Wednesday, February 28, 2018
Filing Day News Bits
The surprises from filing day…
Rep. Kirk Mathews – a highly respected Republican – didn’t file yesterday. Mathews ran for Floor Leader losing a hotly contested race to Rep. Rob Vescovo. Some speculate that Mathews is considering not running for re-election. No one has filed for the seat (House 110)
Rep. Nate Walker didn’t file in Senate 18. He still could, but if he drops from the field, it would be a positive for Cindy O’Laughlin.
Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal filed to run for House 86 (Joe Adams’ district). It’s a four-way primary.
Former Rep. Fred Kratky filed to primary Rep. Donna Baringer in House 82.
Former Rep. Ron Hicks filed to run in House 102. This is Kurt Bahr’s seat. He’s termed and running for St. Charles Election Director. Hicks is probably not conservative enough to win this seat. We’ll see…
Meanwhile
Joplin Globe reports that “Rob O'Brian, longtime president of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, said on Tuesday he is considering a run for the Missouri State Senate seat being vacated by Ron Richard, R-Joplin, who is ineligible for re-election because of term limits.”
Right now, only Rep. Bill White has filed.
And… if O’Brian gets in, this news article will be a mailer for sure. It’s about a 2015 state audit that pointed “to wrongdoing in the hiring of the city’s former master developer.”
Pull Quote: Galloway said that a “request for proposals” used to select a master development firm was written by Rob O’Brian, president of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, and appeared to have been designed to select that particular firm.
Rumorville: Baker to Register for Greitens
Look for Axiom-ite Aaron Baker to register for Governor Eric Greitens.
With the House Investigative Committee now formed, Baker will now presumably work to rally House members to let the judicial system run its course and not prematurely impeach the governor.
One veteran Dem calculates that without the presence of Jeff Roe, the governor would be adios-ed by now.
Special Investigative Committee on Oversight
Rep. Jay Barnes filed House Resolution 5565 (see it here) to provide the rules for the Special Investigative Committee.
According to the resolution the committee “shall investigate allegations against Governor Eric Greitens and report back to the House…”
Also, the committee would have the power to hire independent investigators, or special counsel.
The Hits Keep Coming
Rumors are running hot that there will soon be a second indictment from St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner. This was fueled by the recent Post-Dispatch article outlining the paper trail for the Mission Continues donor list ending up in the possession of the Greitens’ campaign.
If this some such indictment comes down, it’ll be a serious blow to the governor’s quest to stay in office. We’ll be leaving the realm of “personal mistake” and entering the domain of corruption.
Now This
If the there’s a charge of theft of the donor list, this New York Times reporter makes the case that theft of email list is probably a separate charge to come. See it here.
And
One MOscouter writes, “a former top Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee aide who met Greitens in DC in 2009 during Greitens exploration of a U.S. House bid recalled that Greitens’ Mission Continues emails became a running joke among DCCC staff - everyone he met ended up on the email list and couldn't seem to get off of it no matter what they tried. For years, they forwarded his emails to one another with derision, especially after he announced for Governor - as a Republican…”
Meanwhile
In the Senate Appropriations Committee, Sen. Jamilah Nasheed asked Attorney General Josh Hawley about the status of his Confide investigation. Hawley replied that it would be concluded very soon. The general expectation is that it will have some scolding words for the governor’s office.
Q&A #1: Have We Become Better in the Last Three Years?
Short answer: Nope.
I had a long conversation with a Democrat yesterday. At one point he said, you know it was three years ago yesterday that Tom Schweich committed suicide. You think we’re doing any better [here in the capitol] now than we were then?
Schweich’s death brought a lot of calls for restoring civility to politics, and ending the personal attacks that seem to be part of the process.
The entire movement that sprung up after Schweich to make politics better – and kinder – has evaporated.
Three ways we’re no better…
First, besides the wait period for legislators to become lobbyists, there’s been no ethics reform to speak of.
Second, the governor’s dark money apparatus makes the “whispers” that tormented Schweich look like child-play. He raised millions in his campaign that came from unidentified sources. His political non-profit has institutionalized the process of using undocumented donors to fund attack ads against individual legislators who cross him.
Finally, the rhetoric, the personal attacks, are just the same if not worse as ever. In just the last few days… Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal calling her fellow senator a “Judas Dixecrat;” Greitens trying to undermine Kim Gardner by calling her a “reckless liberal.”
New Committees
Kandra Lane formed a candidate committee (Friends Of Kendra Lane) to run for House 59 from Republican.
Lobbyists Registrations
David Jackson and Sarah Topp added TicketNetwork.
Saiza Elayda added Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.
Robert Hollis added James Tammy Heuer Husband and Wife.
Robin Phillips added Child Care Aware of Missouri.
David Woodsmall added Midwest Energy Consumers Group.
Ward Cook added Powell Gardens.
Sarah Wood Martin deleted Missouri Energy Initiative, and American Association of Public Insurance Adjusters.
$5K+ Contributions
Progress KC - $25,000 from Briarcliff Development Company.
Progress KC - $10,000 from Herzog Contracting Corporation.
Citizens For Pierce - $10,000 from Wade Pierce.
Progress KC - $10,000 from Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce.
Birthdays
Happy birthday to Randy Turner.
