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Greitens defends campaign donations

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Gubernatorial candidate Eric Greitens campaigned in Jefferson City on Friday night, looking to draw more support from the capital city.

But after speaking to a crowd of more than 75 people at the Chamber of Commerce, the Republican took a defensive stance when asked about a large donation made to his campaign.

The $1.9 million donation, made by the super PAC SEALs for Truth, is the largest in Missouri’s history.

When asked about the donation, Greitens sidestepped the issue, suggesting reporters reach out to Nick Britt, a former Navy SEAL who is listed as the treasurer for SEALS for Truth.

David Turner, the spokesman for Greitens’ Democratic opponent, Chris Koster, released the following statement after the event:

“Missourians are tired of hearing the same political platitudes and tired promises from Eric Greitens. He said he would release his tax returns, and he refuses to. He said his largest donor was a group of Navy SEALs, and we now know it is simply a shell organization. Now he won’t even comment on whether he believes the election will be legitimate. The problem with Eric Greitens is that it is not even clear he knows who he is. When will he level with Missouri’s voters?”

While campaign finance was the issue at hand following Greitens’ town hall event, it was never brought up during the event.

Potential voters instead chose to use the opportunity to ask the candidate which of his skills qualified him to be a good leader.

They also asked what Greitens would do about Missouri’s stagnant wages for state workers.

Greitens responded, saying he wanted to enact a plan similar to that of former Indiana governor Mitch Daniels.

“First, he introduced a system of results and accountability in state government,’ Greitens said. “When Daniels put this system in place, he made sure they were measuring results in government, and it had a lot of positive effects. Number one, their government got better at serving people. Number two, they were able to reward employees for creating exceptional results.”

Greitens went on to say that when Indiana put this system in place, it led to employees getting double digit raises.

The Republican candidate’s next stop will be in Columbia on Saturday for the University of Missouri Homecoming Parade, followed by stops in Fair Play, Marshfield and Mountain Grove.