Gibbons finally got back to the anti-CAFO activists with an answer about whether he would interpret 192.300 to mean that County Commissions have the authority to regulate CAFOs. The short answer is that 192.300 “clearly allows the establishment of the County Health Ordinances and is in support of local control.”

Here’s the entire text of his e-mail on the subject to Rhonda Perry of the Missouri Rural Crisis Center:

With regard to the office of Attorney General, the job is to enforce the law fairly, impartially and effectively to give full effect to the will of the people of Missouri. It is not a policy making role like the Legislature.

Therefore, my duty as Attorney General is to enforce effectively provisions like 192.300RSMo as affirmed in Borron v Farrenkopf, 5 SW 3d 618 (MoApp 1999) which clearly allows the establishment of the County Health Ordinances and is in support of local control.

Regarding your question on the inclusion of County Health Center Boards in 192.300, the language used is clear that when it comes to health ordinances, a properly constituted County Health Center Board has the same authority as a County Commission. Therefore, that is the position I am duty bound to uphold if I am the next Attorney General because it is the law.

Thank you for contacting me and for the opportunity to discuss these issues now and in the future.

Activists need no longer base their AG vote, then, on that single issue. And they are aware that, whichever man wins, they’d do well to set up a meeting with him early on. These are very determined people who–trust me–will continue to make headway on the issue.

This one’s going to leave a mark:

Ouch, that had to hurt.

Here’s the script:

Koster: 600 million dollars — that’s what’s stolen each year from Missouri’s Medicaid system by crooked corporate executives.

When I fought for tough prison sentences for these criminals, my opponent argued against locking them up, stating that Medicaid fraud is just a “property crime.”

So Mike Gibbons, let me explain something:

When you steal 600 million dollars from the people of Missouri, it doesn’t matter if you steal it with a gun or a pen.

Announcer: Koster for Attorney General. All prosecutor. No politics.

Watching TV the other night, I saw my first ad for a downballot race, for Michael Gibbons for Attorney General. It was a pretty unremarkable ad (never good news for an advertiser) but one thing stood out precisely because of its absence – Gibbons didn’t mention his party identification. I went to Mike’s website this morning to see if I could watch the ad again and find that I was mistaken, and sure enough, there is no mention of the Republican Party. Neither is there much mention of the Republican Party on his website. In fact, I had to resort to a Google search to find any, and they were all in the “Newsroom” section.

Why not? Chris Koster announces at the very top of the website that he’s a Democrat – why won’t Gibbons? The Republican Party holds the legislature and the Governor’s Mansion, and their own candidates won’t even say what party they belong to?

Via Tony Messenger at P-D’s Political Fix, Republican AG candidate Michael Gibbons will sign HB 2224 tomorrow flanked by police officers. HB 2224 is a bill that creates funding for pay raises for deputy sheriffs. Nevermind that as Senate President Pro Tem, he already signed the bill before the legislative session ended at the end of May.

Also nevermind that his rival Democratic candidates (Margaret Donnelly, Jeff Harris, and Chris Koster) all voted for the same bill during the session.

Speaking of the Democratic candidates, we’ll have a report up later in the day about the West County Democrats’ Attorney General Forum, with audio of the event (if I can get it uploaded to my computer!)

For years, my cousin seemed uncomfortable, to say the least. She was bright and outgoing as a child, but soon after she hit adolescence, she withdrew, almost seeming anguished when any attention was focused on her. I didn’t think much of it at the time; after all, it’s hardly unusual for a teenager to become moody and self-conscious. But this “phase” lasted for years, until well after graduation, and the years didn’t visibly alter her moods. She was probably about twenty when my sister, who is much closer to her than I am, told me the reason for my cousin’s anguish. She’s a lesbian in a small town, and she couldn’t count on anybody in her environment, whether at home, school, or work, to understand what she felt. Now things have changed for her. She’s told the family about her sexual orientation, and after some adjustment, most of us now accept her as she is. She has a committed partner now. While I have no idea if they would have plans to get married if that were possible, they are probably more committed to each other than some married couples I have known. She is really happy now, the same bright, outgoing person I knew her to be as a child before being interrupted by the confusion of teenage years. And I’m happy she is happy, and I’d like to keep it that way. Which is why I get so angry when the LBGT community gets tossed around like a football every time an election comes up. And why I’m upset with Jay Nixon right now.

More below the fold.

In case you somehow missed it, the California Supreme Court in mid-May struck down the ban on gay marriage in the state. In reaction, conservatives in California will put a ballot initiative forward asking voters to approve or deny a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. Matt Blunt and Kenny Hulshof have been taunting Jay Nixon for a few days to file a brief asking the California Supreme Court to delay implementing its decision until voters can weigh in via the ballot initiative.  And on Wednesday, Nixon gave in.

If there’s one thing we’ve learned from Republicans over the last 8 years, it’s that they don’t care if you give in, if you agree with them, or if you cave on an issue. They’ll still call you a gay terrorist-lovin’ atheist abortionist. And true to form, Blunt gloated when Nixon caved:

“Though it is nearly a week overdue, I am glad Nixon finally answered my call and joined with other attorneys general as he should have done last Thursday,” Gov. Matt Blunt said in a statement. “Missourians overwhelmingly believe that marriage is between one man and one woman and they deserve an attorney general who stands up for traditional marriage because it is the right thing to do, not because they receive pressure from others.”

