The Student Court of the Missouri Students Association found presidential slate Greg Loeffler and Lauren Damico guilty of committing a minor infraction.
The infraction was for posting campaign materials in the Arts and Science building on bulletin strips above chalkboards in classrooms.
The Board of Elections Commissioners originally issued the slate with a major infraction for that reason.
There was no smuggling of money, no paying off lobbyists, no sabotage.
They misplaced some posters. Stop the presses!
Just kidding.
Frankly, the very fact that the BEC even submitted this issue as a major infraction is preposterous and dramatic. They misplaced posters. This is not MU’s version of Watergate. This was a minor infraction, no questions asked. The Student Court did its job by correcting the situation and ruling Loeffler/Damico’s infraction as a minor infraction.
Plus, posting campaign materials at this location is against the rules in the M-book, not the BEC Handbook. These two sets of regulations need to be consistent. No rules were broken in the BEC Handbook to actually create a serious or “major” infraction, and it’s the BEC’s job to uphold its Handbook. If this is a serious issue to the BEC, it should make its regulations consistent with the M-book.
Not to mention, this happened four days before the election. Is this “Mean Girls” or is this a supposedly mature student government system? If the student body is supposed to take MSA and their groups, like the BEC, seriously, it would be best for the student government to tackle the big issues these candidates are debating: gender-neutral housing, diversity issues, transportation problems, etc.
Yet, they’re pissed about some posters. How are students supposed to have a deep faith in their student government if these are their priorities? Take some advice from an effective politician. Not Regina George.
Is following the rules important? Of course. These organizations, especially MU’s student government, need to have regulations and handbooks. But they should be consistent and also legitimate. Let’s worry about issues that affect this student body and not poster placement.
