Alex Heuer

Caroline Kennedy and her brother John grew up in a culture of words and reading.  Their mother was particularly fond of poetry dating back to experiences as a child with her Grandfather.  On gift-giving holidays, she requested that her children select and recite a poem rather than purchase a gift, which helped them develop a sense of language and rhyme.

Later this month, on April 27, St. Louis mayor Francis Slay will become the longest-serving mayor in the city’s history.

With more than 81 percent of the vote, Slay won his fourth term as mayor yesterday, besting a candidate from the Green Party, and prior, defeating two primary challengers including Board of Alderman president Lewis Reed.

“I love this city dearly and I really love the people more than anything,” Slay told host Don Marsh.  “I like what I do and I’ve got a good team and I’m looking forward to the next four years.”

When it comes to successfully or unsuccessfully governing and managing communities, leadership decisions can make or break a city or region.

St. Louis has been cited as a city “that let greatness slip away over the 20th century.”  That’s the contention of Colin Gordon, Professor of History at the University of Iowa, in his book, Mapping Decline…St. Louis and the Fate of the American City.

The U.S. Supreme Court, last week, heard arguments on two gay rights cases which may produce landmark rulings. 

The Missouri legislature is considering banning the use of drones by journalists while the University of Missouri Journalism School is teaching students how to use them.

And, Missouri’s contraception exception law is no more – at least for now.

Those and other topics were discussed as part of our monthly legal roundtable.

Our guests: