Signing ceremonies that take place in the Missouri Governor’s office are special. In 2017 and 2021, the Convention of States Missouri Team never had the opportunity to celebrate its legislative victories with this capstone to our commitment to the cause for liberty and individual freedom.
Senator Eric Burlison mentioned this to me a couple weeks ago - even though Article V Convention of States resolutions do not require a governor’s signature. Why is this so? Because state legislators operate under their authority extended by the U.S. Constitution. And, because the State Constitution is not applicable, a governor’s signature isn’t needed.
Eric was our House sponsor and a Representative when we passed the COS resolution in 2017. He also was our Senate sponsor in 2021 as a Senator from the 20th District. He’s been in the trenches with us ever since we began working at the State Capitol in 2014. He reached out to me and asked to have a few people who’ve been there from the beginning come to his office and hold our own signing ceremony.
Former Missouri State Director Keith Carmichael, Veterans Coalition Director Rodney Huckleberry, District Captain Team Member Les Overall and I joined Senator Burlison in his office for our celebration. Senator Burlison signed copies of our resolution and gave a copy to each of us. Chief of Staff Steve Helms captured these special moments on his iPhone. It was a great day.
We reflected afterward on how our team was able to accomplish this – two times! Senator Burlison was visibly moved when I thanked him for his leadership and guidance. “We did a good thing,” he said. There are no better words to describe this accomplishment.
It is so easy to be pessimistic and have a cynical attitude toward government at any level. Lord knows they give each of us plenty of reasons to be frustrated. There are moments when truly good things are achieved. Passage of our resolution is one such occasion. 
This takes a total team effort. It takes an effective strategy. It takes leadership to communicate that strategy to the team and provide each volunteer with the tools they need to succeed. It takes an awesome team of grassroots volunteers to educate and provide “encouragement” to our legislators. It takes support from the legislature’s leadership to assign the resolution to a favorable committee and provide the floor time for a vote. Finally, it takes a statesman who is respected by their peers and will stick to their principles to champion legislation. Senator Burlison and Representative Curtis Trent are two such individuals. We are fortunate to have them on our team.
I attended an event in Christian County last weekend. Senator Burlison and Representative Trent were in attendance. When addressing the attendees to explain their legislative accomplishments, both highlighted their sponsorship of our Convention of States resolution. This is next-level stuff and shows the value of our Convention of States Missouri Team. Thank you to each of you who made this possible.
We have more work to do throughout the state and at the Capitol. Last Wednesday we met at the Capitol for Surge Day. Look for an update on next week's Brett's Blog.
In liberty,
Brett
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