Volume 13, Edition 4   •  March 30 , 2007

Governor Works to Expand Record Exports

Part of Gov. Matt Blunt’s commitment to Missourians has been to bolster the state’s ability to compete in the global economy, and those promises have become reality as the state continues to set export records over the last three years. Part of that success, which has resulted in solid job creation, has been the Governor’s willingness to work personally with other nations to strengthen Missouri’s export markets. This week, the Governor was in Italy to help push for the expansion of Missouri’s markets there. Italy, with its diverse market, is an important trading partner for Missouri. It is the state's fourth biggest partner in Europe and twelfth biggest in the world. In 2006 alone, more than $155 million worth of exports passed from Missouri to Italy. The Governor’s promotion of Boeing's defense platforms will help sustain thousands of jobs for Missouri workers. The Governor also is helping promote Missouri's agriculture and biotechnology industries. The trade mission emphasized Missouri's strong agriculture industry and will spotlight ongoing success and developments in biotechnology and plant sciences. The Governor also met with Italian leaders as well as officials at Monsanto - Italy. Missouri's beef quality initiative, ethanol standard, biofuel incentive funds, and state-of-the-art plant research facilities are examples of the state taking the lead to compete on a global scale.

Survey Says… Nixon Supports Illegal Immigrants

Jay Nixon just can’t help himself. Just weeks after the Governor immediately halted a cleaning contract after it was discovered that illegal immigrants were working in state buildings, Nixon balked that the decisive action of the administration to deal with the issue wasn’t good enough. The claims were clearly outrageous and hypocritical because in a 1998 Project Vote Smart survey, Nixon supported the following statement included in the survey: “Prohibit states from passing laws that deny human services (medical care, education) to illegal immigrants or their children.” This was clearly an attempt by Nixon to fool the media and appear to be an attorney general that is tough on illegal immigration. He was able to initially fool the media, who didn’t bother to do their research, but he wasn’t able to run away from his own record, a trend we expect will continue in the months leading up to the 2008 elections.

Nixon Refuses to Answer the Tough Questions

Jay Nixon is a lot like a bully who will fold like a deck of cards once he’s confronted. He is very accessible to the media when he’s touting his so-called successes, but as soon as things get a little unpleasant, Nixon is nowhere to be found. He hides behind his bloated staff, which in turn responds to media questions via email. So this week, Republicans called on Nixon to come clean with Missourians and personally answer some questions. After all, Nixon is running for governor, and being a governor requires guts, conviction and above all a sense of duty to Missourians. To date, Nixon has refused to answer any of these questions, which sheds some light on his character:

  1. What is Jay Nixon’s position on HJR 1 that would prevent unelected judges from imposing tax increases on Missourians?
  2. What is Jay Nixon’s position on proposed legislation that will stop taxing seniors’ Social Security benefits?
  3. Does Nixon believe it is ethical for a prosecutor to seek political contributions from an entity he/she is investigating?
  4. Which member of Nixon’s staff or did Nixon himself solicit contributions from Ameren while Nixon was investigating the utility in a criminal matter?
  5. Besides Ameren and Blue Cross, from what other targets of his investigations has Nixon extorted contributions?
  6. What role did Nixon play in the Senate opposition to the Lewis and Clark Discovery Initiative, and what kind of political pressure did he exact on his Democrat colleagues?
  7. To what extent did Nixon interact and coordinate with the Service Employees International Union while he was supposedly defending the state in a lawsuit over certain union payments?
  8. Does Nixon believe it is his prerogative to defend or pursue legal matters on behalf of the state based on his personal policy positions, or is it his duty to follow the policy objectives of the people’s representatives in the Legislature and the Governor?
  9. When did Nixon find out that his spokesman’s wife was representing the plaintiff in the Ferrell case, and what safeguards did he erect to ensure there was no unethical communication that could compromise the state’s position?
  10. Why has Nixon refused to answer these questions for Missourians since, after all, he is an announced candidate for Governor and the people of our state deserve answers to these questions?

Frightened Nixon Runs from Ameren Scandal, Missourians Ignored Again

A frightened Jay Nixon fled the capital yesterday and thumbed his nose at Missourians by refusing to personally answer questions from the media about the more than $19,000 in campaign contributions he extorted from Ameren while he was supposedly investigating the utility.

While tough questions were being raised in Jefferson City about the Ameren contributions and a pending rate case before the Public Service Commission, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that “Nixon was leaving town” and that reporters seeking comment from the attorney general “were greeted only by a terse news release.” Meanwhile, Mid-Missouri television station KOMU reported that Nixon “would not go on camera” while Missourinet noted that “Officials in Nixon’s office said the attorney general is not available for comment.” Previous media queries over the last few months have received identical treatment, or should we say no treatment, from Nixon.

Click here to read an interesting editorial on this subject. It’s by Hank Waters at the Columbia Daily Tribune.

Liberal Post-Dispatch Praises Governor? It’s True!

The Springfield News-Leader’s Tony Messenger made an interesting and honest observation about the media this week. Messenger made a reference in an editorial to the “notoriously anti-Gov. Blunt Post-Dispatch.” It’s refreshing to see one member of the media call out another member of the media, even if it is the pot calling the kettle black. And guess what? The very next day the pro-Democrat Post-Dispatch actually praised the Governor in an editorial for supporting a raise for tipped workers. In a brief, four paragraph editorial, the Post-Dispatch wrote: “Mr. Blunt stepped up to bat for low-wage workers, even though it ran counter to his personal opposition to a higher minimum wage. For respecting the will of the voters, the governor deserves a laurel.” While we don’t expect this trend to continue since the newspaper regularly writes its editorials and news stories based on Democrat talking points, it’s something worth noting. The question now is whether the Post-Dispatch is going to follow up on its January 5 editorial bashing Claire McCaskill for using a federal loophole to help pay for her $1.6 million campaign debt from 2004. Hope springs eternal. The Messenger editorial can be found here, and the Post-Dispatch editorial can be found here.

The Cornerstone

First, we’d like to remind our grassroots warriors that our newly revised 2007-2008 MRP Handbook is now available. We’ve already had a lot of requests for this valuable resource, but if your committee or club still needs a copy, feel free to contact Mika Schrimpf at mika@mogop.org or 573-636-3146. One of the most important things we do at the grassroots level is communicating our Republican message, which is a strong one. Thanks to Gov. Blunt and our Republican legislators, Missouri has pulled out of the long tailspin created by decades of failed Democrat leadership. That is why The GOP Voice, talking points, press releases, and your letters to the editor are so important. To our many loyal readers of the Voice, we encourage you to direct family, friends and committee and club members to sign up for the Voice at http://www.mogop.org/forms/voicesignup.php.

Thoughts and Prayers

The Missouri Republican Party encourages Republicans across the state to keep these individuals in your thoughts and prayers:

Tony Snow, White House spokesman, who is fighting a second bout with cancer.

Paul Busiek, husband of Mavis Busiek. Paul’s health concerns continue.

Dawn Sprick, daughter of Gary Harris. Dawn is fighting another battle with cancer.

Mike Keathley, Commissioner of Administration, also is fighting cancer.

John Wessel, husband of Lincoln County Chair Carol Wessel, is fighting another battle with cancer.

Rev. Ross Luntsford , Chairman of the Monroe County Committee and pastor of the Bethel Baptist Church, is in Boone Hospital recovering from a stroke. 

 

 
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