President Obama weighs in via Twitter:

President Obama ‏@POTUS

Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It’s what makes America great. 11:58 AM – 16 Sep 2015

Representative Vicky Hartzler (r) <3 Columbia.

Representative Vicky Hartzler (r) [August 2015 file photo].

Representative Hartzler (r) via Twitter yesterday:

Rep. Vicky Hartzler ‏@RepHartzler

Missouri’s Fourth continues to shine! Website names Columbia one of best places to live! #MO4 [….]  7:14 AM – 15 Sep 2015

Ah, yes, the people’s glorious socialist workers paradise that is Columbia, Missouri.

There were a couple of replies:

Elise Buchheit ‏@elisehammond

@RepHartzler I actually still think of myself as living in the 9th in COMO. It works bc you don’t represent me at all anyway. 7:38 AM – 15 Sep 2015

Ouch.

B Yates ‏@OldDrum

@RepHartzler Interesting. I don’t think you actually win Columbia, do you? 3:41 PM – 15 Sep 2015

We checked:

SUMMARY REPORT        BOONE COUNTY, MISSOURI           OFFICIAL CERTIFIED

RUN DATE:11/12/14     NOVEMBER 4, 2014

RUN TIME:03:52 PM     GENERAL ELECTION

[….]

UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE DISTRIC

         US REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT 4

         (VOTE FOR )  1

             (WITH 60 OF 60 PRECINCTS COUNTED)

          NATE IRVIN (DEM) .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .    16,762   41.63

          VICKY HARTZLER (REP).  .  .  .  .  .  .    21,089   52.38

          HERSCHEL L. YOUNG (LIB).  .  .  .  .  .     2,411    5.99

[….]

It’s the whole county. But, then again, winning the county by just under nine percentage points as an incumbent against a political unknown with no money who was practically living out of his beat up car….

In the Dark Ages we could only yell at our television sets or write a letter to the editor of the local paper which wouldn’t be published. This is way more fun.

…it would have been considered serious money. Not anymore.

Yesterday at the Missouri Ethics Commission for Peter Kinder’s (r) 2016 gubernatorial campaign:

C151161 09/15/2015 MISSOURIANS FOR PETER KINDER Larus Corporation 12444 Powerscourt Drive St Louis MO 63131 9/14/2015 $10,000.00

C151161 09/15/2015 MISSOURIANS FOR PETER KINDER Rhodes Development Co. LLC 2301 Bloomfield Rd. Cape Girardeau MO 63703 9/14/2015 $10,000.00

[emphasis added]

It’s a very difficult thing these days for a campaign to raise funds in $10,000.00 increments…

Previously:

Campaign Finance: Peter who? (May 6, 2015)

Campaign Finance: What’s up with that? (May 29, 2015)

Campaign Finance: running for Governor, may run for Governor, exploring a run for Governor (June 13, 2015)

Campaign Finance: running for Governor, may run for Governor, probably running for Governor (June 25, 2015)

Campaign Finance: in the past this might have been impressive (July 1, 2015)

Campaign Finance: wild card (July 6, 2015)

Peter Kinder (r) announces for the 2016 gubernatorial race (July 12, 2015)

Peter Kinder (r) – July 2015 Campaign Finance Report (July 17, 2015)

Campaign Finance: If this keeps up… (July 28, 2015)

PPP Missouri Poll: 2016 U.S. Senate and Governor – August 11, 2015 (August 11, 2015)

Campaign Finance: What else is new? (August 25, 2015)

Campaign Finance: Everyone thinks they’re so cute when they’re little… (September 4, 2015)

Campaign Finance: surge (September 5, 2015)

The last few days at the Missouri Ethics Commission for the probable 2016 Democratic Party gubernatorial candidate:

031159 09/14/2015 KOSTER FOR MISSOURI Sheet Metal Workers Local Union Number 36 2319 Chouteau Ave Suite 100 Saint Louis MO 63103 9/14/2015 $10,000.00

[emphasis added]

C031159 09/15/2015 KOSTER FOR MISSOURI Red-Card Systems, LLC 744 Office Parkway Saint Louis MO 63141 9/15/2015 $25,000.00

[emphasis added]

C031159 09/15/2015 KOSTER FOR MISSOURI Thomas E. Schwartz PC 2000 South 8th Street Saint Louis MO 63104 9/15/2015 $10,000.00

[emphasis added]

There is a difference.

