Two north Jefferson County men who have a long – and intertwined – political history are facing off for the 22nd District seat in the Missouri Senate.
Democrat Jeff Roorda, the current 113th District state representative, and Republican Paul Wieland, the current 112th District state representative, are competing for the state Senate seat formerly held by Ryan McKenna.
McKenna, who was term-limited and could not run for re-election, resigned as state senator in December 2013 to become the director of the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations. The senator’s seat has been vacant since then.
The 22nd District race has become the highest-profile contest in this election season, with each candidate tallying about $750,000 in campaign funds, much of that infused from their respective political parties.
In 2010, Wieland defeated Roorda for a state House seat. Then, with redistricting after the 2010 Census, both men were elected in 2012, in neighboring House districts.
The 22nd district includes central and northern Jefferson County. A state Senate term is four years and salary is $35,915 per year, a weekly allowance for miles traveled going to and returning from meetings and expenses for each day the General Assembly is in session.
Roorda, 49, lives at 6797 Haven Hill, Barnhart. He and his wife, Nancy, have three daughters. He is the business manager for the St. Louis Police Officers Association. A 17-year veteran of law enforcement, he has worked with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, Arnold Police Department, Kimmswick Police Department and the Missouri Office of Homeland Security. He holds an associate degree from Jefferson College, a bachelor’s degree from Missouri Baptist University and a master’s degree from the University of Missouri in St. Louis.
He served as a state representative from 2005 through 2010 and was elected in 2012 to represent the 113th District. He served on the Rock Township Ambulance District Board of Directors from 2000 to 2004 and on the Antonia Fire District Board of Directors from 2002 to 2004. He was a volunteer firefighter with the Antonia Fire District from 1983 to 1993 and has volunteered with numerous civic, social and community organizations.
Wieland, 51, lives at 1015 Castlemain Drive, Imperial. He and his wife, Terri, have three daughters. He was educated at St. Joseph School in Kimmswick, then St. Pius X High School in Crystal City. He attended Benedictine College, the University of Missouri in St. Louis and the University of Missouri in Columbia. From 1995 to 1998 he owned Benderman automotive shop equipment sales and services. From 1997 to 2002 he was territory manager for the National Federation of Independent Business. In 2003 he founded the Jefferson County Hometown Edition, serving until 2005 as its editor and publisher, and in 2004 founded the Jefferson County Business Journal. He now is a self-employed insurance agent/broker with the Wieland Insurance Group LLC, an independent insurance agency he founded in 2007.
He served as the state representative for the 101st District from 1995 to 1996 and the 102nd District from 2011 to 2012, the was elected as the 112th representative in 2012; on the Jefferson County Health Department Board of Trustees from 2003 to 2010 (chairman from 2005 to 2010); on the University of Missouri Extension Council from 1998 to 2002 and from 2004 to 2008 (chairman in 2007); on the Mastodon Arts & Sciences Regional Fair Advisory Board from 2004 to 2008; and on the St. Joseph School Board from 2006 to 2008 (president in 2007-2008). He has served on the Jefferson County Health and Safety Foundation Board since 2008; the St. Pius X Advisory Board since 2008; and the Jefferson County Community Partnership Board since 2011. He has been a fourth-degree member of the Knight of Columbus since 1995 and is a current member of the Twin City Rotary Club.
What role, if any, should the General Assembly take to regulate abortion?
Roorda: I am pro-life but I believe, like the vast majority of Missourians, there should be exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. My opponent believes, like Todd Akin, that there should be no exceptions and he opposes access to basic forms of contraception calling them and the women who use them “intrinsically evil” and “immoral.”
Wieland: The Legislature has a responsibility to both the woman facing a crisis pregnancy and to the innocent child. That is why I supported both an expansion of tax credits for pregnancy care centers and HB1307, which required a 72-hour waiting period before an abortion could be performed. By providing more support and options for those facing a crisis pregnancy, we can make having the abortion the least attractive option, and ultimately more rare.
Give some examples of when you have split with your party's position on issues.
Roorda: I believe that Jefferson City is starting to look more and more like Washington, D.C. That’s a bad thing. Both parties have been taken over by the far ends of the political spectrum. Sometimes, I feel like I’m the last moderate left in Jefferson City. I have frequently split from my party and have voted repeatedly to override my governor’s veto when we disagreed. My opponent has marched lock-step with the radical leadership of his party on tax increases on seniors, attacks on our public schools, anti-worker legislation, anti-hunter legislation and unbalanced state budgets. In the same day he voted to make deep cuts in the circuit breaker tax credit that keeps so many seniors living in their homes, he voted to spend $88 million of our taxes to renovate his office and state buildings. Those aren’t Jefferson County values and that’s not what voters will see from me.
