Thursday, March 26, 2015

Hancock Talks to the Baum

The mighty Jason Rosenbaum and Jo Mannies interview John Hancock on their podcast, Politically Speaking.  Rosenbaum presses Hancock on how he came to believe that Tom Schweich was Jewish, and Hancock blamed it on “stupidity.”  Rosenbaum also pokes Jack Danforth’s diagnosis of anti-Semitism, saying that the former Senator doesn’t understand the Jewish experience.  Hancock thinks that the governor’s race will be a multi-candidate race which will prevent it from becoming too personal, and be good for Republicans.  It’s interesting stuff.  Listen to it here.

Republican Governor Bits

In the large contributions, Eric Greitens continues to show donor support.  Today a $9K check hits from former Ambassador George Walker.  Walker’s last big contribution?... It was to Tom Schweich two months ago.

I took time during this week off to read Greitens’ first book The Heart and the Fist.  I enjoyed it.  While the longest chapters describe the brutal SEAL training regime, from start to finish the book oozes a Kennedy-esque ideal of service.  It’ll be interesting to see how this translates into a political campaign. It could be just be lofty campaign rhetoric, or it might be a platform will a lot of new and interesting ideas.  We’ll see….

John Brunner is thought to be readying his own entry into the race.  It’ll be interesting to see the strategy in timing announcements.  As well as when Catherine Hanaway decides to resurfaces from her self-imposed quiet time.

Dem AG Candidate Tout AG Time

Sen. Scott Sifton and Jake Zimmerman – in their end-of-the-quarter fundraising pitches – make very similar pitches, drawing on their time in the attorney general’s office to explain why they’re running for the job.

Zimmerman

Thirteen years ago, I left the private practice of law to serve as an Assistant Attorney General.  I was a young lawyer and had a lot to learn.  But my path to that office reminded me of why I became a lawyer in the first place - to fight on behalf of those who needed the rule of law on their side… I think back to one case in particular.  The bad guys called themselves the “tech geeks.”  They promised to sell you a computer, but after they took your money, the computer never came… Others in the office suggested just dropping the investigation because a few laptops were just “small potatoes” compared to bigger fraud cases.  But I can tell you, it wasn’t small potatoes to the victims trying to save up enough money for textbooks during the next semester. So we did the legwork and we found - and prosecuted - the “tech geeks” (they turned out to be a woman in the next county over and her son working out of mom’s basement). I’m running for Attorney General because there will always be more “tech geeks” out there…

Sifton

I will never forget the first file to hit my desk during my clerkship in the Criminal Division of the Missouri Office of Attorney General. A man had hailed a taxicab and shot the driver in the back of the head for the less than $75 in his wallet. At around that time, a member of my family was just beginning to work as a taxicab driver. The local prosecutor won a resounding conviction. But the defendant appealed, and my job was to write the brief that would keep him behind bars. There was no doubt he committed the crime, but the appeal raised technicalities that had to be addressed carefully. In the end, the Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction… Nearly 20 years later, I am running for Missouri Attorney General because I know I have the right experience, dedication and resolve to do the job well… I know what’s at stake. As Attorney General, I will work tirelessly to make sure we get the job done right…

Jones to Nixon: Appoint an African American

On Twitter, St. Louis City Treasurer Tishaura Jones, who it’s said doesn’t want the state auditor job herself, joined the call for Governor Jay Nixon to appoint an African American to the post.

@tishaura: Join me in asking @GovJayNixon to appoint an African American as the next State Auditor. https://www.change.org/p/governor-jay-nixon-make-history-by

Gephardt’s Breakfast Pitch

Politico’s survey of the New Hampshire primary landscape and the fight to win local activists has this fun nugget… If more face time is needed, candidates can invite themselves for a sleepover. Dick Gephardt, the former Missouri congressman, was a master of making an evening appearance in some corner of Iowa or New Hampshire and then staying the night with a local activist, angling to win their support over breakfast, according to Joe Trippi, Gephardt’s former political director. It all leads to a surprising level of intimacy. “You have a baby, and it’s not the grandparents calling,” says Trippi. “It’s Jeb Bush.”  Read it here.

Governing on Blue Cities in Red States

Governing Magazine looks how cities are under-represented in “red states.”  Read it here.

Pull Quote: Of course, there are still some rural Democrats and some urban Republicans. And generally, legislative leaders understand that big cities are important economic engines they must keep tuned up. But the lack of urban voices within many majorities means cities are bound to lose out on some appropriations… There’s not much Democrats can do about it, either. “When you look at the General Assembly in Missouri” -- where Democrats are scarce outside St. Louis and Kansas City -- “there really isn’t much interest in urban issues,” says Peverill Squire, a political scientist at the University of Missouri. “And the Democrats have no way of getting many of their concerns on the agenda.”

Help Wanted

LeadingAge Missouri seeks Chief Executive Officer.  “Headquartered in Jefferson City, Missouri, LeadingAge Missouri is a 501(c)(3) trade association whose members are not-for-profit providers of aging services.  The CEO will work closely with the volunteer leadership of LeadingAge Missouri to fulfill the mission of the association, grow programs and services, and to provide value to the members…”  See the ad here.

Lobbyist Registrations

Ronald Leone and Trent Ford added Missouri Association of Sewer Districts (MASD)

Gary Wheeler added Missouri Farmers for Biodiesel.

Catherine Barrie deleted The Missouri Bar.

$5K+ Contributions

Friends of Ella Jones - $7,000 from CWA Cope.

Cunningham Campaign Committee - $10,000 from Missouri Club for Growth PAC.

Greitens for Missouri - $9,000 from George H Walker III.

Greitens for Missouri - $25,000 from Karen Meara.

Mike Klinghammer for Mayor - $9,000 from David Hannegan.

Cooksey for STL City School Board - $30,000 from Leadership for Educational Equity.

Notes on Contributions

Ella Jones is running for Ferguson’s City Council.