Ben Stein’s Visit with the Missouri Legislature
An Exclusive Up-close and Personal View
By
Lucy LePage
Ben Stein, well known for his role in the movie
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and host
of the game shows America’s Most Smartest
Model and Win Ben Stein’s Money
-- not to mention being an honors graduate of Columbia University in economics,
a valedictorian graduate of Yale Law School, a former speech writer for Presidents
Nixon and Ford, an author, columnist, commentator, pro-life advocate and being
highly respected for his intellectual prowess and comical outlook on a wide
variety of subjects -- visited the Missouri State Capitol on April 2nd and
3rd to show his documentary film Expelled:
No Intelligence Allowed to our state legislators. For me it was Lucy LePage’s Day Off (of regular
Legislative Assistant duties) and being unbelievably blessed with the opportunity
to spend two day’s with this incredible man.
My name is Lucy LePage, Legislative Assistant
for State Representative Jane Cunningham. I was asked by the publisher of the St. Louis
MetroVoice, Jim Day, to share my experience 
of
the two days I spent with Ben Stein. After
thoughtful consideration I decided that sharing my extraordinary two-day experience
would probably be appreciated.
The Beginning
It began for me with a telephone call from
Walt Ruloff, the CEO and Executive Producer of Ben Stein’s new movie Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. On March 26th, Mr. Ruloff called to arrange a
trip to Missouri for Ben Stein to promote his new movie that happens to relate
to three important pieces of legislation under consideration in the Missouri
House and Senate. Ben’s schedule allowed
for a visit on April 2nd and 3rd which gave me just a week to put it all
together.
I immediately started to coordinate details
with House Communications Director Barry Bennett, while Representative
Cunningham went to work on getting House and Senate leadership involved to
coordinate scheduling. The teamwork in the Capitol was and is impressive. I would like to personally thank Barry Bennett,
interns Enola White, Andy Cardin, Kevin Kloth, and Stephen Bell and my
wonderful friend Rita Clarkson (Legislative Assistant to Representative Brian
Nieves) who all assisted with the many last minute unexpected details. I have to admit that coordination of both
legislative bodies in all the work that legislators needed to do was very
challenging, but leadership recognized Ben’s visit as a unique and special
opportunity and helped make it possible.
The movie was scheduled to be shown at 5:30
p.m. on Wednesday, April 2nd while the legislators broke for dinner. The
Governor and his wife would be attending.
A time was set for Ben to meet House and Senate members and a press
conference was scheduled for Thursday morning. Things came together and Mr. Stein
and his crew were scheduled to fly in from Toronto with about an hour to spare.
With fingers crossed that the weather would cooperate and production equipment
would work, the agenda was set.
Wednesday morning and afternoon were spent
finalizing minor details, putting together press packets, making reserved
seating assignments, hanging posters and oh, making sure my boss had everything
she needed for floor debate for four bills on the House calendar. Whew.
I fielded requests from just about everyone wanting an opportunity to
meet the movie star, reassuring everyone that I would do what I could but had a
very strict agenda that needed to be followed.
At 5:22 p.m. I got a call from Mr. Ruloff informing
me that they were about three minutes out and would be landing soon. I became a wee bit nervous because that meant
they would be arriving a little later than anticipated with only five minutes until
show time. Barry Bennett (House
Communications Director), Stephen Bell (intern) and I headed to the Capitol garage. Barry was ready to take the rest of the
equipment and movie to the rotunda for final set up while I escorted Mr. Stein
to the Governor’s Office for a quick introduction.
We met Ben and Walt in the parking garage
under the Capitol, a quick introduction and a very warm greeting and we were
off. Ben and Walt both took the time to
extend their hands to Barry and me thanking us for inviting them to our
Capitol. I took Ben’s briefcase, Stephen
offered to take his coat and Ben thanked him, asking him, “Where are you
from?” This question was asked of just
about everyone Ben met followed by “What do you want to do with yourself?”
Meeting the Governor
Ben was fascinated with our building. As we walked into the Governor’s office, I’m
not sure whether his astonishment for the architecture or the age of our
Governor was more prominent.
The Governor and Ben and a small crowd of
staff and security personnel stood in the amazing office. I nervously listened to the conversation and
knew I had a delayed time table as it was close to six now and we were a half
hour late. I apologetically interrupted
their conversation and let them know we had to move on. Me, a mere public servant, interrupting
conversation between our Governor and a movie star…the first of many surreal
moments that I would encounter in the next 48 hours. A few pictures with the Governor and staff and
we were out the door.
