MOScout Daily Update: Schmitt Boosts FBI’s STL Presence - Brown Promoted - Sassmann Fined - Pogue Dough? - Bowman PAC and much more….

Schmitt Dance Pays Off With More Feebees in STL

There’s been some gnashing of teeth over the “evolution” of Senator Eric Schmitt from Jack Kemp compassionate conservative persona as a state senator to the present Trumpy cultural warrior.   Some people insist it’s all a show.  And it might be – for Donald Trump.

Schmitt dances for Trump and it pays off for Missouri.  Earlier this year, Missouri landed the huge F-47 contract for Boeing.  Yesterday, Schmitt announced “a historic investment, by the Federal Bureau of Investigation… St. Louis will be receiving one of the largest per capita infusions of full-time agents and intel personnel in the nation. This infusion of resources into St. Louis will increase the FBI’s violent crime fighting capacities. They also represent a permanent investment by the Trump administration in St. Louis, bringing staffing levels at the FBI to its highest point in years.”

·       Specific details were hard to nail down as Jack Suntrup reported: DJ Griffin, spokesperson for Schmitt, said due to FBI policy, the office couldn’t discuss operational details such as the number of agents that will come to St. Louis.

Watching for Pogue Dough

The pro-Nick Schroer PAC, 1776 PAC, will soon report a $25,000 contribution from Rick Pogue.

Pogue’s family owned and operated Arrowhead Building Supply for several generations. In 2021 they were acquired by SRS Distribution Inc.  I’m told it was “a ridiculous offer the Pogues could not refuse.”

·       Pogue started the 1776 PAC several years ago with a $200K contribution. “Rick is now reinvesting in that PAC and wants to be a bigger, long-term player in MO politics – in 2026 and beyond…”

Sassmann Fined for ‘Burning Down the House’

Kurt Erickson reports that Rep. Bruce Sassmann “violated Missouri environmental laws for burning down a dilapidated building he owned in February 2024.”

·       Under the agreement, the three-term lawmaker agreed to a $4,375 fine, but DNR waived the fine because of the cooperation shown by Sassmann in the investigation.

·       “I really thought I was OK and not doing anything illegal. I wasn’t trying to hide anything or do anything that was inappropriate,” Sassmann told the Post-Dispatch Tuesday.

Brown Promoted

Press release: Donnie Brown has been named the district engineer for the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Southeast District. Brown will take over leadership of the 25-county region from Mark Croarkin, who took on the assistant chief engineer role with the department earlier this year.

·       A registered professional engineer and lifelong resident of southeast Missouri, Brown brings three decades of varied experience to the role. He’s spent the past two years representing the 149th district in the Missouri House of Representatives. He also worked as an engineer for New Madrid County for 30 years, most recently overseeing its road and bridge department.

Lawsuits Round Up

Jak’s, which runs a “gentleman’s club” in Lake Ozark Missouri, is suing the Missouri Division of Alcohol & Tobacco Control, saying that they have been “targeted, [due to] either political

motivation, retaliation, negative personal feelings of investigators…” See the suit here.  Travis Noble is their attorney.

From the suit: This downward pressure has prompted many dancers to either pause their engagements, reduce their bookings, or cancel their contracts altogether. As a result, Jak’s is losing not just revenue but the core creative labor force that sustains Jak’s business model.

·       Last month, Jak’s hired Strategic Capitol Consulting. 

Amy Gossett, a white professor at Lincoln University, alleges race discrimination, sex discrimination, and hostile work environment.  Read the suit here.  From the suit: Defendant Lincoln University has a history of trying to further the careers of African American male’s careers disparately at the cost of white female employees. There have been statements at faculty meetings that there are “too many white people in administrative positions” at Lincoln University.

And in St. Louis City, a gas station is being sued after a customer suffered a carjacking at 3 in the afternoon.  See the suit here.  From the suit: The area surrounding 1007 South Broadway is well‑known for criminal activity, including robberies, carjackings and assaults… . Defendants knew or should have known of these crimes and that violent crime was reasonably likely to occur at their gas station.

HealthPAC’s Push

The Missouri Hospital Association is encouraging hospitals to step up and fund HealthPAC, the MHA’s political action committee.  Their 2025 goal is $165,000.  That’s up from $145,000 last year. HEALTHPAC is a powerful way for hospital teams to support candidates who understand the critical role hospitals play in their communities

More Nuke Power in MO?

Show Me Institute says that “Missouri is well positioned to participate in the emerging nuclear resurgence, with both the infrastructure and human capital to be a significant player in the field.”

·       Missouri has a strong nuclear workforce pipeline, with the Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla ranking among the nation’s top producers of nuclear engineers. This local talent pool could be a draw for developers, as it could provide a level of assurance that projects can consistently be staffed with skilled professionals.

·       The state also leads in nuclear research; the University of Missouri’s MURR is one of the world’s premier research reactors.

·       There is existing, successful, and long-standing infrastructure present at the Callaway Energy Center, but our advantages in infrastructure go beyond Callaway. Missouri also has several retired or retiring coal plants that could be retrofitted into advanced nuclear reactors. The DOE has reported coal-to-nuclear transitions can save up to 35% on construction costs.

See their report on nuclear energy here.

eMailbag on Hanaway Twitter Critics

I think it’s hilarious that the twitter critic of Catherine Hanaway tagged Will Scharf.   Scharf worked on Hanaway’s campaign for Governor before moving over to Eric Greitens after the primary was over.

New Committees

·       Chuck Gatschenberger formed a committee to run for Senate 6 as a Republican

·       Victoria Wors formed a committee to run for Senate 26 as a Democrat.  Sen. Ben Brown is the incumbent.

·       Come Back PAC was formed.  It’s in support of John Bowman, who is running for Senate 14.  See the filing here.

Lobbyist Registrations

Yancy Williams added Novartis Services Inc.

Rich AuBuchon and Mark Bruns deleted Safer St. Louis LLC.

$5K+ Contributions

Missouri American Water Company Employees Political Action Committee - $15,000 from ECM Construction LLC.

Birthdays

Happy birthdays to Sammy Panettiere, Katie Gamble, Shane Schoeller, David Hageman, and Jim Cooper.

MOScout Schedule

No MOScout this weekend.