Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., talks with Susan and John Burns at the Governor's Ham Breakfast on Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023, at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Mo. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Laurie Skrivan, Post-Dispatch
"I can't believe I got to meet this man," said Ham/Bacon/Sausage Superintendent Charles Rosenkrans, who talks with Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., about the state championship hams on display at the Governor's Ham Breakfast on Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023, at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Mo. Rosenkrans oversees the judging.
SEDALIA, Mo. — U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley and two Democrats competing to replace him in Congress marked an unofficial start to the 2024 campaign on Thursday at the annual Governor’s Ham Breakfast, a summertime staple of the Missouri State Fair.
Lucas Kunce, who lost the 2022 Democratic primary for U.S. Senate to Trudy Busch Valentine, called Hawley a “fraud and a coward,†adding “he’s not focused on Missouri, he doesn’t care about Missouri, he’s not bringing money back here.â€
The U.S. Senate added Hawley’s amendment last month to the annual National Defense Authorization Act, but it still must receive additional votes before heading to President Joe Biden.
“It is time for the federal government to pay the medical bills of every person in ºüÀêÊÓƵ who has been in an area where there’s radioactive material,†Hawley said.
“This isn’t a handout; this is basic justice,†he added.
ºüÀêÊÓƵ County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell, who is running in the Democratic Senate primary, also made his case for election at the fairgrounds.
Bell said he had been both a reformer and a tough-on-crime prosecutor since being elected in 2018.
“On serious and violent offenses, I think we’ve shown that we’re going to be aggressive on those cases,†Bell said. “On low-level, nonviolent offenders, we’re looking at alternatives to incarceration.â€
Bell dismissed the notion that he was in for an uphill battle against Kunce, who built up a statewide organization during his 2022 campaign. Bell said he comes from the voter-rich ºüÀêÊÓƵ area, and that he is making his case elsewhere.
“If you have a leak in your house, you want a plumber that has experience,†Bell said. “I think the same goes with being an elected official. I have experience doing this job in tough situations, in Ferguson, in the largest county in the state.â€
The governor’s race also appeared to be in full swing.
Gov. Mike Parson, while not offering an explicit endorsement, praised Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, who is running for governor, from the podium at the ham breakfast. Parson, who became governor when Eric Greitens quit, appointed Kehoe, a state senator, as lieutenant governor in 2018.
“I picked him because of his work ethic, because he understood agriculture, he understood farming,†Parson said.
Kehoe said, “I think Mike and his team have done a very good job†and that “everybody, no matter if you’re best friends with somebody or not, has fine-tuning of what they would do in an administration.â€
Kehoe has received endorsements from agribusiness groups such as the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association and the Missouri Soybean Association.
Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, a Republican running against Kehoe, said he wasn’t focused on endorsements from groups.
“I’ve focused on individuals,†Ashcroft said. “Other people can go after groups. I’m going to serve the people of the state.â€
Sen. Bill Eigel, the third Republican running for governor, excoriated his Republican colleague, Senate President Pro Tem Caleb Rowden of Columbia, for casting doubt on efforts to raise the bar for initiative petitions, a change sought by many Republicans and anti-abortion activists.
“Caleb Rowden is probably one of the most liberal members of the Missouri Senate,†Eigel said.
“When I’m the governor of this state, I’m going to bring the Republican Party together by calling on Republicans to do Republican things,†he said.
Eigel went on to say Parson’s most recent budget included “more waste, more earmarks and more spending than any budget in the history of Missouri ... that was not a Republican product,†Eigel said.
Eigel said he would look at reducing the fuel tax — which Parson supported in 2021.
“I know it makes me unpopular with some of the establishment Republicans,†Eigel said. “But I don’t work for them.â€
Parson, asked about gubernatorial race, said Missourians were tired of negative campaigns.
If you want to be Missouri governor, “tell me what you’re gonna do — not how bad somebody else has done it,†he said.
“It’s frustrating when a lot of people work our tail ends off for five years trying to get through some of the difficult times in the state, and you know, sometimes people take cheap shots,†he said.
Denny Hoskins, a state senator from Warrensburg who won his party’s nomination last month, wants to dump the ubiquitous electronic tabulators …
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., talks with Susan and John Burns at the Governor's Ham Breakfast on Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023, at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Mo. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
"I can't believe I got to meet this man," said Ham/Bacon/Sausage Superintendent Charles Rosenkrans, who talks with Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., about the state championship hams on display at the Governor's Ham Breakfast on Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023, at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Mo. Rosenkrans oversees the judging.
Lucas Kunce, Democratic candidate running for U.S. Senate against Sen. Josh Hawley, speaks with the media during the Governor's Ham Breakfast on Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023, at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Mo. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson, left, greets Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe at the Governor's Ham Breakfast on Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023, at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Mo. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com
Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, left, and State Sen. Bill Eigel, R-St. Charles, who are both running for governor, catch up at the Governor’s Ham Breakfast on Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023, at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Mo.