MOScout Daily Update: Catching Up... Hartzler, Schmitt, Roe, Christofanelli, Graves, Teepell, and the Lake of Ozarks!!
MO Senate Update
Hartzler Eyes Entry
· Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler’s team sent word to various media outlets that she’s seriously considering the US Senate race. See it here.
· She joins three others in the Missouri congressional delegation officially looking at the race: Blaine Luetkemeyer, Billy Long, Jason Smith and Ann Wagner.
Desperately Seeking Trump
· Amid the jockeying to replace Blunt, several Republicans hope to land the coveted Trump endorsement to catapult to the front of the field.
· AG Eric Schmitt, who signed on to the lawsuit to overturn Biden wins in battleground states, pro-Trump Congressmen Smith and Long, and aggrieved former governor Eric Greitens all have a case to make for the nod.
· Politico Playbook outlines a “9-step guide” to landing The Donald’s endorsement, including the not-so-helpful hint to “be famous.”
Schmitt In, Just Not Quite Yet
· A source on Team Schmitt says he is diligently getting his ducks in a row. But it’s a matter of “when,” not “if” he’ll be announcing for US Senate.
· Right now, he’s working the phones to make sure that everyone who needs to hear from him directly (both in Missouri and nationally) does so before a formal launch.
· In a potentially related story, Republican consultant Jeff Roe was spotted at Mar-a-Lago this weekend (see “9-step guide” above).
ABG?
Politico reports on an Anyone But Greitens movement.
· Disgraced former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens is moving closer to a 2022 Senate bid, alarming top Republicans who worry he will jeopardize the party’s grip on the seat and imperil their prospects of seizing the majority… The concerns have grown so serious that former President Donald Trump and those in his orbit have heard from Republicans inside and outside Missouri, who warn that Greitens would be the one GOP candidate who could lose to a Democrat, according to a person familiar with the conversations.
· Republican leaders say they aren’t ruling out taking aggressive steps to stop Greitens from winning the nomination, including waging a slashing advertising campaign against him. Party officials — ranging from members of the Missouri congressional delegation to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s political operation — have been united in their worry about the former governor and spent the week having conversations about the situation, according to people familiar with the discussions.
· “Greitens is a clear and present danger to botching the race for the GOP,” said Scott Reed, the former senior political strategist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Christofanelli Comes Out
Missouri Times reports that Rep. Phil Christofanelli came out over the weekend. “[A]s Christofanelli is coming into his own in the statehouse, he’s also opening up about his personal life more this year to his constituents and colleagues. In an interview on ‘This Week in Missouri Politics’ Sunday, Christofanelli said he wanted to share that he is gay.”
KCStar on Hawley Whisperer Teepell
KCStar reports on one of Josh Hawley’s most important advisors…
· Josh Hawley had never held elected office when he became Missouri attorney general four years ago. Most of his top staff had no government experience. So Hawley turned to a man in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for guidance. Timmy Teepell, a political consultant with the firm OnMessage, had served as former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal’s chief of staff….
· “Josh does not talk to a big circle,” said a source involved in Missouri GOP politics. “I’d put his wife in there and Timmy.”
· Hawley’s state and federal campaigns have paid OnMessage more than $15 million, going back to his 2016 bid for attorney general. That includes $80,000 for its role in directing the Missouri attorney general staff.
· It took less than two weeks after Hawley was sworn in as Missouri attorney general before out-of-state political consultants looked to raise the political newcomer’s profile.
Missouri Awash in $$$
Aligned’s capitol report cited Missouri Budget Project in looking at the ginormous federal stimulus package…
The Missouri Budget Project combed through the package and here's what they found. Missouri's estimated state & local relief aid is projected to total more than $5.4 billion, including approximately:
· $2.816 billion in state fiscal relief,
· $1.19 billion for counties,
· $830 million for cities with a population greater than 50,000
· $442 million for other local jurisdictions with a population less than 50,000
· $195 million for the state for specific capital projects.
