Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Beetem for House
Jane Beetem formed a committee to run for House 60 as a Republican. See the paperwork here. The current incumbent, Rep. Jay Barnes, is termed. Beetem is the wife of Judge Jon Beetem. According to LinkedIn she retired from the Department of Natural Resources in 2015 after 25 years with the department.
Legal Proceedings on Calzone’s Lobbying Activities Continues
Ron Calzone has been lobbying in the state capitol for years. He has never registered as a lobbyist. Calzone thinks since his organization, Missouri First, doesn’t pay him or call him a lobbyist, he isn’t obligated to register.
Lobbyists have grumbled about him for years. Finally Michael Dallmeyer filed a complaint with the Missouri Ethics Commission.
In their investigation, they agreed Calzone should register. (Calzone exercised his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination).
Calzone appealed and had the finding overturned on a technical violation. Now the Missouri Court of Appeals Western District reverses that decision and sends it back. See the ruling here.
Rumorville: Finneran for STL County Prosecutor?
Some say that Richard Finneran is planning to primary Bob McCulloch for St. Louis County Prosecutor.
See Finneran’s Washington University bio here.
Early Auditor Messaging
In response to the recent statement from Speaker Todd Richardson that he’d be running for Auditor in 2018, the Missouri Democratic Party blasted an email that showed their first early message attacks against Richardson…
As the leader in the Missouri House, Todd Richardson failed seven years in a row to pass meaningful ethics reform.
Todd Richardson has personally accepted more than 200 gifts from lobbyists – including everything from free meals to baseball tickets. (Missouri Ethics Commission)
Roorda: City Cops At Outta Here
As Jeff Roorda continues to push for a pay raise for St. Louis City cops, he put out a press release yesterday of a survey the SLPOA has done of its membership.
“[A]bout 20% of the department applied with another police agency in the last twelve months. What was more stunning is that an additional 43% of the survey respondents said they plan to apply with another department in the next year for a total of 63% who have either applied or plan to. That number soars to 73% when officers are informed of the raise that St. Louis County is slotted to receive in January… Roorda said. “If we go that many officers short, it’s going to be a bloodbath…”
McCann Beatty Scolds Gov Again
House Minority Leader Gail McCann Beatty has used her position to issue statements that tend to “explain” state government to Governor Eric Greitens. Her latest…
“[S]ince executive orders have no force of law, the governor cannot simply conjure a prescription drug monitoring program into existence by signing a piece of paper. An executive order of this type merely allows the governor to instruct his subordinates to carry out duties authorized by law. It cannot compel action by anyone other than officials at those executive branch agencies under the governor's direct control. Since establishing a prescription drug database requires the participation of pharmacies and other private parties over whom the governor has no authority, this order is only a public relations stunt that will do nothing to prevent opioid addiction…”
No Connection Because They Have Different Email Addresses
KCStar’s Jason Hancock follow-up on Greitens’ dark money for RTW campaign, connecting some dots. See it here.
Pull Quote: [T]he governor’s campaign finance director, Meredith Gibbons, is helping raise money for another PAC, called Liberty Alliance… Gibbons sent out a fundraising mailer for Liberty Alliance from her Greitens campaign email address, and she was listed as the contact for potential donors. However, she says Liberty Alliance has no connection with the governor’s political campaign. “I separately assist Liberty Alliance,” she said. “I have multiple email addresses and accidentally sent an email from the wrong address. This was just a mistake.”
Northwest Missouri Feeling Neglected?
Ray Scherer of News-Press Now, is glum that they haven’t seen much of the governor since his election. See it here.
Pull Quote: Local and area Republicans say they have a firm belief that Gov. Eric Greitens will eventually make his way back to the region… Supporters point to the governor’s recent schedule in dealing with legislative matters at the Missouri Capitol as a significant reason for his lack of face time in the region… And [Sen. Dan] Hegeman said the low number of trips by the governor to the area doesn’t belie its relevance to state government. He mentioned an early June stop by the Missouri State Highways and Transportation Commission in St. Joseph as just one illustration…”
Bits
Running for House leadership? Rep. Hannah Kelly’s event was the place to be. See it here.
House Budget Justin Alferman on Twitter… Mo House Budget Committee eliminated E's this year. I predict that Department spending flexibility will be looked at next year strongly.
Congressman Jason Smith put up another big number in his latest fundraising quarter… $458K. One MOScouter: “His position in the House continues to improve and people continue to invest in him.”
Today’s Events
From Mary Scruggs’ indispensable calendar:
ALEC Annual Mtg. – Denver, CO
Ozark Mountain Leadership PAC Golf – Old Kinderhook – Camdenton – Noon.
Lobbyists Registrations
Jason Zamkus added Fairway Construction Company, Inc.
$5K+ Contributions
We Are Missouri - $7,250 from American Postal Workers Union.
CONNECTKC - $25,000 from Stacy and Witbeck Inc.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Rep. Rusty Black, former Sen. John Griesheimer, David Overfelt and Jim Anderson.