Write a book, and the critics will find you.
In this case, reports that GOP U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley lined up a deal for a fourth book prompted his probable general-election opponent to pen a negative review.
Democrat candidate Lucas Kunce has responded to Hawley’s literary coup with his own composition — a “pay upâ€Â letter asking Hawley to do more writing, in the form of a $250,000 check to the state of Missouri.
That would, Kunce contends, cover most of what Hawley cost the state for past violations of the Missouri Sunshine Law when he was the state’s attorney general.
“Given his latest book deal, we all know he can afford it,†Kunce said in a press release this week. “But Josh Hawley is just taking home another six figures for himself, and not a penny for Missouri.â€
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The foreword to this affair goes back to 2017, when then-Attorney General Hawley was making his first bid for the U.S. Senate, a race in which he narrowly defeated incumbent Democrat Claire McCaskill.
After winning the race, Democratic groups filed suit, claiming that Hawley’s office violated the Sunshine Law in relation to a number of public records requests.
In 2023, a Cole County circuit judge ruled that Hawley indeed violated the law by concealing public records that, the judge maintained, were kept closed because of concerns that releasing them might have negatively affected Hawley’s political future.
The court ruled that Hawley’s violations cost state taxpayers about $242,000. The judge also fined the office $12,000 for “knowingly and purposefully†violating public records laws.
At the time of the court ruling, Hawley campaign spokesman Kyle Plotkin said Democrats kept the lawsuit alive unnecessarily after documents were produced.
The Hawley camp was not available Friday for comment.
Adding fuel to Kunce’s fire is a recent stance taken by Gov. Mike Parson, who said the state should not have to pay for legal expenses in a lawsuit against several state senators who mistakenly implicated a man in a fatal shooting during a post-Super Bowl celebration in Kansas City.
“I agree with Governor Parson that hardworking Missourians shouldn’t be on the hook for bailing out politicians for their own mistakes,†Kunce said.
And it appears that Hawley’s creative writing coffers could afford it, as news reports indicate he seems to be making a nice chunk of change as an author.
, Missouri’s senior GOP senator made $467,000 in book royalties in 2021, and $127,500 in 2023.
In all, Hawley has written three books.
“Manhood: The Masculine Virtues America Needs,†his best-known effort, received a slew of publicity when Simon and Schuster Publishing cancelled a publishing deal after Hawley led objections to the 2020 election results.
He also wrote “The Tyranny of Big Tech†in 2021 and “Theodore Roosevelt: Preacher of Righteousness†in 2008.
His forthcoming tome is tentatively (and garrulously) titled “The Awakenings: The Religious Revivals that Made America — and Why We Need Another One.â€Â
The deal was signed in October and Hawley is on the line to deliver a manuscript by January, Business Insider reported.
To be fair, Kunce is not the first person to float the idea that Hawley pay back the state from his book-bucks bonanza.
Mark Pedroli, attorney for the Democratic campaign committee that sued Hawley in 2019, said then that Hawley should apologize and donate proceeds from his “Manhood†book to cover the bill.