Wednesday May 16 - SICO to Investigate Concealment of Donor ID - No Hustle Hawley - Galloway Seeks Gov Atty Info and more...
Robertson Talks to Members
The House Special Investigative Committee’s top lawyer, Chip Robertson, addressed the House Republican Caucus and then the House Democratic Caucus yesterday.
I’m told he went over the impeachment process with the members and explained the House’s role. Robertson told members that the central question which the House must discern is: if the crimes listed were committed, should the governor be removed from office?
They are not trying to judge the governor’s guilt or innocence. That would happen later in the process – after the Senate chooses jurists. The House’s role in the process is determining if the crimes listed in the articles of impeachment meet the constitutional standard for removal from office.
Today the governor’s lawyers will meet with the Committee. Their job is to prevent the legislature from impeaching the governor. They have proposed a timeline for special session to advance that goal.
The proposal is presumably DOA. The impeachment process won’t be directed by the executive branch. It’s solely the product of the legislative branch of government.
Galloway Seeks Information on Greitens’ Attys
Monday Auditor Nicole Galloway’s general counsel, Paul Harper, sent a letter to the governor’s general counsel, Lucinda Luetkemeyer, asking for information regarding the attorneys that the governor’s office is employing to fight impeachment.
As provided by Section 29.221, RSMo, this office has received reports that the Governor's Office
has used, or may anticipate using, public funds to pay for private attorneys to represent Governor Eric Greitens related to discipline of the Governor as outlined in the petition for special session of the Missouri General Assembly dated May 3, 2018. The State Auditor's Office has previously had concerns related to the contracting and use of private attorneys to represent state government entities…
If the state has or will be paying private attorneys, identify what office, department, or division's
budget has or will be used to pay for these attorneys and the specific budget line anticipated to be used. Also, provide the following information:
- The number of attorneys you have hired;
- Whether you anticipate hiring additional attorneys and, if so, the number of additional attorneys you anticipate hiring;
- A copy of all requests for proposals, bids, or contracts relating to hiring of these attorneys;
- A copy of the contracts with these attorneys;
- The amounts the attorneys have been and are being paid and copies of any itemized billings;
- A complete list of the attorneys that have been hired, under what budget lines each attorney has or will be paid, and the amount each attorney has received or is anticipated to receive; and
- A specific description of each of these attorney's duties.
Information related to contracting, payment, job duties, and budgets are not privileged and are available to this office under Missouri law. This office is requesting the above referenced information as it relates to state business.
If state funds are being used to represent Governor Eric Greitens in his individual capacity,
provide the legal justification for using state funds to represent an individual in discipline proceedings…
Next Up… Concealing Donor Identity Becomes an Issue
Jason Hancock reports that the House Special Investigative Committee has begun to look at efforts by the Greitens campaign to conceal the identity of some of its donors. Chairman Jay Barnes “said Tuesday that the committee had obtained a 2016 email from Will Scharf, who now works as Greitens' policy director but at the time worked for a rival gubernatorial campaign, titled ‘Greitens Uses Shell Companies to Hide Donors.’ Scharf's email noted the existence of two LLCs — White Impala and ELX83 — that were formed in December 2015. The companies combined to donate $60,000 to Greitens' campaign.”
And
SuperAttorney Chuck Hatfield on Twitter… At the time, Missouri had no contribution limits, so if it is true these companies were formed solely to make contributions, it must have been to hide donor identity. Makes one even more curious who the donors were.
What It Means
More collateral damage. If these allegations are true, it’s unlikely that Greitens pulled off the concealment of donor identity all by himself. There would have been others involved in the crime.
And as I’ve written before: the more they look, the more they find. The potential articles of impeachment just gets longer.
Time for Separate Counsel?
According to Hancock’s article Catherine Hanaway is representing Scharf. Hanaway has been representing the Greitens campaign as well as the campaign staff.
It may be time for folks like Scharf to seek their own counsel as their interests and the governor’s interests may not be completely aligned.
SLPD Wades In
Post Dispatch reports that “The police department said Tuesday it will open an investigation into perjury allegations against the private investigator who led the now-dismissed felony invasion of privacy case against Gov. Eric Greitens. Schron Jackson, a police spokeswoman, said in an email Tuesday that the department would open an investigation after officers met with Greitens' defense lawyers Ed Dowd and Scott Rosenblum. Dowd had said in a statement earlier that the defense planned to file a police report that private investigator William Don Tisaby lied under oath ‘about his methods and the evidence he collected.’”
Politico: No Hustle in Hawley
Yesterday Politico published a scathing critique of Josh Hawley’s US Senate campaign titled “Golden Boy Mails It In.” See it here.
Pull Quote: In interviews with more than two dozen senior Republican strategists, donors, lawmakers and local officials, Hawley was depicted as a lackadaisical candidate who has posted sluggish fundraising numbers, turned down interviews with conservative radio show hosts, and spurned traditional GOP events considered a rite of passage for a potential U.S. senator.
But
While Republicans I’ve talked to agree with this assessment of Hawley’s (“low-energy”) campaign, there are some who shrug anyway. One told me that Hawley ran for AG the same way – while raising oodles of money. And there will be oodles of money flowing into his race regardless of how many or few events he attends. The race will be decided by the general political environment rather than by how many Lincoln Days he shows up to.
Go Fund Me Campaigns? Really?
Matt Heltz, the Democratic candidate in House 121, had started a Go Fund Me campaign to help with his fundraising. See it here. So far $90 of his $3,500 ask has been funded.
I am running for the HD121 seat in the Missouri House of Representatives. The $3500 will provide the resources to get started with Business cards, Tri-folds, and Yard signs... These basic needs will allow me to get my name out there as the Democratic candidate. My Degree is a BS with an emphasis on education. (Summa Cum Laude) from Grantham University. I have an uphill battle in a very red district, which covers the area from Crocker, Richland, Dixon, Jerome, Doolittle, Newburg, Rolla, Swedeborg, Powellville, and Arlington.
New Committees
Dawnnette Burnett formed a candidate committee (Friends Of Dawnnette Burnett Tim Booyer Treasurer) to run for Newton County Clerk as a Republican.
Citizens For Francis Howell was formed. It’s a PAC. Its treasurer is Patrick S Lane.
Clean Up Missouri PAC was formed. Its treasurer is Robert S Rothschild. Its deputy treasurer is Pam Ross.
Lobbyists Registrations
David Sweeney added Inner Circle Investments.
Edward Greim added EDG Legal Inc, and Office of the Governor.
Jeff Brooks deleted City of North Kansas City.
$5K+ Contributions
Missourians for Patient Care - $125,000 from Missourians for Patient Care.
Birthdays
Happy birthday to Deanna Hemphill.
