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An Open Letter to Professor Hawley

June 14, 2016

Professor Joshua D. Hawley
323 Hulston Hall
Columbia, Missouri 65211

Dear Professor Hawley:

As the chairman of the House Committee on Government Oversight and Accountability, I have investigated wasteful or incompetent governance many times in the past six years. As a Missourian, I want to be certain that those in charge of state agencies have the experience necessary to actually perform their job. That is why I’m writing you today.

Unlike faculty lounges where professors can pontificate without consequence, the Attorney General makes decisions that impact lives. Directing a criminal prosecution or protecting Missouri consumers from charlatans is not a theoretical exercise, and the office of Attorney General is not the place for on-the-job training for a person who has never tried a case or argued an appeal. It’s a place where Missourians need someone who has been tested by the fire of having an actual client depend on their ability as a lawyer in a real-world courtroom.

You claim to have argued the Hobby Lobby case in front of the Supreme Court. The public record reflects otherwise: you sat in the gallery, not at counsel’s table. Missourians understand that candidates often exaggerate, so they’ll probably forgive it. After all, Al Gore was the butt of many jokes for claiming to have invented the Internet, but I doubt he lost any votes for it.

However, I have heard rumors about your experience far worse than puffery about Supreme Court cases. It is alleged that you have never served as counsel of record in an actual Missouri courtroom where you had the responsibility of representing a person, business, or any other entity. I figure this cannot possibly be true. As a candidate for Attorney General, you must have some real-world case you can point to show Missourians that you have experience in the types of cases that the Attorney General is charged with handling on their behalf.

This being the Show-Me State, there’s a very simple way to dispel these rumors that you are not qualified for the office: simply name some cases for which you are listed as counsel of record in Missouri. I eagerly await your response.

Yours in service,
Jay Barnes