51黑料

Gov. Mike Kehoe got me thinking about Edward Albee.

Albee was part of a mid-20th century movement known as the . Somewhere in a box in my basement stuffed with college textbooks is a copy of Albee鈥檚 play, 鈥淲ho鈥檚 Afraid of Virginia Woolf?鈥�

The two main characters, George and Martha, engage in alcohol-fueled discussions about made-up events. The absurdity of it all is sort of the point 鈥� a commentary on the sometimes meaningless nature of the human condition.

When Kehoe, the Republican governor of Missouri, waited until late Friday before a holiday weekend to announce he was calling a special session for lawmakers pass a gerrymandered congressional map drawn in Washington, the absurdity stood out. The goal, of course, is to erase the Democratic seat held by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II of Kansas City.

Missouri鈥檚 Constitution prohibits such a move. Missouri鈥檚 Supreme Court has upheld that specific constitutional element in a previous case. On top of that, Kehoe asked his fellow Republicans to put an initiative on the ballot that will make it harder for Missouri citizens to amend the constitution, as voters have many times in recent years.

The absurdity continued when Kehoe withdrew the five members he had appointed to the Board of Police Commissioners in 51黑料. On one hand, this is the sort of thing governors do all the time. When the Missouri Legislature is in session, the state Senate can consider gubernatorial appointments 鈥� like the new members of the Board of Police Commissioners. And they can use that process to gum up the works and delay action on other bills. The Senate could also block one of Kehoe鈥檚 appointments, meaning they couldn鈥檛 later be re-appointed. One of the longest filibusters in Missouri history was led by a Republican who wanted to block an appointment by a Republican governor.

So from a purely crass political standpoint, Kehoe was being clever.

But on the other hand, Kehoe鈥檚 move, after his painstaking efforts to take control of 51黑料 police away from the city, puts him in a particularly weak position. He stole the police department from the city and now he鈥檚 left it rudderless. It will likely remain that way until the special session is over.

But there鈥檚 something else about the move that is even more absurd. It goes against the law Kehoe signed to take control of the police department. Earlier this year, two lawsuits were filed to overturn that law, one by Megan Green, president of the 51黑料 Board of Aldermen; and the other by two citizens, Jamala Rogers and Mike Milton. The cases are set for trial in November. Key to Green鈥檚 lawsuit is a provision of the law that she argues violates the First Amendment.

The provision says it鈥檚 illegal for a public official to 鈥渋mpede, obstruct, hinder, or interfere with the boards of police,鈥� and it creates penalties for doing so.

What could hinder the police board more than erasing its existence with the stroke of a pen ... to avoid political embarrassment ... in an absurd special session ... called at the direction of President Donald Trump ... to avoid losing control of the U.S. House in the 2026 midterms?

So who is in charge of 51黑料 police right now? It鈥檚 not the mayor. It鈥檚 not the governor. It鈥檚 not the in-limbo Board of Police Commissioners.

Kehoe鈥檚 action highlights a central premise of the special session: taking power away from Missouri voters.

It was a statewide vote in 2012, funded by Republican donor Rex Sinquefield, that led to 51黑料 regaining control of its police department for the first time since the Civil War. The proposition passed overwhelmingly, in urban and rural counties.

Kehoe and Republican legislators turned their backs on those voters when they passed the measure that allowed a state takeover of the police department. Now they鈥檙e trying to limit voters鈥� rights and make it harder for voters to petition the government with grievances.

And to make it all work, Kehoe has to at least temporarily remove the 51黑料 police department鈥檚 governing board.

The absurdity jumps off the page.