KC Buzz Blog

Why your favorite politicos were yawning today

  Apparently quite a few folks were up into the wee hours of the morning listening to that riveting filibuster in the Missouri Senate as Sen. Matt Bartle objected to the nomination of Warren Erdman to the MU Board of Curators. Among them were former U.S. Attorney Todd Graves, who listened until 2:30 a.m.

   "It was fascinating to listen to it take place," he said.

   Graves said the personality of Bartle, his law partner, really came through. The two first met when they were undergraduate students at Mizzou two decades ago.

   "He is a loyal and kind and good person," Graves said. "I've heard filibusters before but I've never heard someone's personality come through so strongly."

   He said it was a complete "Matt Bartleism" that Bartle listed every single state representative and senator and said something complimentary about each of them. (colleague Kit Wagar said Bartle also lauded members of their staffs). Graves joked when is the last time anyone had something good to say about every single member of the Missouri General Assembly.

   (One could also argue that the personality of fellow filibusterer Sen. Victor Callahan also came through this morning, from the rough-and-tumble side in remarks about former JaCo exec and now mayoral contender Katheryn Shields to the softer teddy bear side with the heartfelt comments about his father.)

   About 1 a.m., Graves said he talked to big brother, Sam. The congressman noted that during a filibuster he conducted when he was a state senator -- in 1998 against the KC school deseg settlement -- no one came to his aid by speaking to him.

Posted by DeAnn Smith 

T. Graves lauds U.S. Attorney pick

   Former U.S. Attorney Todd Graves said today he wanted to make certain KC Buzz Blog readers know he is delighted with the selection of John Wood as his replacement. He said his mind was elsewhere when asked yesterday about Wood's appointment, but that in no way should reflect on the nomination by President Bush. He said he believes Wood deserves effusive praise.

   "He has had a stellar career. He has had very important positions in D.C. He has clerked for a Supreme Court judge," Graves said. "The guy graduated magna cum laude from Harvard law school and nobody gives that to you."

   Graves said he wishes Wood well and wants to help him however he can.

   "I am thrilled they are going to get political leadership back in that job," he said, adding that will provide important long-term strategic direction for the 120 employees in the office.

Posted by DeAnn Smith

Kanatzar gets an overflow crowd

    New Prosecutor Jim Kanatzar formally took the oath of office this afternoon in a Jackson County courtroom to an overflow crowd. Afterward, a reception was held by the Tim Dollar law firm at a downtown hotel. The Dollar law firm employs Kanatzar's wife, Jill, who glowed throughout the event. Kanatzar was surrounded by family members during the swearing-in festivities. Afterward, his adorable four-year-old son, Sam, clutched his father's hand as they were surrounded by well wishers.

   Mayor Pro Tem Alvin Brooks and former U.S. Attorney Todd Graves were among the overflow crowd spilling out into an outside corridor.

   In an interview, Graves wasn't exactly effusive with praise for John Wood's nomination to replace him as U.S. Attorney. He said Wood appears to be qualified for the job. Wood, the cousin of U.S. Sen. Kit Bond, was recently nominated for the post.  Graves said he likes that Wood has connections to the area. He said such knowledge is important to be able to do the job well.

Posted by DeAnn Smith

Are Tigers tickets a sufficient consolation prize to losing out on suite Chiefs tickets?

    Remember last fall when Gov. Matt Blunt skipped over Warren Erdman for a vacancy for the Jackson County Sports Complex Authority? Most had expected Erdman to be the pick among the three candidates, but instead Blunt went with former Chiefs great Deron Cherry (which helped Blunt because Cherry was a charismatic well-regarded African-American Republican and, like Erdman, a campaign supporter).

   So for those scratching their heads about Erdman not getting a pass for the authority's suite at Arrowhead Stadium, perhaps his consolation prize was sweeeet Mizzou tickets. Of course, state Sen. Matt Bartle has other ideas.

  And for KC Buzz Blog readers who love irony, note who's Cherry's state senator and thus listed as making the recommendation for Cherry? Why our very own Bartle.

Posted by DeAnn Smith

Erdman fracas begins this morning

   In Jeff City this morning, the Senate Gubernatorial Appointments committee takes up Warren Erdman's appointment to the UM curators.

   State Sen. Matt Bartle, a Lee's Summit Republican, is threatening to block it because of Erdman's support for early stem-cell research.

