Trouble, thy name is Eric Greitens
There have been a torrent of articles about former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens this week, following a video he released that showed him holding a shotgun and calling on people to hunt down members of his own political party deemed inadequately conservative.
Greitens’ campaign didn’t put any money behind the ad, they just posted it on social media. At the end of the video it had a link to his site, where people could spend $25 to buy a “RINO hunting” sticker, similar to the ISIS hunting stickers he sold in his gubernatorial campaign.
But they were able to get a couple of rounds of fundraising out of it — first on the initial backlash to the video (it went viral on social media quickly), then on the fact that it got taken down by Facebook and flagged on Twitter which meant Greitens could claim he was being “censored by Big Tech.”
The video added another furrow to the brow of Republicans concerned about a possible Greitens nomination.
Senators were asked about the video in the U.S. Capitol and most of them punted. U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, the Missouri Republican whose seat Greitens is hoping to fill, said it lacked judgment. U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, said Greitens was just trying to look tough in front of the camera. U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell urged Missourians to watch it and make up their own minds.
Greitens presents somewhat of a problem for Republicans. If he wins the primary this August, it would make the general election competitive. Even if Missouri has become conservative enough that Greitens’ past wouldn’t matter in a general election, Republicans would likely have to pour resources into the race in order to keep a seat in a state former President Donald Trump won by more than 15 percentage points.
Still, very little political capital has been spent attacking him so far.
There could be a couple of reasons. For one, it is still early. The race won’t really heat up until July.
For another, there’s a risk involved for Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler, who are running second and third in the GOP primary race (their order depends on who commissioned the poll). Whoever is the first to pull the trigger and spend significantly to attack Greitens could end up in a nasty fight. That could turn voters off on the candidates who are fighting and cause them to turn to someone who stays out of the fray.
Then there’s the national calculus. Greitens has positioned himself as the most anti-establishment candidate in the race (see RINO messaging). He is one of a handful of candidates across the country who have said they would not vote for McConnell as leader. He later blamed McConnell without evidence for Sheena Greitens’ allegations that he physically and mentally abused his family.
While the National Republican Senate Committee generally doesn’t get involved in primaries, McConnell’s influential PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund, does. For example, in the Kansas Senate election in 2020, the Senate Leadership Fund funneled money into a PAC that went after former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach.
If a Washington-based PAC were to start going after Greitens, he would immediately blame McConnell, who is not popular with many in the Republican base or with Trump. Further complicating things, The Daily Beast reported Thursday that Trump is likely to stay out of the primary unless McConnell attacks Greitens, in which case Trump would support the embattled former governor.
Greitens’ RINO video opened the chess match.
On Wednesday, former U.S. Attorney John Wood confirmed he was leaving his role as an investigative counsel for the Jan. 6 committee to explore whether to run as an independent in the race. Former U.S. Sen. Jack Danforth said he had a PAC ready to support a serious center-right candidate running as an independent.
On Friday, a political action committee called Show Me Values is going to begin airing ads attacking Greitens. The group is backed by Missouri donors, like St. Louis based businessman Rex Sinquefield, who has already put in more than $1 million for a PAC supporting Schmitt.
Sinquefield is a major Republican donor and has donated to McConnell-aligned PACs in the past. Greitens immediately tied the new PAC to McConnell.
More from Missouri
Greitens has painted allegations that he physically and emotionally abused his family as an orchestrated effort to take down his candidacy. But communications from Sheena Greitens to an attorney and therapist in 2018 show that she told several people at the time, undercutting Greitens’ claims that the allegations are political.
Here are headlines from across the state:
Sheena Greitens alleged abuse by former governor in 2018, Kacen Bayless and Daniel Desrochers
Officer under investigation after Eric Greitens ride along no longer with department, Glenn E. Rice
World Cup ticket sales in Missouri will be tax free under new state law, Jonathan Shorman
House Jan. 6 investigator leaving to explore Senate run in MO, Daniel Desrochers and Jonathan Shorman
Eric Greitens is no longer with the Navy Reserve or the Department of the Navy, Daniel Desrochers
And across Kansas
Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt, the likely Republican gubernatorial nominee, proposed a plan that would eliminate the state income tax on retirement benefits. The proposal marks a new front in the fight over taxes in the gubernatorial race as Gov. Laura Kelly has toured the state touting the elimination of the sales tax on food.
