CLAYTON — A former senior investigator for the Jan. 6 committee is making a run as an independent for Missouri’s open U.S. Senate seat.
John Wood, 52, who also served as U.S. attorney for Missouri’s western district, predicted in an interview Tuesday that former Gov. Eric Greitens would win the GOP primary on Aug. 2 and said voters deserved an alternative in the heavily Republican state.
Wood’s entry will represent a seismic shift in the Senate race — if he can generate the financial backing and grassroots support necessary to mount a serious campaign to fill retiring Republican U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt’s seat.
To make the Nov. 8 ballot, Wood needs to turn in 10,000 signatures to the secretary of state’s office by Aug. 1.
“I am not looking to be a spoiler. I’m in this race to win it,†Wood told the Post-Dispatch. “I think that there is a coalition of common-sense voters that can be put together.â€
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Wood said he aims to win support from Republicans, independents and conservative and moderate Democrats. Attracting Republicans would likely be easier if Greitens wins the nomination.
The former governor has alienated many in the party over the years. In March, his second ex-wife, Sheena Greitens, accused him of domestic abuse under oath in court documents, saying the former governor caused one of their two sons to lose a tooth.
Most recently, Greitens drew nationwide criticism for pretending to go on a hunt for RINOs, or “Republicans in Name Only,†in a campaign video.
“This RINO-hunting business has become a national story and I think that that advertisement is an embarrassment to our state, and it’s dangerous,†Wood said. “I think Eric Greitens is a danger to women, he’s a danger to children, and he’s a danger to our democracy.â€
Another Republican Greitens has alienated: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, whom Greitens has said he would vote against as party leader.
But Wood said he would support the Kentucky senator, and that he would welcome McConnell’s backing.
“I would (like McConnell’s support),†Wood said. “And, if I’m elected, I will support Mitch McConnell for Senate majority leader, and Eric Greitens will not.â€
Former U.S. Sen. John Danforth, who predicted in February an independent would run, said he would back Wood.
Danforth said Tuesday he had a Super PAC, Missouri Stands United. “And my Super PAC would support him if he becomes a candidate, which I think he will.â€
Wood described himself as a “lifelong Republican and I continue to be a Republican to this day,†but that “probably both parties’ primaries are becoming a race to the bottom to see who can be the most divisive and the most extreme.â€
He pointed to Democrat Lucas Kunce, the top fundraiser in the Senate race, for using militaristic language and imagery during the campaign. (Trudy Busch Valentine, a second Democrat who has won major endorsements, has struck a more conventional tone.)
“Lucas Kunce, who looks like he’s got a good shot at being the Democratic nominee, , and said ‘just pull the pin and roll me into the Senate so I can blow things up,’†Wood said. “I know that rhetoric may motivate a small group of people, but I don’t think it’s what the vast majority of Missouri voters want.â€
Asked why a Democrat should vote for Wood, he said, “There are a lot of Democrats who want to see Missouri send somebody in the mainstream to the U.S. Senate.
“As you know, we’re a heavily Republican state. I think it’s appropriate that a senator from Missouri caucus with the Republican Party.â€
Wood added that even though he might differ with potential Democratic supporters on some issues, “I represent their values and what they’re looking for from a senator.â€
He said he would “put the country first and be part of a governing coalition.â€
Stance on guns, abortion
Wood said he would have voted in favor of the gun safety law President Joe Biden signed into law last week, which earned support from 15 Republican senators, including McConnell and Blunt.
“I support Second Amendment rights,†Wood said. “But I applaud Senator Blunt for being part of a bipartisan effort to take guns out of the hands of the most dangerous people.â€
On abortion, Wood said: “I have the greatest respect for the dignity of women who are faced with an unwanted pregnancy, but I also believe that life begins at conception.
“And in the end I think that the interest in life should prevail, and so I am pro-life but believe there should be exceptions for rape, incest, life of the mother or serious health risks to the mother,†he said.
On the reversal of Roe v. Wade, which established the right to an abortion, and the resulting state-by-state approach to abortion laws, Wood said “it’s the legally correct place for the country to be in.â€
“It’s a difficult spot for the country to be in because it’s such a divisive issue, and one where people on both sides are very emotional, but I think it is the correct interpretation of the Constitution.â€
Asked whether he wanted the court to revisit other decisions it has made, such as legalizing same-sex marriage and the right to contraception, Wood said “largely a political consensus†has emerged around some court decisions.
“I don’t think that it would be good for the court to revisit all of those issues,†he said. “I don’t think it’s good to have the court overturn too many precedents too quickly.â€
On the climate, Wood said, “I believe in limited government and free market principles, but I also believe that climate change is real and that human activity is contributing to it.â€
He said the best way to help disadvantaged communities “is to create jobs and opportunity.â€
Prior to becoming a lawyer, Wood worked on Danforth’s staff. He also clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and at the U.S. Court of Appeals.
He served as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri from 2007 to 2009, under former President George W. Bush. He also served as chief of staff to George W. Bush-era Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, deputy associate general counsel to Attorney General John Ashcroft, and in the White House under Bush at the Office of Management and Budget.
Wood was brought onto the Jan. 6 committee by the Republican co-chair, Rep. Liz Cheney. Before joining the committee, Wood worked as general counsel for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Posted at 6 a.m. Wednesday, June 29.