Post-Dispatch: Choice of Ron Richard for Senate post seen as attempt to stave off Tilley influence

The choice of Sen. Ron Richard, R-Joplin, as majority floor leader, was made to prevent former Speaker of the House Steve Tilley from establishing a power base in the Senate, according to an article by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Virginia Young:

But back to Richard, the new Senate majority leader. His main issue since first being elected to the House in 2002 has been jobs. So getting the thorny tax credit issue unstuck is likely to be his priority. In fact, Richard has been making calls around the state for several months, seeking consensus on the issue.He – and the new Senate president pro tem,  Tom Dempsey, R-St. Charles – are widely viewed as leaders who can help end the  Republicans' internal warfare.Richard, 65, is known for being accessible and unpretentious. He and his family are in the bowling alley business. He spent part of his childhood in the St. Louis area - in O'Fallon, Mo., and Woodson Terrace. His father worked for Falstaff in St. Louis and helped establish the brewery's Professional Bowlers Tour.“The goal of the (Senate Republican) Caucus is to be productive, and we just felt that people have tremendous confidence in Ron,” said Sen. John Lamping, R-Ladue. “They don’t think he can be influenced, he’s open to everybody’s ideas and they trust him, inherently. And he’s for the team, and the team has to do better.”