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Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kit Bond, former Missouri governor, U.S. Senator, dead at 86
Then U.S. Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond heads for a closed session of the Senate about the new START Treaty, a ratification of a nuclear-arms treaty with Russia, in the U.S. Capitol December 20, 2010 in Washington, DC. (). Former Missouri governor and U.S. Sen. Kit Bond, who was the youngest person ever elected to the state's highest office, died Tuesday. He was 86. Bond was on a Missouri ballot nine times and lost only two races, a bid for Congress in 1968 and his bid for a second consecutive term as governor in 1976. He went on to win a new term as governor in 1980 and four subsequent elections to the Senate starting in 1986. When he was elected auditor in 1970, Bond was the first Republican to win that office since 1928. When he was elected governor, Bond was the first Republican to win that office since 1940. In his first term as governor, Bond was seen as a moderate, working to strengthen consumer protection laws and backing the Equal Rights Amendment. The latter position, as well as his support for President Gerald Ford against Ronald Reagan for the 1976 GOP presidential nomination cost him support in his party and was blamed in part for his loss for re-election. In his second term, Bond was faced with a major budget shortfall and economic recession. To combat the recession, Bond worked with lawmakers to pass a $600 million bond issue to fund new state facilities and college campus buildings. The Parents as Teachers program was also launched in Bond's second term, about the same time his son Sam Bond was born. When he became a senator, Bond sponsored legislation to make it a national program. 'I think that Parents as Teachers is Missouri's greatest export,' Bond said in an oral history interview in 2014. 'We believe that when you advocate Parents as Teachers, you are telling people across the country that Parents as Teachers is Missouri's greatest export.' In that same interview, Bond said 'the job of governor was one of the most satisfying jobs I've ever had.' Bond was born in Mexico, Missouri, the grandson of the founder of A.P. Green Industries, a fireclay manufacturer and a major employer at the time. He attended a boarding school in Massachusetts, Princeton University as an undergraduate and studied law in Virginia, practicing law in Washington, D.C., until he returned home in 1967. His time away became an issue in the 1972 campaign for governor, when opponents alleged he had violated the Constitutional requirement that governors be residents of the state for 12 years prior to their election. The Missouri Supreme Court ruled Bond was qualified to be governor because he always intended to return to Missouri despite his years away. 'It has been said that residence is largely a matter of intention, to be determined not only from the utterances of the person whose residence is in issue but also from his acts and in the light of all the facts and circumstances of the case,' the ruling in Bond's case stated. As a senator, Bond became known for his work on the Senate Intelligence Committee, his commitment to national defense and, as illustrated by buildings like the Christopher S. Bond Life Sciences Center at the University of Missouri, the source of earmarked federal funds for local projects. In a tribute on the Senate floor in 2010, U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Democrat, praised Bond as a fighter and a man of honor. 'There was never a doubt in all of these years of Kit Bond's service that this was not a man of the very highest integrity,' McCaskill said. 'And finally, a work ethic. And gee howdy, Missourians want a work ethic. They want somebody who understands that they are working hard and they want to see you working hard, and that is exactly what Senator Bond has done for these 42 years.' At a retirement dinner in Bond's honor in 2010, Thomas Payne, then-dean of the University of Missouri's College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, hoisted a large cardboard cutout of an ATM machine with Bond's face on it in reference to the numerous appropriations Bond helped secure for the school. 'You're the chief purveyor of porcine products,' Payne said. In a 2009 article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Bond defended earmarks. 'Trusting local leaders and empowering them to fund critical projects that serve a compelling state or local need is a much better way to help Missouri,' Bond wrote. Following the news of his death, Gov. Mike Kehoe paid tribute to Bond. In a statement, Kehoe called Bond 'a skilled statesman, public servant, and a man who truly loved Missouri. I am blessed to have known Kit and honored to call him a friend and a mentor.' During the legislative session Tuesday, state Sen. Lincoln Hough, a Springfield Republican, announced Bond had died and also paid tribute to him. 'The impact of Kit will outlive everyone in this chamber, everyone who serves in the House of Representatives, and his impact will outlive governors,' Hough said. 'We don't have a lot of people like that anymore. We have a lot of people that want a quick hit and post on social media. It is lucky to have lived in a time that he didn't have to put up with a lot of that crap.' Other remembrances of Bond hit similar themes. Former U.S. Sen. Jack Danforth, who was attorney general during Bond's first term as governor and worked alongside him in the U.S. Senate from 1987 to 1995, called Bond a role model of a public servant. 