Previously:

Campaign Finance: What’s next? (April 2, 2013)

Today, at the Missouri Ethics Commission:

C011132 04/05/2013 SANDERS FOR JACKSON COUNTY Polsinelli Shughart 700 West 47th Street, Suite 1000 Kansas City MO 64112 4/4/2013 $10,000.00

[emphasis added]

Still, just asking.

Henry County Democrats sponsored a candidate meet and greet event in Clinton yesterday evening. Mike Sanders, Jackson County Executive and Chair of the Missouri Democratic Party warmed up the crowd. Candidates speaking included Cass County Prosecutor and 4th Congressional District candidate Teresa Hensley, 31st Senate District candidate Charlie Burton, as well as local Henry County candidates.

Teresa Hensley, Cass County Prosecutor and the Democratic Party candidate in the 4th Congressional District.

Mike Sanders, Jackson County Executive and Chair of the Missouri Democratic Party.

Charlie Burton (center), the Democratic Party candidate in the 31st Senate District.

Lafayette County Democrats held a dinner and pie auction fundraiser in Higginsville this evening. It was also an opportunity for Democratic Party officeholders and statewide and local candidates to visit and speak to those in attendance before Tuesday’s primary election. Close to one hundred individuals attended the dinner and auction.

Jackson County Executive and Missouri Democratic Party Chairman Mike Sanders

addressed the gathering of Lafayette County Democrats in Higginsville.

Congressman Emanuel Cleaver (D).

Jason Kander (right) a Democratic Party candidate for Secretary of State.

Former State Auditor – and a Democratic Party candidate for Lieutenant Governor – Susan Montee.

Holmes Osborne, the Democratic Party candidate in the 53rd Legislative District.

One of the auction pies.

Auctioning a cherry pie.

Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders (D) has had a recent flurry of big dollar campaign contributions – for 2014?

At the Missouri Ethics Commission:

CONTRIBUTION OF MORE THAN $5,000.00 RECEIVED BY ANY COMMITTEE FROM ANY SINGLE DONOR – TO BE FILED WITHIN 48 HOURS OF RECEIVING THE CONTRIBUTION

C011132 SANDERS FOR JACKSON COUNTY [pdf] 8/27/2011

James Nutter

1201 W 66th St

Kansas City, MO 64113

James B Nutter and Co Owner

8/26/2011

$10,000.00

[emphasis added]

CONTRIBUTION OF MORE THAN $5,000.00 RECEIVED BY ANY COMMITTEE FROM ANY SINGLE DONOR – TO BE FILED WITHIN 48 HOURS OF RECEIVING THE CONTRIBUTION

C011132 SANDERS FOR JACKSON COUNTY [pdf] 8/31/2011

Vance Brothers

PO Box 300107

Kansas City, MO 64130

8/31/2011

$9,000.00

Dollar, Burns & Becker LC

1100 Main Street, Suite 2600

Kansas City, MO 64105

8/31/2011

$10,000.00

Kenneth McClain

308 W Maple

Kansas City, MO 64050

Humphrey, Farrington & McClain Attorney

8/31/2011

$10,000.00

[emphasis added]

That’s a lot of money this early for 2014.

The Stenographer wonders…

Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster

Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster (D) was introduced by Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders at the dinner held at the Hyatt Regency Crown Center last night:

Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders: …We always knew that Chris Koster was an extremely effective politician. And we really knew that was the case when he switched parties and joined the Democratic Party. [applause] We knew how smart and brilliant this man was. [applause] We knew he was a great politician in winning, obviously the race that he ran and the races that he’d run before, but what we’re also now discovering about Chris, things that we knew and many of the people in this room know, is that he is a great administrator, a great person, a great leader.

One example. Two thousand nine looks like it’s going to be a record year in the State of Missouri for recovery of money on Medicaid and Medicare fraud. [applause] [cheers] Fifty million dollars [applause] that through Chris’ leadership is going to be returned.

Mike Sanders and Chris Koster

Now these are all the things that we can talk about, we can read about in the paper, Chris is in the paper. We can see the great things that he is doing in the Attorney General’s office, but I wanted to just end with a little brief thing. And that is, in 1996 I left the Jackson County Prosecutor’s office, I was a criminal defense attorney, and one of the first, the first case I got hired on was a gentleman who was ultimately wrongly convicted out of Cass County, Missouri. Let me tell you this. The man that I called was this man right here. The thing that amazed me about Chris Koster was when I called him, as a defense attorney/prosecutor you expect an adversarial relationship, what stunned me, what amazed me about Chris Koster was he was as agressive towards finding the truth about that case as anyone that that gentleman could have hired. But for him, but for him a wrongly convicted man could still be in prison today in the State of Missouri. That’s a personal story. [applause]

Chris Koster is a man who doesn’t just talk the talk. He walks the walk. He’s a man of high integrity, high character, a great leader, and your Attorney General, the top law enforcement officer for this State of Missouri, Chris Koster. [applause] [cheers]

Attorney General Chris Koster: Thank you very much.

Thank you to the Jackson County Democratic Party, for all your support. Congratulations Steve [Bough] on hosting another great Truman Days event. And to all of you in this room for the chance, the chance that you have given me to serve. It’s good to be back in Kansas City and among friends.

