MOScout Daily Update: Mitten Enters Senate 4 - Griffith for Clerk - House Property Tax Committee - Drink Complaint and more…
Quick Friday update…
Mitten Enters Senate 4
Former Rep. Gina Mitten kicked off her Senate 4 campaign last week.
Pictures from Facebook…
Mitten appears to be planning on making abortion a central plank in her messaging… “The citizens of St. Louis deserve a state senator who respects their values. Over 80% of Senate District 4 voted to protect reproductive healthcare. As the only Pro-Choice candidate in this race, I want to go to Jefferson City to be a champion of reproductive rights…”
· Sen. Karla May is termed. Mitten joins Rep. Steve Butz and Blaine Folsom as declared candidates. Former Rep. Peter Meredith has a campaign committee, but hasn’t made any organizing moves.
House Interim Committee on Property Taxes
Here’s the composition of Speaker Jon Patterson’s new Special Interim Committee on Property Tax Reform…
Chair: Rep. Tim Taylor; Vice-Chair: Rep. Rodger Reedy; Ranking Minority Member: Rep. Kathy Steinhoff.
Republicans: Reps. Darin Chappell, Bishop Davidson, Ron Fowler, Tony Harbison, Ben Keathley, Jim Murphy, Dean Van Schoiack, Chris Warwick, and Cecelie Williams. Democrats: Reps. Mark Boyko, Jeff Hales, Kemp Strickler, and Del Taylor.
· JP has said he’d like to have recommendations from this committee ready for a special session on property tax to run concurrent with September’s Veto Session.
Griffith for County Clerk
News Tribune reports that Rep. Dave Griffith will run for Cole County clerk next year.
· Facing term limits in the Missouri House, Griffith is throwing his hat in the ring for the Republican primary for county clerk. Filing for the August 2026 primary begins Feb. 24.
· Steve Korsmeyer, who has been the county clerk since 2014, previously told the News Tribune he will not file for re-election. His term ends in December 2026.
· Griffith said he plans to officially kick off his campaign near the end of July.
RoundUp Future Tied to SCOTUS?
St. Louis Business Journal reports the U.S. Supreme Court “is scheduled on June 26 to consider Bayer’s petition asking the court to resolve what the German conglomerate says is a split among judicial decisions.” And that this “could determine whether Bayer AG continues to make its Roundup weedkiller.”
· As of this month, there are about 60,000 pending cases over whether glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, causes cancer – a charge which Bayer rejects.
· “Absent this Court’s review, the mounting liability will force Monsanto to confront whether to remove Roundup completely from the U.S. market, which would be a disaster for the Nation’s farmers and food supply,” wrote Paul Clement, an attorney representing Bayer, in a brief filed June 16 with the Supreme Court. He is a partner with Clement & Murphy PLLC, an Arlington, Virginia, firm.
Hemp Politics
NYTimes reports by “the end of this week, Gov. Greg Abbott must decide whether to sign what might be the nation’s broadest legal prohibition on intoxicating hemp-derived products.”
· The fight in Texas highlights what is becoming a national tug of war over how to handle a wave of new hemp products that have been developed since the 2018 farm bill was passed, legislation that was pushed by Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, and signed by President [Donald] Trump. The law has had dramatic, unintended consequences.
· At the time of the bill’s passage, Mr. McConnell said he was merely championing a farm product from his state, a “distant cousin” to marijuana… Instead, an entire edibles industry emerged, yielding economic and political surprises.
Drink Complaint
The latest non-action due to a lack of quorum on the Missouri Ethics Commission involves a complaint against Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz.
· Drink was a donor in the recent Columbia mayor’s race, but because complaints are confidential, it’s unclear what this complaint actually exactly.
Herbert Takes Birch Spot
Press release: Governor Mike Kehoe announced that Halle Herbert will assume the role of Policy Director in the Governor's Office, effective Tuesday, June, 24… Herbert fills the role that will be vacated by Jamie Birch, who is stepping away from the position to pursue other opportunities with Missouri State University… Herbert joined the Office of the Missouri Governor in January 2025 and currently serves as Senior Policy Advisor… Prior to joining the Governor’s Office, Herbert served as legislative director for DPS, where she represented the department before the Missouri General Assembly and acted as a liaison for the Governor’s Office. Herbert holds a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from Missouri State University.
Lobbyist Registrations
Steven Tilley, Tom Robbins, Chris Schoeman, Ron Berry, and Alec Rosenblum added Magna Air Group.
$5K+ Contributions
A Brighter Future for St Louis PAC (pro-Spencer) - $6,000 from St. Louis Association of Realtors Political Action Committee.
Kingdom Leadership PAC (pro-Fitzwater) - $10,000 from J&J Ventures Gaming of Missouri LLC (Effingham, IL).
Kingdom Leadership PAC - $7,500 from Conservative Leaders of Missouri LLC.
Kingdom Leadership PAC - $7,500 from Missouri Soybean Association.
Missouri Optometric Association PAC - $65,000 from Missouri Optometric Association.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Senator Eric Schmitt.
Saturday: Mike Pridmore, Hank Thompson, and Jeff Shawan.
Sunday: Rep. Chad Perkins, Margo McNeil, and Ann Auer.
MOScout Schedule
No MOScout this weekend. Be back Monday.