Seven years ago I attended an announcement in Harrisonville, Missouri.

Yeah

I got an early morning phone call. “Look at the front page of the Kansas City Star.” I almost fell out of my chair. I made another phone call at 6:30 a.m. – the person on the other end of the line was chuckling. You know who it was.

Attorney General Chris Koster [file photo].

Wed Aug 01, 2007 at 05:08 AM PDT

Missouri state senator switches from GOP to Dem

by paradocs

Today’s Kansas City Star is reporting that Missouri state senator Chris Koster, a candidate for Attorney General in 2008, is switching to the Democratic Party.

Kansas City Star [link may expire]

“My vision for the state is not a far-right vision,” Koster told The Kansas City Star. “I am a hindrance to them, and they are to me. It seemed like a good time for a separation.”

The move sent political shock waves across the state.

Not to mention, triggering a lot of early morning phone calls.

The article cites three issues with which Koster had significant differences with the republican majority: stem cells, economic development, and their vocal criticisms [and assault on for political purposes] of the non-partisan judicial selection plan [the republicans are going after “activist judges” in Missouri as one of their campaign wedge issues].

Koster, 42, had $644,170 in the bank for the attorney general’s race, more than any candidate from either party. On Tuesday he would not address his plans for remaining in the race as a Democrat.

A state ethics official said nothing in state campaign law would require Koster to refund the money.

The Star is also reporting that Koster severed his ties with notorious republican campaign consultant Jeff Roe.

Koster said he began contemplating a switch after the legislative session that concluded in May.

“I struggled with it every single day since the end of the session,” Koster said. “It just became clear that I have moved so far into moderate territory that there is no going back.

“I’ve gotten to the point whether either you change your beliefs in order to accommodate your party, or you change your party to accommodate your beliefs,” Koster said. “My goal is to hold on to those things I hold true.”

Holy cow. I’ve got to go make some phone calls.

I also posted my notes from the press conference:

Straight off my PDA:

   Chris Koster 8/1/07

   press conference

   Harisonville, MO

   “the only way to advance”

   “republican moderates all but extinct”

   used term “progressive”

   [reasons:]

   stem cells

   minimum wage

   workers rights – collective bargaining

   family planning

   economic dev – bio tech – life sciences [in danger]

   stem cells – criminalizing science

   “go to boston for your nobel prize, come to missouri for your leg irons”

   “i choose to fight with those who i agree”

   extremists – republican party

   chan 9 –

   “vituperutive language against the judiciary by this administration” [when challenged by a television news reporter, Koster answered, “This administration can make it stop.”]

   “a break with the party that has gone too far to the right”

   Stowers Institute – expansion on hold due to republican

   “republicans will work to gut collective bargaining”

The times have changed.