MOScout Daily Update: McCloskeys Plead Guilty - Senate Showdown Coming? - Johnson in CD-4 - Onder Eyes CD-2? and more...
Juneteenth Observed Today
Office of Administration: Today, consistent with the enactment of a new federal statute and 1 CSR 20-5.010(2)(A) providing for state holidays as designated by law, the Office of Administration announced that all state offices will be closed tomorrow to celebrate Juneteenth (June 19th). Juneteenth is our nation’s new holiday that recognizes an important event in our country's history. It is the nation's first new national holiday in almost forty years. Juneteenth has been previously recognized by Missouri law in Section 9.161, RSMo, and commemorates the day that slavery came to an end in the United States.
Gaming Out the FRA Special
Though it’s been mumsville from the governor’s office, the expectation is that we’ll get a call for a special session today.
Here’s one possible scenario…
· The governor issues a very narrow call – focused tightly on the agreed upon language.
· Sen. Bob Onder attempts to add his language, but it’s ruled out of order by Pro Tem Dave Schatz.
· That would set up a Senate showdown, assuming Onder appealed the ruling. If that happens, would pro-life senators back Schatz’ ruling on what they might consider a purely “procedural” vote?
It’s unclear how Dems will play this hand. On the one hand, there’s no doubt they want the FRA renewed. On the other, they might have some motivations for being less than accommodating…
· First, they still feel the need to extract some vengeance for being lied to during session. There might be some in their caucus who are feeling that “if you keep giving the bully your lunch money, he’ll soon want a place at your dinner table.”
· Second, Republicans have supermajorities; the responsibility to govern falls squarely on them. Why should Dems help Republicans manage the circus of their party?
We’ll see….
McCloskeys Plead Guilty
The McCloskeys pled guilty to lesser charges stemming from their gun-waving incident. See the Post-Dispatch article here.
· Mark McCloskey, 64, will pay a $750 fine after pleading guilty to fourth-degree assault, a Class C misdemeanor. Patricia McCloskey, 62, must pay a $2,000 fine after pleading guilty to second-degree harassment, a Class A misdemeanor. Mark McCloskey could have faced up to 15 days in jail; Patricia McCloskey could have spent up to a year behind bars. Neither will face jail time.
· The McCloskeys also agreed to forfeit the weapons they used when they confronted a throng of protesters marching past their Portland Place mansion on June 28, 2020.
· Gov. Mike Parson said last year that he’d “certainly” pardon the McCloskeys if they are convicted stemming from the June confrontation. Parson’s spokeswoman Kelli Jones said Thursday that “we are evaluating the situation but have yet to receive any official documents.”
McCloskey quickly released a campaign video on Twitter. “The prosecutor dropped the charges against me except for a claim that I purposed placed other people in imminent fear of physical harm. And by God I did. And anytime they come to threaten me I’ll do the same thing again and again and again… a vote for McClsokey is a vote for standing your ground…” See it here.
Meanwhile
Post-Dispatch columnist Tony Messenger thinks it “was a pretty good day” for Eric Greitens. He tweeted: I hate to say this, but today was a pretty good day for @EricGreitens in the #MOSEN race. @Eric_Schmitt gave up on Safer Streets, because standing up for fake gun nullification is more important than taking guns off the street. Meanwhile, @mccloskeyusa actually gave up his guns.
Someone’s Polling Nixon
It’s unclear who’s behind it, but someone is using Facebook ads to find voters to take a Survey Monkey poll about a possible Jay Nixon candidacy in the US Senate race…
Johnson for CD-4
Cass County Commissioner Ryan Johnson announced he’d seek the CD-4 seat.
Over the last few weeks, I've been encouraged by conservatives across Missouri's 4th District to run for our open congressional seat. After careful thought and prayer, I've decided to run for this seat. This district needs strong, uncompromising conservative leadership and proven, active-duty military experience. I will bring those qualities to Congress and help stop the Biden Administration’s socialist agenda. I will make a formal announcement of my candidacy soon. I look forward to seeing you on the campaign trail…
Where We Are
Ed Emery – IN
Ryan Johnson – IN
Dan Hartmann – Likely to Run
Denny Hoskins – Likely to Run
Caleb Rowden – Likely to Run
Sara Walsh – Likely to Run
Rick Brattin – Mentioned
Taylor Burks – Mentioned
Sandy Crawford – Mentioned
Caleb Jones – Mentioned
Saundra McDowell – Mentioned
Onder Preps Possible CD-2 Run?
Tipster: Sen. Bob Onder is in Washington, D.C. exploring the potential of running for U.S. Congress if Congresswoman Ann Wagner enters the U.S. Senate race. He met with members of Congress and was clear that he would not challenge Ann Wagner…
eMailbag
· So states can refuse to enforce federal pot laws and no one whines. But if a state refuses to enforce federal 2nd Amendment infringements, it suddenly gets a letter from the DOJ. Hypocrisy.
· Governor Parson has the power of the pen. Whether he takes a meat cleaver or a scalpel to the budget, or a combination of both, are his choices if the FRA Tax fails to pass, which why this entire debate is on the backs of the taxpayers of Missouri who don’t deserve to be treated like the collateral damage many will become if this isn’t resolved.
· To your commentary on vaccination rates in southern Missouri, the point is well illustrated by this map published today in Bloomberg. Multiple Missouri counties in the teens. Douglas County looks to be at the bottom at 13.8%. The data obviously lags by some amount of time as the percentages that you reference are a point or two higher for those respective counties than what Bloomberg published. See it here.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Rep. Jay Mosley, Tim Garrison, and Logan Thompson.
Saturday: Mark Dalton, Jason Cohen, Angela Bingaman, and Brian Nieves.
Sunday: Eric Schmitt and Jami Wade.
MOScout Schedule
I’m taking off the weekend (for Father’s Day 😉). I’ll be watching some 13U baseball. See y’all Monday.