Galloway’s Huge Quarter

Auditor Nicole Galloway pre-filed her October quarter, demolishing expectations with $543,150 raised.  This far exceeded Governor Mike Parson’s pre-announced $316K haul.

The pro-Galloway PAC, Keep Government Accountable, had a strong quarter also.  It raised $517,500 in the last three months. However, this trailed what Parson’s PAC, Uniting Missouri, which is said to have raised three times that: $1.5 million.

RTW Off the Table

Tipster says that “there is an effort among the consultant class in Missouri to create Right to Work on the local county level.”  But… “One important key component [is missing]: financial backing.  David Humphreys and others are outright opposed to the concept.”

Parson’s Big #

Post-Dispatch reports that Governor Mike Parson will report some huge numbers next week, showing that his fundraising is going full throttle.  See it here.  “Parson, who likely will face off against Democratic state Auditor Nicole Galloway, raised $316,000 during the most recent fundraising quarter ending Sept. 30. Uniting Missouri, a PAC formed to back him, raised another $1.5 million during the same time period.”

Rex Hearts Trent

Mega-GOP donor Rex Sinquefield will be hosting a fundraiser for Rep. Curtis Trent.  The event will be at Sinquefield’s home later this month, and includes special guests Minority Leader Rob Vescovo and Budget Chair Cody Smith.

Faleti Forms Committee for SOS

Yinka Faleti has taken the first formal step toward running for secretary of state, by forming a candidate committee. 

·         He’s an attorney.

·         A West Point graduate.

·         And the former executive director of Forward Through Ferguson.

MOScout Poll: Impeachment

The MOScout Weekly Poll looked at impeachment this week.  Conducted October 2-3. 1,687 likely 2020 General Election voters. Margin of Error is +/-2.4%.

Q1: Do you support impeaching President Donald Trump?

Yes: 42%

No: 54%

Not sure: 4%

Springfield for Medicaid Expansion

Springfield News Leader reports that “the Springfield City Council is set to ask the Missouri legislature to pass Medicaid expansion.”

What It Means

As acknowledged in the article, there’s no one who really expects the Missouri legislature to expand Medicaid.  However this does bode well for the expansion coalition….

Parson Hearts Cole

David Cole is having a fundraiser tonight at the Ledgewood County Club.   Governor Mike Parson is special-guesting the affair.  As is now common, the invitation notes the campaign contribution limits for Cole’s candidate committee, but also directs larger checks to be made out to an independent PAC.  That’s 29th Senate District Leadership PAC in this case.

Any Issues This Cycle Besides Trump?

As Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden unveils his “gun plan” today, one wonders whether any such specific issues will matter in this election cycle.  It may just be a referendum on Trump and everything else is just window dressing.

Trump, Trump, Trump

As the impeachment inquiry suddenly seems to have sprung a few new lines of investigation, its impact is becoming less predictable.

·         One MOScouter reminds me that there can be “tipping points” in these things.  As much as sides seem calcified, the accumulation of revelations can lead to a sudden swing in sentiment.

Schweitzer for Alderman

In the “new committees” section over the weekend was one entry showing Anne Schweitzer filing to run for alderman in St. Louis City.  Schweitzer works with messaging genius Richard Callow at Public Eye.

Schweitzer announcing the run on Facebook: One of the things I tell my clients is that when they know what they want to run for, they should file as soon as possible. There are three things every campaign needs: Money, Time, and Votes. Two of those you can get more of, one of those you cannot. That's why, a year and a half before the election, I'm writing to tell you that I am running for Alderman of the 13th ward…

Another Rex Check for Parson PAC

Rex Sinquefield gave Uniting Missouri PAC, the pro-Mike Parson PAC, $250,000 yesterday.  That will put Uniting over $1 million in money raised in this quarter.

Blunt Keeps Powder Dry
KCStar’s Bryan Lowry reports that US Senator Roy Blunt “a member of Senate Intel and GOP leadership, says he won’t have much to say on the whistleblower complaint and other disclosures until Intel [Committee] has a chance to gather more information.”
This seems like just letting it play out in a fair and impartial way.
But former Republican state senator John Lamping replies that “Yeah, it tells you he’s not running for re-election in ‘22.”

Driving the Night: Campaign Kick Offs….

·         Sen. Caleb Rowden kicks off his re-election tonight at the Atrium in downtown Columbia… Rep. Jack Bondon kicks off his Senate 31 bid at Peculiar Winery.

·         And Rep. Greg Razer kicks off at Ollie’s Local in Kansas City.  He’s running to succeed Sen. Jason Holsman in Senate 7.

Hawley Raises $$$ on Impeachment

US Senator Josh Hawley is raising money off the start of the impeachment inquiry.  See it here. 

If the House does impeach Trump, Hawley will be voting on it in the Senate. 

I guess I’m naïve to think he should maintain some impartiality ahead of this potential awesome constitutional duty.

Chugging along every day, checks into the pro-Parson PAC, Uniting Missouri.  Again today, three more large checks totaling $70,000.  It’s possible that the October fundraising numbers of the candidate committees of Nicole Galloway and Mike Parson – both constrained by limits – will be in the same ballpark.  But it looks like the gap between Parson’s PAC and Galloway’s will be a gulf this quarter.

MOScout/Human Agency Poll: Medicaid Expansion

Last week, the monthly web-poll from Human Agency tested the 2020 Missouri ballot.  See it here.

I’ve previously polled Medicaid.  But this was different, as it used the ballot language.  And while Missourians are in favor of the proposal (42% to 25%), the fact that it’s below 50% should give proponents pause.

Rex Backs Schmitt - Again

Rex Sinquefield sent $250,000 to MO Opportunity PAC.  That’s the pro-Eric Schmitt PAC.  Opportunity has now recorded $375K in large contributions since its July filing when it had approximately $750K in the bank

Sinquefield had previously donated $250K to the same PAC in February of this year.

Monthly Tracker Poll: September 16-18, 2019

N = 825, MoE +-4%

Q: In the next 12 months do you expect your personal finances to be:

Much better - 10.2%

Somewhat better - 18.6%

About the same - 55.6%

Somewhat worse - 11.9%

Much worse - 3.8%

HRCC Shake-Up

Casey Wheat is out as the executive director of the House Republican Campaign Committee.  Her employment was terminated by the five-member board of the organization.   I’m told that HRCC political director Chase Campbell is taking the reins until a new ED is hired.