Does Nixon even have a first name? (Couldn’t tell by reading the article). Maybe he’s like Madonna or Prince or Charo?
Apparently not. I guess you're just supposed to know who "Nixon" is. I'm not sure journalists even take courses in expository writing anymore.
Or an official position?
The article itself calls him "Gov. Jay Nixon".
The excerpt left off the first 2 words.
Jay Nixon. He was on the news yesterday, and; he was extremely tongue tied with - and you know, an uh etc. Specifically, he has great difficulty answering any question with a coherent sentence. Perhaps he has had a recent stroke or a blow to the head?