   But Erdman has deep GOP ties. He's a former chief of staff to Missouri Sen. Kit Bond and was an aide to John Ashcroft. Erdman works for Kansas City Southern.

   If the committee signs off, Erdman's name is to go to the full Senate on Thursday.

   This could get interesting.

Posted by Steve Kraske 

Jeff City's Feather to lead Romney bid

   Tony Feather, a Jefferson City GOP political consultant, will serve as Mitt Romney's political adviser. 

   As reported by the Washington Post via blogger John Combest, Feather is a former Missouri GOP executive director who served as political director for Bush-Cheney in 2000.

   The Post calls him "one of the pillars of the Washington Republican political establishment."

Posted by Steve Kraske

Jetton ready for statewide rumble?

   Rod Jetton has filed with the Missouri Ethics Commission for a statewide run in 2008.

   No word yet on which office he might seek.

   But statewide ambition is clearly an occupational hazard of the speaker's office. The last two, Democrat Steve Gaw and Republican Catherine Hanaway, tried and got toasted.

   But Jetton may sense possibility if Gov. Matt Blunt opts not to seek re-election -- either for governor or another statewide post that could open up in that event.

   Thanks to the Columbia Daily Tribune Political Blog for the head's up.

Posted by Steve Kraske

Having a hard time letting go or waiting for the rematch?

    A drive yesterday on U.S. 65 up from Branson revealed an interesting phenomenon. Between Springfield and Preston, there were almost a dozen Jim Talent for Senate and Sandra Thomas for state auditor signs still dotting the highway. The election was almost two months ago. Were they forgotten about or are the landowners already looking forward to 2008?

Posted by DeAnn Smith

Federal "hanging" judge Dean Whipple taking senior status

   Who is going to be the next Johnson County or Jackson County prosecutor is so yesterday's news. The legal community now is buzzing about who will get the really plum gig: a federal judgeship. 

  KC Buzz Blog heard through the grapevine that Federal Judge Dean Whipple had taken senior status and was trying to confirm it. And lo and behold having lunch today at see-and-be-seen Pierpont's was KC NAACP President Anita Russell and U.S. District Judge Fernando Gaitan Jr.

   And Gaitan kindly confirmed that, yes, Whipple's last "full-time" day is April 30 and that he will no longer be chief judge as of Jan. 22. What Gaitan modestly did not mention is that he will be the next chief judge.

   Taking senior status is not the same as retiring. Whipple will still have an office and staff. He can keep any existing cases that he chooses, but will have more say over which new cases he takes. There are already two senior judges and both carry heavy caseloads.

   Whipple is best known as the final judge in the 26-year, $2 billion Kansas City School District desegregation case. He often railed about patronage and micromanagement in the district and when he ended the case he said the district had a long ways to go before becoming a public school system that KC residents could be proud of. He also oversaw the Kansas City Housing Authority case and often provided wry and punchy quotes from the bench in a variety of cases.

   Whipple came to the bench in 1987 through an appointment by President Ronald Reagan. He had served 13 years as a state court judge in the Lake of the Ozarks area. He had previously served as a county prosecutor. 

    Colleague Dan Margolies says Whipple obtained a reputation as a "hanging judge" while on the state court bench, which Whipple confirmed in one of his earliest cases. In December 1988, he sentenced a real estate developer to 10 years in prison for bank fraud charges. In handing down the sentence, Whipple said he wanted to "send a message" to white-collar criminals, says Margolies who covered the sentencing.

   Politicos and attorneys are also curious to see how partisan of a replacement appointment does President Bush make with the Senate now controlled by Democrats. But several attorneys and politicos said today that Sen. Kit Bond, a Missouri Republican, is good about making sure the president nominates a well-qualified candidate.

  Of course, incoming Sen. Claire McCaskill can have her say and put a hold on anyone she objects to (remember Ronnie White?). Which brings to mind an election-eve comment from Bond about how important a Jim Talent win was to him: "I've tried it with my vote being canceled on every important issue I've worked on."

   Look for a story from reporter Mark Morris in Thursday's Star about Whipple.

Posted by DeAnn Smith

Need a copy of Ed Emery's report?

    Lots of people have been asking Missouri House GOPers to post online the controversial report by a committee headed by Rep. Ed Emery of Lamar. The report argues that illegal immigration is partly the result of abortion and a "welfare culture."

   But the report is still not up, so KC Buzz Blog is posting reporter Tim Hoover's copy. Here it is, minus the appendices.

Posted by Keith Chrostowski