Tuesday, July 26, 2016
Gubby Race
Post-Dispatch reports that the Republican candidates for governor spent a combined $10 million in the past three weeks. See it here.
Eric Greitens: $4 million.
John Brunner: $3 million.
Catherine Hanaway: $2 million.
Peter Kinder: $1.5 million.
And
Cash On-hand Totals
Eric Greitens: $630K.
John Brunner: $75K.
Catherine Hanaway: $700K.
Peter Kinder: $255K.
Worst President Ever!
Eric Greitens fighting back from the John Brunner attack ad about his participation at the 2008 Democratic National Convention declares that Barack Obama is the worst president of his lifetime – maybe the worst president in history!
That’s either some bizarro history from this Rhodes Scholar or someone who will say whatever necessary in the final week of a campaign. See the ad here.
Ashcroft Goes Negative on Kraus
Jay Ashcroft is running a television commercial that thumps Sen. Will Kraus as the “most liberal Republican state senator” who was “endorsed by liberal groups who support amnesty and gun control.”
The big question here is: why? The latest polling showed that Ashcroft had a substantial lead over Kraus, so it’s surprising to see him go negative. He should just be coasting to a primary election victory and charting a general election path at this point
Meanwhile In the LG Race
Meanwhile it’s surprising that Sen. Mike Parson has stayed positive the past few months as Bev Randles and Missouri Club for Growth have attacked him, and the polls have remained tight. Word is that Parson may be unleashing an ad soon to target Randles’ remarkably small donor base.
After her initial $1 million check from Rex Sinquefield, she’s received another $1,250,000 in support from Sinquefield PACs.
Why Zimmerman Wins AG Dem Race
Tipster says that the Democratic attorney general’s race goes to Jake Zimmerman because Teresa Hensley lacks the fire-power down the stretch… “$19,930 total TV ad buy… $10K in St. Louis, and $10K in KC…” And her 8-Day report shows only $45K cash on-hand.
And
The St. Louis American’s Political Eye delivers a devastating critique of Hensley. See it here.
Pull Quote: [Hensley’s] address of record is Raymore, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City that was 87.8 percent white in the 2010 Census. A response she gave to a Ferguson-based question in an April 20 candidate forum in Kansas City suggested that she has very little clue as to how many black people experience the lowest level of justice, the municipal courts… Hensley said the next attorney general should form “a task force to discuss what to do about the municipal courts, police training, police shooting.” She spoke as if she did not know the Missouri Supreme Court already convened a working group on the municipal courts that released a report, or that a bit player named Barack Obama already formed a Task Force on 21st Policing that has released its report. Yet, she wants another task force before anything is done to address these over-studied problems…
Lant Hospitalized
AP reports that Rep. Bill Lant was hospitalized after a car accident. See the article here.
And see the highway patrol report here.
The Hit on Harris
Here are excerpts from an email from someone who’s down on Jeff Harris. Harris is running next week to keep his judicial appoint in mid-Missouri's 13th Judicial Circuit, comprising Boone and Callaway counties.
In the Harris campaign's TV ads, the announcer says Harris was "Missouri's Chief Director of Policy." Jeff Harris never had that job title. That's because the State of Missouri has no "Chief Director of Policy." Jeff Harris served for most of the past eight years as director of policy for Governor Jay Nixon... It says something about Harris, as well as Nixon's shaky public standing, that Harris took Nixon's appointment plus Nixon's $10K donation in an outstate judicial election - but Harris doesn't publicly name or acknowledge Nixon as his boss in slick TV pitches to Democratic primary voters…. The political fate of Harris may be ultimately tied to both latent and overt accumulated dislike of Jay Nixon, to whom Harris is connected at the hip. Part of Harris' problem is local annoyance with The Nixon Machine. Harris already got his former law partner Dan Atwill appointed by Nixon as Boone County presiding commissioner, ignoring local party committee input. Then Harris got his campaign treasurer's husband appointed Boone County Treasurer by Nixon, who got a two-fer when he named incumbent county treasurer Nicole Galloway as state auditor… Nixon's shadow looms, and Harris wants to publicly avoid it…
Turner to Koster Camp
David Turner emails that “effective today, July 25, I will be the communications director for Chris Koster's campaign for governor… Taking over my role at the Missouri Democratic Party will be Kristin Sosanie, who comes to the state having worked on a number of campaigns, most recently Martin O'Malley's presidential effort…”
eMailbag on Casas
“Kate Casas is easily one of the most underrated lobbyists in the state with a lot of potential… She was strictly doing education lobbying before launching her career as a contract lobbyist in the last two years. She’s picked up the game extremely quickly and will be a huge asset to Dentons…”
Today’s Events
From Mary Scruggs’ indispensable events calendar:
Sen. Paul Wieland Golf – Sugar Creek Golf Club – High Ridge.
$5K+ Contributions
Citizens to Elect Kurt Schaefer Attorney General - $301,529 from Great St. Louis.
Rizzo for Missouri - $5,684 from Healthpac.
Koster for Missouri - $10,000 from United Steelworkers District 11.
Eigel for Missouri - $5,001 from Missouri Society of Anesthesiologists.
Parson for Missouri - $25,000 from Forest and Charlotte Lucas.
MEDA PAC - $10,000 from KCP&L.
Missourians for Life - $10,000 from Citizens for Spencer.
AGC of MO PAC - $6,800 from Branco Enterprises Inc.
AGC of MO PAC - $6,250 from Pace Construction Company.
AGC of MO PAC - $6,650 from Phillips Hardy Inc.
AGC of MO PAC - $7,425 from Ritchie Brothers Auctioneers.
Friends of Caleb Rowden - $20,200 from Missouri Senate Campaign Committee.
Committee to Elect Randy Jottee - $24,000 from Missouri Senate Campaign Committee.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Rep. Donna Lichtenegger, and Mike McMillan.