I have friends who live in Missouri who let me know that maybe, just maybe, Missouri is trying to beat Texas in the political division rankings.  They send me all the information I need to know that bean dip dumb is contagious.

However, this comes close to being the sweetest thing that ever happened.  Anywhere.

Gov. Jay Nixon

Missouri’s Governor Jay Nixon, who is a damn Democrat, has repeatedly withheld funding for the public defender’s office.  The public defender’s office asked for a $23 million increase in funding.  The state legislature gave them $4.5 million.  The Governor is withholding $3.5 million of that because he thinks they don’t need it.  They do.  Badly.

So, the guy who is the head of the public defender’s office, Michael Barrett, has found out that he has authority to appoint any lawyer to a client in the public defender’s office.

Michael Barrett made me the happiest woman on earth when he appointed Governor Jay Nixon to defend a client in the public defender’s system.

“… given the extraordinary circumstances that compel me to entertain any and all avenues for relief, it strikes me that I should begin with the one attorney in the state who not only created this problem, but is in a unique position to address it.”

Well done, Barrett, well done.

Thanks to everybody for the heads up.