Missouri Republicans 'baffled and disappointed' as top Senate candidate is a lazy no-show
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Is Sen. Claire McCaskill going to luck out again with another weak Republican opponent in Missouri? Republicans were elated when they recruited their dream candidate, state Attorney General Josh Hawley, to challenge the Missouri Democrat. But national RepubliMissouri Republicans 'baffled and disappointed' as top Senate candidate is a lazy no-show
Is Sen. Claire McCaskill going to luck out again with another weak Republican opponent in Missouri? Republicans were elated when they recruited their dream candidate, state Attorney General Josh Hawley, to challenge the Missouri Democrat. But national Republicans are getting worried and Missouri Republicans are getting angry at Hawley for “arrogance” and lackluster campaigning. His fundraising has been slow, worrying the national establishment that will have to pour money into outside spending to prop him up, and on the ground in Missouri, party leaders and local conservative media wonder where the hell he is. «I am personally baffled and disappointed that the guy I've had on my show numerous times over the last four years and have been supportive of has been MIA,» Mark Reardon, a veteran conservative radio show host in St. Louis whose program Hawley has shunned in recent months, said in an interview. «I'm pissed. I'm frustrated.» Reardon isn’t the only one. At one point, Politico reports, another conservative radio host in St. Louis was complaining on the air about Hawley avoiding his show when he noticed that Hawley was in the middle of a Fox & Friends appearance. Similarly, while Hawley obviously showed up for a fundraiser headlined by Donald Trump, he’s been playing hooky from local Republican events: “It’s as if he doesn’t feel like he needs to go out and campaign and that he’s the heir apparent,” [Jackson County Republican chair Mark Anthony] Jones said. “I’m for anybody but Hawley. I don’t like the arrogance.” Trish Mitchell, the GOP chair in conservative Franklin County, said she was upset but not surprised that Hawley didn’t show up to her Lincoln Day dinner. «I'm keeping up with where's he's been going and he's pretty much not going to any of them,» she said. «Someone running for public office that is supposed to be working for the people is supposed to be among the people.» Hawley is supposedly getting his act together, and the Republican establishment will work hard to make sure he has plenty of money and big-name support. But even assuming he makes it to the general election, if he alienates enough local party chairs and activists and comes through the primary bruised yet, thanks to his laziness, not battle-tested as a candidate … well, Claire McCaskill won’t be crying over that. Can you give $3 to take back the Senate by electing Democrats in Nevada and Arizona? Read more