The Post-Dispatch and the League of Women Voters of Metro ºüÀêÊÓƵ present this guide to the candidates and races on the Aug. 2 ballot.
ARNOLD — Eric Greitens says he has received several endorsements in his run for U.S. Senate that each have a common denominator. Veterans for Trump. Women for Trump. Black Voices for Trump. Hispanics for Trump.
There’s even a publicized video clip of him shooting guns with Donald Trump Jr., whose fiancée, Kimberly Guilfoyle, is national chair of the Greitens campaign.
But with little more than a month to go before the Aug. 2 primary, the highest endorsement for one of the 21 Republicans in the race still hasn’t come.
“President Trump’s decision about when he is going to endorse in this race or any race is 100% up to him and his team,†Greitens told a crowded room of supporters here Monday night in response to questions from the Post-Dispatch.
“I’ve said this since Day 1, any conversations that I or anyone on my team have with the president, we always keep those private because this is his decision to make on his timeline, and I respect that.â€
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While Greitens has been polling ahead of his main competition — state Attorney General Eric Schmitt, U.S. Reps. Vicky Hartzler and Billy Long, and personal injury attorney Mark McCloskey — a Trump endorsement would likely lead to an easy primary victory for him. His main competitors also seek Trump’s endorsement.
Greitens tries to set himself apart by lambasting RINOs, or “Republicans in Name Only,†for being as dangerous as the Left when it comes to holding the country back.
On Monday night here, about 75 people gathered with Greitens in a side room at Wesley Roger’s Steak and Buffet for his latest stop in the “No Mo RINOs Statewide Tour.†So-called RINO hunting permits were available for a suggested donation of at least $25.
Many were Trump loyalists, including Kerry Lippold, of Barnhart.
“Everything was running like a business,†Lippold said of the Trump administration during an interview. “Gas prices were down. The economy was good.â€
Lippold, who runs an auto repair shop, said it didn’t matter to him that Trump hadn’t endorsed Greitens.
“What matters to me is that the people in office have the same values as Trump does,†he said.
Cathy Wooldridge, 50, of Imperial, said Trump’s endorsement was perhaps held up for two reasons. One, he’s waiting for the right time. Or, two: “I am not sure Trump wants this affair baggage attached to him because he also has some of that in his past. And if he’s running for president again (in 2024), he doesn’t want to drum that up.â€
Last summer, that Trump “thinks Greitens is problematic.†Citing anonymous Trump advisers, the report also said Trump wouldn’t endorse Greitens at that time because of the scandal “that forced him to resign as governor.â€
Greitens had an extramarital affair with his hairdresser in 2015. He has described the affair as a consensual relationship that was a mistake on his part. He has denied taking a semi-nude photograph of the woman as blackmail to stay quiet. Sworn testimony from the woman described secret encounters with Greitens in his home as abusive. A Missouri House Special Investigative Committee on Oversight report led by Republican legislators said she was a “credible†witness.
The House committee was investigating additional topics, including the use of The Mission Continues donor list in Greitens’ campaign for governor; Greitens, a former Navy SEAL officer, started the nonprofit for military veterans before he entered politics. The committee was also looking into financing of A New Missouri, an organization that promoted his agenda.
Greitens was invited to participate in the House investigation. He didn’t. He announced his resignation as governor in late May 2018, shortly after a judge ruled he could be subpoenaed to testify. He and his wife, Sheena, divorced in 2020 and are currently in a custody dispute regarding their two boys.
Today, in his campaign for U.S. Senate, Greitens doesn’t mention the hairdresser and specifics of the House investigation. Instead, he directs attention to ºüÀêÊÓƵ Circuit Attorney Kimberly M. Gardner for being a “George Soros-funded†prosecutor who tarnished his image with a botched invasion-of-privacy case stemming from the affair.
Indeed, the criminal case was dismissed. A lead investigator in the prosecutor’s case pleaded guilty to misdemeanor evidence tampering. Gardner faces disciplinary action.
Asked Monday night by the Post-Dispatch why he resigned, Greitens told the crowd: “For me, at that time, that was the thing I had to do for my sons. The pressure that is put on the attack that comes. And again I was naïve when I first was in office. First, I thought that the RINOs would have my back. They didn’t. But I also didn’t realize the depth of the evil that we were facing.â€
He said Gardner, “the Soros-funded†prosecutor, came after him with a corrupt FBI agent.
“Her entire prosecution of me was exposed,†he said.
What about the separate House investigation?
“It comes from RINOs,†he said.
What about the sworn testimony of Witness No. 1, the hairdresser, in the House investigation?
“No cross examination,†he told the Post-Dispatch, asking for a chance to answer.
He told the crowd that resigning was probably the hardest test of his life, but it was “necessary†and “the right thing to do.â€
“I’ve also found in my own life that sometimes the most painful things that you go through, grant you wisdom,†he said. “And I actually feel that it was a tremendous blessing. And the reason why it was a blessing is that all of my illusions were taken away.
“I was able to finally see clearly the nature of the enemy that we are facing. I believe that we all have a purpose-driven mission. This is my mission right now. I am going to win this race.â€
Posted at 7 a.m. Monday, June 27.