'Kit Bond was one of the most consequential people in the history of our state,' Danforth said. 'At each level of his career, he knew the responsibilities of the job he was elected to do, and he did that job very well. As a U.S. Senator, he focused on results for Missouri. From highways and bridges to Parents as Teachers, his contributions are tangible.' U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt, a Republican who now holds the seat Bond held, said he was sad to hear of his death. 'Kit proudly served our state as governor and then in the U.S. Senate for 24 years, with his trademark sense of humor and dedication to making Missouri the best state in our union,' Schmitt said. 'He helped to improve the lives of generations of Missourians across the Show Me State.' State Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O'Lauhlin, a Republican from Shelbina, said in a statement that Bond never lost touch with his Missouri roots. 'Missouri lost a giant today,' O'Laughlin said. 'Kit Bond dedicated his life to serving this state with integrity, humility, and an unshakable commitment to doing what was right. Kit Bond was more than a statesman. He was a pillar of Missouri history and a steady hand during uncertain times. From serving as one of our youngest governors to decades in the U.S. Senate, his life was defined by a deep commitment to public service.' One of the most difficult political puzzles of Bond's second term as governor was how to divvy up the $600 million in bonds for state construction. Former state Rep. Chris Kelly, a Columbia Democrat elected in 1982, said Bond finessed that job well. Bond kept his eye on the goal of the bond issue, which was to generate jobs and economic growth, Kelly said. 'He got lots of people to work in the state, building infrastructure that we needed very badly,' Kelly said. Kelly, who was in office from 1983 to 1994 and served again from 2009 to 2015, said the current legislature isn't living up to that legacy. The decision to kill a capital spending bill with more than $500 million of projects for communities around the state is an example, Kelly said. 'His great achievement was this $600 million bond issue,' Kelly said, 'and it's tragically ironic that the legislature would fail to do what he did so well on the occasion of his passing.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Readers sound off on Ukraine's fight, trade war results and seniors' car insurance
Olivebridge, N.Y.: I start with the premise that Russia is our enemy. The Russians have frequently taken actions to oppose us and undermine us. And while we can debate specifics, what is not debatable is that the Russian Federation has more than 1,000 intercontinental ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads aimed at us with the ability to strike us within 30 minutes of launch (see the START Treaty). I would classify that as an enemy. Over the past three years, the Ukrainian people have been fighting a desperate battle against incredible odds against an invading Russian military. This war has weakened Russia, killing thousands of its soldiers and destroying much of its military equipment. The war diverted investment from its plans to obliterate the United States. It's an old adage that the enemy of your enemy is your friend. The Feb. 28 meeting in the White House between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was no way for Trump to treat a friend. More importantly, Trump should be thanking Zelenskyy. The irony of that meeting is that the president of Ukraine has battled this invasion fearlessly for three years. By any standard, Zelenskyy is a warrior and a hero, and he is being insulted by Trump — who has never seen real war and who avoided military service. Trump, on the issue of the Ukraine war, clearly signals his support for Vladimir Putin, a tyrant who leads a country with more than 1,000 ICBMs aimed at America. Warren Davis Brooklyn: I was wondering whether any of our elected representatives were as embarrassed as I was regarding the public bullying of Zelenskyy by the president and vice president during their meeting to discuss a peace deal to end the war with Russia. What kind of message does it send to our allies throughout the world when our leadership sets out to humiliate a democratically elected friend of our country to appease a ruthless dictator who has invaded and decimated his country? Haven't Zelenskyy and Ukraine suffered enough throughout this brutal and senseless war? Donald Kempler Bronx: Eric Trump and Don Trump Jr. are on record stating that they are working with Russian bankers. Isn't that a good reason to be nice to Putin? Has anyone in the mainstream media asked that question? Virgilio Carballo Brooklyn: Everyone is up in arms about everything the president and his team are doing, I think mostly because people are afraid of change. They're used to being screwed by politicians and would rather leave things as they were, but we elected Trump and his team because we need to change or America will be bankrupt, if we're not already. We're living on borrowed money. Nothing has worked in all the years past. Let's rally around Americans' new bullish attitude. Stop being complacent. God bless America. Joe Many Toronto: If the U.S.