MOScout Daily Update: McCloskey Raises $200K - Hartzler ACU Rating - Hartman for Congress? - Neidorff Pouts - Ashcroft Hearts PQ and more...
McCloskey Hauls $200K After Announcement
Eli Yokley tweeted “Just talked with someone close to @Mark__McCloskey who said his campaign has raised over $180,000 since last night, when he launched on @TuckerCarlson 's show with a video and urged people to go to his website.”
What It Means
It’s a nice chunk of change, but it’s just a drop of the millions that will be needed in this primary. The real kicker here is whether McCloskey will write a substantial (seven-figure) check himself. We’ll see….
Hartzler Has Lowest ACU Rating
One reader disputes my assertion yesterday about Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler being the most authentic conservative in the race, pointing out that she actually has the lowest lifetime rating among the Missouri Republican Congressional delegation according to the American Conservative Union.
Hartzler - 78.72%.
Ann Wagner - 79.84%.
Blaine Luetkemeyer - 79.99%.
Sam Graves - 83.39%.
Billy Long - 87.05%.
Jason Smith - 91.66%.
Looking Ahead to the Hartzler Sweepstakes
With Hartzler expected to formally enter the US Senate race next month, it’s time to start looking at the pool of possible candidates for her congressional seat. Of course, we won’t have the actual district lines for probably six more months…
· Tipster: If Hartzler jumps in, look for Sen. Josh Hawley's right-hand man in Missouri, State Director Daniel Hartman to seriously look at jumping in the race for Hartzler's House seat. He would have access to the Hawley money machine and Hawley campaign director superstar Timmy Teepel is already onboard.
Others previously mentioned:
· Floor Leader Caleb Rowden
· Sen. Denny Hoskins
· Sen. Sandy Crawford
· Rep. Sara Walsh
· Cass County Commish Ryan Johnson
· Former Boone County Clerk Taylor Burks
· And former Rep. Caleb Jones.
Neidorff Threatens Move Over MedEx
Post-Dispatch reports that Centene CEO Michael Neidorff once again warned he might relocate the giant company due to the business environment.
· In comments to Health Payer Specialist, a health industry trade publication, Centene Corp. chief Michael Neidorff said Republican Gov. Mike Parson and the GOP-controlled state Legislature’s failure to approve funding for a voter-approved expansion of Medicaid is renewing his desire to relocate his company.
· “As the largest provider of Medicaid in the United States and a Fortune 42 company I have to ask myself “Why am I in this state?’,” Niedorff told the publication “This is a state that frowns on this business — what am I doing here?”
· “It’s an embarrassment,” he added.
· Neidorff told the trade publication he had not yet heard from Parson. “Wait till he hears we’re moving out, he’ll probably call me then,” he said.
· Centene covers about one-third of the state’s current Medicaid population as Home State Health.
One building denizen rolled their eyes at the tirade: Is the business environment of the state really so bad considering Centene has grown from about $5 billion in revenue to $115 billion in the last ten years?
FYI
I’m sure Centene’s representation in Jefferson City is thrilled with the boss’ outburst: Rodney Boyd, Kate Casas, Alex Curchin, Tony Dugger, Jim Foley, Shawn Furey, Mike Gibbons, Brian Grace, Chris Liese, Kelvin Simmons, Francis Slay, Steven Tilley, and Tricia Workman.
Ashcroft Suggests PQ
MOIndy reports on Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s take on the Senate’s FRA impasse. Read it here.
· Republicans in the Missouri Senate should move to shut off debate if a filibuster blocks anti-abortion lawmakers from putting their stamp on provider taxes that fund Medicaid, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft said… The advice was not, however, well received by the Senate’s Republican or Democratic leaders.
· “I think that people in this state would be very happy if the Republican supermajorities that they’ve elected passed Republican, supermajority type items,” Ashcroft said.
· The advice from Senate leaders to Ashcroft is to stick to the duties of his office. “I appreciate the Secretary’s input, but the last time I checked, he doesn’t have a vote in the Missouri Senate,” Majority Leader Caleb Rowden, R-Columbia, wrote in a text message.
What It Means
This demonstrates why Ashcroft is such a fearsome gubernatorial candidate. In addition to his last name, he’s a statewide official with the platform. And yet, even as he lobs blanket conservative messages and exhorts a right-wing agenda, he has no actual responsibility to do the compromising necessary to enact that agenda.
Conservative Caucus PAC Watch
It’s anticipated that the Conservative Caucus will again be recruiting candidates in Senate primaries in 2022.
Their previous campaign committee, CL PAC, was terminated at the end of last year.
The newest vehicle for the Conservative Caucus appears to be The 100 PAC. Conservative Caucus staffer Jim Lembke is listed as the chairman of the organization on the PAC’s paperwork.
Their April fundraising report showed $61,000 raised. $40K of that came from lobbyist Richard McIntosh.
Former Speaker Tim Jones’ firm, Elevation Strategies LLC, was paid a little over $5,000 for “strategic consulting.”
And
One lobbyist notes that with the departure of Sen. Cindy O’Laughlin from the group, the Conservative Caucus has now become an all-boys club.
7 CC members -- 7 Men 0 Women
Rest of the Senate -- 14 Men 11 Women (6R, 5D)
Lobbyists Registrations
David Sweeney deleted TKFC LC.
$5K+ Contributions
Show Me Integrity Action Fund - $10,000 from Center for Election Science.
UFCW Local 655 Elect Club - $21,809 from UFCW Local 655.
UAW Region 5 Midwest States Political Action Committee (PAC) (MO) - $6,000 from UAW Region 4 Exchange Account.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Justin Arnold, Jim Guest, and Kyle Juvers.
MOScout Schedule
I’m continuing my post-session slacking with another weekend off. There will be an update tomorrow, but no Weekender or Sunday6.