Missouri Governor Jay Nixon is attending the National Governors Association's winter meetings in Washington DC this weekend, and once again he's been questioned about his political future.
His itinerary Friday included a live webcast with Politico senior political correspondent Alex Burns. During the interview Burns mentioned a headline in a Missouri newspaper that read: "Is Jay Nixon Considering a Presidential Bid?", then asked Nixon directly if he is. The governor responded, "You've got to get into these articles...the headlines are just what they do to be provocative, you need to read the rest of the stuff in there."
Nixon then said he hopes Hillary Clinton runs seeks the Democratic nomination.
"We're all hopeful that Secretary Clinton makes a run, and if she does, we'd be prepared to help make sure she got the electoral votes of the Show-Me State," Nixon said.
Burns responded, "(I) didn't hear an answer to the question there," which provoked laughter from the audience. Nixon quickly came back, saying he's focused on running the state of Missouri.
"I really am not spending a great deal of time thinking about that, other than to say that I do think the heartland deserves a voice in whatever policy there is, whatever party it is, in the national elections," Nixon said. "I just want to make sure that the center part of this country has a clear voice."
Nixon also fielded questions on Medicaid expansion and the tax cut battles with the Missouri General Assembly. Meanwhile, he did not give a clear "yes" or "no" on his future plans. He briefly joked that he was disappointed the job of NBA commissioner was no longer available, and said if he did move to Washington that he wouldn't be a reporter.
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