MOScout Daily Update: Rowden Leans Back Toward SOS Bid - Hamra Timeline - RAGA Drama - Eigel Sets Launch Date and more...
Don’t Count Rowden Out
Senate Pro Tem Caleb Rowden, recently returned tanned and rested from his family’s summer vacation, is telling sources that he is strongly considering running for Secretary of State. Rowden feels that unlike being President of the Senate, SOS is a less controversial role that will allow him to accomplish multiple policy goals for the State of Missouri.
· When: Rowden has indicated that he will focus on fundraising over the next few months prior to making any announcement.
What It Means
· If Rowden’s in for SOS, then that means Bean is out as it’s unlikely the two would run against each other.
Hamra Decision Coming
St. Louis Business Journal reports that businessman Mike Hamra will be deciding whether to make a gubernatorial bid “in the upcoming weeks.”
· “When I look at how I can contribute to supporting others in other areas of my life, doing that as a public servant is something that’s always been attractive to me,” Hamra said.
· Hamra declined to share any specifics regarding policy changes he would like to see implemented in the state or stances he would take in an election.
· Hamra said he plans to make a final decision on whether to run "in the upcoming weeks," adding that he's confident that he "will have the resources needed" to run effectively.
Hamra would be challenging Minority Leader Crystal Quade for the Democratic nomination.
RAGA Drama
Making the rounds last night was this humdinger of a story from Politico’s Influence about Will Scharf’s support among leaders of the Republican Attorneys General Association. Read it here.
From the article…
· RAGA executive director Peter Bisbee “pressured Parson’s chief of staff, Aaron Willard, to pick Scharf on a heated call soon after the midterms, according to a person familiar with the call. After several calls throughout the election cycle during which Bisbee fished for information on the selection process, once Schmitt was elected, Bisbee lobbied Willard aggressively for Scharf’s appointment — at one point warning during the call that ‘this is gonna create problems’ for the governor’s office.”
· Politico links to a Scharf campaign memo that predicts “in a notable departure from past practice, we do not expect RAGA to offer Bailey any support despite his status as a technical incumbent.” Read the memo here.
What It Means
The ability of Scharf to keep RAGA from supporting incumbent Andrew Bailey is worth millions.
Eigel Kick-Off Set
Sen. Bill Eigel’s campaign launch for governor will be Friday September 8 in St. Charles.
If you want to see a Missouri where Republicans actually deliver on promises to protect your rights, shrink the government, and cut your taxes, I am INVITING you to stand with me on September 8th…
NYT on WashU Clinic
The New York Times published a long story about Washinton University’s gender clinic. Read it here.
· Opened in 2017 inside a children’s hospital affiliated with Washington University in St. Louis, the prestigious clinic was welcomed by many families as a godsend. It was the only place for hundreds of miles where distressed adolescents could see a team of experts to help them transition to a different gender.
· But as the number of these patients soared, the clinic became overwhelmed — and soon found itself at the center of a political storm… The reality was more complex than what was portrayed by either side of the political battle…
· The turmoil in St. Louis underscores one of the most challenging questions in gender care for young people today: How much psychological screening should adolescents receive before they begin gender treatments?
· Some patients said they were lifted out of grave depression. But as demand rose, more patients arrived with complex mental health issues. The clinic’s staff often grappled with how best to help, documents show, bringing into sharp relief a tension in the field over whether some children’s gender distress is the root cause of their mental health problems, or possibly a transient consequence of them.
eMailbag on Gun Fight Between Bailey and Jones
I sure hope Tishaura Jones negotiated with Bailey to get something in exchange for her huge, continuing in-kind contributions…
Lobbyists Registrations
Strategic Capitol Consulting added Montenot Meadows LLC, and Bywater Development Group, LLC.
Kurt Schaefer added KC2026.
David Frantze deleted Oracle America, Inc.
$5K+ Contributions
American Dream PAC (pro-Kehoe) - $7,500 from Hawkins Construction Company (Omaha, NE).
Cultivating Freedom PAC (pro-Richey) - $10,000 from Quality Schools Coalition.
Centene Corporation Political Action Committee d/b/a Centene Missouri Federal PAC - $37,400 from Centene Corporation Political Action Committee Centene Plaza.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Rep. Dan Stacy, Bob Holden, and Mary Cottom.