Food or Heat? How the Governor and President raised taxes on working people.

Today, Marilyn shows how the Missouri Governor, the legislature, the President, and Congress have acted to transfer massive amounts of wealth from the working poor to the utility companies who funded their campaigns.

During Lucas’ US Senate run, many people asked me why I decided to join him on the campaign trail all over Missouri. After all, not every spouse is interested, or thrilled, about the constant travel, the late nights, and the sacrifices a family makes to cover every corner of the state and meet as many people as possible. On top of that, at the beginning I was pregnant with our little boy Harvey. Later, we had a newborn to care for, I was juggling my master’s degree, and I still had a full-time job. On paper, it probably looked like the worst timing in the world. But my answer was always the same: once you’ve seen what I saw across this state, you can’t unsee it, and when the people in power don’t care about the struggle and suffering, it’s the job of the rest of us to pick up the slack.

On our travels I saw, up close, how Missouri leaders were letting their campaign funders strip our state and the people here, who I’d come to love, for parts. The people they were destroying, senior citizens, mothers, workers, young adults, children, frequently came to us with tears in their eyes about situations they couldn’t control and couldn’t overcome.

In our travels, I really fell in love with Missouri and Missourians. With the farmland and the people who work it. With the stories shared over kitchen tables and in folding chairs at town halls. I fell in love with the stories, the conversations, the connections we made across the state. The more I listened, the more I knew: I wasn’t going to walk away from them. That just isn’t in me.

https://lucaskunce.substack.com/p/food-or-heat