Gavel Grab — the blog run by the George Soros outfit created to oppose changes to the Missouri Plan — has taken aim at the latest reform bill filed by Representative Juanita Head Walton, Minority Whip Connie Johnson and several other legislators from the St. Louis area. The best criticism “Jesse Rutledge” can come up with is that the proposal is “strange.”

Someone needs to let Mr. Rutledge know that Walton’s husband (atttorney Elbert Walton – pictured above) has been around the block with the Missouri Plan. In fact, he probably knew about the Missouri Plan before Mr. Rutledge was even born, unless Mr. Rutledge is a very old blogger. Some may remember that Mr. Walton filed a major Civil Rights lawsuit in the early 1990s alleging the Missouri Plan violated the Voting Rights Act. As Mr. Walton would explain to Mr. Rutledge — if Mr. Rutledge were to treat him with dignity and not refer to him and his wife as “strange” — the Missouri Plan’s application has been especially bad for minority interests, leaving African-Americans entirely out of the nominating Commission established by the Missouri Plan.Someone disprove this fact: NOT A SINGLE African-American has ever been elected or appointed to a Bar slot on the Appellate Judicial Commission — the Commission that nominates judges to the Supreme and appellate courts. Sure, Ronnie White was on the Commission, but only in his capacity as Chief Justice, which lasted two years and did not prove terribly fruitful in terms of opening the process up beyond the good-ol-boy club of attorneys that already controlled it.

But no one should be surprised that Rutledge’s blog is ignorant to these facts or that it refers to the House Minority Whip as “strange.” His outfit is a Soros-funded, out-of-state hatchet machine that wouldn’t know Mel Carnahan from Bob Holden.

The number of reasons to change the Missouri Plan is increasing by the day. Legislators from both parties are tired of the anti-reform schtick that Missouri Plan is “perfect” and beyond improvement.

This is not “God’s Plan.” It is the “Missouri Plan.” And it is not perfect. If a group of Missourians could improve the way judges are picked in 1940 — before the right to vote was secured for these so-called “strange” folks like Rep. Walton and Rep. Johnson — then surely a group of Missourians can do it again in 2008.

I have been skeptical of some of the attacks aimed at the judiciary. But the way the opponents of Missouri Plan reform are acting I must conclude that they share a few things in common:

1. Strong affection for the good-ol-boy network the current Missouri Plan perpetuates.

2. The inability to consider any ideas for improvement that weren’t fully vetted by the good-ol-boy network.

Related:

MRP: Nixon Uses Sunshine Law to Attack African Americans, Ignores Democrat’s Concerns

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