Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Rumble in House 18?

Initially it looked like House 18 would be an easy hand-off from retiring Rep. Jay Swearingen to Lauren Arthur.  She quickly scooped up important endorsement from the incumbent as well as from the Skaggs faction which has long held sway in this area.

But Kevin Garner also filed on opening day, drew a lower number for the pole position on the ballot, and has lassoed a number of endorsements leading one observer to say it “paints a very clear picture of a local anti-Skaggs movement.”

The knock on Garner is that he’s a “former Republican.”  But this list indicates that the charge may have less weight in an era where Chris Koster is the uncontested gubernatorial nominee and Jason Holsman (who worked for Ashcroft in his early 20s) is one of the most outspoken progressives in the Senate.

Here’s the Garner endorsement list.  It includes most all county-wide elected except Dan White who is up for re-election this year.

Mindy Brissey – Previously announced Democratic candidate for House District 18.

Debbie Gwin – Clay County Public Administrator.

Beverly Sue Ryan – Treasurer of North Kansas City and former Clay County Public Administrator.

Cathy Reinhart – Clay County Assessor.

Bob Boydston- former Clay County Sheriff.

Gene Owen – former Mayor Pro-Tem of North Kansas City and current Clay County Western Commissioner.

Pauli Kendrick – Chairwoman, Platte County Democratic Central Committee.

Committeewoman Linda Shumate – Clay County Democratic Central Committee.

Committeeman Earl Shumate – Clay County Democratic Central Committee.

Committeewoman Charli Seitz – Clay County Democratic Central Committee.

Committeeman Keivan Moghadam – Clay County Democratic Central Committee.

Clint Hylton – 2010 6thCongressional District Democratic Nominee.

Barb Womack – Greater KC Women’s Political Caucus Board member.  The organization doesn’t endorse men but she is personally endorsing Kevin which is interesting.

Rory Bows Out of Re-Election

Rep. Rory Ellinger (House 86) announced he wouldn’t seek re-election due to health reasons…

“With great regret, today I am announcing that I will withdraw my candidacy for re-election. Late last week I received information from my cardiologist that in the future will require me to redirect my focus toward my health.

“I am announcing my withdrawal today in order to provide as much time as possible for residents of the 86th District to consider running for this seat; filing closes March 25. However, my office remains open and we will continue legislative work until my term ends in January 2015.

“I hope that whomever is chosen by the voters will carry on my commitment to helping the vulnerable and the powerless, to addressing issues of injustice and unfairness, and to representing the needs of all Missourians…”

Filing News

John Sutton filed to run as a Democrat in House 29.  He ran against incumbent Rep. Noel Torpey in 2012, winning 46.3% of the vote.  The district though is heavily (like close to 60%) Democratic.

Sutton is the second Democrat to file.  Addison Newberry filed on the opening day.

White House Interns

The White House Internship Program announced its participants for the Spring 2014 session. “The mission of the program is to make the White House accessible to future leaders around the nation and to prepare those devoted to public service for future leadership opportunities.”

Here are the participants with Missouri connections:

Daniel Bram – Hometown: St. Louis, MO; Washington University in St. Louis, MO

David Kalishman – Hometown: St. Louis, MO; Indiana University Bloomington, IN

Bits

More money for Dave Schatz… see large checks below.

Town and Country Mayor Jon Dalton has switched law firms, moving from Lewis, Rice & Fingersh to Armstrong Teasdale.

In an email yesterday from the offices of political consultants David Barklage and Robert Knodell came confirmation through an official press release that the St. Louis County Republican Central Committee was wooing Jane Cunningham to run as the Republican nominee for St. Louis County Executive.

Lori Hatton Rasmussen has joined the Jill Schupp for Senate campaign.

Governor Jay Nixon sent a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry declaring his support for the Keystone XL Pipeline.  See it here.

Virginia Young dug into the “inefficient” low-income housing tax credit yesterday in a piece in the Post-Dispatch.  See it here.  The headline asks if the credits are “untouchable” because of the political clout behind them.  This includes Senator Claire McCaskill’s husband Joseph Shepard, the largest syndicator of the credits.

Help Wanted

Post-Dispatch seeks economic development reporter.  “We are looking for a talented and versatile reporter with knowledge of business in general and economic development in particular. This is a high-profile reporting position with a broad scope and the opportunity to do significant work that identifies and reports on trends in the local economy.

“It's also a highly productive beat, and we are searching for a journalist up for the demands required. The successful applicant should be comfortable covering both business and government because a lot of news will happen at the intersection of the public and private sectors.”  See ad here.

Fundraising Calendar

From Mary Scruggs’ indispensable events calendar:

Missouri Health Care Association Legislative Reception – Capitol Plaza Hotel, Jefferson City, 5:30-8 p.m.

Lobbyist Registrations

From the Gate Way Group website:

James C. Bowers, Jr. added Christopher & Loretta Storm, and Corey Miller.

Mark S Bryant added National CW Portfoilio JV LLC.

Rick Bryant added ACT Inc.

Francis E. Flotron added Mike Malone.

James Harris added Bank of Washington.

Shanon M Hawk deleted Lewis, Rice & Fingersh LLC; and added Armstrong Teasdale LLP.

Patricia R. Jensen added A.E. Wolfe Environmental Services Inc.

R Bowen Loftin added University of Missouri.

David A Shorr added Gateway Dredging and Contracting LLC, and City of Liberty Missouri.

Jennifer A. Bauer deleted Pure Holding LLC.

Omar D Davis deleted MO DOT and Patrol Employees Retirement System.

William B. Moore deleted Trinity Real Estate Development, City of Kansas City Missouri, and Metro North Company LLC.

$5K+ Contributions

Committee to Elect Jeff Roorda - $10,000 from St. Louis Police Officers Assoc PAC.

Citizens for Schatz - $5,000 from Hometown Management Group LLC.

Citizens for Schatz - $5,250 from St. Charles Insurance.

Birthdays

Happy birthdays to soon-to-be-senator Dan Hegeman (51) and Maria Walden.