-Canada trade war gets ugly, what will be the impact on consumer goods prices if Canada were to withhold sending potash and/or oil to the U.S.A.? Potash is an integral input to agriculture production (no potash and yields immediately fall precipitously) and Canada supplies 80% of America's needs. Oil is an integral input to almost everything consumers buy or experience, and Canada supplies 60% of America's crude oil imports. Even without the tit-for-tat tariff increases that are possible, at 25% tariffs for potash and oil, does anyone think consumer prices for anything will decrease anytime soon? Going up, anyone? Peter Earle Kew Gardens: When nations impose tariffs and get into trade wars, consumers bear the brunt via higher prices. The best strategy Americans can do to protect themselves and their families is to leave their credit cards at home in a safe place and defer all discretionary spending. No one else is going to pay off your bloated credit card balances or bank loans but you. Also, expect your household budgets to be strained by increases in the costs of necessities, so be frugal with that spending also. These trying times will pass. Those who protect themselves and their families by being smart economically will fare better than those who don't. Glenn Hayes Middle Village: On a lighter note, let's raise a glass to June Lockhart, Lee Grant and Dick Van Dyke, who turn 100 years young this year. God bless! Robert Chirieleison Atlanta: Many of today's Palestinians descend from families that moved to Palestine only after Zionist activity had raised the area's living standards. Many began leaving the area as Arab leaders began preparing for war. Although Arab armies did not succeed in preventing Israel's rebirth in the Jews' ancestral homeland, Arab-initiated violence produced two refugee groups. Between 400,000 and 700,000 Arabs left Palestine and found themselves and their descendants stuck in refugee limbo. They've been told that Israel will someday be forced to take them in. That's unlikely, as the 'refugees' have grown up seeing Palestinians honored and rewarded for killing Jews. The other refugee group consisted of Mizrahi Jews, driven from Muslim countries of the Middle East and North Africa. In the three decades following 1948, Israel absorbed and uplifted 800,000 of them. Arab nations, with vast landholdings and (some with) oil riches, certainly should have done the same for the 'Palestine refugees.' Toby F. Block Peekskill, N.Y.: Contrary to a slipshod assumption made by the Wednesday Daily News editorial ('What sanctuary means,' March 5), there is no 'treatment' for measles. Moreover, children face far greater risks from an 'ouchie Fauci' than they do from measles. What's the current toll of jabbed U.S. interscholastic athletes dead from myocarditis? Does anybody at The News know or are you simply interested in gaslighting the public and diminishing RFK Jr.? Child has measles? Do what Bobby Jr. did and what I and we all did prior to the MMR vaccine: two days home from school watching 'Leave It to Beaver' and 'F Troop' reruns will do the trick! Joe Schatzle Brooklyn: Rep. Nicole Malliotakis and many of her Republican colleagues have vowed to not allow any reductions to Medicaid, which means they have promised they will not support any indirect efforts to reduce Medicaid funding, such as: imposing per capita spending caps; reducing the 50% floor in the percentage of costs covered by the federal government (which would disproportionately impact states like New York and New Jersey); reducing the Affordable Care Act expansion reimbursement rate (another disproportionate impact); reducing payments to hospitals to offset uncompensated costs; lowering medical care standards; lowering nursing home staffing requirements; placing limits on provider reimbursement rates (further reducing doctors who treat Medicaid patients); and reducing benefits to the disabled, who account for 30% of Medicaid costs. Medicaid is administered by states, which are reimbursed by the federal government. Hence, many of the above items represent back-door strategies for reducing Medicaid funding, as the burden is simply shifted to states. Gregory Reiser Brooklyn: New York is one of 12 states that mandate no-fault personal injury protection coverage. Other states make it optional. Seniors with Medicare A and B already pay part B premiums, but licensed N.Y. senior drivers must also pay a PIP premium for $50,000 coverage. Without PIP coverage, Medicare would cover the same medical expenses as PIP from the ground up instead of being secondary coverage under current law. PIP's loss-of-income coverage is generally unnecessary for seniors who don't work and have Social Security benefits. With optional rather than mandated coverage, seniors could decide for themselves instead of paying premiums for coverage they don't need. N.Y. legislators need to act on this. Brooks White Carle Place, L.I.: In the old days, when a hydrant was blocked by a car, firefighters would just break the windows of the car and snake the hose through. Let's get back to this. Maybe entitled, arrogant drivers would think twice about where they park. Two people died, possibly due to her actions ('$4K fine for blocking hydrant,' March 1). Rudy Rosenberg Manhattan: Re 'Kardashian's a supersized latex legend in Times Sq.' (March 5): It has been a very cold winter in New York. Times Square has just started to steam up. Alan Lehrer
