Saint Louis, Mo. — Former Missouri House Speaker and U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway joined This Week in Missouri Politics to discuss her candidacy for Governor and the controversy surrounding the suicide of Auditor Tom Schweich.
“It wasn’t my style, it wasn’t the kind of ad I would put up,” Hanaway said discussing the infamous radio ad which compared Schweich to a “little bug” in need of squashing that is said to have contributed to Schweich’s depression. “I’ve had a very serious conversation with my consultants and I’ve said there aren’t going to be any more third-parties doing things with this campaign with my consultants, otherwise you’re not going to be my consultant anymore.”
Hanaway went on to say that she didn’t approve of the ad, which was the brainchild of longtime Missouri politico and Ted Cruz consultant, Jeff Roe and his consulting firm, Axiom Strategies. In lauding Schweich’s service as auditor, Hanaway promised to run a campaign focused on issues, not bickering.
Hanaway went on to say that “schools, roads and jobs” would be her primary focus as a candidate for governor moving forward.
The TWMP Opinion Maker panel reacted to Hanaway’s interview, the recent budget, and more. On the panel this week were Ryan Johnson, President of Missouri Alliance for Freedom; Rep. Travis Fitzwater, R-Fulton; Brittany Burke, a public relations consultant with Tactas; and Michael Sean Kelley, Principal at The Kelley Group joined host Scott Faughn to discuss the issue of the day.
You can stream this and all full episodes at twmp.tv.
Some highlights:
“They can’t talk about how they’re going to decrease taxes and then talk about transportation and roads are important. We’ve got a serious revenue problem. Those two talking points just don’t go hand in hand anymore.” – Burke on Republicans debating new roads funds.
“Everyone wants the Rams, I don’t think anyone in the state wants them to leave. But the second argument is who should get to decide that? Should it be the governor, or should it be the people of the state?” – Fitzwater on the future of a new Rams stadium.
“I know the legislature is balanced very heavily Republican, but when you look at the voters of the state of Missouri, this is pretty much a 50-50 state. You’re going to have to have someone who can compete in the suburbs…and while a lot of Republicans running appeal to the base, it’s those soccer moms in St. Charles and Jefferson County that a candidate is going to need to appeal to.” – Kelley on what Republicans need to be competitive in the general.
“I’m from Cass County where [Chris Koster] was our prosecutor. He was a Republican then and he was our fair-haired guy that we were ready to see go all the way to the White House. The thing about Chris Koster is, if you know Chris, the man knows that he will be President one day. He doesn’t just aspire to that, I think he knows that.” – Johnson on Koster’s trajectory.
Collin Reischman was the Managing Editor for The Missouri Times, and a graduate of Webster University with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.