Show Time
The closest thing I’ll ever get to modeling
on a runway was the approach we took to the first floor rotunda where the movie
was shown. The Governor, Ben Stein, a
few others and ME, heading down the grand staircase to a room full of
legislators and fans in grand style. Whew!
Representative Cunningham introduced Governor
Blunt who in turn welcomed Ben Stein. A
few minutes of Ben introducing his new movie and it was show time. A crowded audience in 
the
first floor rotunda landed several legislators who pulled chairs up around
the 2nd floor rotunda to catch a bird’s eye view of the movie.
Seated with Ben were Governor and Mrs. Blunt, Representative Cunningham,
Emily Brooker, Representative Wayne Cooper MD, along with his wife Christine,
and Carolyn and Dr. John Marshall, a professor at the University of Missouri,
Columbia. I took my seat on the opposite side of the aisle
and sat back to enjoy the movie.
About an hour into the movie Ben got up and
walked up the grand stair case to talk to Walt who was watching from above. I didn’t want to intrude but followed in order
to be a good hostess. I asked if he
wanted to grab a sandwich or bottled water and he graciously accepted. We headed to the office and he got half of a
sandwich. I was impressed with his
willingness to reach out, shake hands and introduce himself to just about
every passerby, every time engaging in genuine conversation and interest.
When the movie ended Mr. Stein addressed the
crowd and fielded several questions and received a lot of compliments. Two students stood up and passionately thanked
him for making the movie because it illustrated just how real the problem is. He emphasized that the movie was not about
advocating one belief over another but advocated the right to believe and the
academic freedom to speak or inquire without fear of retribution.
I disagree with anyone who says that Ben
Stein’s movie promotes Intelligent Design because the movie and Ben are promoting
our right to free inquiry, free thought and free speech, without fear of
repercussions, not one idea over another.
I think everyone should see the movie in order to rule out any
misconception.
After a reasonable amount of time spent
meeting and greeting fans, engaging in genuine conversation, photographs and autographs,
we headed back to the office. It was
nearly 8 p.m. and we were all hungry. The
legislature was still convened and they stayed in session until after 1 a.m.
Legislation & Background
Before I finish describing my time with Ben,
I need to talk about the legislation that Ben’s movie, coincidently, happens to
support. This will help clarify some of the events that transpired during the
last half of my encounter with Mr. Stein.
Representative Jane Cunningham’s HB1315 and
Senator Chuck Purgason’s companion bill in the Senate, SB983, are entitled the Emily Brooker Higher Education Sunshine Act. I’ve worked with Emily Brooker on this
legislation for over a year now and I have to say she is an amazing young lady,
with the heart that I think the good Lord intended all of us to inherit.
Emily was a student in the Missouri State
University’s (MSU) School of Social Work and disagreed with the view points of
several of her professors. I’ve seen the
documentation from Emily and MSU and it clearly demonstrated that her First
Amendment rights were seriously violated.
She was told by her instructor that as part of an assignment she had to
write a letter to the Missouri Legislature advocating support for homosexual
adoption - something she did not agree with, something which was against her
beliefs, and something which she did not feel comfortable promoting. The
assignment was clearly a political agenda of her instructor’s and he wanted her
to advocate it to the Legislature…on MSU letterhead.
Emily offered to write a letter advocating
her own position or support for a subject that didn’t compromise her beliefs. The instructor refused, then proceeded to lower
her grade, and ultimately filed a Level 3 Grievance against her, which put her
at risk of not graduating. As a result
of the grievance, Emily was then grilled like a prisoner of war – without any
representation in her defense - by a panel of Social Work faculty members (their
so-called Ethics Committee). At the end
of their interrogation the panel demanded that she had to do several things
including signing a contract that, in a nutshell, stated she would alter her
religious beliefs to meet the standards of the Social Work Program and provide
them with weekly reports on how she was conforming to social work
standards. It was painfully clear to
Emily that if she did not sign the contract she would not be allowed to
graduate. Emily signed the contract and did the extra work.
Emily graduated in May, 2006 and filed a federal
discrimination lawsuit in October 2006.
Two short weeks after her suit was filed MSU validated her complaint and
settled out of court. In response to the
news of the lawsuit, Representative Cunningham contacted Emily, listened to her
story and was appalled by the way she had been treated. As a result, the Emily Brooker bill was
filed.