Graves Front-Runner for Curator Post
MOIndy reports on the status of the UM Curator appointment.
· According to emails, letters and text messages turned over to The Independent under a Sunshine Law request, Lisa Weixelman, an attorney at Polsinelli law firm in Kansas City, has the backing of UM System President Mun Choi. And Warren Erdman, once a close aide to former U.S. Sen. Kit Bond and now executive vice president of Kansas City Southern Railroad, asked that Weixelman “should at least be considered.”
· But Todd Graves, brother of U.S. Rep. Sam Graves and a former U.S. Attorney, was asked Dec. 16 to provide fingerprints for a final background check for his application for a seat on the nine-member board — a step longtime observers of state government say often takes place after an appointment has been offered, accepted and the file is being prepared for delivery to the state Senate for confirmation. There is no indication in the records turned over to The Independent by the governor’s office of any other candidates providing fingerprints.
· “Wanted to let you know up front that there would be some pretty strong opposition to that confirmation,” Chris Schappe, counsel to Missouri Senate Democrats, wrote in one text to a member of the governor’s staff. Democrats would likely oppose Graves as too political for the board because he was appointed GOP state chairman by former Gov. Eric Greitens, serving from 2017 to early 2019. Graves, founder of the Graves Garrett law firm, also has ties to Parson’s political operation. Uniting Missouri, a PAC established to support the governor, last month moved into a downtown Jefferson City building owned by a company connected to Graves.
Whaaa!!! Is Going On At Lake of Ozarks
Lake Expo has a humdinger of an article. The lede tells you this is going to be a crazy… “Lake Ozark Mayor Gerry Murawski admits he had sex with a prostitute in 2015, while he was a city alderman. It turns out, the girl was 16 years old, according to FBI and police investigators.”
· Murawski told investigators that, after having sex at the Red Roof Inn in Columbia, he and the girl went to a convenience store, where he bought her a phone card and other items. He later gave the girl a phone and paid for service for one of the three numbers he had stored for her in his phone. Her number was saved in his phone as “RH” which Murawski said stands for “Red Hot.”
Gubby Appts
Governor Mike Parson announced six appointments to various boards and commissions and filled two county office vacancies…
· Anna Burk was appointed as the Stone County Collector of Revenue.
· Stephen Coppinger and Shanda Durbin were appointed to the Northwest Missouri State University Board of Regents.
· Paul Cordia, Alex LeCure, Michelle Miller, and Jill Irvin were appointed to the Child Abuse and Neglect Review Board.
· Allen Icet was appointed as the Greene County Collector of Revenue.
eMailbag on Trump’s Endorsement
No way that anyone who is advising Trump, whether that be Hawley, the Governor, Blunt or McConnell, on his endorsement of a candidate in a US Senate Repub Primary, could suggest he lend his name to Greitens. Not because the information that booted him from office is too damaging, but because there are likely so many chapters of that book not yet disclosed or discovered, that deserve the adult content warning label stamped on the first report.
New Committees
Northern Missouri Citizens For Reflective Government was formed. It’s a PAC. Its treasurer is Isaiah Korthanke.
Democratic Coalition Kansas City was formed. It’s a PAC. Its treasurer is James Hill.
Lobbyists Registrations
Titus Folks added Students for Life Action.
Maya Ingram added Secure Democracy.
Jeffrey Altmann added Center For Rural Health Innovation; and deleted Jordan Valley Community Health Center.
Trey Davis deleted The Hire Connection LLC.
$5K+ Contributions
MO Republican Party - $15,000 from Parson for Missouri.
Teamsters Local Union No 688 Political Action Committee - $9,772 from DRIVE Committee – FEC.
Teamsters Local 600 DRIVE PAC- $6,015 from DRIVE Committee.
Together KC - $10,000 from Black & McDonald Inc.
Legal Missouri 2022 - $22,500 from GL Partnership LLC.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Rep. Bill Owen, Melissa Randol, Michelle Sherod, Jon Dolan, and Tom Villa.