The state of Missouri is still in turmoil. Even as protesters continue to march, demanding everything from a new case and a new grand jury to the heads of Darren Wilson and anyone involved in the first investigation, Ferguson residents and business owners are scrambling to recover from the events that have been disrupting their lives since August.

The Missouri legislature is scrambling as well – to determine what went wrong the night of the grand jury decision and why an activated National Guard was in the wind while Ferguson and nearby Dellwood watched over twenty businesses burn to the ground. They are working to determine why Governor Nixon failed to return phone calls from the mayors of Ferguson and Dellwood, but had time for a chat with Valerie Jarrett.

There has been much speculation as to the reason that the National Guard failed to stop the carnage in Ferguson until well into the night, but several things are certain.

First, if the National Guard troops were activated and staged – and they were – they were more than prepared to handle the situation.

Second, if the National Guard troops did not descend on Ferguson at the first sign of trouble – and they did not – there are only two possible explanations: they were either waiting for a go ahead order that never came, or they received an explicit order to stand down.

And third, any such order was the sole responsibility of Missouri Governor Jay Nixon.

Obviously, Jay Nixon failed the cities Ferguson and Dellwood and the state of Missouri that night. But the question remains: how did he fail them? And the Missouri legislature stands ready to answer that question. I spoke with Ron Hicks, Missouri State Representative in the 107th District, and he offered this assessment:

I definitely feel he handled the situation poorly. So does most of Missouri. Rumor has it he got his advice from the White House. If that's the case, I understand now why he handled it so poorly. I hope in the future with problems of such magnitude in our state he or our next governor would look within the state for the advice to handle a situation instead of trying to outsource it.

This was a Missouri problem, not a United States problem. It wasn't a race issue until he and Washington DC got involved. I still don't see this as a race issue. Police officers in the line of duty have the authority to use deadly force, and it does not matter what color your skin is, it's about protecting themselves and others – not race. I'm not naïve, I know there are some bad ones out there but I'm here to tell you I think there's more good than bad in regards to our police officers and law-enforcement in general. I do not criticize our local law-enforcement or State Highway Patrol for the way it was handled. They too were only following orders and I feel they did the best they could with what they were given.

As far as the National Guard being involved. You and I both saw what happened there they were on the ground but did nothing. That had to be a direct order from higher power.

I spoke with law-enforcement officials and the state National Guard, Business owners, residence and even the children of Ferguson and they all wanted to know why we just stood by and let their city be destroyed.

As far as this reaching national attention and causing riots in major cities throughout the United States you can thank Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and President Obama for that. I personally feel all three should be arrested for inciting a riot. I truly pray and hope our state has learned a valuable lesson and can continue to move forward, clean up the situation, and better ourselves by learning from it.

Committee hearings have already begun – hearings at which the governor’s presence was requested – but Nixon has yet failed to appear and answer questions.

According to St Louis radio host and Missouri political insider Rodney Boyd, the legislature is prepared to issue a subpoena demanding the appearance of the governor. There has been further rumor that, should he fail to comply with such a subpoena, they will ask that he be physically compelled to attend one of the hearings.