Kinder targets Jetton with ethics proposal
Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder today will become the second high profile Republican to target one of his party’s recent leaders with an ethics reform proposal that is a stern rebuke.
Kinder plans a state flyaround starting in Springfield at 10 a.m. to announce his proposal that the Legislature make it illegal for a lawmaker to serve as a campaign consultant or fund-raising consultant for another elected official. Kinder joins Treasurer Sarah Steelman, who is seeking the Republican nomination for governor, in making the very pointed proposal.
The target is Speaker of the House Rod Jetton, whose consulting firm had contracts with several lawmakers, most notably senators Jason Crowell and Luanne Ridgeway, both Republicans.
Kinder said it’s time to put an end to such conflicts of interest. He said he had been working behind the scenes for more than two years to get Jetton to change his consultant arrangement, but that the “tipping point” was the last two weeks of the session, when Jetton clients in the Senate were heavily involved in a filibuster of the “village law” repeal, which Jetton opposed.
“This has been a large pebble in my shoe since i learned of it two and a half years ago,” Kinder told the Post-Dispatch. “I hoped I could counsel certain individuals behind the scenes. In the last legislative session it became clear that wasn’t going to work. This is not acceptable governance.”
Kinder will also announce his ethics reform proposal at 11:45 in Kansas City, 1:30 in Columbia and 3:30 in St. Louis. He will be paying for the flyaround out of his campaign coffers, he said. Kinder is running for re-election. Rep. Sam Page is the presumptive Democratic nominee.
Asked why he’s speaking out now when Jetton’s arrangement had been going on for so long (and after Steelman announced her proposal), he said that he “and others” should have said something earlier, “but I’m saying it now.”
Kinder said, “I dare my friends — Republicans and Democrats — to pass” this proposal.
Kinder said he told Jetton through a text message Monday night of his intent to talk to the speaker about his proposal. The two men plan to speak this morning, Kinder said.
Jetton also signed a consulting contract with fellow House Republican Bob Onder this year. Jetton is offering advice to Onder in his run for the Ninth District Congressional seat. During the legislative session, Onder received heavy floor time in the House to push his immigration and abortion bills that were similar to bills other representatives and senators had also proposed. During the session, both Jetton and Onder denied that their financial arrangement had any effect on legislation before the House.
In the final days of the session, Jetton survived a virtual revolt in the House by members of his caucus who were unhappy at the speaker’s tactics in standing in the way of the village law repeal that had near unanimous support in both chambers.
Well Well Well! It turns out that I was RIGHT! I have been saying on all the P.D. blogs that there was a great disturbance in Jefferson City. Many of you on here poo pooed the idea.
Hate to say I told you so, but………………….
Everyone has known this for a while. I guess the only people who didn’t know about this criminal like activity are the ones who don’t read the newspaper, or drink the Bob Onder, Jason Crowell kool aid.
It’s about time someone called Jetton out on this. He is ruining the Republican Party. Sure Kinder has had staff issues, but he dealt with them immediately. Unlike Jetton, Jetton that used his official position to help his clients. The facts are the facts and Jetton can dispute them all he wants, but the fact is that after Jetton went on the dole for Bob Onder he got all kinds of floor time that he didn’t get before. His clients also helped him pass this silly Village Law that benefited only Jetton’s millionaire buddies. These are the facts.
And Chris Koster coordinated with Jetton and fillibustered to stop the Village Law repeal this year. Shame on them both.
Good point Shecky. The million dollar question is . . . does Koster have Jetton on the dole like Onder, Crowell, Ridgeway, etc.? Also, is former Jetton staffer and now Democratic Candidate Chris Benjamin working with Jetton. Of course it wouldn’t be illegal like some of this stuff appears to be, but it would be interesting to know.
Attention all Braniacs posting here - I know that facts upset you to no end - another good reason for giving them - but the ethics commission had already ruled that Jetton’s consulting agreements are illegal. They did say they didn’t look good but they were not illegal. The postings here are typical spew from those who can’t win on any other level - including Kinder.
What I find interesting is that Kinder is tied in so closely with a real no-gooder campaign guy that he has the guts to pull this stunt. This campaign guy cuts republican throats just because he wants to even to the point of losing senate seats. He works on anti-republican tax increases and steals campaign money from candidates through the double dealing and kick backs he works out with vendors.
Kinder should clean up his own glass house before throwing stones.
And before you Braniacs get to excited and start claiming that a simple typo was a “freudian slip” - the following post above should read:
“Attention all Braniacs posting here - I know that facts upset you to no end - another good reason for giving them - but the ethics commission had already ruled that Jetton’s consulting agreements are NOT illegal.”
Jetton should go into the Lt. Governor’s office and put a “whoopie cushion” on Kinder’s chair.
Yes, Jasonb, you might be the smartest guy ever, but if you’re rearranging furniture on this ship . . . you’re going down too.
I don’t see why the relationship between Jetton and Onder didn’t lead this story.
Onder pays Jetton to consult his campaign, then Jetton gives Onder two flagship pieces of the Republican agenda so he can augment his shallow legislative record.
It’s so painfully obvious!