Sundown Town

Ferguson, Missouri is now under curfew as things are decidedly getting worse.

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon announced an order declaring a state of emergency and a curfew to be in effect in Ferguson, Missouri in order to curtail looting in the wake of protests over the shooting of an unarmed black teenager, one week ago.

The curfew will be in effect from midnight to 5 a.m., said Captain Ron Johnson of the Missouri Highway Patrol.

"The eyes of the world are watching. This is the test of whether a community, this community, any community, can break the cycle of fear, distrust and violence, and replace them with peace, strength and, ultimately, justice," Nixon said in remarks made at a church near Ferguson.

After another night of racially charged protests and looting in Ferguson, the governor had said he was going to meet with local and state law enforcement on Saturday to craft a plan aimed at quelling further violence. 

That plan, apparently, resulted in the establishment of the curfew.

"It was a rough time last night. There was a lot of looting and there were a lot of people arming themselves in their storefront to guard their businesses," said Al Nothum, a spokesman for the Missouri Highway Patrol earlier in the day.

That's nice.  Nixon's choices have been terrible at every turn in this situation, and he's only making things worse now.  Military hardware on the streets, a dead teenager, a refusal to defend the city from looters and now curfew?

Nixon's 2016 chances are laughable.

In Missouri, Nixon faces a Republican-dominated state legislature and said the key to success is personal relationships — fostered by walks on farms or watching college sports together, he said. Nixon, a term-limited governor, signaled that he’s aiming to stay in the political arena after his time in Jefferson City concludes.

“I enjoy being in public service,” he said. “I think I understand folks and think I have some skills and some ability to get things done. I don’t spend as much time in self-promotion as some. My shoulders have not been hurt from patting myself on the back as much as some politicians, but I gotta tell ya, we roll up the sleeves and get work done.”

Asked whether he could imagine himself coming to Washington, Nixon added, “I’m not going to rule things out,” but noted he’s still focused on a range of issues in the statehouse.

You're not going anywhere.