MOScout Daily Update: Rowden-less SOS Race - MRL Endorsement Coming?? - Musk Hearts Bailey - Warren Eyes MOHELA and more…
Breaking Rumorville….
I’m told that Missouri Right to Life will be making another endorsement this morning. With abortion at the top of GOP primary voters’ minds this could be the first cycle in a while where an “exclusive” MRL endorsement matters greatly for candidates running in statewide primaries.
· For those keeping track, key races where MRL has not endorsed yet include: CD3, State Treasurer, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General.
Rowden Drops SOS Bid
Yesterday on Twitter, Sen. Caleb Rowden announced he would forgo a statewide campaign. Read it here.
Politics and public life look and feel a little different than they did even 12 years ago when I was first elected. While there have always been deep political and philosophical disagreements about how to get to a desired outcome, the desired outcome and the facts used to make decisions used to be shared values. More and more, the latter no longer seems to be the case. Consensus-building was once a trait that was admired and rewarded. That no longer seems to be the case…
What It Means
· The announcement was a surprise, but not a surprise. Folks in the building have noted that Rowden didn’t seem like he was fired up for a statewide campaign.
· In theory, this should reduce tensions in the Senate as it’s one less senator scheming for higher office. But in practicality, I doubt it makes any difference as Rowden wasn’t using his position as pro tem to angle for an electoral advantage.
The Rowden-less SOS Race
Without Rowden, there’s no candidate in the secretary of state’s race that has proven they’ll be able to muster the resources and wherewithal to break through and establish statewide name ID.
· Hoskins may glom onto Freedom Caucus slate awareness with the grassroots.
· Gomez might catch social media magic. However, one less man in the race, makes her long shot bid a bit longer.
· Schoeller is the most qualified as he’s currently Greene County Clerk. But without more money coming in, will voters learn that fact?
· Schwadron landed a $100K check recently so his fundraising capacity shouldn’t be dismissed. Still, he’ll need several more of those to have the necessary impact.
Also
Keep an eye on those Rowden warchests. Will he donate the money to charity? Give to the Republican Senate Campaign Committee? Or keep around as others have in case he should ever get the itch again?
· Rowden candidate committee: $177,732
· Rowden PAC: $234,617
Still Waiting
With Rowden’s announcement, it’s worth remembering we’ll still waiting on a couple other high-profile candidates who haven’t yet filed. Filing closes Tuesday March 26, 5PM.
· State Treasurer Vivek Malek.
· Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Hamra.
Musk Hearts Bailey?
Attorney General Andrew Bailey co-hosted an Twitter “Spaces” last night with Elon Musk, which Musk re-shared to his 177 million followers. They discussed “the fight for free speech” and Missouri’s lawsuit against the Biden Administration before the Supreme Court. Listen to it here.
· Source: “Bailey and Musk have developed a close bond over the last few months due to Bailey’s involvement on big tech censorship issues.”
Warren Invites Giles to Testify
Press release: U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs’ Subcommittee on Economic Policy, sent a letter to the CEO of the Higher Education Loan Authority of the State of Missouri (MOHELA), Scott Giles, inviting him to testify before Congress to explain MOHELA’s handling of student loan borrowers’ experience with return to repayment and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. The invitation follows recent reports describing widespread servicing failures by MOHELA—the exclusive servicer for PSLF borrowers—that impacted at least 40 percent of its borrowers…
· MOHELA’s Jeff City lobbyist is Matthew Roney.
Kehoe SEMO Fundy
Lieutenant Governor Mike Kehoe rolls through southeast Missouri tonight for a fundy…
New Candidate Filings
· Jacqueline Cotton (Democrat) filed to run in House 101. The incumbent is Republican Rep. Ben Keathley.
· Gary Wester (Democrat) filed to run in House 107. The incumbent is Republican Rep. Mark Matthiesen.
· David Dolan (Republican) filed in House 148. This is where Rep. Jamie Burger is running for state senate.
$5K+ Contributions
Liberty and Justice PAC (pro-Bailey) - $10,000 from Rose Farms LLC.
American Dream PAC (pro-Kehoe) - $5,650 from Mike Bernard.
Missourians for Constitutional Freedom (pro-reproductive rights IP) - $10,092 from Abortion Action Missouri Foundation.
Majority Forward (Dems Senate Campaign Committee) - $10,000 from DougPAC.
Association of MO Electric Cooperatives (AMEC PAC) - $7,000 from Laclede Electric Cooperative.
MSCEW PAC Federal Cmte - $67,000 from IBEW PAC Voluntary Fund (Washington, DC).
Lobbyist Registrations
Ralph Bellar added Streets of West Pryor CID.
Birthdays
Happy birthday to Mun Choi.
MOScout Schedule
I’ll be doing a quick update tomorrow morning, and then I’m taking off for the rest of the Legislature’s Spring Break. Be back Monday.