Friday, August 18, 2017
MCN Firestorm
Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal wrote on Facebook: “I hope Trump is assassinated!”
The condemnation of her post came quickly from politicians and activists of every ideological position.
As of this morning (and I’m sure I’ve missed many), the calls for her to resign have included: US Senator Claire McCaskill, Governor Eric Greitens, LG Mike Parson, Congressman Lacy Clay, Senate Pro Tem Ron Richard, Senate Floor Leader Mike Kehoe, Senate Minority Leader Gina Walsh, House Minority Leader Gail McCann Beatty, Rep. Kirk Mathews, and Rep. Joshua Peters.
Additionally Stephen Webber, Chair of the Missouri Democratic Party, Republican activist Eddy Justice, former KC columnist Barb Shelly and the Anne Frank Center all joined the chorus of condemnation.
It’s a national news story today. See Washington Post article here.
See her unedited 20-minute interview on KSDK here. She called her post a “bad decision” and “inappropriate,” but refused on multiple occasions to apologize for it.
One veteran observer remarked how much Chappelle-Nadal actually follows the typical Donald Trump playbook: “Refusing to apologize, pivoting to coarse attacks on critics, bemoaning that she is a victim…”
During the interview Chappelle-Nadal says “I’m not going to resign. There are people who’ve smoked marijuana in the Legislature. There are people who have almost committed rape and are still in the Legislature. There are members of the Legislature who have cheated on their wives. Their resignation has never been called for.” Again this is almost Trumpesque in ignoring the obvious counterexamples like John Diehl and Paul LeVota whose extramarital electronic communications led to their resignations.
The Bigger Picture: Again from my veteran observer… How privately grateful are embattled Republicans, in a state Trump carried by about 19 percentage points, that Chappelle-Nadal handed them Hannity-perfect content about hatred from the “alt-left”?
And how incredibly upset are Democrats from Jefferson City to St. Louis to D.C. that Chappelle-Nadal provided a jaw-dropping distraction when they are trying to direct all available fire against Trump and hang the president’s problems around the necks of the Missouri GOP?
Meanwhile
Rep. Shamed Dogan tweets another headshaking at MOGOP “For the love of all that's good & holy, why is this tweet praising Tuesday's embarrassing press conference still up? #partyofLincoln #moleg” See it here.
Happening Today
We are Missouri, the coalition of unions, will rally in the capital today to celebrate the next step in their anti-RTW campaign.
Please join us for a historic event in Jefferson City at the Capitol as workers and families from all over the state gather to submit signatures to repeal SB 19, the harmful, so-called “right-to-work” law. We will be gathering in the Capitol Rotunda for a brief program followed by a walk to the Missouri Secretary of State’s office to submit our signatures…
McCaskill on Hawley
US Senator Claire McCaskill tells the KCStar that Josh Hawley is either “violating the law by not living in Jefferson City or he’s violating the law by voting in some place he doesn’t live. One of the two.” And Hawley spokesman, Scott Paradise, picks his poison: “Josh lives and votes in Boone County. When he rented an apartment in Jefferson City, he made it clear that his family’s home in Boone County, which is just 20 minutes from the state capitol, would remain his primary residence.” See it here.
And
Another Hawley misstep. Looks like he (or a staffer) misfired their twitter, using the official account for a political tweet. See it here.
Is This How the Turnaround Starts for House Dems?
One Democrat reports that “there was a really good crowd and energy at the House Victory Committee fundraiser on Monday night (in St. Louis). Bigger crowd than I expected and I think they actually did well on the money side. There is a really energetic group of Dem freshmen from across the State and are working together to recruit and raise money. Rep. Peter Merideth from STL and Rep. Crystal Quade from Springfield deserve a ton of credit. Baby steps but it is the best energy and organization I have seen from the House Dems in a long time.”
Dogan Joins Stone on MMJ
Press release (see it here): Roger Stone, longtime political advisor to President Donald J. Trump and… potential Democratic candidate for Governor of Florida John Morgan today unveiled the United States Cannabis Coalition, a bi-partisan, pro-cannabis non-profit project dedicated to persuading federal decision makers — including the president – to support the states’ rights when it comes to marijuana laws. The USCC is a project of the United States Freedom Coalition… The coalition’s principal goal is to urge President Trump to honor the pledge he made during the 2016 campaign to support the states’ authority to legalize possession and distribution of cannabis. To date, 29 states have exercised this authority to various degrees...
