Robert "Bob" Onder Jr. (born January 6, 1962) is an American politician and physician from the state of Missouri. A Republican, he is a member of the Missouri Senate serving the 2nd District, in the St. Charles area. He was elected Assistant Majority Floor Leader in 2015. Onder previously was a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from 2007 to 2008.
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Personal life
Onder attended St. Louis University High School, graduating in 1980. Onder graduated from Washington University School of Medicine, and is a physician specializing in allergy and asthma care. He later graduated from Saint Louis University School of Law. He and his wife Allison have six children; Robert, Elizabeth, Michael, Joseph, Christine, and Peter.
Political campaigns
Onder served a single term in the Missouri House of Representatives from 2007 to 2008, having been elected in 2006.
In 2008, Onder left the state legislature to run for the US House in Missouri's 9th congressional district, where incumbent Kenny Hulshof was not seeking re-election. Onder lost the Republican primary election to Blaine Luetkemeyer.
In 2014, Onder ran for the Missouri Senate in the 2nd district, defeating Chuck Gatschenberger and Vicki Schneider in the Republican primary. No Democrats ran for the seat, so this primary victory was tantamount to election.
State House of Representatives Career
Immigration Reform
In 2008, Onder authored and sponsored HB 1549, a piece of legislation that was described as "some of the strongest legislation in the country to fight illegal immigration" by Missouri Republicans. The bill forbade the creation of sanctuary cities in Missouri, allowed for cancellation of state contracts for contractors if they hired illegal immigrants, and required public agencies to verify the legal status of immigrants before providing welfare benefits. Additionally the bill criminalized the transportation of immigrants for exploitative purposes. The bill passed the State House and Senate with strong support and was signed into law by Matt Blunt.
Abortion
Onder also sponsored legislation that would have strengthened Missouri's informed consent before abortion statute, including requiring abortion clinics to allow women the opportunity to view an ultrasound of the fetus. The bill also would have criminalized coercing a woman to have an abortion through abuse, violence or threats. The bill passed the State House by a vote of 112-33 but died after a filibuster in the State Senate.
State Senate career
Leadership
In his first year in the Senate, Onder was elected to Senate leadership as Assistant Majority Floor Leader. In 2017 he became the Chairman of the General Laws Committee. Additionally, he serves as Vice-Chairman of the Committee on Judiciary and Civil and Criminal Jurisprudence.
Social Issues
In 2016, Onder introduced Senate Joint Resolution 39, a proposed amendment to the Missouri Constitution that would prevent the state from penalizing businesses in the wedding industry that refuse to participate in same-sex weddings. This bill passed the Senate over a Democratic filibuster, but failed to make it out of committee in the House.
Onder was an outspoken supporter of HB 1562, a bill that expanded the crime of sex trafficking to include the advertisement of minors for prostitution or pornography.
Onder is strongly pro-life, he was the original author of legislation that requires annual, unannounced state inspections of abortion clinics; bars clinics from instructing ambulances to silence their sirens or turn their lights off; mandates that pathologists do more tests of fetal tissue; enacts whistleblower protections for employees of abortion clinics; and exempts pregnancy resource centers from a St. Louis ordinance barring discrimination over reproductive choices. Onder's bill received a few significant changes, such as changing the pathologist deadline from 24 hours to five days, and became Senate Bill 5, with a new sponsor in Senator Andrew Koenig. The bill was strengthened and passed by the Missouri House of Representatives, then passed by a vote of 22-9 in the Missouri Senate and signed by Governor Eric Greitens.
Ethics
Onder also advocated for ethics reform, sponsoring and handling legislation that called for a "cooling off period" between when Missouri legislators leave office and when they can become lobbyists. Onder said that public service "is not supposed to be our pathway job into a lucrative lobbying job." Additionally, Onder sponsored a bill that would have banned gifts from lobbyists to legislators in Missouri.
Labor Reform
Onder supported legislation that made Missouri the 28th Right-to-Work state. The bill passed through Onder's General Laws Committee before being sent to the Senate floor.
Onder authored SB 182, a bill that banned union-only project labor agreements in Missouri. The bill was signed into law by Governor Greitens.
Economic Issues
In 2017, Onder was the Senate handler for HB 130, a bill that creates a statewide regulatory framework for transportation networking companies. The bill passed with overwhelming support by a vote of 144-7 in the House and by 30-1 in the Senate. Missouri Governor Eric Greitens signed the bill into law.
Committee Assignments
- General Laws (Chairman)
- Judiciary and Civil and Criminal Jurisprudence (Vice-Chairman)
- Education
- Health and Pensions
- Tax Policy
- Ways and Means
Legislative Awards and Other Honors
Onder has won several awards during his time in the Missouri Senate, including
- 2015 Missouri Academy of Family Physicians Award
- 2015 Missouri Centurion Award
- 2015 Missouri Alliance for Freedom Champion of Freedom Award
- 2015 Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry Freshman of the Year Award
- 2016 American Conservative Union Conservative Excellence Award
- 2016 Missouri Family Policy Council Missouri Family Champion Award
- 2016 Missouri Dental Association Legislative Excellence Award
- 2017 Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys Legislative Champion Award
Electoral History
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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