Michael Gibbons

Gibbons is embroiled in an increasingly nasty race for attorney general with Democrat Chris Koster. The two Senate colleagues suggested in their first debate that they had debated like gentlemen in the Senate and they expected to race like gentlemen also. So much for that.

Yesterday, Gibbons reported a $25,000 donation from Missourians for Matt Blunt (the governor’s campaign committee still had more than $900,000 in its coffers as of the last reporting period), and another $50,000 from the Republican Party.

The state GOP has also given more than $100,000 recently to state Sen. Brad Lager, a Maryville Republican running for treasurer against Democrat state Rep. Clint Zweifel.

The party appears to be putting its weight behind down-ticket races as Nov. 4 nears. Republican Kenny Hulshof, the party’s candidate for governor, has not received that kind of support from party brass in the last few days, though he did receive $50,000 from St. Louis school-voucher proponent Rex Sinquefield.