By Wally Kennedy

wkennedy@joplinglobe.com

Four Republicans, two Democrats and a Libertarian want to be Missouri’s next governor, but there is only one primary contest generating heat, and it’s a doozy.

U.S. Rep. Kenny Hulshof, from Missouri’s 9th District, and Missouri Treasurer Sarah Steelman have taken to the airwaves with attack and counter-attack ads to convince Republicans each is the best candidate to take on likely Democratic nominee, Missouri Attorney General Jeremiah “Jay’’ Nixon.

One observer of Missouri politics says the primary between Steelman and Hulshof is reminiscent of the 1992 Republican contest between Roy Blunt, William Webster and Wendell Bailey. Webster, a Carthage native, became the nominee but his campaign for governor was marked by allegations of corruption relating to a state workers’ compensation fund that Webster managed as attorney general. Webster lost the general election to Democrat Mel Carnahan.

Both Hulshof and Steelman have made frequent appearances in Southwest Missouri. Nixon has taken a low-key approach to the primary since his only opponent is Daniel Carroll, a factory worker from Shelbina.

Ad battle blitz

Steelman defended ads that she says illustrate Hulshof’s record as a Congressman.

“The ads are pointing out his Washington spending habits. That’s a matter of record. Those are the facts,” she said. “We are not distorting the record. In a campaign, you look at their records. He can look at my record, and I was looking at his record. His was one of wasteful spending in Congress and increasing the federal deficit. He won’t defend any of his votes on earmarks.

“I have not attacked his character. Those ads point out the record.”

“I’m disappointed, but not surprised,” Hulshof responded. “There are ways to compare and contrast the views of candidates that can be hard-hitting, but fair. You can produce ads that do not get into a negative reflection of someone’s character.

“She has attacked my character. I’m immoral, irresponsible and wasteful in her eyes. But I have tried to stay on the high road. You have got to defend yourself because you know negative campaigning works. But you can do that in a way in which the facts are unassailable,” he said.

Steelman said the Republican nominee will be able to recover from the attack ads to mount a strong campaign against Nixon this fall.

Said Steelman: “Nixon will use the 12 years Hulshof spent in Washington and his spending record against him. That’s the difference between me and Hulshof.”

Hulshof said: “If Republicans honor me with their nomination, I will thread the needle and show the contrast between me and Nixon.”

‘Sitting back’

Annetta St. Clair, a government teacher at Missouri Southern State University and longtime observer of Missouri politics, said this year’s Republican primary is as rough as the primary in 1992, and that Nixon will benefit from the irritation people have with negative campaigning.

“Voters say they do not like negative campaigning. They say it is bad, but it works. As long as it works, the candidates will keep using it,” she said. “Nixon and the Democrats appear to be quiet at the moment but they are really sitting back with glee watching the damage that is being done to Steelman and Hulshof.

“The very ads they are using against each other will be used against them this fall. That’s been done many times in the past,” she noted.

Nixon spokesman Oren Shur said, “Gas prices are skyrocketing, health care is unaffordable and Missourians are worried about losing their jobs. But instead of offering real solutions to move our state forward, Congressman Hulshof and Treasurer Steelman are embracing the same failed policies that have hurt Missouri families.”

Economy foremost

Both Steelman and Hulshof said economic security is the foremost issue on the minds of voters.

Hulshof, a resident of Columbia, said, “What’s driving the show are pocketbook issues. People are anxious about gasoline prices. There’s anxiety about the job climate. Hundreds of people have lost their jobs with the closing of the Chrysler plant in St. Louis. The cost of doing business, including energy prices, has increased significantly.

“That’s why I am so focused on talking about the creation of quality jobs and improving the state’s business climate. Education is the key. We have to have a workforce that is ready and capable of taking these knowledge-based jobs we are trying to attract,” he said.

As governor, he said he would take steps to remove the obstacles and hurdles that make Missouri’s business climate uncertain.

Steelman, who hails from Rolla, said, “The voters are talking about the economy, the high price of gas and the increasing cost of food. People are worried about the future, their jobs and their economic security.

“I agree with them. I am worried about it, too. It’s tough for Missouri families right now. I have to go to the grocery store myself. I know.”

Steelman said her energy plan for the state would help lessen the insecurity. She said she would repeal the state’s ethanol mandate.

“Numerous economic studies show that the mandate is causing food prices to go up. I am all for the developing of new sources of energy, but this government mandate does not accomplish what we want to accomplish,” she said. “I want to use the state’s economic-development tools to get an oil refinery here in Missouri.”

Also challenging Steelman and Hulshof are two relatively unknown candidates, Scott Long, a vocational-agriculture teacher from Mountain View, and Jennie Lee “Jen” Schwartze Sievers, a retired grocery-store owner from Jackson.

Schwartze Sievers is making her third attempt to be the Republican nominee for governor.

She promises support for education at the same time she says she is committed to smaller state government.

Long, who has funded his own campaign, has polled strong among Republican voters, picking up support from 10 percent of those contacted in a recent voter survey that included Hulshof and Steelman.

A dark-horse candidate, Long, in a telephone interview, said his support may stem from the fact that “people are growing tired of politicians and the negative campaigning. I know I don’t want to play their game.”

Carroll, the Democrat challenging Nixon, could not be reached for comment.

Also on the ticket for governor is Andrew W. Finkenstadt, the Libertarian candidate from Cottleville, a suburb of St. Charles.

“I will be pushing for smaller government, less-intrusive government, a government that does not put its fingers on everyone’s lives as much as its does today,” he said. “I want to increase education and infrastructure funding. What’s good for business is good for people. I also want to operate a totally open office. I want to take the Sunshine Law to the next logical step.”



Mark your calendar

The primary in Missouri will be held Aug. 5.