I’m amazed at many things that go on in our
state capitol but I, like Ben Stein, don’t understand the opposition to this
bill. It in no way prevents academic
freedom. On the contrary, it 
advocates
this freedom for all, students and professors alike. The bill requires public institutions of higher
education to have an intellectual diversity policy (it gives suggestions to
what that might include, but leaves it to each institution to set their own
policy). It also requires the institution
to have the policy available on their website, including how the student or
faculty member can file a grievance and a bi-annual report to the General
Assembly on what the institution is doing to promote the free exchange of
ideas. Just like Ben Stein’s movie, this bill doesn’t
advocate or mandate what topics are allowed; it promotes the right to academic
freedom for students and professors.
Clearly bringing attention to the problem,
the legislation last year prompted many universities to create a policy. I’ve heard comments recently, “Colleges and
universities have created policies since the bill was first introduced so these
bills aren’t necessary.” Discrimination
lawsuits filed against MSU showed up again in January of this year verifying
the continued need for a solution. During testimony on the Emily Brooker Bill,
it was reported that a research study at the University of Missouri, Columbia
and Missouri State University indicated that 51% of the students believe they
have to agree with their professors in order to get a good grade...emphasizing
the problem Emily had is widespread and ongoing.
HB2554 was filed on April 1st by Representative
Wayne Cooper, MD patterned after similar bills in Louisiana and Florida that allow
for critical analysis of Darwinism and the right to discuss any analysis
without penalty or retribution. After a
screening of Ben’s new movie, Florida’s bill passed out of Committee and is on
its way to becoming law. Florida is the
only other legislative body thus far that has had the opportunity for a private
screening of Expelled.
What I found particularly interesting that
relates to both the Emily Brooker Bill and Representative Cooper’s bill was testimony
given earlier this session on the Emily Bill.
Dr. John Marshall, a medical doctor and medical science professor at the
University of Missouri, Columbia who is tenured, testified that he had come to
the conclusion that Intelligent Design better explained the origins of the
universe than evolution and deserved being discussed. His testimony included that if he had not
already been tenured, vocalization of his new conclusion would have prevented
him from ever being tenured. In
testimony given by Frank Schmidt, a science professor at MU who testified
against the Emily Bill, when questioned whether MU would hire someone who
believed in an alternative theory to evolution, Schmidt emphatically replied
that MU would not even consider hiring someone who believed in an alternative. I also discovered that when Dr. Marshall had
given a talk at MU last Spring, Frank Schmidt harassed him during the talk and
got up and walked out in a huff only to return a while later to continue
ranting, raving, and being disruptive. In
my mind, Schmidt’s testimony and behavior are prime examples of the need for
both Representative Cunningham’s and Representative Cooper’s bills. I also
think he would have made a great addition to Ben’s movie among those who were
intolerant of any theory other than evolution.
Ben’s movie encourages us all to take
action. Anyone interested in protecting his
or her right to free speech, their child’s right, or their instructor’s right
to this freedom should get involved and encourage their legislator to support
these pieces of legislation.
Dinner with Ben
Now, back to my time with Ben. After a very
busy evening the hunger pains set in and Emily and I were invited to go to
dinner with Ben and the producers.
It was a private room in a quiet restaurant and
there I sat with Ben Stein a movie star, Logan Craft the Chairman and Executive
Producer of Expelled, Walt Ruloff the
CEO and Executive Producer of Expelled,
Ralph Manning the Chief Financial Officer of Premise Media Corporation, Bruce
Fogerty and his son Austin who were traveling with the producers, Emily Brooker
whose First Amendment rights had been trampled upon, Kit Crancer Jane
Cunningham’s Senate Campaign Manager, two lobbyists, Kerry and Abram Messer
with Missouri Family Network, and Marshall Griffin a reporter with KWMU.
Ben, Logan, Walt and Ralph were delighted
with the evening. They told me that they
felt the premier was better attended than the event in Florida, recognizing how
hard it was to get legislators to attend while working during session. Ben reiterated how impressed he was with the
warm reception he received from everyone.
That same warmth was felt by me and everyone else at the table during
our dinner and conversation with Ben.
After a few appetizers and intimate
conversation, I learned that sitting around the table were people of different
faiths; Catholic, Presbyterian, Jewish and Baptist. When our main course arrived we all bowed our
heads and gave thanks to God, there was no fear or retribution, no
discrimination of religious beliefs, just 12 different individuals giving
thanks and praise to God. It was a
beautiful thing to do with 11 people who the day before were total strangers to
me and now I was praying with them and will forever call each and every one of
them a friend.
