Wisdom Wednesday: Why We Are Stepping Up to Restore Platte County

When I decided to run for office alongside several other non-politicians this year, I knew our county government was suffering from a lack of focus. I expected to find some bureaucratic inefficiencies and perhaps a few foolish ploys.

I did not expect to uncover what looks like an intentional agenda to keep the public in the dark.

Take a look at what is happening right now in our courthouse, backed by official testimony and citizen correspondence:

Operational Obstruction & Manufactured Red Tape

At a recent Commission meeting, Laura Walden (candidate for Platte County Auditor) testified about the baffling hurdles she faced just trying to appeal her property value and file her candidate paperwork.

• The hurdles: The Clerk's office forced her to fill out unnecessary "Agent Authorization" forms, refused to accept them via email or fax, and actively resisted providing a "Received" stamp until she forced the issue.

• The confusion: When she tried to file her legally required Personal Financial Disclosure (PFD), staff falsely claimed they "don't handle those"—forcing a candidate to educate the office on basic election laws.

• The double standard: A few weeks later, my own candidacy for Clerk was put in jeopardy for not filing a PFD with the County Clerk—solely due to conflicting instructions from the Platte County Board of Elections. So, did the Clerk’s office arbitrarily change their policy in a matter of weeks? What happened to following the statutes and the law?

• The political theater: Amidst this chaos, four incumbents revealed their true colors by abandoning their Republican primaries to attempt to qualify as Independents in the general election. I'll let you make your own observations on what that kind of maneuvering means.

• The Bottom Line: The Clerk’s office budget has increased over 100% in the last four years. We are spending record amounts of tax dollars, yet taxpayers are being forced to jump through more hoops just to get basic competency.

"Opacity at its Finest": Hiding the Calendar

It gets worse.

Just this week, the link to the County Commission Calendar and session items has suddenly been access-restricted from public view.

Despite multiple notices over the months, the county continues to lock down public data. The Clerk has been put on notice that this is unacceptable and is either intentional or shows incompetence.  I do not understand working so hard to resist transparency.

Connecting the Dots: Follow the Money, Follow the Power

This isn't just coincidental bumbling. This is a cultural crisis driven by a specific agenda.

Look at the math: We have a block of six out of ten elected officials who quietly voted to hand themselves a 30% pay raise, prioritizing their own pockets over the taxpayers. At the same time, we are seeing sustained efforts from private economic development insiders to quietly steer Platte County government toward a high-tax, special-interest agenda.

When a government wants to raise your taxes and shift its culture away from traditional accountability, the first thing they do is kill transparency. They stonewall Sunshine requests, they make filing paperwork a nightmare, and they lock the public calendar.

The Fix: It’s Time for an Independent Audit

Government should work like a clean, well-engineered machine. When a machine breaks down or starts drawing power to places it shouldn't, you run a diagnostic.

I am fully joining the call for a comprehensive, independent process audit of these departments. We need to find out exactly where our inflated tax dollars are going, dismantle this manufactured red tape, and throw the doors open to absolute transparency.

We don't need career politicians protecting a closed loop. We need independent, common-sense leadership ready to restore a culture of service, openness, and fiscal sanity to Platte County.

What do you think? Is it time to clear out the roadblock and bring real transparency back to the courthouse? Let me know below.