A. E. Newman Delivers Fiery Stump Speech On Courthouse Steps

Published by Dick Schaefer, Award-winning, Unpaid, Part-time Contributing Writer; Amateur Investigative Reporter; and Aspiring Photo-journalist

A. E. Newman
Independent Candidate
Southern District Assoc. Commissioner

Date:  9/25/2010

It was 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, 9/23 and not much was going on at the Gasconade County Courthouse.  The County Commission had cancelled their weekly meeting because County Clerk Lietzow was in Jefferson City attending an annual "County Clerk Convention".  (You gotta wonder whether annual "County Clerk Conventions" are even necessary and whether the money Gasconade County spends each year on trip expenses can even be justified.  But I digress.)

The story on this particular Thursday morning was A. E. Newman's fiery political stump speech delivered on the steps leading up to the front entrance of the courthouse.  Hermann Hearsay has previously reported that A. E. Newman of Bland is running for the office of Southern District Associate Commissioner of Gasconade County.  Newman will be facing off against incumbent, Jerry Lairmore of Owensville, in the November 6, 2012 general election.

Here is the text of Newman's speech which was delivered from the courthouse steps to approximately twenty or so citizens who were gathered around to hear it .....

"My fellow citizens and countrymen -

Thank you for coming out on this glorious September morning!  As you may know, my name is A. E. Newman.  I'm from Bland, and I'm running for Southern District Associate Commissioner.  I'm here this morning to point out to my fellow citizens that our County Commission has CANCELLED their regular weekly meeting this morning. 

Perhaps you didn't know that!  Why should you?  You are all busy people and you have your own personal affairs to attend to.  Like most citizens of Gasconade County, you expect your elected representatives to attend to the business affairs of the county.  Well my friends, today they aren't!  And the reason they aren't attending to the affairs of the county is that County Clerk Lesa Lietzow is attending a convention of county clerks in Jefferson City.  I guess Clerk Lietzow's absence made for a convenient excuse to CANCEL today's meeting altogether!

Now I ask you these questions:

• Do you think it might have been possible for Presiding Commissioner Ron Jost to reschedule the regular weekly meeting for another day this week?  But he didn't!  Guess he didn't really want to!
• Do you think Southern District Associate Commissioner Jerry Lairmore could have pressed Jost to hold a meeting on another day this week or to just go ahead with the meeting in Clerk Lietzow's absence?  Afterall Commissioner Lairmore (and Jost) have been quite content to meet at the Drake Maintenance Shed without requiring the presence of the County Clerk to record meeting minutes! 
• What county business is being postponed today?  The Missouri State Auditor (Susan Montee) has been auditing Gasconade County all summer long.  Finally the comprehensive audit report (including the portion conducted by a private CPA firm) is available to our county officials.  But the public will not be able to see the report until our county commissioners provide a response back to Susan Montee's office.  Only then will the final audit report be posted at the Auditor's website, http://www.auditor.mo.gov/.  Now folks, this report represents a report card on Gasconade County government.  And I contend that some of our county officials don't want you to see the report until after the November 3rd general election.  Also my friends, the County Commission SHOULD BE discussing the current status of year-to-date spending vs. the 2010 budget.  I dare say that, once again, it doesn't look pretty!  The County Commission SHOULD ALSO BE working on a plan to preserve and restore this fine historical courthouse you see before you!  The $1,000 annual maintenance budget ain't getting the job done!  Commissioners Jost and Lairmore are DELAYING any serious work on the county's courthouse and the need for expanded office space!  Why are they negligent in their responsibilities to you the citizens?  Could it be that certain "monied interests" in Owensville STILL want the county seat to be relocated to Owensville so they can sell off some very marginal real estate to Gasconade County? 
• How do other county commissions conduct their official business?  Well I haven't checked on a lot of other counties, but I can tell you this much ...... the Montgomery County Commissioners are in official open session on Monday and Thursday each week from 9 to noon and 1 to 4 p.m.  In other words, those Montgomery County commissioners meet together to conduct the business of Montgomery County approximately twelve (12) hours per week while our commissioners here in Gasconade County meet in official open session about one (1) or two (2) hours per week ..... and sometimes (like this week) they even find bogus reasons for cancelling their weekly meeting altogether!  What are the Montgomery County commissioners doing that our Gasconade County commissioners SHOULD BE DOING?  Perhaps we need to find out!

Friends, in closing, I hope it is obvious to all of you that we need a change of leadership in Gasconade County!  And that's why I'm running for Southern District Associate Commissioner.  Lairmore needs to be replaced.  Jost needs to be replaced.  I hope I can count on your support.  I hope some of you will join my campaign organization in the southern district.  I could really use your help!

Ask not what your COUNTY can do for you.  Rather, ask what you can do for your COUNTY!  Right now, your COUNTY needs for you to show a couple county commissioners and a county clerk the exit door!  Vote for Jerry Spurgeon to replace Ron Jost.  Vote for Sharon Meyer to replace Lesa Lietzow.  And finally, please ask your friends and relatives who live in the southern district of our county to vote for A. E. Newman to replace Jerry Lairmore!"