Please Note:
We are on the move. Beyond November's political coverage from the St. Louis Beacon, St. Louis Public Radio and the Nine Network can now be found at the Beyond November page at http://stlbeacon.org. Stories that remain on this home page are from the week of March 3, and our archives (found under the various category tabs above) date back to mid-July 2012.
Our daily e-mail updates will pause for a few days, but when they resume you will find them more pleasing to look at and more efficient in getting you to the stories that you want to read, listen to and watch.
Features, Commentary & Podcasts
Politically Speaking: Analyzing the mayor's race and the Lt. Gov.'s lawsuit
Chris McDaniel of St. Louis Public Radio joins St. Louis Beacon political reporters Jo Mannies and Jason Rosenbaum to discuss the St. Louis mayoral primary and Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder's law suit regarding how state records are kept. Listen to the podcast.
The Beacon roundtable also ponders the implications of the mayor's race, plus the revolving door at Saint Louis University's law school. Listen to the podcast.
Don Marsh interviews White House correspondent Ari Shapiro
Shapiro, White House correspondent for National Public Radio, stopped into to discuss gridlock in Washington with Don Marsh, host of St. Louis On The Air.
Sorting facts from rumors in Saint Louis University controversy
Behind the story of Tom Keefe's departure as interim dean at Saint Louis University's law school lies an interesting backstory about the inner workings of academia and journalism.
Read St. Louis Beacon editor Margaret Freivogel's commentary.
Teen's armband protest led to landmark free speech case
A lawsuit involving Mary Beth Tinker's protest against the Vietnam War in 1965 went all the way to the Supreme Court, which ruled in her favor. The University City High School graduate will talk about the impact of the ruling next week in St. Louis.
Read Dale Singer's report at the St. Louis Beacon.
Asked and answered: Five reasons why Slay prevailed in the Democratic mayoral primary
With his victory over St. Louis Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed and former Alderman Jimmie Matthews, St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay is likely to make history by becoming the city's first chief executive to win four four-year terms in office.
Jason Rosenbaum of the St. Louis Beacon explains how he did it.
How Slay won in graphic form
Using a chart and maps, presentation editor Brent Jones of the St. Louis Beacon provides a ward-by-ward breakdown of the vote and turnout in the St. Louis mayoral primary.
With defeat of Troupe, Tyus poised to return to St. Louis Board of Aldermen
Sharon Tyus completed a comeback 10 years in the making when she defeated incumbent Charles "Quincy" Troupe to snag the Democratic nomination for the 1st Ward aldermanic seat in north St. Louis.
Read Jason Rosenbaum's report in the St. Louis Beacon.
A 50 year embargo still influences how Americans thinks about Cuba and themselves
An island nation less than 100 miles from the American mainland wouldn't seem to be much of a threat to U.S. national security, but that assumption changed when the Soviet Union began building missile bases in Cuba.
Read Robert Joiner's retrospective at the St. Louis Beacon.
Hot air online: Kander debuts new website that features legislative debates
Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander unveiled a new website on Tuesday that includes archived audio recordings of Missouri House and Senate debates. "One of my major goals as secretary of state is to make government more transparent and accessible, and this project will go a long way to achieve that,” he said.-
Read Jason Rosenbaum's report in the St. Louis Beacon.
New Arch history delves into the wheeling and dealing behind the building of an icon
Historian Tracy Campbell provides a thorough and often unflattering story of the city politics and private-interest ambitions that played heavily in the Arch’s formative years. Still, Campbell says he can’t help but admire the 630-foot architectural marvel that is recognized by people all over the world. "You could go there right now and just see people quietly standing under it and staring at it and wanting to touch it. And feeling somehow happy that they’re there,’’ Campbell said.
Read Mary Leonard's interview with Campbell in the St. Louis Beacon.
Medicaid expansion and what it means to Missourians
In a special 30-minute broadcast, the Nine Network focused on what Medicaid expansion could mean to Missourians in terms of jobs, taxes and healthcare. It's now available online.
Top Stories
Missouri Senate action on tax cuts spurs optimism and fear
The Missouri Senate will likely give final approval next week to phased-in tax cuts for individuals and businesses. State Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Glendale, says the tax measure will spur economic growth; state Sen. Jamillah Nasheed, D-St., fears it will force sharp cuts in state programs.
Read Jo Mannies' report in the St. Louis Beacon.
Read Marshall Griffin's report at St. Louis Public Radio.
ACLU vows to keep fighting Missouri's prayer amendment
The American Civil Liberties Union says it will keep fighting against Missouri’s new constitutional amendment on prayer after a federal judge dismissed its initial lawsuit.
