MOScout Daily Update: Scharf on This Week - MO’s MAGA Senators - Eigel Promises Pardon - The End of the Herschend Era and more…

Scharf Continues Role As Trump’s Combative Attorney

Yesterday on This Week With George Stephanopoulos Missouri AG candidate Will Scharf continued to play his role as Donald Trump’s attorney.  The interview became increasingly combative. See a clip here.

That’s, of course, what MAGA folks like to see from their pols.

What It Means

In the aftermath of COVID, during the 2022 US Senate race, then-AG Eric Schmitt was able to use his statewide office to show where he stood on the issues.  While the other Republican candidates were making speeches against masking, and remote learning, it was Schmitt who used the AG’s office to sue the school districts, China, Anthony Fauci, etc.

Attorney General Andrew Bailey has certainly adopted the Schmitt playbook with a conservative agenda aimed at “resisting” President Joe Biden’s Administration.  But I think it’s Scharf here, who as Trump’s attorney, is showing Missouri’s MAGA voters his allegiance to Trump.

MO GOP Is MAGA?

The Missouri Republican Party certainly seems Trump-centric. 

·       Politico’s Playbook reports that “a day after the verdict came down, Sen. MIKE LEE (R-Utah) led the Senate’s hard-core MAGA bloc in vowing to muck up the chamber’s business in protest of the convictions… and will thus oppose and deny unanimous consent for Democratic legislation and confirmations.” 2 of the those 10 “hard-core MAGA bloc” are Missouri Senators.

·       A Remington/MOScout poll in February of statewide Republican voters found that the largest bloc, 37%, considered themselves Trump Republicans followed by Traditional Republicans (27%) and Evangelical Republicans (16%)

For Those Keeping Score…

The Republican statewide candidates who haven’t called the Trump felony convictions rigged… Sen. Lincoln Hough (LG), Matthew Porter (LG), Adam Schwadron (SOS), and Jamie Corley (SOS).

Eigel Promises Pardon

Hitting the in-box this morning from Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Eigel…

“Today I make this promise– in my first week as governor, I will pardon Eric DeValkenaere. I will not stand idly by as our streets are overtaken with crime and corrupt prosecutors go after the men and women in uniform. Eric should be home with his wife and three children, not rotting in prison.”

·       AP: DeValkenaere was found guilty in 2021 of second-degree manslaughter and armed criminal action in the death of 26-year-old Cameron Lamb. Lamb was parking a pickup truck in his Kansas City back yard when the officer shot him, after reports Lamb was in a car chase with his girlfriend. The judge who found DeValkenaere guilty in a bench trial said police were the initial aggressors and had a duty to retreat, but DeValkenaere illegally used deadly force instead.

End of the Herschend Era

Springfield News Leader looks at the end of Peter Herschend’s 33 years on the State Board of Education.  Read it here.

·       His lengthy tenure on the state Board of Education is unlikely to be repeated.

·       Appointed in 1991 by then-Gov. John Ashcroft, Herschend served on the governing body through eight governors — surviving a brief ouster by one for part of 2017 and 2018 — and four of the state's Commissioners of Education.

·       The founder and co-owner of Herschend Family Entertainment Corp. — which owns Silver Dollar City among other entertainment properties — has worked on tourism efforts at the state level but called the Board of Education the "best public service job I've ever had."

·       Herschend's contributions have been vast but his primary focus was on boosting literacy skills, improving access to early childhood education and figuring out a way to measure student learning and progress in a meaningful way.

House Primaries

As I summarize the House primaries, I’m adding them to the 2024 Watch…

House 116 – Rep. Dale Wright (see his bio here) is running for his final term.  He should have no trouble, with $55,658 COH.  His opponent Ryan Cooper (see his website here) hasn’t even started a committee yet.

House 117 – This is Rep. Mike Henderson’s district.  He’s termed and running for state senate.  There are three Republican running in this primary.  The favorite here is Mike Miller (see his website here) He’s an Army veteran, and has been involved in the St. Francois Republican Central Committee.  Becky Laubinger (see her website here) is a self-described “wife of a pastor.”  She has $626 COH.  Meanwhile Chad Brown (see his website here) has $6 COH.  He’s been pretty much spending just whatever he takes in which last quarter was $2,555.  Brown works for the Washington County Sherrif department.

House 119 – Rep. Brad Banderman (see his bio here) is running for his first re-election. He’s getting what looks to be a right-side challenge after voting for the education bill. Rafael Madrigal (see his website here) runs his own retirement planning company, American Freedom Benefits.  The Monday race makes it appear that Banderman is OK.  He has $7,627 COH versus Madrigal’s $1,163 with $1,334.

House 120 – Rep. Ron Copeland isn’t running for re-election.  John Hewkin (see his website here) flirted with a state senate race before pivoting into this House race.  He has $14,770 COH, a consultant (Victory) a nice resume (pharmacist who’s served on the local school board).  His opponent, Lance Blair, doesn’t have a web presence and started his committee after the last quarterly deadline.  Blair graduated from University of Missouri Columbia with a degree in agriculture; and he’s been a firefighter with the Jadwin Volunteer Fire Department.

House 123 – Rep. Lisa Thomas (see her bio here) is running for re-election.  I assume she’ll be fine.  But this might be one to watch.  I’m told that her opponent, Jeff Vernetti (see his website here), is backed by former Rep. Rocky Miller, and he’s also received a $1,000 contribution from Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer.  According to his website, Vernetti is “the current General Manager and minority owner of Ballparks National, one of the premier youth baseball and softball facilities in the country.”  Thomas has a huge COH lead $48,927 COH to $4,756.

New PACs

Trident Action PAC was formed.  It’s in support of William Irwin, a Republican running in House 55 (Haffner’s seat).  See the filing here.

Lobbyists Registrations

Tamitha Rene' Ague added The Covering.

Jessica Petrie and Chase Campbell added Tremco CPG Inc.

Birthdays

Happy birthdays to Ward Franz, Abe Rakov, and Lynda Brotherton.