Illinois representatives wanted a veterans memorial bridge. Missouri representatives wanted a bridge named after Cardinals legend Stan Musial. The compromise would likely seem obvious to anyone outside of a gridlocked Washington: combine the two.
Illinois Representative Rodney Davis (R) sponsored a bill to name the new I-70 bridge the "Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge." The name compromise passed the House Tuesday evening with overwhelming support.
"After some initial hesitation with the Illinois folks, we waited it out to see what the best way for compromise was, and this is it." Davis said. "It's a bipartisan piece of legislation."
The bill has 16 cosponsors, both Republicans and Democrats on both sides of the river. Davis points out that Musial is also a veteran. The baseball Hall of Famer served in the Navy for 15 months.
"(It's) a great opportunity to pass something to talk about the true hero Stan Musial was as a baseball player, and one who served our nation," Davis said.
A myriad of supporters from Missouri and Illinois spoke in favor of the name. Following its passage, the compromise now will go on to the Senate.
Follow Chris McDaniel on Twitter: @csmcdaniel