Wieland: I believe my record shows I am more in line with a conservative philosophy than with any party position. In fact, with the record number of Republican legislators in the Missouri House, our caucus has a wide diversity of opinions and I don’t see a “party position” on most issues. I have never been threatened or coerced into voting for any issue that I did not see fitting my conservative philosophy or benefiting the citizens I represent. No one on our side of the aisle has ever been “kicked out” of our caucus; that usually happens on the Democrat side which seems more concerned with “party position.” I am in the minority of Republicans when it comes to the most drastic labor issues like “Right to Work” and will continue to be a leading Republican voice opposing that policy.
Under what circumstances would you support an increase in Missouri's gasoline tax?
Roorda: I can’t imagine ever supporting an increase in the state gas tax. With increasing fuel economy, bio-diesel, ethanol and electric cars, increasing the tax on gasoline doesn’t make any sense. Both my opponent and I supported putting the transportation sales tax on the ballot for voters to consider, but when it failed, I rolled up my sleeves and started working with a bipartisan group of transportation leaders to try to find other sources of funding in the state budget to keep matching federal funds coming to our state. That’s the difference between my opponent and me: I work across the aisle to get things done; he waits for others to take the lead.
Wieland: I would never support a gas tax unless it was brought up to the people to vote on.
What is the largest problem that needs to be fixed in Missouri's educational system and what action(s) should the Legislature take to correct it?
Roorda: We need to start supporting the great classroom teachers we have here in Jefferson County instead of constantly getting in the way of them teaching our kids. This is one of the key differences between my opponent and me. I support public education; he attacks it. I support full funding of the foundation formula; keeping the most experienced, high performing, tenured teachers in our classrooms; and protecting our tax dollars from radical school voucher schemes. My opponent opposes all of those things. If you want our public schools to stay great, there is a clear choice in this election – which is why I’ve been endorsed in this election by every major teacher, school board and school administrator organization.
Wieland: We must stop President Obama and the Washington, D.C., bureaucrats from taking over our public schools with their “Common Core” scheme. Unlike my opponent, I’ve fought this liberal takeover attempt at every step and will continue to do so. We need a new approach that values local control and puts dollars directly into classrooms. We need teachers, administrators and parents brave enough to take a stand and break the tired old model that the bureaucrats defend on a daily basis in Washington, D.C., and in Jefferson City. We need more legislators willing to stand up to the special interest groups more concerned with lining their pockets with taxpayer dollars and protecting a broken system than educating our children.
What changes, if any, do you support in Missouri's campaign finance laws?
Roorda: I have co-sponsored legislation to place low caps on campaign contributions and to limit lobbyist gifts. Missouri is the only state in the country with unlimited campaign contributions and unlimited lobbyist gifts. I oppose that; my opponent supports that. My opponent has accepted six campaign contributions of $15,000 or more this year, including two checks funneled from wealthy special-interest groups for $150,000 each. Do voters really think my opponent will be serving their interest over his six-figure donors?
I also believe in strengthening our state ethics laws. Meanwhile, my opponent has received two ethics complaints: one for using campaign funds to repair a personal vehicle and another for not reporting tens of thousands of dollars in free legal services. Again, these are not Jefferson County values and they are certainly not my values.
Wieland: While my opponent will bring forward false attacks that have been thoroughly rejected and discredited by the Missouri Ethics Commission, I support common-sense ethics reforms that make campaign contributions as transparent as possible and end the practice of unlimited lobbyist gifts to legislators. We need to stop the “revolving door” of legislators that immediately leave office and “cash in” as a lobbyist. It should be illegal for a state representative to be a paid political consultant. And, finally, elected politicians should not be paid to lobby while serving in the Legislature. My opponent has done every one of these. That is why I am fighting to change the culture in Jefferson City from a system of corruption to one that favors the tax-paying citizens and business owners.
Why are you a better choice than your opponent?
Roorda: I’ve spent my entire adult life serving our community: as a volunteer firefighter at 18 years old, as a 911 dispatcher, a police officer, an undercover narcotics detective and, ultimately, as a police chief. I see my time in the Missouri Legislature as a natural continuation of that public service.
I have worked on common-sense solutions to keep our neighborhoods safe, our schools great, our economy recovering and our seniors able to retire with dignity. That’s why I’m endorsed by common-sense leaders like former state Senators Bill and Ryan McKenna and Sheriff Glenn Boyer. My opponent is a nice guy right up until the time you look at his voting record. I believe he knows down deep that the radical agenda he has supported is wrong. That’s not what you’ll get from me. I believe you stand up and do the right thing irrespective of partisan affiliation or political pressure.
Wieland: I’m a Jefferson County native. I live, work, raise my family, and attend church here. I know I best represent the conservative values of Jefferson County residents. My record of supporting gun rights, promoting public safety, and protecting freedoms earned me an “A” rating from the NRA; my opponent received a “C.” My efforts to protect life make me the only candidate in this race endorsed by Missouri Right to Life. My votes are based on my convictions of what’s right and wrong, unlike my opponent, whose votes and flip-flops are based on political calculations. I show up to make tough votes, unlike my opponent who decides not to work when the going gets tough. I have a good working relationship and get along well with other elected officials because I’ve earned their trust by doing what I say. Nobody will work harder to bring economic opportunities to Jefferson County.