MOScout Daily Update: Rumors Rumors Rumors... What Trump Told Smith? - Parson To Veto Unclean FRA? - McDowell in CD-4? - Forget 7-1? and more....
Parson to Sign Local Gov Bill
This morning Governor Mike Parson will sign Rep. John Wiemann’s HB 271, a local government bill. See the bill summary here.
Post-Dispatch reports on the COVID provisions in the bill – banning vaccine passports on mass transit and reining in local health officials’ emergency powers. But like any omnibus there’s other stuff tucked in – like a ban on any new taxes on streaming services, for example.
Rumorville: Gov to Threaten Veto?
The governor is said to be meeting with Senate Republicans this afternoon about the FRA tax renewal. One rumor making the rounds is that he will tell them that he plans to veto any bill which isn’t “clean.” If true, that means he’s telling Sens. Bob Onder and Paul Wieland to leave their pro-life language off.
Of course, this could just be a starting point of negotiating narrower language, perhaps an amendment which prohibits funding abortions, but leaves contraceptives untouched.
Forget The 7-1 Scenario
I’m told to drop the possible 7-1 map from my radar. The idea that the supermajority Republicans would finagle redistricting to elect 7 Republicans and only 1 Democrat, cutting Rep. Emanuel Cleaver out of a safe seat, is not a priority.
“Nobody’s worried about the western side of the state.”
The real issues facing the Republican supermajorities are (in this order?)…
· Shoring up CD-2 from a potential swing district needing to be defended into something more solidly red.
· Fulfilling the speaker’s desire to put his home county (Jefferson County) all in one congressional district.
· Dealing with the St. Charles puzzle. Like JeffCo-ians, they want their county all in one district. However there are those who aren’t thrilled with the havoc they’ve seen from Eigel and Onder in the Senate and don’t want to give them any more power.
Smith in No Hurry
One Republican insider says that Congressman Jason Smith may not jump in until January! In his meeting with President Donald Trump, Trump supposedly told Smith that his endorsement is game-changing that there’s no need to enter the race until the near filing.
McDowell in CD-4?
I have no idea if this one actually happens…. But one lobbyist tells me that Saundra McDowell now lives in the CD-4. So it’s not a crazy suggestion that she’d run for the open congressional seat.
McDowell won the Republican primary for auditor in 2018, losing to Nicole Galloway in the general election. She then ran for governor in 2020, placing a distant second to Mike Parson in the Republican primary (75% - 12%).
Hartzler Fundy
Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler has a big fundy coming up on June 28. See the invite here. It’s at the home of Marianne & Terry Kilroy. Also hosting: Babs & George Morris, and Mary Ann & Nick Powell.
What It Means
· Team Hartzler hasn’t been sitting on their hands for the past couple weeks. Between the rumors and the announcement, they started laying the groundwork and are up and out of the gates.
· The knock against Hartzler is that she isn’t a natural fundraiser – like Schmitt, for example. We’ll see if she debunks that claim this quarter.
IE PAC List Updated
I’ve updated the Independent Expenditure PAC list. Find it here. I’ve started cleaning up old PACs from last cycle, but have a little more work to do on that. Look for another update next week.
More Lincoln Days Talk
MOScouter: One of the most interesting events of the weekend was a private reception hosted by Todd Graves, Kristen Blanchard and Brad Lager. The event was a who’s who of the conservative thought leaders in the legislature and the Kansas City area. Every Republican statewide elected official attended including Gov. Mike Parson as well as Congressman Jason Smith. The crowded event was one of the larger gatherings for the weekend and a good reminder of the Graves family’s role in the Missouri GOP.
And
Remember: Some senators were worried about putting an aggressively political player on the Mizzou Board of Curators. Graves has shown no sign of pulling back from politics since his appointment. That may ultimately help the university system – or hurt it.
Workers, Workers, Workers.
Economic development used to be about jobs, jobs, jobs. Now – with more job openings than workers – the mantra is flipped. It’s all about workers, workers, workers.
· There are now a record 9.3 million open jobs in America. The labor force stands at 161 million, about 3 million people fewer than it was pre-pandemic, and has seen no growth since August.
· Demographic realities mean that only increased immigration will be able to boost the number of working-age Americans in coming years.
· The lowest wage that workers without a college degree would be willing to accept for a new job now stands at an all-time high of $61,483, a rise of $10,000 in just one year, according to a New York Fed labor market survey.
· Financial security is now easier to come by even without at job, thanks in part to the Obama-era expansion of health insurance.
MEC
The Missouri Ethics Commission fined Mike Tiller and St. Louis Progress for failing to report expenditure during the August 2020 primary. They were fined $1,234. See the consent order here.
Lobbyists Registrations
Gamble & Schlemeier added Science Coach.
Sarah Martin added Ginkgo Bioworks.
Birthdays
Happy birthday to Martin Rucker.