MOScout Daily Update: Rook Adds $500K - Pro-Choice IP Ballot Title - Scharf Intros Kirk and more...
Quick Friday update…
Rook Adds Serious Cash
Lori Rook, an attorney from Southwest Missouri, seeded her campaign yesterday with $500,000. Rook is running for state treasurer as a Republican.
The move catapults Rook’s cash on-hand total above both Sen. Andrew Koenig’s and Rep. Cody Smith’s, transforming the race from a 3-way race with also-rans, into a 4-way Republican primary.
· One Southwest Republican thinks that Rook is using “Saundra McDowell” math, referring to the 2018 Republican primary for auditor. In that race McDowell, the only woman in the field, bested three men with varying degrees of political experience (Paul Curtman, Kevin Roach, and David Wasinger). The vote split relatively evenly and McDowell won with 32.5%.
· But, he adds, it’s wrong to assume perfect parallels. For example, the candidates in this race aren’t “as soft” as those were in 2018.
Ashcroft Ballot Title on Corley IPs
Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft released the ballot title for the “moderate” reproductive rights initiative petitions filed by Jamie Corley. As expected, they are not particularly hospitable to effort to add exceptions to Missouri’s total abortion ban.
· nullify Missouri laws protecting the right to life, which conflict with these constitutional changes;
· allow abortions at any age without government interference from conception to live birth in the case of rape or sexual assault, incest, fatal fetal abnormality or risk to the health/safety of the mother;
· prohibit abortions regarding an alleged rape or sexual assault unless reported to a specific crisis hotline
We’ll see if this heads to court too like the other pro-choices IPs.
And Bailey Says He’d Sit Out
The fiscal note says that the “Attorney General’s office estimates increased state litigation costs of up to $21 million.” That’s based on the cost of the AG’s office to hire out defending the IPs in court should they pass. AG Andrew Bailey says that he’s too pro-life to do his constitutional duty; he’d have to farm it out.
Scharf Intros Kirk
Will Scharf, candidate for attorney general, introduce Charlie Kirk last night at his event at Missouri State University. Kirk is popular with younger grassroots conservatives. He has 2.5M followers on Twitter.
· This is yet another example of Scharf’s national connections.
Psychedelic Missouri Freedom Conferences
Medicinal use of psychedelics appears to be the step with marijuana now legalized in the state. Psychedelic Missouri Freedom Conferences, part of that effort, take place tomorrow in St. Louis (see event listing here), and next weekend in Kansas City.
Among the topics to be discussed…
· Decriminalizing & Commercializing Psychedelics
· The Politics of Psychedelic Medicine & Criminal Justice
Carnahan Works from MO
Axios reports that former Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, now Administrator of the General Services Administration mostly works remote from Missouri. And that bothers some folks.
· Oversight chair James Comer (R-Ky.) began investigating Carnahan's remote work arrangement in January. In a letter to her then, Comer said his panel had "received whistleblower reports you have spent most of your time working in a location other than Washington, D.C., during your tenure as GSA administrator."
· By the numbers: From March 2022 to March 2023, Carnahan worked 121 weekdays in Missouri and 64 weekdays at her office in Washington, GSA Associate Administrator Gianelle E. Rivera wrote to Comer on March 31.
eMailbag: MEC’s Welfare Reform Law
Republicans are funny. Crystal Quade came in in 2016 with addressing the welfare cliff effect as her #1 priority. Got her bill moving within a couple years and gradually convinced the Rs it was necessary and bipartisan. Then a couple Rs finally file the bill as their own and claim full credit when it passes and nobody even remembers who introduced them to the idea. And I swear they literally don’t even realize it
eMailbag on Scharf Repping Trump
Re: Scharf and Trump – People who work for Trump, especially attorneys, tend to find themselves in direct legal peril and like everyone else Trump hires, eventually are thrown under the bus as incompetent, traitors and RINOs.
$5K+ Contributions
Lori Rook for Missouri - $500,000 from Lori Rook.
Missouri Alliance PAC (pro-Patterson) - $10,000 from Evergy Metro Inc.
Pfizer Missouri Political Action Committee - Federal Committee - $21,500 from Pfizer Inc PAC (New York, NY).
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Kevin Gunn, and Ben Harris.