Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley (R) announce that his office has uncovered potential criminal wrongdoing by Gov. Eric Greitens (R) and he has turned that evidence over to the St. Louis prosecutor, the Kansas City Star reports.
Hawley said that during the course of an investigation into a charity founded by Greitens, his office “uncovered evidence of wrongdoing that goes beyond Missouri’s charity laws” and indicates “potentially criminal acts were committed by Gov. Eric Greitens.”
“During several sexual encounters with his hair stylist the year before he was elected Missouri’s governor, Eric Greitens (R) struck her in the face, touched her crotch without her consent and called her a ‘whore,’ the woman told a Missouri House committee,” the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
“The claims add disturbing new layers to the single criminal allegation Greitens faces — a felony invasion-of-privacy charge, for allegedly taking and transmitting a semi-nude photo of her without her consent.”
Kansas City Star: “The explosive allegations were among the findings of the bipartisan investigative committee of the Missouri House that has been looking into allegations of wrongdoing against the Republican governor.”
“The committee – five Republicans and two Democrats – concluded that the woman’s testimony is credible.”
Sheena Greitens, the wife of embattled Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R), “says she was stalked by the ex-husband of the woman at the center of a sex scandal that has engulfed the Republican chief executive and his year-old administration,” the Washington Examiner reports.
“Sheena Greitens has stood by the governor’s side throughout the scandal. As made clear in this new, three-page letter to the special legislative committee, Missouri’s first lady is working closely with her husband to clear his name and revive his political standing.”
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Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) “has been served a subpoena by Attorney General Josh Hawley as part of an investigation into the governor’s use of the resources of a veterans’ charity for his 2016 gubernatorial campaign,” the Kansas City Star reports.
“Issues surrounding the Greitens campaign’s use of a donor list belonging to The Mission Continues have dogged the governor since shortly before the 2016 election.”
A judge rejected a bid by Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) for a trial by judge, not a jury, on Greitens’ felony invasion of privacy case, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
The trial is set for May 14.
Missouri U.S. Senate candidate Josh Hawley (R) appears to be distancing himself from embattled Gov. Eric Greitens (R) as he prepares to kick into full gear his campaign to unseat Sen. Claire McCaskill (D), the Missourian reports.
Hawley consultant Brad Todd told reporters that Greitens “has plenty of things on his plate” and said not to expect him on the campaign trail.
Said Todd: “The election is going to be a whole lot more about what happens on the floor of the Senate than in the basement of the Greitens’ house.”
“Prosecutors in St. Louis do not possess the photograph that Gov. Eric Greitens (R) allegedly took of a woman without her consent,” the Kansas City Star reports.
“Greitens faces a felony indictment for invasion of privacy based on allegations that in 2015 he photographed a woman while she was blindfolded and partly nude in an effort to keep her from talking about the extramarital affair. The case could hinge on whether prosecutors can prove the photo’s existence.”
“The governor has refused to directly answer whether he took it.”
“In a historic decision, the Missouri House formally launched an investigation Monday that could lead to the impeachment and ouster of Gov. Eric Greitens (R),” the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
“House Speaker Todd Richardson (R) named seven members to a special committee that will lead the unprecedented probe of a Missouri chief executive.”
“The process of deciding whether to impeach scandal-plagued Gov. Eric Greitens (R) will begin as early as Monday in the Missouri House of Representatives,” the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
“House Speaker Todd Richardson (R-MO)_ spent Thursday and Friday reviewing which members of the Legislature’s lower chamber would be named to a special committee to investigate the charges against the embattled chief executive.”
First Read: “The felony indictment of Republican Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens — for allegedly taking a compromising photo of a woman with whom he was having an affair — could have a ripple effect well beyond the governor’s mansion.”
“For one thing, Missouri is holding one of the most competitive Senate races in the country between incumbent Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) and likely GOP opponent Josh Hawley, who just happens to be the state’s top law-enforcement official as state attorney general. Additionally, the Greitens matter isn’t going away anytime soon, because Greitens is fighting the charge, and because the state House is investigating it.”
“The McCaskill-Hawley race, right now, is viewed as a 50-50 contest, with control of the U.S. Senate possibly on the line for whichever party wins it. And this felony indictment will be in the background. Possibly for months.”
“The Missouri House gave initial approval Tuesday to a bill that would make it a felony to threaten someone with publicizing a private sexually explicit image — although the bill’s sponsor insists it has nothing to do with the allegations surrounding Gov. Eric Greitens (R),” the Kansas City Star reports.
“Greitens has admitted he had an extramarital affair in 2015. He is under criminal investigation for allegedly threatening to release a nude photograph of the woman, taken while she was blindfolded and her hands were bound, if she spoke about the affair.”
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) “has added a new lawyer to his team amidst investigations surrounding allegations of blackmail during an extramarital affair,” KMOV reports.
“Local attorneys say Garvey’s hiring could signal a shift in Greitens’ strategy to begin to prepare for the possibility of having to defend himself in criminal proceedings.”
“The man whose then-wife had an affair with Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) has been subpoenaed to testify before a St. Louis grand jury,” the AP reports.
“Greitens, a Republican, admitted on Jan. 10 to a monthslong affair with his St. Louis hairdresser in 2015, before he was governor. The woman’s ex-husband secretly recorded a conversation with her in which she claimed that Greitens took a compromising photo as potential blackmail if she spoke about the relationship. Greitens has repeatedly denied threatening to blackmail the woman. He has not answered directly when asked if he took a photo.”
Missouri Gov. Eric Greiten’s (R) office is being sued over its use of Confide, “an ephemeral messaging mobile app, which they say is in violation of state public records law,” Ars Technica reports.
“Confide, like Signal and other popular encrypted-messaging apps, auto-deletes messages after a certain period of time, making automated record-keeping of those messages very difficult, if not impossible. Use of such apps by public employees for official business is almost certain to run afoul of transparency laws.”
The newly-released audio from an Associated Press interview with Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) is pretty remarkable. He says at the outset, “I want you guys to ask every question you have.”
But then he got the questions.
In his first interview since acknowledging an extramarital affair, Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) told the Associated Press that there was “no blackmail” and “no threat of violence” by him in what he described as a months-long “consensual relationship” with his former hairdresser.
Greitens added that he has no plans to resign from office as a result of the affair: “I’m staying. I’m staying.”
“Grietens did not directly say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ when asked if he had bound and blindfolded and taken a photo of the woman. But he firmly denied that he had attempted to coerce the woman.”
The FBI recently opened an inquiry into Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) as he fights an allegation of blackmail and faces calls to resign just a year into his job, CNN reports.
“At least four Republican lawmakers are calling for Gov. Eric Greitens (R) to resign after allegations that he blackmailed a woman in an effort to keep her quiet about an extramarital affair,” the Kansas City Star reports.
“Greitens has admitted to the affair but has vehemently denied the allegations that in 2015 he took a nude photograph of a woman — while she was blindfolded and her hands were bound — and threatened to release it if she spoke about the affair.”
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
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