfarr
Follow
Police (?) completely out of control in #Ferguson. Where is
#JayNixon?
7:47 PM - 13 Aug 2014
Dave Jordan @DJNYC1
Follow
I would have expected @GovJayNixon to step up and do something
by now. #Ferguson #JayNixon
7:49 PM - 13 Aug 2014
Ronald Keith Gaddie @OUKeithGaddie
Follow
Time for #JayNixon to take over the situation in Ferguson.
6:30 PM - 13 Aug 2014
"Someone must step forward and take responsibility � both for
the law enforcement effort that�s currently underway and then
for the investigation that must follow," the St. Louis Post-
Dispatch editorial board wrote on Tuesday. "It will have to be
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, a man whose every instinct is to dodge
bad news whenever possible. Sorry, governor. But you asked for
the job."
Nixon won re-election by 12 percentage points in 2012, an
impressive feat in a conservative state. He's not a polarizing
figure. And he got high marks for his response to the tornado
that devastated Joplin in 2011.
That resume has made him a not-to-be-ignored political figure
ahead of the 2016 presidential election. He signaled his desire
to become a bigger player in national politics in an interview
with The Washington Post last year. And he's talked about the
importance of having the heartland's voice heard in Washington.
As a Democrat who can connect with conservatives, Nixon would
make an intriguing vice presidential candidate. If Hillary
Rodham Clinton decides not to run for president, his name would
have been expected to suddenly pop up on many presidential short
lists.
But backlash over events in Ferguson threatens to undercut all
that. These are the sorts of situations people tend to remember.
Nixon is trying to combat the perception that he was slow to
address a critical situation. The governor said Thursday he felt
it was important for local agencies to solve the problems in
Ferguson as much as possible. When he saw that wasn't working,
he said, he stepped in.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-
politics/wp/2014/08/15/missouri-gov-jay-nixon-stumbled-in-
ferguson-hes-trying-to-regain-his-footing/
Twitter is for idiots. If a politician bases his decisions on
the ignorant chatter of a bunch of twits, he deserves every bad
thing that happens to him.
�
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