Previously:

Campaign Finance: inexorable (July 7, 2015)

Campaign Finance: I’ll see your managed care and raise you a home health service… (July 14, 2015)

Chris Koster (D) – July 2015 Campaign Finance Report (July 18, 2015)

Campaign Finance: no surprise here (July 21, 2015)

Campaign Finance: a different constituency (July 29, 2015)

Campaign Finance: no rest (August 3, 2015)

PPP Missouri Poll: 2016 U.S. Senate and Governor – August 11, 2015 (August 11, 2015)

Campaign Finance: rolling in (August 15, 2015)

Campaign Finance: hoist one or two (August 22, 2015)

Campaign Finance: on the phone (August 27, 2015)

Campaign Finance: If this keeps up (and it will) we’re gonna run out of snappy headlines… (August 28, 2015)

Which citizens matter in Missouri? (August 29, 2015)

Campaign Finance: there’s no place like homes (August 31, 2015)

Campaign Finance: Which side are you on? (September 8, 2015)

$10,000.00 here and $10,000.00 there, pretty soon you’re talking about some serious money.

We’re never gonna get tired of that headline.

We told you so.

In the past few days at the Missouri Ethics Commission for Eric Greitens’ (r) 2016 exploratory (still) gubernatorial campaign:

C151053 09/14/2015 GREITENS FOR MISSOURI Larry D Frazier 567 Dale Ave Hollister MO 65672 Retired Retired 9/14/2015 $10,000.00

[emphasis added]

151053 09/15/2015 GREITENS FOR MISSOURI James Connolly 140 Franklin St. 2B New York NY 10013 Bubble Foundation Founder 9/15/2015 $10,000.00

[emphasis added]

Previously:

Campaign Finance: There is another? (February 25, 2015)

Campaign Finance: a little bit more (February 26, 2015)

Campaign Finance: A new bandwagon? (March 6, 2015)

Campaign Finance: but wait, there’s more (March 10, 2015)

Campaign Finance: that’ll help finance a whole lot of exploring (March 12, 2015)

Campaign Finance: it’s going to be a good quarter (March 16, 2015)

Campaign Finance: still exploring (March 17, 2015)

Campaign Finance: gone quiet (March 21, 2015)

Campaign Finance: not quiet at all (March 25, 2015)

Campaign Finance: eat mor chikin (March 26, 2015)

The stenographer: Ah, for the good old days… (March 28, 2015)

Campaign Finance: in under the wire (April 1, 2015)

Campaign Finance: all in today (April 9, 2015)

Campaign Finance: far afield (April 13, 2015)

Eric Greitens (r) – quarterly campaign finance report – April 15, 2015 (April 18, 2015)

Campaign Finance: not to be outdone (April 21, 2015)

Campaign Finance: not exactly spare change (April 23, 2015)

Campaign Finance: also in increments of $5,001.00 (April 23, 2015)

Campaign Finance: That’s Entertainment! (April 27, 2015)

Campaign Finance: still more (May 2, 2015)

Campaign Finance: just another harbinger of a populist awakening in Missouri (May 5, 2015)

Campaign Finance: You were expecting anything less? (May 19, 2015)

Campaign Finance: still exploring (June 6, 2015)

Campaign Finance: running for Governor, may run for Governor, exploring a run for Governor (June 13, 2015)

Campaign Finance: alrighty then (June 16, 2015)

