Missouri Senate Race Shaping Up to be Closer than Expected

 

by Pa Rock

Citizen Journalist

Josh Hawley won his US Senate seat in Missouri running against a formidable Democratic incumbent, Claire McCaskill, in 2018 with just 51.4% of the vote.  After six years of learning the ropes in the Senate and working to develop a national profile, and without McCaskill in the race, he should have been looking at a relatively easy re-election this year, but that is not what is happening.   Hawley's effort at re-election against Democratic newcomer Lucas Kunce seems to be facing surprisingly strong headwinds.  

Not only has Kunce proven to be a strong fundraiser and campaigner with a compelling personal story, he has also benefitted from Hawley's missteps, some of which are almost legendary.

Hawley has managed to embarrass himself - and his state - on multiple occasions.  Just two years after assuming his position as a US Senator, Hawley raised his fist in the air on the grounds of the Capitol in support of the traitorous scum who would later in the day be storming the building. That same day Hawley was the first Senator to announce he would object during certification of the electoral vote, a move which former US Senator Jack Danforth (also of Missouri) said "set the stage" for the deadly riot that followed.  After the rioters were inside of the building and all hell was breaking loose, Hawley was filmed running in panic away from the same mob that he had helped to incite that morning  - clearly not the sprinter's finest hour!

Jack Danforth, a retired Republican politician who had finagled behind the scenes for Hawley's election, said the following day that supporting Hawley "was the worst mistake I ever made in my life."  A few days later Danforth compared himself to "Dr. Frankenstein" for his role in helping to "create" Hawley.  

David Humphreys, a major donor to Hawley's 2018 campaign said that the Senate should censure the young senator over his role in the events of January 6th, and Hallmark, a major corporation headquartered in Kansas City, asked Hawley to return its donations to his campaign.

Another way in which Josh Hawley has differentiated himself from his (supposed) Missouri roots is in the area of abortion.  While Missouri is a red state with a very red legislature which has enacted an almost total ban on abortions, that is not the way regular Missouri citizens feel with regard to a woman's right to control her own body and healthcare.  This year there is an amendment on the Missouri general election ballot that will reinstate a woman's right to an abortion up to viability of the fetus - around 24 weeks - and polling indicates that the amendment is likely to pass handily. Hawley and his wife, Erin, also an attorney, are both active and prominent figures in the anti-abortion movement, a stance which should whittle away at his November vote totals.

Lucas Kunce stands a very real chance of defeating Josh Hawley this November, a fact which seems to be routinely ignored by the national press and the national Democratic Party.  Kunce is currently running stronger than the national Democratic ticket in the show-me state and is polling at just a few points shy of Hawley.  I have donated multiple times to his campaign and probably will again - which means I get some sort of email "ask" from the Kunce campaign about every fifteen minutes!

Here are portions of two that I received yesterday.  (I just copied the parts focused on describing Josh Hawley, and I thought both were exceptionally good.). The first is from actor and comedian (and native Missourian) John Goodman:

"I’ll be honest: I’ve been ready to defeat Josh Hawley since January 6th, 2021.

He totally disgraced my home state that day… raising his fist because he wanted to look strong, and then running away like a little coward out the back door.

But Josh Hawley has done a lot more than just that to embarrass Missouri over the years, stuff you probably wouldn’t even believe.

Hawley himself played a major role in overturning Roe V. Wade — he even bragged about it! He backs the total abortion ban in Missouri, co-sponsored a national abortion ban, and is a pioneer of the legal movement threatening access to IVF and birth control nationwide.

Hawley forced Missouri taxpayers to cover his legal bills after he broke the law — $250,000, in this economy! He’s refused to invest a single dollar in Missouri, instead spending all his time writing stuff like his “Manhood” self-help book.

It’s just shameful."

The other is from Jason Kander, a a Democrat and former Missouri Secretary of State who came extremely close to defeating Roy Blunt for his US Senate seat in 2016.  Mr. Kander, who like Lucas Kunce, is an Iraq and Afghanistan War veteran, is a prominent figure in veteran's causes and issues.   He had this to say about Josh Hawley:

"Now let’s talk about why Josh Hawley is so vulnerable.

Hawley famously popped popcorn in his dorm room to gleefully watch the invasion of Iraq and then claimed a decade later to have opposed the war.

And since he’s represented Missouri in the U.S. Senate, he’s also become known as a desperately anti-union scab who is self-consciously obsessed with manhood.

From blocking defense nominations to voting against health care for veterans exposed to burn pits, Hawley has put his personal politics ahead of national security and the needs of military families. And he’s used his office to build a family business dedicated to restricting abortion access nationwide as his allies in Jefferson City enacted one of the nation’s most extreme abortion bans.

Now with five years under Hawley’s belt in the U.S. Senate, Missourians don’t like what they’ve seen.

Approval polling from Morning Consult shows that Hawley has the lowest approval of any GOP senator running for reelection in 2024, lower than Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rick Scott of Florida. And even his mentor, Missouri’s former U.S. Sen. John Danforth, has called backing Hawley the “worst mistake I ever made.”

Donald Trump recently commented on Hawley’s race too — “So interesting that the Democrats are looking hard at the Senate races in both Missouri and Texas. Josh and Ted must be very careful, stranger things have happened!!!”

Hawley is vulnerable, and everyone knows it. The proof is in his rapidly changing election-season rhetoric, Republicans in Washington fretting about their draconian abortion bans across the country, and Hawley’s billionaire allies launching a new pro-Hawley super PAC right after Lucas entered the race."

It's a clear choice in November for voters who reside in Missouri.  Lucas Kunce needs to be elected, and Josh Hawley needs to be returned to his posh Virginia suburb where he an Erin can enjoy a quiet and very private life of minding their own business and leaving us alone to mind ours.

Get to the polls on November 5th - seven weeks from today - especially if you live in Missouri - and take your friends with you.

Missouri can do so much better than Josh Hawley!