Joining Stone and Morgan on the USCC advisory board at launch are… State Rep. Shamed Dogan R- Mo… Sgt Gary Wiegert St. Louis Police Dept…”
RIP Chief Wana Dubie
A MOScout reader reports that Chief Wana Dubie as constant presence on the Missouri ballot for decades has passed away from lung cancer.
Salem News has a feature on him: Wana Dubie, born Joseph Bickell, was a transplant to the Show-Me State from Flint, Michigan. As a youth, the budding activist had his first brush with the law at 18 years old when the state changed its legal drinking age to 21. In protest, he stole a truck of beer and held it hostage. It was also around that time The Chief smoked his first cannabis upon being told George Washington grew the herb. The simple act began a lifelong love affair of man and plant which flowered into the legend of today….
Bits
Press release: Lyft, the fastest growing ridesharing service in the U.S., has launched operations at St. Louis Lambert International Airport. Lyft is currently the only ridesharing service available at Lambert International Airport. The company praised St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson and members of the Airport Commission for working towards an agreement to bring Lyft’s service to the airport….
Peter Pitts writes in Morning Consult about the lack of a strong PDMP in Missouri and the lack of the governor’s donor disclosure. See it here.
St. Louis Business Journal editorializes on opioid crisis. See it here. “Recently we learned about the death of a young man who had been the college roommate of someone we know. The cause was a heroin overdose. You probably have a similar story. It is now more likely that a person will die of a drug overdose than in a car crash, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. It is killing 90 Americans a day.”
Yikes! “The superintendent of the Ferguson-Florissant School District has been arrested for matters related to the school system he previously led in North Carolina, according to school officials here. The Ferguson-Florissant School Board issued a statement Thursday saying it had approved a request by Superintendent Joseph Davis for a paid leave of absence… According to North Carolina television station WITN, the records show he faces two counts of felony fraud for renting a car and hotel earlier this year using the credit card of the North Carolina school district he once led…” See it here.
New Committees
Missouri C PAC was formed. Its treasurer is John Burcham of Farmington.
Help Wanted
The Missouri Bar seeks Citizenship Education Director. “The Missouri Bar, a statewide nonprofit legal organization, seeks a Citizenship Education Director to administer programs about the law, the Constitution and government promoting the education of all citizens to encourage a lifetime of responsible citizenship. The ideal candidate will have knowledge of the law, state and federal constitutions, civics and government. Plus have the ability to plan programs, develop content, coordinate volunteers, collaborate with external groups, and write and carry out grants…” See it here.
eMailbag on Education Formula Increase
A few years ago, the General Assembly decided, in overwhelming bi-partisan fashion, to include very modest funding incentives to assist districts in providing quality Pre-K education to impoverished 3 and 4-year old children. Some in the public education community are complaining that they might receive less of a funding increase and are advocating for stripping Pre-K education from the state’s neediest kids. This is the pettiest of politics. Too bad as well that these same folks have repeatedly refused to take the long-term view: funding Pre-K for at-risk kids will only help their achievement scores.
eMailbag on Grain Belt Express
MOScouter: The real villain in the Clean Line case was the Missouri Supreme Court. They refused transfer of an Ameren case that the Court of Appeals said you needed county approvals BEFORE the PSC could approve a transmission line. The CoA got it wrong but the Supreme Court didn't hear the case meaning the decision stood. The PSC really had no choice but to deny Clean Line because of that case. It would have been approved in the absence of the Supreme Courts inaction.
eMailbag: More PAC names to come…
MOScouter offering yet another PAC pun to come? PACyourbags.
Today’s Events
From Mary Scruggs’ indispensable calendar:
Rep. Sharon Pace Reception – KAI Design & Bld. – Maryland Heights – 5PM.
Saturday: Rep. David Gregory Trivia Night – Sunset Hills Community Ctr. – Sunset Hills – 6:30PM.
Lobbyists Registrations
Jeff Aboussie added American Concrete Paving Association, and Arch Fiber Networks.
Jeffrey Brooks and David Jackson added Confluence Charter Schools.
$5K+ Contributions
Grow Missouri - $99,800 from Rex Sinquefield.
MO Insurance Coalition PAC - $9,000 from MOSFA PAC.
Missouri Insurance Political Action Committee - $25,000 from RightCHOICE Managed Care Inc.
House Victory Committee - $10,000 from CHIPP Political Account.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Pat Thomas and former Rep. Charles Denison.
Saturday: Rep. Donna Pfautsch, Connie Cunningham, Tim O’Connell and Mark Siettmann.
Sunday: Rep. Stacey Newman, Trent Watson and former Sens. Wayne Goode and Chuck Gross.