MOScout Daily Update: Wood Drops - DeGroot Drops - Parson Dumps on MJ IP - Kehoe and Ashcroft Dueling Fundys and more...
Wood Drops
And just like that… the Jack Danforth-inspired Independent candidacy of John Wood which promised to spice up the US Senate is gone. Poof! Wood asked for his name to be removed from the ballot yesterday as he dropped out of the race.
· One MOScouter quipped: I’m sure both his supporters are disappointed.
· Another source said Wood was polling at 7% earlier in the month, suggesting reality had something to do with his decision.
What It Means
Bad news for Trudy Valentine who must have hoped that a second Republican in the race – even under the Independent moniker – would siphon off votes from Eric Schmitt’s tally and leveled the Republican tilt of the electorate.
That means Valentine’s campaign will face an electoral equation that has puzzled Democrats for the past ten years. Aside from Nicole Galloway’s 2018 victory over flawed Republican candidate Saundra McDowell, Dems haven’t notched a statewide win since the 2012 elections.
Danforth threw a final punch at Schmitt for his willingness to wink at Donald Trump’s election lies, but otherwise Republicans have closed ranks around Schmitt.
DeGroot Drops
Perhaps more important to state lobbyists, Rep. Bruce DeGroot also had his name removed from the ballot. He’s going to be Sen.-elect Curtis Trent’s chief of staff next year.
Post-Dispatch listed potential replacements for the Republican Central Committee of St. Louis County to nominate. Among them: John Brunner, who just lost a primary in the nearby 101 District, and Gary Wiegert.
Wiegert is a former cop, who is facing a strong anti-endorsement from law enforcement organizations.
From the Fraternal Order of Police’s scathing letter to the Committee (see the full letter here): Mr. Wiegert serving as a Republican Candidate for the statehouse would be EXTREMELY offensive to the men and women of the St. Louis Metropolitan Department and St. Louis County Police Department. He is simply unfit to serve in the Missouri General Assembly. Mr. Wiegert has been a very toxic force in many different positions and with several organizations in our community and has acted unethically when placed in positions of trust… Mr. Wiegert is fundamentally incapable of productive and meaningful collaboration… The vast majority of current and former St. Louis police officers would say “Gary Wiegert did more to hurt the plight of average police officers than any other member of the force”. MAKE NO MISTAKE, GARY WIEGERT IS NO FRIEND TO LAW ENFORCEMENT…
· Gary Wiegert is the ONLY member EVER to be thrown out by a vote of his fellow police officers of SLPOA. Lodge #68…
· Gary Wiegert was banned and prohibited entry to the St louis Police Retirement System offices by a vote of the St Louis PRS Board of Trustees for harassment and creating a hostile work environment for the St Louis PRS staff.
· Gary Wiegert was expelled and thrown off the St Louis Police Retirement System Board of Trustees by a vote of all the trustees for unethical conduct by a Board member
Parson Clubs Marijuana IP
In a surprising twist, Governor Mike Parson disparaged the recreational marijuana initiative petition, an effort backed by his stalwart ally Steven Tilley.
· “I think that thing’s a disaster,” Parson told reporters in Kansas City when asked if he supported the Nov. 8 ballot question that will ask voters whether to amend the state constitution to legalize recreational marijuana.
· “I guarantee you this has been written probably by lawyers... and none of us in this state is going to be able to understand 450 pages of what it all means.” It wasn’t immediately clear what Parson was referring to when he said 450 pages. The petition itself is 39 pages and the question that voters will see is less than a page. A spokeswoman for the governor didn’t immediately clarify the governor’s reference to 450 pages.
Tale of Two Invites?
Just because we’re ten weeks away from the 2022 Election Day doesn’t mean there isn’t an active 2024 campaign going on. Lieutenant Governor Mike Kehoe and Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft are both on the fundraising circuit for their gubernatorial race. They each have upcoming events in Poplar Bluff. And Team Kehoe feels the relative size of the committee host list shows how hard they’re working to build a broad base of support.
More on St. Charles Airport
Sen. Bob Onder says he won’t be seeking revenge during special session for Governor Mike Parson’s veto for the St. Charles airport, noting that the airport is in Sen. Bill Eigel’s Senate 23, not Senate 2, and that he keeps his own airplane at Spirit of St. Louis Airport which is closer to his house.
· But he adds, “I do think the tax cut should be much more aggressive…”
Dems See Good Omens
From Ryan Matsumoto’s Twitter: “Democrats have now outperformed Biden’s numbers in each of the four U.S. House special elections since the Dobbs decision in June.”
MO Only State To Reject Free Lunch Waiver
Getting passed around yesterday was this humdinger of a story from NBC…
· There was plenty of food in the orange coolers full of free summer meals when a father pulled up, asking for two suppers to bring home to his children. But staff at the meal site in this rural community, where over 60% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches, could not give the man anything. That’s because Missouri chose not to opt in to a federal waiver that allows parents and kids to pick up meals and take them home, a pandemic-era benefit that vastly expanded access to meals.
· Missouri was the only state that did not allow a grab-and-go option for its Summer Food Service Program operators, according to an exclusive NBC News analysis based on responses from all 50 states. The result was a dramatic drop in the number of meals that Missouri kids received: up to 97% fewer than last summer at some sites, community operators across the state told NBC News…
Lobbyists Registrations
Stephen Carl Anderson added Show Me Integrity Education Fund.
Connor Andrew Luebbert added MADP (Missourians For Alternatives To The Death Penalty), Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys, PROMO, Missouri NAACP State Conference, and Missouri Healthcare for All.
$5K+ Contributions
Jack PAC (pro-Coatar) - $7,400 from 900 North Tucker Building LLC.
Jackson County Democratic Committee – $20,000 from Protect Missouri Freedom.
Committee for Liberty (pro-Ashcroft) - $10,000 from Lee Mechanical Contractors, Inc.
Tony PAC (pro-Luetkemeyer) - $50,000 from Rex Sinquefield.
Birthdays
Happy birthday to Rep. Dan Stacy, Mary Cottom, and Anna Crosslin.