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Posted 09/26/2014: 

My thoughts on the veto session are coming a bit late-- the session being held more than two weeks ago-- but here they are anyways.

During the time I spent covering the Missouri  House in Spring 2013, it never occurred to me to wonder what was the point of floor debate. I had my assumptions and thought they were right: that lawmakers wanted to change their colleagues' minds or make a point in a public forum, acting as a voice for constituents.

But during the 2014 veto session, I began to wonder how easy it really is to change a lawmaker's mind on the floor. Is all floor debate just puff and pandering? Do any lawmakers come to the floor looking to be persuaded in either direction?

As a reporter, it's a question that probably can only be answered with time. If I've learned anything from my class on Congressional politics, it's that the inner-workings of legislatures, be they national or state, are hopelessly complex.