Missouri Gov. Parson’s lax stay-at-home order could cost him — even among Republicans
Governor Mike Parson hopes Missourians will heed oft-stated requests — and now a state directive — to be smart, be responsible and stay home.
But up until his belated order went into effect Monday, that’s all it was: his hope.
Hope, Barack Obama was rightly cautioned by Republicans, is not a strategy.
Now, having arrived late to the party, and some two vital weeks after St. Louis and Kansas City issued more stringent stay-at-home orders, Parson is relying heavily on the hope that coronavirus hasn’t already gotten its deadly grip firmly on the state — and the hope that his hesitancy to act won’t be his political undoing in November.
I write this as a right-of-center guy whose first vote was for Democrat Jimmy Carter as president but who, having watched the long leftward drift of that party, can’t imagine ever supporting anyone even remotely associated with the firm of Pelosi, Schumer and Ocasio-Cortez.
Until now. While I have no vote as a resident of Kansas, Gov. Parson has left too much to chance in the COVID-19 crisis and has left much to be desired in what has been his most serious test as a leader.
Nor am I alone in that thinking. I talked with one local Republican politician who admitted to me privately that he’ll be voting for Democratic state auditor Nicole Galloway for governor.
“I think he’s clearly been a step behind of what’s happening in much of the rest of the nation, and even a step behind what’s happening in the more populated parts of his own state,” University of Missouri political science professor Peverill Squire says of Parson. “He’s appeared to be very reactive rather than proactive.”
“I think if I were the governor, I would’ve made that decision a little earlier,” former state Sen. Bob Johnson, a Republican from Lee’s Summit, says of the governor’s stay-at-home order.
Both gentlemen surmise that Parson has been perhaps too focused on his base in his native rural Missouri, which has been largely unaffected by the virus so far and is governed by a conservative nature that balks at intrusive government.
Nobody balks at Big Brother more than I do. But a killer is wafting over the land. What’s the government got to do that’s more important right now than protecting our lives?
“Missouri is faring better than some states with arguably stricter orders,” Parson’s communications director Kelli R. Jones responds, adding that, “if there is data to show that additional orders will save lives, those orders will be considered for implementation.” She also points to a lengthy list of measures the governor has implemented or overseen since his first conference call with national leaders March 2.
Granted. And one need only talk to Jones to hear the fatigue from it all. It’s appreciated from where I sit, even just over the state line.
But it still feels like he’s been way behind the curve, especially with regard to the stay-at-home order. Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas speaks for many in being underwhelmed by it.
The governor also bizarrely diminishes his own standing when he explains his tardiness by calling his stay-at-home order a “piece of paper” that he doesn’t think “is going to tell Missourians exactly what to do.” That not only sells the governor’s office short, but it also underestimates his constituents’ respect for, and ability to faithfully follow, real leadership in the midst of a severe crisis.
Besides, if the stay-at-home order wasn’t necessary before, why issue it now? What is it about that “piece of paper” or Missourians’ intelligence that’s changed in the past two weeks?
“There seem to be enough loopholes and questions (in the order) that it’s not clear how much people’s behavior is actually going to be changed,” Squire points out.
Parson’s brand is particularly vulnerable to the virus, since his only statewide race thus far was as a successful candidate in the fairly inconspicuous lieutenant governor’s race in 2016. For many Missouri voters, he’s still largely an unknown entity.
“The impression that most Missourians have of him is only being made at this point,” explains Squire. “Certainly in the urban areas — and probably more important for the governor’s re-election prospects, in the suburban areas — his image has probably been damaged because he appears to be a little slow in responding to what is clearly a pretty significant issue.
“It’s a little disconcerting. At a time when you need strong leadership, he appears to be shrinking from doing that.”
The hit to the economy was likely unavoidable, Squire figures. Any blow to Parson’s image as a leader, though, will be an unforced error. For now, one can only hope it won’t result in more suffering.
If the battle against the coronavirus is nearly won, of course, Parson may come off looking like a steady-handed genius.
I certainly wouldn’t mind that at all.
