Kansas City, Mo. (June 24, 2019) – According to news reports, un-elected Governor Mike Parson has handed off the powers vested in the Governor to his un-elected, appointed Lieutenant Governor, Mike Kehoe, for the duration of an extended vacation.

Parson travelled to Europe in his official capacity, but is extending the trip to take two-weeks off from being Governor, as flood waters continue to ravage Missouri, and as women grapple with his administration’s cruel position on their constitutional right to choose.

The costs associated with the Governor’s travel to Europe were shared by the taxpayers and the non-profit Hawthorn Foundation, which a state audit last year blasted for not having appropriate accountability of expenditures of significant public dollars.

“The majority of Missouri workers don’t earn two-weeks of paid vacation after just one year on the job and taxpayer paid air travel to their destination,” said Missouri Democratic Party Executive Director, Lauren Gepford. “Leaving the country for several weeks as flood waters continue to damage property and lives is an insult to hard-working Missourians everywhere.”

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