In their first joint appearance, Missouri’s five major Republican candidates made clear that they agree on the key moves deemed necessary to move the state forward.
Among their shared views:
- Fewer regulations;
- Lower taxes;
- Limits on lawsuits;
- Restrictions on abortion;
- Enacting a “right to work’’ law to curb union rights.
Their differences – laid out during Tuesday night’s forum in Jefferson City -- appeared to center more on style than substance. And on what each deemed as his or her political strength.
The five GOP contenders are Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder, former state House Speaker Catherine Hanaway, businessman John Brunner, author Eric Greitens and state Senator Bob Dixon of Springfield. Kinder is from Cape Girardeau, while Hanaway, Brunner and Greitens all reside in the St. Louis area.
Kinder noted that he was the only one of the five who had won a statewide election. Indeed, he’s won three. He promised to be “a confident, optimistic leader.’’
Hanaway emphasized her more recent post as U.S. Attorney for Missouri's Eastern District. "We've got to have a prosecutor to go up against Chris Koster,” she said, referring to the Missouri attorney general and the likely Democratic nominee.
Dixon said he was the only contender who’d actually voted on controversial issues like “right to work.”
“The dome at our state Capitol .... is a pressure cooker. I've been dome-tested,” Dixon said.
Brunner repeatedly touted his experience as a businessman. "Missouri is a big business,” he said. “It takes a CEO to turn this business around."
Greitens portrayed his experience as a Navy SEAL as a plus – as well as his lack of experience in state government. “As governor, I'll bring to Jeff City a team of outsiders who've proven their ability to run farms, businesses and served the military,” he said.
(St. Louis Public Radio covered the event via Missourinet's livestream audio/video feed posted on the news outlet's website and on Youtube. The event was sponsored by the Cole County GOP, and held at the Missouri Farm Bureau headquarters.)
United against Medicaid expansion
The forum focused on several key issues of concern to rural Missouri, including the importance of agriculture, the need to improve the state’s roads and bridges, and how best to aid the state’s cash-strapped rural hospitals.
All five reaffirmed their opposition to expansion of the state’s Medicaid program, despite pleas from many of the state’s medical facilities.
The candidates blamed many private hospitals’ financial troubles on the federal Affordable Care Act, which all emphasized they opposed. The law is phasing out federal payments to care for the poor, which were to be replaced by expanding Medicaid.
The Republican candidates said the state should help hospitals by cutting regulations and creating incentives for medical professionals to work in rural areas. Dixon clarified his stance in a telephone interview later, saying he might be open to a Medicaid-expansion option such as that put in place by Republicans in neighboring Arkansas.
All five acknowledged concerns about the state’s transportation challenges, but none proposed hiking the state’s gasoline tax, among the nation’s lowest.
Hanaway said that if she was governor and the state’s gas tax was increased, she’d cut the state’s income tax. As another option to raise more money for roads and bridges, she proposed that the Missouri Highway Patrol's budget be shifted out of the state's gas tax-funded highway fund, and covered instead by the state's general-revenue budget.
Kinder noted that the state’s voters had rejected various tax proposals – notably a sales tax hike – to raise money for transportation. Toll roads, he observed, needed to be considered as an alternative.
Greitens, Koster attract more big donors
Among the 2016 candidates for governor, Koster and Greitens have raised the most money – and this week was no exception.
Koster collected $100,000 in a single check from the St. Louis-based Simon Law Firm. Greitens received a total of $90,000 from three donors, including $50,000 from Howard and Marilyn Wood in Bonne Terre. Wood is a wealthy CPA who made a fortune in the telecommunications industry.
