Happy Saturday gang! Amidst talk about Auroras, magnetic fields, sunspots and coronal mass ejections – I am here to remind you of the silver lining…SB735 is going to the House floor VERY soon. We’ll be live tonight at 7:30 PM Central. We’ll be on Twitter (X), Rumble, Odysee and You Tube.

I want to remind everyone first about Mike Moon’s re-elect launch party in Nixa TODAY at 2:00PM. I will be there, Ron Calzone will be there, Tom Martz will be there, Eric Burlison will be there…etc. Details on the image. This is not an endorsement from the Freedom Initiative BTW. This is about re-electing the MOST Constitutional voting Senator we have in the general assembly whose voting record aligns with the Missouri Freedom Initiative’s charter and he is my Senator so I will support him personally.

Now, back to SB735 AKA the Constitutional Money Act. We’ve seen SB735 move VERY fast in the past 2 weeks. In fact, it cleared 2 House committee hearings/reviews this week alone. It’s cleared all hurdles without changes or amendments and is now on the House calendar for Monday, the 13^th. This doesn’t mean that floor time on Monday is guaranteed but it is officially on the calendar and it has a LOT of support.

Daniel Diaz (Citizens for Sound Money) and I will be up at the capital beginning Monday whipping the votes. CEOs of silver/gold companies will be flying in and joining us as well. We’ll stay at the capital the entire week if necessary.

 CALL TO ACTION

Please keep the positive and friendly emails and phone calls coming in. They are most definitely helping and we hear from Representatives that they are getting calls and emails about the Constitutional Money Act all the time. You can find your representative on the House Roster or on the app at the bottom of the House landing page. Let’s keep up the energy and the effort. I know many folks are weary however, this is the LAST week of session. It’s the last burst of energy exerted at the end of the race that can help to cross the finish line. Let’s stop calling the governor’s office for now, and concentrate of the House where our focus needs to be. “SB735 WILL come up on the House floor anytime between Monday the 11^th at 4:00PM and Friday the 17^th at 4:00PM.” – Representative Bill Hardwick

EMAIL FROM RON CALZONE ON IP REFORM

We’ve waited the whole legislative session in Jefferson City for what will happen this Monday, May 13, 2024.

That’s when the Missouri Senate will continue, and finish, debate on SJR 74, the Ratification Reform amendment to the Missouri Constitution.  SJR 74 will put an end to the urban domination of the amendment process and give more Missourians from across the state a voice in what goes into their Constitution.

If SJR 74 comes to a vote, I have NO DOUBT that it will get the 18 votes it needs to go to the ballot for all Missouri voters to weigh in on.

There will be a fight on the Senate floor to prevent that vote.  Democrats will put on a long filibuster, and a few Republicans who aren’t committed to protecting the Constitution from urban dominance may make the difference.

I’ll tell you how you can help, but first a short primer on filibusters.
THE ABSENCE OF A QUORUM
A filibuster is a test of will power. Generally, the side with the most commitment to their position will prevail. It’s a brilliant system that allows a minority with deep convictions to prevail over a majority that only has a preference.
A long filibuster is wearying for both sides. For it to continue the Senate must maintain a quorum — more than half the 34 senators must be present.
If the filibustering side notices that there are less than 18 Senators in the chamber, they can proclaim “The absence of a quorum.”  The Sergeant of Arms then calls all the senators back to the chamber, and the one holding the floor gets a little break.
If fewer than 18 senators show up, the Senate must shut down – the filibuster is a success.

THE REAL TEST OF COMMITMENT TO RATIFICATION REFORM
More than 18 Senators have already committed to voting for SJR 74, but they won’t have a chance to prove that commitment if at least 18 of them don’t make themselves available for a quorum call for as long as the filibuster lasts.
As a long filibuster wears on, the majority floor leader has to ride herd on the rest of the senators to make sure that they ARE available for the quorum calls that sometimes happen in the wee hours of the morning. Concerns about too many senators leaving the Capitol can result in poor compromises or even laying the bill over.
Senate rules (Rule #8) allow 10 senators to use the Sergeant of Arms, or even the Highway Patrol, to take any absent senator into custody and compel their attendance  — perhaps that should be an option in light of how important SJR 74 is.
HOW YOU CAN HELP We need for every Republican senator to realize that the People of Missouri KNOW that they have a duty to answer any quorum call where they are needed to make 18 present.
Every senator needs to know that WE KNOW that their absence is an indication that they aren’t committed to protecting the Constitution with SJR 74.
They need to know that WE KNOW that there is no need to compromise on SJR 74 or substitute it with a bad bill (e.g. HJR 86) as long as they do their duty to answer the quorum call.
Before Monday, call AND email each Republican senator to tell them you expect them:
1) To be available for a quorum call for as long as it takes to pass SJR 74 as it was amended in the House.
2) To use the power or Rule 8 to compel attendance of both Republican and Democrat when there is an absence of a quorum.
(Call over the weekend and leave a short courteous message rather than pester the staff during business hours.)
Missouri Senate Roster
In liberty,
– Ron
Well gang, that about wraps it up. I hope to see many of you at Mike Moon’s re-election launch and/or the live stream tonight.
May God bless us all with good health and with wisdom and courage.

Yours for liberty,
Patrick Holland
Missouri Freedom Initiative
P.O. Box 343
Clever, Missouri 65631
patrick@mofree.org

https://mofree.org
https://rumble.com/c/c-3860337
https://odysee.com/@MissouriLibertyAlliance:1
https://twitter.com/MissouriLibert2