Missouri Democrats had a banner year in two thousand and eight. And we’re going to have another banner year in two thousand and ten when we take back this Missouri House of Representatives [applause], when we re-elect Susan Montee [applause], and when we send my friend Robin Carnahan to Washington. [applause]

If you told me ten years ago that I would be here tonight [laughter] speaking at the Truman Days dinner [laughter] I might be a little surprised. [laughter] The path that I took and the path that led me here tonight reaffirms my belief in the openness of a great political party and in the power of change. In November we saw what the power of change could do for this entire nation.

We saw young standing up with the old. We saw the rich standing with the poor. And we saw Americans of every different race and creed standing behind a common desire for change. Right here in Missouri millions stood behind the call for change that was voiced by Jay Nixon and Democrats from St. Joseph to Cape Girardeau. And these Missouri Democrats will not let this state down.

We are seeing the kind of leadership in the first few months of the Obama-Biden administration that is finally reconnecting our government and our people, and our nation to the entire world. In Jefferson City Governor Nixon is offering a true breath of fresh air, honest leadership, and open government. [Dutch Newman: “Yes!] [applause] He’s a man of progress. [applause] He’s a man of progress and not partisanship. He’s as plain spoken as Harry Truman and leads with the same common sense Democrat values. It was an honor to stand on the steps of the state capitol with him last January to be sworn in as Attorney General. Jay Nixon left big shoes to fill. Every day when I walk in that office I sit behind his desk, sixteen years, and I recognize the responsibility that he has left to me. But it is my goal to make him proud.

I happen to think that I have the best job in state government. My job isn’t to be a show horse. We’ve got a lot of talented people in this party to showcase, and in our government. I recognize that I am the low man on the Democratic totem pole. And I tell you tonight that there is no place that I would rather be.

Law enforcement has been my life’s work. And I’m proud to serve the people of this state and of this party every day…

As I exited the main lobby of Union Station I was approached by an individual who saw my press identification from the McCain event. She pointed me to the crowd at Liberty Memorial Park across the street. When I arrived at the location I found Bridgette Williams, Greater Kansas City AFL-CIO president, and Mike Sanders, Jackson County Executive, along with a backdrop of thirty or so AFL-CIO members and Obama campaign supporters.

Bridgette Williams, President of the Greater Kansas City AFL-CIO, and Mike Sanders, Jackson County Executive, at Liberty Memorial Park across from the entrance to Union Station.

Bridgette Williams’ statement for the media:

Today Senator John McCain will try to convince Missourians that his economic agenda represents a departure from the disastrous policies of George Bush. Bust as the old saying goes, “the proof is in the pudding.” The truth is that Senator McCain’s plan is little more than a carbon copy of the failed Bush agenda that has led to a rapidly collapsing economy. From skyrocketing gas prices to the health care crises, McCain offers more of the same…

…McCain’s ill conceived plan to extend the Bush tax breaks for the wealthy and add billions more in tax breaks for the health insurance industry and Big Oil is just one example of his misguided agenda for Missouri’s working families. He also supports unbalanced trade deals, privatizing Social Security, and taxing people’s health care benefits. Nearly every part of the McCain economic agenda mirrors the Bush adminstration’s failed approach. And McCain stubbornly refuses to stray even an inch from his most damaging recycled Bush proposal, to continue the war in Iraq for up to one hundred years, costing America’s taxpayers ten billion dollars every month and dragging down the fragile economy.

With no end in sight to the current economic downturn, the last thing Missouri working families need is another four years of senator McCain towing the same lines as President Bush, “you’re on your own.” Thousands of families are losing their homes to foreclosure, energy prices are skyrocketing, good jobs are moving overseas, forty seven million Americans without health care, including seven hundred seventy thousand right here in Missouri. More than one hundred sixty thousand people in our state are unemployed.

We call on Senator McCain to change course by listening to working families’ concerns and supporting our priorities like good jobs, health care for all and fair trade. Anything less simply won’t cut it with Missouri’s working people.

Hillary Clinton picked up a key endorsement and co-chair for her Missouri campaign. 

The Hillary Clinton campaign announced today that Jackson County Missouri County Executive Mike Sanders has endorsed Hillary for President and the campaign has named him a Co-Chair of the Missouri campaign. 

“Hillary Clinton has the strength and experience to get our troops home safely from Iraq and tackle the tough challenges we face at home, from moving toward energy independence to establishing universal healthcare for every American,” Sanders said in his endorsement.  “Hillary is uniquely qualified to deliver the change this country needs.”

Sanders has a long record of public service.  He served as an officer in the U.S. Army before returning home to attend law school and enter into government.  Before he was elected to the County Executive position, he served two terms as the county Prosecuting Attorney, was elected Jackson County Executive in November 2006, after campaigning on a platform of transparency in government, fiscal responsibility and safe neighborhoods. 

“Mike has worked tirelessly to make Jackson County a safer and more livable community, and he gets results,” Clinton said. “I’m honored to have his support and delighted that he’ll help lead our efforts in Missouri.”