At a minimum, why couldn’t Jay Nixon have pointed out that this is a non-issue in the state and the Missouri voters have serious matters before them, like a looming recession, skyrocketing gas and health care prices, and a housing crisis? Pragmatically, I realize that Nixon is not going to push for the repeal of DOMA or the state’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, but to go out of state to fight against same-sex marriage, well, that just feels like he’s kicking my cousin.

I was going to point out that the Democratic AG candidates would also face similar challenges on same-sex marriage from the Republicans, but in glancing at the news before finishing this post, I see that Jeff Harris has already answered Republican Michael Gibbons on just this matter:

“As Attorney General of the State of Missouri, I will consistently work to support and uphold the constitution that governs our state.

“However, the issue being raised by Senator Gibbons is not one that presently affects our state. Senator Gibbons is attempting to distract the voters – notably in the very first press release of his AG campaign – with rhetoric that is more about divisiveness than substance. These are actions I cannot and will not support.

“If I had Senator Gibbons’ record of caving in to corporate interests instead of fighting to protect consumers, I think I would rather talk about a California court ruling, too.”

That’s good. I’ll update if and when anybody else chimes in.

There’s enough material in the October quarterly campaign finance reports available online at the Missouri Ethics Commission to occupy hundreds of curious Internets denizens for months.

In looking at the reports for Michael Gibbons, the lone “name” republican candidate for Attorney General, I was struck by the “burn rate” of his committee, Missourian for Gibbons. That is, the amount of money his committee has already spent.

The Summary of the October report filed on 10/12/07 shows [to date] $389,439.00 in total receipts, $148,326.55 in expenditures, $21,300.00 in contributions, with $220,811.71 on hand. That’s some burn rate. 

The Itemized Expenditure Over $100 Supplemental Form which is part of these reports can also enlighten us as to what caused that hefty burn rate. In addition to the following there are staff costs, supplies, and returned contributions listed.

October 12, 2007 [report]:

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 09/13/2007 reimburse supplies
$423.95

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 09/13/2007 independent contractor-fundraiser
$2,500.00

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 07/20/2007 independent contractor-fundraiser
$2,500.00

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 07/19/2007 independent contractor-fundraiser
$8,844.70

Capitol Consulting LLC PO Box 931 Jefferson City MO 65102 07/19/2007 reimburse supplies
$614.21

July, 15 2007 [report]:

TAPAWINGO NATIONAL GOLF CLUB 13001 GARY PLAYER DRIVE SUNSET HILLS, MO 63127 06/07/2007 RENTAL FEES
$10,592.85

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 05/09/2007 IND. CONTRACTOR-FUNDRAISER
$2,500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 05/09/2007 REIMBURSE SUPPLIES, POSTAGE, PRINTING
$523.15

THE ROCKET GROUP LLC PO BOX 913 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102  05/15/2007 PRINTING AND DESIGN
$2,686.11

ARISTOTLE INTERNATIONAL INC. 205 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, SE WASHINGTON DC 20003 05/15/2007 COMPUTER PROGRAM/HOSTING
$2,125.00

ARISTOTLE INTERNATIONAL INC. 205 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, SE WASHINGTON DC 20003 05/15/2007 COMPUTER PROGRAM/HOSTING
$4,250.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65109 04/07/2007 IND. CONTRACTOR-FUNDRAISING
$2,500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65109 04/07/2007 REIMBURSE SUPPLIES, POSTAGE
$489.91

THE ROCKET GROUP LLC PO BOX 913 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 05/15/2007 WEBSITE
$5,714.18

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 06/05/2007 IND. CONTRACTOR-FUNDRAISER
$2,500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 06/05/2007 REIMBURSE SUPPLIES, POSTAGE
$1,046.40

I got invited to a golf tournament once, but I didn’t have a set of clubs and I hadn’t played in years. I didn’t get to go.

April 16, 2007 [report]:

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 03/05/2007 IND. CONTR-FUNDRAISER-JAN/FEB
$5,000.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 931 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65102 03/05/2007 REIMBURSE SUPPLIES, PHONE
$2,671.70

January 15, 2007 [report]

ARISTOTLE INTERNATIONAL INC. 205 PENNSYLVANIA AVE, SE WASHINGTON, DC 20003 10/10/2006 COMPUTER PROGRAM
$9,124.99

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 921 JEFFERSON CITY, MO 65109 10/13/2006 IND. CONTRACT-FUNDRAISER
$500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 921 JEFFERSON CITY, MO 65109 10/13/2006 REIMBURSE PHONE
$25.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 921 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65109 12/14/2006 IND. CONTRACT-FUNDRAISER
$1,500.00

CAPITOL CONSULTING LLC PO BOX 921 JEFFERSON CITY MO 65109 12/14/2006 REIMBURSE PHONE
$75.00

That’s a lot of fundraising and computer stuff. Raising money is hard work. And where have we heard of Capitol Consulting before?