Read the Associated Press report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Terrorism threat conviction of SIU-E student thrown out
An Illinois appeals court has overturned the conviction of a Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville student charged with planning to threaten a mass shooting at the campus.
Read Rachel Lippmann's report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Missouri legislature considers dueling prescription drug monitoring bills
Two bills that would create a prescription drug monitoring program in Missouri received a hearing Thursday before a State Senate committee. One of the bills, though, is structured in a way that’s designed to block the proposal from ever becoming reality.
Read Marshall Griffin’s report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Keefe says he resigned as SLU law school interim dean to avoid being a lightning rod
Tom Keefe said he had been offered the chance to stay on and work with Michael Wolff, now the law school's new dean, but he wanted to end the controversy over his comments to faculty and students.
Read Dale Singer's report at the St. Louis Beacon.
Earlier: Michael Wolff is named new dean of SLU law school. Wolff is a former chief justice of the Missouri Supreme Court and current professor at the law school.
Read Dale Singer's report at the St. Louis Beacon.
Read Kelsey Proud's report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Congress gets down to nitty gritty on gun violence measures
After nearly three months of debate following the mass shooting of first graders at a Connecticut school, the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday will start the process of determining what legislation is feasible in the effort to deter gun violence.
Read Rob Koenig's report at the St. Louis Beacon.
Earlier: Illinois' two U.S. senators - Republican Mark Kirk (left) and Democrat Dick Durbin - say they and other senators will introduce a bill to crack down on gun trafficking and straw purchasing.
Read the report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Missouri House moving on conceal-carry document measure
Republican leaders in the Missouri House are promising to fast track legislation that would forbid the state from scanning and storing documents of residents who apply for conceal-carry endorsements.
Read Marshall Griffin's report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Quinn proposes $400 million cut in education
In his annual budget address, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn laid the blame on the General Assembly for forcing him to cut spending on schools and other key state priorities. Read the report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Earlier: Despite the state's financial woes, Ill. Gov. Pat Quinn has vetoed a measure that would have given Illinois five new casinos. This is the second time Quinn rejected legislation that would give Chicago, Rockford, Danville and two other locations casinos. It would also have put slot machines at horse race tracks.
Read the report from Maria Altman and Amanda Vinicky at St. Louis Public Radio.
Illinois moves toward approval of medical marijuana
An Illinois House committee has approved a measure that would allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes.
Read the report at St. Louis Public Radio.
National term limit group opposes proposed Missouri ballot measure
The national Virginia-based group, U.S. Term Limits, is opposing a ballot measure proposed for Missouri that would ease the state’s term limit restrictions.
Read Jo Mannies' report in the St. Louis Beacon.
Five candidates seek seats on city's elected board of education
Three incumbents are not seeking re-election to the board that continues to meet even though the real power to run the city schools remains in the hands of the Special Administrative Board. They are on the ballot in the April general election.
Read Dale Singer's report at the St. Louis Beacon.
Mayor Slay wins Democratic primary; now on a glide path to a fourth term
Incumbent Mayor Francis Slay rolled to an easy win Tuesday over challenger Lewis Reed in the St. Louis Democratic primary. Former alderman Jimmie Matthews lagged far behind. Slay will face a Green Party candidate in April, but is expected to roll up an even larger margin in that race.
Read Jo Mannies' report in the St. Louis Beacon.
Read Chris McDaniel's report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Also: 
Sharon Tyus unseated 1st ward Alderman Charles "Quincy" Troupe in the St. Louis Democratic primary Tuesday. Otherwise, every incumbent alderman on the ballot got the nod. Chrstine Ingrassia (right), won a three-way race in the south St. Louis 6th Ward to fill out the term of former Alderwoman Kacie Starr Triplett.
Read Jason Rosenbaum's report at the St. Louis Beacon.
Unemployment edges lower in Missouri
Missouri’s unemployment rate edged lower in January while the state recorded a net loss of 4,700 jobs. Tuesday’s report from the Department of Economic Development says the state’s jobless rate stood at 6.5 percent in January, down one-tenth of a point from December.
Read Julie Bierach’s report at St. Louis Public Radio.
Also: Home prices in St. Louis indicate signs of a recovery.
- Congressional candidates in 8th District ramp up get-out-the-vote efforts, attack ads
- Mo. Lawmaker Who Threatened To Resign Over Bills' Failure To Pass Changes His Mind
- Discussion: What Happened During The 2013 Missouri Legislative Session?
- Mo. Social Services Director Freeman Resigns After 5 Months
- Tax Credits Die Again In Missouri Senate
- In Final Hours Of Session, Big Issues Still Facing Missouri Lawmakers
- On the trail: Onder ponders comeback after hiatus from elective office
