MOScout Daily Update: Helluva I'm Not Running Video from Rowden - SAPA-Lite Coming? - Awkward Back the Blue Fundy and more...
Rowden Officially Out of CD-4
Sen. Caleb Rowden, on Twitter, announced that he’s not running for CD-4, and explains his decision.
· But take a look at this video, and tell me he didn’t walk up to the edge of the diving board first before deciding not to jump off. The only thing missing is “Rowden of Congress” at the end.
· Meanwhile on his website: I have always said the Missouri government is a place for work horses, not show horses…. We’re going to beat the radical left. And we’re NOT going to do it by yelling louder. We’re going to do it by working harder.
New-SAPA Next Session?
A House Republican vents about the SAPA mess: [We] all knew that SAPA was unconstitutional and would be thrown out by the courts or at least need a fix. But it was one if Vescovo’s top 3 priorities last year as Speaker so it is hard to get anything else done if you don’t move the Speaker’s priority…especially when it is a vote on guns. Now Vescovo owns it. 60 Minutes just puts the pressure on the Speaker to answer to the law enforcement community for the bind they are in because this was one of his priorities.
Back the Blue Fundy
One MOScouter sent me this invite to a November 16 fundraiser with a four-word commentary… “Well, this is awkward.”
It’s a fundraiser at the Missouri State Trooper Association office in Jefferson City for seven state representatives with law enforcement backgrounds under the banner of “Back the Blue.”
One of the seven is Rep. Chad Perkins. Perkins was investigated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol for allegedly having sex with a drunk woman while on duty. Attorney General Eric Schmitt was appointed special prosecutor in the case last week.
Organic Food Fraud
A New Yorker story of an organic farming fraud made it to Drudge yesterday. It all takes place in Missouri. Read it here.
· “In his mind, he could slick-talk anyone, and had no fear of actually getting caught.”
Driverless Deliveries Inches Forward
Just to the south of us, the driverless deliveries of the future is taking a big spin forward. Axios reports that Walmart has removed the “safety driver” from one of their delivery routes in Bentonville. Walmart’s technology partner is Gatik, a Silicon Valley start-up valued at about $850 million.
· With permission from the Arkansas State Highway Commission, the trucks are now operating with nobody behind the wheel.
· For now, the passenger still rides along as an observer, with limited access to the controls, to stop the truck in an emergency. A chase vehicle follows behind to observe as well.
· The trucks move customer orders from a Walmart "dark store" (or micro-fulfillment center) to a nearby Neighborhood Market.
· The initial driving route was selected to minimize risk: It avoids schools and hospitals, and favors right turns over unprotected left turns — a common practice among UPS drivers, too.
FYI
Walmart’s Jeff City lobbyists are Gamble & Schlemeier.
And More Automation Is Coming…
The shape of the job market is likely going to undergo a dramatic with wide swaths of low-end jobs vanishing to automation. It may be the greatest challenge our educational system faces: preparing the next generation without knowing what the job market will look like.
The latest ripple of this whale under the surface… “Culver’s eyes drive-thru automation.” Chicago Business Journal reports, “In the next few years, Culver’s may start using artificial intelligence software instead of humans to take drive-thru orders, the CEO of the fast-casual restaurant chain said Monday.”
MOSoy Hires
Missouri Soybean announced it hired “two new communications coordinators, Madelyn Warren and Ryan Siegel. In these newly designed roles, the communications coordinators will assist Missouri Soybean in developing communications strategies to enhance the soybean narrative.”
Appts
· Governor Mike Parson appointed the Honorable Virginia W. Lay as Circuit Judge for Division 16 of the 21st Judicial Circuit in St. Louis County. She will fill the Circuit Judge vacancy created by the retirement of the Honorable Michael D. Burton.
· Steven C. Roberts Sr., founder and president of the Roberts Companies, has been appointed to the Communications Equity and Diversity Council (CEDC) of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The appointment was made by Jessica Rosenworel, the first female Chair of the FCC. Members span the entire communications industry and are working to break down barriers to digital and broadcast communications ownership and diversity of suppliers.
New Committees
Keep the Promise MO PAC was formed. Its treasurer is Becky Uccello; the deputy treasurer is James C. Thomas III. Ucello testified last year in favor of the ESA legislation; Thoma sis an attorney who frequently works with Axiom Strategies.
Lobbyists Registrations
Jenny Carrell added Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems Inc.
Frank Alvarado deleted Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems Inc.
$5K+ Contributions
Serve Missouri PAC - $7,600 from Alliance For Progress, LLC.
Naral Pro-Choice Missouri PAC - $49,518 from NARAL Pro-Choice Missouri.
MO Insurance Coalition PAC - $15,000 from RGA Enterprise Services Company.
UFCW Local 655 Elect Club - $5,044 from UFCW Local 655.
Birthdays
Happy birthday to Kathy Swan.