Campaign Finance: we’d venture to say that’s a lot of capital (June 23, 2015)

Campaign Finance: pretty soon you’re talkin’ serious money (June 24, 2015)

Campaign Finance: you don’t need to play chess when you have friends like this (June 25, 2015)

Campaign Finance: fast approaching that first million (June 26, 2015)

Campaign Finance: getting closer… (June 26, 2015)

Campaign Finance: ever so close… (June 29, 2015)

Campaign Finance: blow right by it (June 30, 2015)

Campaign Finance: there is no end to it July 1, 2015)

Campaign Finance: also inexorable (July 11, 2015)

Campaign Finance: a talent for raising money (July 13, 2015)

Eric Greitens (r) – July 2015 Quarterly Campaign Finance Report (July 15, 2015)

Campaign Finance: it’s getting boring… (July 20, 2015)

Campaign Finance: Who’s buying the beer? (July 24, 2015)

Campaign Finance: branching out (July 29, 2015)

Campaign Finance: Is this a trend? (July 31, 2015)

Campaign Finance: Ah, Springfield (August 17, 2015)

Campaign Finance: What else is new? (August 25, 2015)

But, but, Missouri’s centrifuge manufacturers are counting on the business (August 27, 2015)

Campaign Finance: a flurry, and it’s still Summer (August 28, 2015)

Campaign Finance: it’ll never end (September 1, 2015)

Campaign Finance: there goes the whole “it’s a populist grassroots campaign” ad package (September 3, 2015)

Campaign Finance: it’s like a campaign contribution, only smaller (September 9, 2015)

Campaign Finance: it’s like a campaign contribution, only smaller – part 2 (September 11, 2015)

Yesterday at the Missouri Ethics Commission for the state party committees:

C000960 09/14/2015 MO DEMOCRATIC STATE COMMITTEE Southwestern Bell Telephone, L.P., d/b/a AT&T Missouri One AT&T Center Room 4200 St Louis MO 63101 9/14/2015 $20,000.00

[emphasis added]

C000953 09/14/2015 MO REPUBLICAN PARTY Southwestern Bell Telephone LP dba AT&T Missouri One AT&T Center Room 4200 St Louis MO 63101 9/14/2015 $7,500.00

[emphasis added]

Ma always did love you more…

Today at the Missouri Ethics Commission:

C151174: Committee For Accountable Government In Missouri

  Committee Type: Political Action

7509 Nw Tiffany Springs Parkway Suite 300

Kansas City Mo 64153 Established Date: 09/11/2015

[….]

Treasurer

James C Thomas Iii

7509 Nw Tiffany Springs Parkway Suite 300

Kansas City Mo 64153

[….]

Committee History

Scan Title Scan Date Report Year

Statement of Committee Organization 09/14/2015 2015

[emphasis added]

C151174 09/14/2015 COMMITTEE FOR ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNMENT IN MISSOURI David Humphreys P O Box 4050 Joplin MO 64803 TAMKO Owner 9/14/2015 $500,000.00

[emphasis added]

One could do a lot of damage with that kind of money.

At Powell Gardens in Kingsville, Missouri:

Prairie flowers.

Today at the Missouri Ethics Commission for a campaign finance initiative:

C141592 09/13/2015 RETURNING GOVERNMENT TO THE PEOPLE Fred N Sauer 454 Hammersmith Road Saint Louis MO 63105 Orion Investment Company 9/12/2015 $40,000.00

That’s a total of $292,000.00 from a the same contributor since the middle of July.

Previously:

The world we live in (July 21, 2015)

Campaign Finance: a vague sense of an impending populist groundswell (August 7, 2015)

Campaign Finance: all we really have left is irony (August 24, 2015)

Campaign Finance: a single minded sense of purpose (September 1, 2015)

Campaign Finance: spend money, achieve irony (September 8, 2015)

This evening at Powell Gardens in Kingsville, Missouri:

Odonata.