Schmidt proposes ending state income tax on retirement benefits, Jonathan Shorman
Kansas Supreme Court explains why it upheld GOP map, Jonathan Shorman and Katie Bernard
Kansas childcare workers eligible for up to $2,500 ‘appreciation’ payments, Katie Bernard
How satellite-guided cows might save the Kansas prairie, Celia Llopis-Jepsen, KCUR
Kansas doctors see early demand for COVID-19 vaccines for young children, Noah Taborda, Kansas Reflector
The latest from Kansas City
In Kansas City …
In this corner of Kansas City, it’s goodbye bungalows, hello $1 million manses, Eric Adler and Mike Hendricks
Jury sides with Kansas City man who was shot, then arrested and prosecuted, Katie Moore
KCPD aims to double number of female officers by 2030, Cortlynn Stark
Have a news tip? Send it along to ddesrochers@kcstar.com
Odds and ends
Gun bill passes
Late Thursday night the U.S. Senate passed a bill that marks Congress’ most significant attempt to address gun violence in the past 30 years.
Along with attempting to close loopholes that allow people convicted of domestic violence to get guns and adding enhanced background checks on gun sales to people under 21, it will spend more than $8 billion expanding a mental health program spearheaded by U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, of Missouri.
The program focuses on certified community behavioral health centers, which offer 24 hour mental health services. Missouri is one of 10 states that already receives federal funding for the program, but the new money will help the program expand.
For the final vote, 15 Republicans crossed the aisle to support the bill. Blunt was the only one from Kansas and Missouri. The others were critical of a provision that helps states implement “red flag laws” which allow law enforcement to temporarily seize the guns of people who the court has found are a danger to themselves or others.
Still, the legislation falls short on the wish list of many House Democrats, who voted earlier this month to ban assault weapon sales to people under 21 and prohibit the sale of large capacity magazines.
“Every day, gun violence steals lives and scars communities — and this crisis demands urgent action,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. “While we must do more, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act is a step forward that will help protect our children and save lives.”
The House plans to vote on the bill today.
Biden gas tax
As the average gas price across the country has topped $5 a gallon, President Joe Biden came out this week in support of Congress suspending the federal gas tax for three months.
“By suspending the 18-cent gas tax — federal gas tax for the next 90 days, we can bring down the price of gas and give families just a little bit of relief,” Biden said. “I call on the companies to pass this along -- every penny of this 18-cents reduction — to the consumers. This is — there’s no time now for profiteering.”
Vulnerable Democrats, like U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids in Kansas, have been pushing for a suspension of the gas tax for months. She said she supported the action.
“My preference would have been to see the President take this step sooner, because for months I have been hearing from Kansans who are feeling the squeeze from those extraordinary factors and need this relief,” Davids said. “I urge my colleagues to support my legislation to suspend the federal gas tax through the end of the year and promise to continue working to lower everyday costs for Kansans.”
But even with the president’s support, it’s unlikely Congress will suspend the gas tax.
Republicans — and some Democrats — are quick to call the gas tax a gimmick. It would save people around 18 cents a gallon but there isn’t a clear way for Congress to monitor that the savings are actually being passed onto the consumer instead of just earning extra profit for the oil companies.
Already, Republicans are piling on to criticize the move, citing an old quote from former President Barack Obama who said suspending the gas tax was an election year gimmick.
Marshall’s almost objection
U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall, a Republican from Kansas, told Politico on Wednesday he was considering blocking a bipartisan agreement to fund school lunches in reaction to a Biden administration policy intended to prevent discrimination against LGBTQ students in schools that participate in lunch programs that receive money.
Earlier this month, the Biden administration put out guidance to the USDA that said discrimination claims against LGBTQ people should be treated as the same as complaints about discrimination on the basis of sex, in accordance to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling Bostock v. Clayton County.
Marshall told Politico he was afraid the guidance would mean that schools in Kansas would lose their funding if they didn’t let students play sports according to their gender identity. But the USDA guidance only applies to the school lunch program. The funding would not be affected if a state legislature passed a bill preventing transgender athletes from playing sports.
Marshall ultimately did not object and the bill passed by unanimous consent Thursday night. Because the Senate made changes to the bill, it has to go back to the House of Representatives before being sent to the President for his signature.
Presidential polling
As the midterm elections unfold this year, political operatives are keeping an eye on Trump’s perceived political power within the Republican base. It’s why people have paid so much attention to how candidates with Trump’s endorsement have done in contested elections.
In a poll of New Hampshire Republicans who said they were likely to vote in the 2024 primary, Trump appears to have lost ground to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has gotten a lot of publicity recently taking on culture war issues for conservatives.
The poll, conducted by the University of New Hampshire, had DeSantis beating Trump by two percentage points — 39% to 37%. (New Hampshire is significant because it’s an early primary state)
There was little support for the two Kansas and Missouri names that get tossed around as potential Republican presidential candidates in 2024 — U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Pompeo was at 1% in the survey. Hawley didn’t even appear on the list.
Happy Friday
It’s the last weekend of Pride month. Read about the uncovered mix-tapes of Fire Island. Have another gin and tonic. Here’s Liza Minnelli and the Pet Shop Boys singing Stephen Sondheim.
Enjoy your weekend.
Looking for more?
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