MOScout Daily Update: Trump's Non-Position on Abortion and What It Means - Leadership Spreadsheet - Congressman $mith and more...

1 Big Thing: Abortion Issue Creates Intra-Party Divides

The absence of Roe has created new divides in both parties on the issue of abortion.  Previously Republicans in the Missouri legislature were lockstep with Missouri Right to Life in a total ban of abortions.  And Missouri Democrats made allegiance to Roe a central principle, slowly weeding pro-life Democrats out of the party as they ceded rural Missouri to Republicans.

But the post Dobbs-era has exposed divisions within each party.

·       The Nation and Mother Jones reported on pro-choice schisms that “cast doubt on whether a version of the initiative will even make it to the ballot next year.”  Democrats seem split whether a return to Roe is acceptable or a more expansive right should be pursued.

·       Republicans, meanwhile, are split on defending the total ban, or allowing some exceptions. Gubernatorial candidate Mike Kehoe initially received right-side criticism for stating he was open to changes in Missouri to allow exceptions from the total ban.  But that position has been endorsed by both Missouri’s Republican Senators as well as the party leader, Donald Trump.

However even Trump is groping for the right stance.  In an NBC interview, Trump wouldn’t specify a position other than to endorse a compromise somewhere in the middle: Trump declined to endorse a standard number of weeks after which abortion would be illegal, with some exceptions, and he similarly refused to say whether he feels the issue would best be settled at the state or federal levels.  "We’re going to agree to a number of weeks or months or however you want to define it," Trump said. "And both sides are going to come together and both sides — both sides, and this is a big statement — both sides will come together.

What It Means

The “safe” partisan position on this issue seems to be evaporating.  For Republicans, is following MRL or following Trump more likely to prevent a primary challenge?  For Democrats, is calling for a return to Roe enough to keep a left-side challenge at bay?

Leadership Races Spreadsheet

I added a tab to the 2024 Watch spreadsheet which can be found here or at the top of the MOScout homepage.

It’s for legislative leadership races.  I feel like I hear that folks are running for a certain position, and then find myself forgetting a few days later.  Let me know who I’m missing – dave@moscout.com.

·       I’ll put question marks next to folks who are “talking about” running, but otherwise folks listed will have declared their intentions.

Mulligan Hopes to Stay Put

Springfield News Leader reports that Zora Mulligan won’t be applying to be the new Missouri State University president.  Read it here.

·       In May 2022, shortly before Mulligan started, Smart made it clear her hiring was part of his strategic succession plan. There had been a wave of high-level retirements at the university and Smart hoped the board would tap Mulligan to fill in if something happened that left him incapacitated and consider her a "strong internal candidate" whenever he decided to retire.

·       On Sept. 6, Smart announced his intent to retire in mid-2024. At that time, Smart said Jasinski planned to apply for the president job but Mulligan did not.

·       Mulligan said working with Smart was a major draw for taking the Missouri State job a year ago… Asked why she is not applying for the top job, Mulligan said Smart is retiring sooner than she expected and "the timing, for me, does not feel right."

·       Mulligan, who co-parents with her ex-husband, has a 17-year-old senior at Helias Catholic High School in Jefferson City.  During the week, Mulligan lives in a condo near campus and works long hours. Each weekend, she goes to Jefferson City — where she still maintains a home — so she can be present for her daughter.  "It is super hard. This is a very demanding job. Being the parent of a senior is also a demanding job. It is a constant balancing act where everyone is working hard to do their best," she said.

·       As for Missouri State, Mulligan said she is deeply invested in the work she started a year ago and hopes to continue it if Jasinski is hired.

Congressman $mith

Politico Influence reports on Congressman Jason Smith’s huge fundraising hauls as committee chair.  Read it here.

— “Rep. Jason Smith shattered his political fundraising records this year, hauling in almost 2,900% more to his leadership political action committee with donations from JP Morgan Chase, Verizon and Lockheed Martin.”

— “Smith’s seat in a ruby-red, rural district is just as safe as it was in the last election, but the increase in donations followed one major change: Smith (R-Mo.) became chair of the Ways and Means Committee, which oversees tax, health and trade policy.”

— “Smith and other Republicans who took the top spots on House committees this year have, all combined, raised 86% more in campaign donations in the first six months of 2023 than they did in the same period two years ago, according to a Bloomberg Government analysis of federal campaign disclosures.”

Lobbyists Registrations

Steven Tilley, Thomas Robbins, Brittany Hyatt Robbins, Christopher Schoeman, and Alec Rosenblum added Heritage Missouri LLC.

$5K+ Contributions

Paladin PAC - $40,000 from J&J Ventures Gaming of Missouri, LLC.

CLCP PAC - $6,000 from Chris Hammeren (Aurora, CO).

Birthdays

Happy birthdays Jake Ayers, Chris Carter, and Don Calloway.