Emily definitely had the ear of Ben, Logan, Walt and Ralph. She graciously shared her story and they
justifiably praised and thanked Emily for her bravery. Apologetic for her treatment, Ben Stein
emphasized that the movie was made to make everyone aware that we need
protection for our rights to academic freedom. Who knows, the sequel to Expelled:
No Intelligence Allowed might be something to the effect of “Academic
Suppression: Student Intelligence Denied” (the student’s side).
We all had an opportunity to share something
about our private lives. We talked about
our jobs, our interests, cows and horses, experiences, our families and our
faith. Abram Messer shared an experience
he endured with his young family. His
testimony of faith as he shared his story prompted that question “Why?” My story came in response to this discussion
about faith and God…and the ever prominent question asked by each of us at one
time or another in life…Why?
My why?
I have a 16 year old daughter, Samantha, who has been very sick for over
two years now. The doctors have not been
able to make her better and she is in constant pain. She was hospitalized again in January of this
year for 13 days (abdominal and bladder pain, nausea and unable to even
swallow) and was finally diagnosed with a rare disease. To make things worse, her condition is
extremely rare as she has multiple organs affected. God and why have crossed my mind on several
occasions including at the dinner table on Wednesday evening. I tell this because after sharing her story
and when we all stood outside of the restaurant to leave, saying good byes, one
of the producers asked that we all join hands and pray for Samantha. While Ben and Walt had departed a short time
before this, I stood with 8 others, holding hands outside of a restaurant at 11
p.m. and we all prayed for my daughter.
What an amazing group of people in the entourage that arrived with Ben
Stein.
The Press Conference
It’s now Thursday, April 3rd and another busy
day. Ben Stein and Walt Ruloff arrived
at the office around 9 a.m. Ben read
the Emily Brooker legislation pausing for a quick smile and 
photograph
ever so often. As 9:30 approached we
headed to the House Lounge for the press conference.
The House Lounge is one of the most
fascinating rooms in our State Capitol and it captured the interest of Ben who
referred to it as a “National Treasure.”
As media set up before the podium I searched the room and found Ben on
the opposite side. I walked over to him
to share some history on the Thomas Hart Benton murals on the walls. Barry approached and the three of us stood
there discussing Missouri history (a historical moment in itself).
The press conference began with Representative
Cunningham’s introduction of Ben Stein. Ben
spoke for several minutes about the movie and House Bills 1315 and 2554 and
Senate Bill 983. He encouraged the
legislature to pass these bills. Representative
Cunningham spoke on the Emily Brooker Bill and Representative Wayne Cooper
spoke on his HB2554. Emily Brooker gave
a quick overview of her terrible experience and Dr. John Marshall, who supports
free speech in academia, spoke and they all answered questions for the media.
I was pleased with the turn out, the
questions and the humor. At one point, Ben
was answering a question and in the middle of a sentence he looked directly
ahead at one of the members of the press who held a tiny camera that was being
used and said, “Do you actually record with that little box?” The crowd laughed and without missing a beat
he carried on from where he left off.
This was one of the better press conferences
that I’ve been privy to and the questions by media were good. The attack on Intelligent Design was minimal
and that’s probably because most of the media present had the opportunity to
view the movie the evening before and understood that the crux of the film was about
the possibility of alternative views, free speech and freedom of inquiry…topics
that the media thrives upon.
Academic freedom is not present in our
educational institutions. Instructors and
students do fear retribution if they don’t conform. Expelled: No Intelligence
Allowed documents professors and scientists who have been punished for daring
to even express the possibility of an alternative theory to evolution.
Educational institutions should be learning
environments. They should be bastions of
free thought, freedom of expression, and fair debate. Discussion of opposing view points is healthy
and educational. My job definitely
verifies the need for people to experience a free and fair exchange of ideas. It doesn’t matter what area of work one is in,
there will always be controversial subjects and someone who disagrees with
someone else’s view point. If our
students are exposed to all facets of a subject, whether it’s controversial or
not, then they will be better prepared to discuss the subject and apply what
they have learned. We all have beliefs,
we believe what we know, we learn by experience and we have a right to not only
decide what we believe, but a right to express what we believe…a right that’s protected
by our Constitution.
The Visit to the House Chamber
About 35 minutes into the press conference I
gave Jane the tap of the non-existent watch on my wrist and motioned for one
more question. Thanking everyone for
their work and time, Ben turned to me and I escorted him to the side gallery of
the House Chamber. Jane requested a
personal privilege on the House floor to introduce Ben Stein and presented him
with a Resolution from the House of Representatives. He was thrilled with the Resolution as he
handed it to me to hold on to so he could shake hands.
We stayed on the side gallery while
legislators and staff all took the opportunity to meet Mr. Stein. If I had to guess what disappointed him the
most, it would have to be that he didn’t have time to visit more with the
hundreds of people he shook hands with that day. He asked practically everybody, “What area do
you represent?” or “What do you want to do with yourself?” and asked several, “Who
is famous from your hometown?” And together
they would usually come up with a notable person from Missouri’s history.
Our timetable for visiting the Senate was
approaching and I tapped Ben on the shoulder and told him that we probably
needed to go to the other side of the building.
He looked me in the eye and said, “Everyone here is so friendly.” I responded with, “I know, there are some
wonderful people in this building!” This
wouldn’t be the last time Ben and I had this conversation and it wasn’t the
first.
The Visit to the Senate
We left the House Lounge and headed for the
Senate, stopping for photos and handshakes all along the way. Ben was so pleased to meet everyone and was
inquisitive of each person that I felt almost rude rushing him along.
Upon arrival at Senate President Pro Tem Michael
Gibbons’ office we were received with warm greetings and conversation from
his staff. After a little history about the office, Senator
Gibbons
entered and greeted a smiling and inquisitive Ben Stein. Ben astonished us all when he greeted Senator
Gibbons with mention of his recent surgery and noted, “You look great to me!”
We all chuckled. Senator Gibbons and Ben talked for a few minutes and
then we were off to the Senate Chamber.
Once inside the Chamber, Senator Gibbons
took a personal privilege and introduced Ben to the entire Senate. Senate
members stood and welcomed him with applause.
Then, one by one, they approached him and shook hands. He took time to talk to each one of them,
again asking many of them where they were from and what famous person came from
their home town. I had to smile because
he was truly genuine in his inquiries and I could tell by the faces of the
Senators that they too had just experienced a surreal moment with Ben Stein.
Senator Gibbons escorted Ben to the Dias and
they stood there discussing the architecture.
Fascination on Ben’s face and pride on the face of Senator Gibbons would
have been the caption of that photograph.
Another moment that a smiled curled from my lips.
I found it fitting that in the upper right
hand corner of the Senate Chamber, etched in the granite, is the quote: “Free and Fair Discussion Will Ever Be Found
the Firmest Friend to Truth.” I captured
a picture of Ben with this quote behind him.
It depicts his personality, his integrity and his passion and supports
the movie and the pending legislation.
Ben wanted to talk to Education Committee
members to thank them for their hard work on legislation that would protect student
rights to free speech in the classroom.
With each, he didn’t just talk about free speech. He wanted to know about the person. I particularly enjoyed the interaction he
shared with Senator Rob Mayer and Senator Norma Champion. Sharing personal stories with each other, the
sincere engagement really demonstrated Ben’s genuine interest in each person.
Parting Thoughts
After that, we headed back to the office as
the hour (more like the minute) of departure was approaching. Gathering
personal belongings and treasures, signing a few more autographs and we headed
to the parking garage to bring our encounter full circle. A few more fans waiting at the limo, one last
photograph and friendly conversation and he turned to me to say good bye. He gave me a kiss on the cheek, a caring hug
and a tremendous amount of thanks and turned to get into his car, making sure
someone had grabbed his bag and coat and that his Resolution was safe from
harm. I watched the car drive out from
the Capitol and I smiled, let out a sigh and turned to catch up on two days of
legislative duties that had been left behind.
I didn’t ‘Win Ben Stein’s Money,’ I will
never be the ‘Smartest Model,’ and as readers of this article can tell, I will
never write for a President, but I did get a day off from my normal legislative
assistant duties to be with Ben Stein.
No, I didn’t win his money but boy did Ben Stein win my heart. Ben, if you get to read this, THANK YOU. Thank you for your advocacy of free speech,
it is that for which I write and I hope everyone invests their time to hear the
message in your movie Expelled: No
Intelligence Allowed! (Premiering in
theaters April 18, 2008.)
Thanks must go out to my friend, my co-worker,
my boss Jane Cunningham. Thank you
for entrusting me with this task. It is always an honor to work with you. It is your voice to do right for others that
attracted the movie star Ben Stein to come to our State. Thank you for your confidence and your voice.
This was a wonderful break from the medical dilemma that haunts my
home. And last, but not least, thank
you Samantha for enduring my time away this week in order to allow me the
opportunity to spend it with Ben Stein.
