Chuck Purgason

Yesterday, St. Louis Tea Party Coalition leader Bill Hennessy announced the organization's support for the U.S. Senate Primary Candidate Forum spearheaded by the Franklin County Patriots.  In an email initiation to supporters, Campaign for Liberty activist Laura Hausladen explained that the March 20 event is intended to address the "great deal of restlessness and discord over the apparent anointment of [Roy] Blunt."

Each of the Republican Party candidates -- except for Blunt -- have confirmed that they will be attending.

Given his long record in Washington, Blunt has had a hard time warming up to the tea party crowd.  He was the #3 House leader in Washington as Republicans grew government spending and deficits, never figured out a way to pay for huge government programs like the Medicare Part D benefit, and was the leader of the House GOP efforts to pass the TARP legislation last year. And Blunt didn't just vote for the TARP legislation -- he was one of the key GOP leaders begging his colleagues to change their votes.

"I think Roy Blunt had an opportunity when we [Republicans] were in leadership in Congress and they blew it... They rung up additional debt to this nation. They added unfunded liabilities that we can’t pay now, so we can’t afford any more of that leadership."

Sen. Chuck Purgason speaking this weekend with Steve Walsh for The Missouri Record

"They're wanting to ignore that their candidate is part of the problem."

~ Sen. Chuck Purgasonon the GOP establishment's embrace of Roy Blunt despite Blunt's key role in passing unbalanced budgets for George W. Bush, expanding Medicare Part D coverage without even attempting to pay for the new spending, and negotiating the TARP bailout in 2008

State Sen. Chuck Purgason is asking his fellow candidates in the GOP primary for Senate -- Rep. Roy Blunt, Robert Praprotnik and Mark Memoly -- to sign his "Contract with Missouri." Here are Purgason's promises, as outlined in the News-Leader:

1. Balanced Budget
2. No Earmarks
3. No member of my family will be a lobbyist
4. No TARP or other so-called Stimulus Package programs
5. No Campaign Funds from Bailed Out Companies
6. I will have no fundraisers outside the State of Missouri
7. Self-Imposed Term Limit of Two Terms

Of course, Roy Blunt can't promise to do any of these things. 

The Missourian has the story this weekend of another challenge from the right in the contest for the U.S. Senate -- Robert Praprotnik, a veteran and businessman from St. Louis. As the paper notes, Praprotnik sells himself as a "Reagan conservative," and vows to reduce taxes and "re-establish the Constitution as the law of the Land."

From Praprotnik's website:

We are in a situation where the two parties, Democrats and Republicans, simply vote the party line and not the people want. I want to change that. It's time to vote out of office all of these incumbent politicians. We live in the Greatest Country in the world. Let us start acting that way.

I look forward to all TRUE Conservatives, Republican, Democrat, or Independent, and anyone else who believes in preserving our freedoms and re-building our economy unite and support my candidacy for the Senate of the United States for the Great State of Missouri.

State Senator Chuck Purgason emailed a statement today criticizing his GOP primary opponent, Rep. Roy Blunt, for supporting years of deficit spending and Washington, and for highlighting Blunt's strong support from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. 

Voting for a budget, wishing it was balanced, and putting off tough decisions cannot continue. We must have leaders willing to stand up and work until the budget is balanced and committed to voting for a budget only if it is balanced.

With the federal government borrowing $20,000,000,000.00 a week just to pay the bills, we must swear off the passing of earmarks. We cannot allow members of Congress to continue with the credit cards running up debt on this country.

Purgason's statement also points to the $96,950 in campaign contributions Blunt received from individuals and PACs connected to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from 1989-2008.  Purgason incorrectly states that "Blunt has taken more PAC money from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac than any member of Congress" -- Spencer Bachus accepted $103,000 during that same time span -- but the point is made.

Via The Turner Report, the MDP has posted audio of KZRG reporter Josh Marsh breaking down Roy Blunt's problems as a Washington insider with a long record of scandal and irresponsible leadership.

Missourinet:

The YouGovPolimetrix survey has Carnahan with a 43 to 39 percentage point lead over Blunt among decided voters ... and shows Carnahan with a 40 to 34 percentage point lead over State Senator Chuck Purgason, who is also in the contest for the GOP nomination.

John Boehner (R-Ohio), who succeeded Roy Blunt as the House GOP Leader in 2006 when Republicans sought to make a break from the simmering Tom DeLay/Jack Abramoff scandals, says "Republicans will accept our fair share of the blame" for deficit spending and irresponsible fiscal policies.  Posted today at The Washington Independent:

The obvious thorn in the side of Republicans — who’ve made a habit of blasting the Democratic majority under President Obama for deficit spending — is that the GOP majority under President Bush never once balanced its annual budgets. As a result, the national debt jumped from $5.7 trillion in 2000, when Bush was elected, to $10 trillion eight years later. The GOP controlled both chambers of Congress for six years of that span, during which time they not only cut taxes in the middle of two wars, but also passed the largest Medicare expansion since the program’s founding — an unfunded prescription drug benefit that former comptroller general David Walker has called “the most fiscally irresponsible piece of legislation since the 1960s.”

Ken Newton has a new column in The News-Press today about fallibility and accountability. Most of the column focuses on state Sen. Chuck Purgason's critique of Rep. Roy Blunt's trouble record in the Washington GOP leadership.

Mr. Purgason has a gift for saying uncomfortable things.

A candidate for the U.S. Senate, he spoke to the Northwest Missouri Republican Club and dispensed some bitter medicine.

The GOP did not lose the White House and majorities of both houses of Congress because of a popular shift in national priorities, he insisted. Instead, the party fell behind because its leaders forgot their priorities.

In a new column for the Missourian, Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-St. Elizabeth) says he "was shocked" as a freshman Congressman" when he "saw firsthand the path of irresponsible spending that Congress had previously been engaged in." 

As state Sen. Chuck Purgason and others have been pointing out in their challenges to the GOP establishment, George W. Bush and the GOP leadership in Congress "turned a thirty billion dollar deficit into a $566 billion deficit by 2006."  To be sure, Republicans have been railing against programs proposed by Democrats as well (even when the actually reduce the deficit).  But as Luetkemeyer notes, the hypocrisy of Republicans who have only recently become interested in balanced budgets and responsible fiscal policy is quite shocking.

The Missouri Democratic Party has posted videos captured by their tracker from the Chuck Purgason's campaign stop in St. Joseph Thursday.

Here's Rep. Rob Schaaf praising Purgason for his independence from lobbyists, hard work , being a "non-RINO Republican" and fiscal conservatism. "If they voters have any brains, they will elect him to be our next United States Senator," he said.  

Chuck Todd, NBC News' Political Director and Chief White House Correspondent, continues to rank the Missouri Senate race as Democrats' top pickup opportunity, pointing to the impossibility of Roy Blunt tapping into any "outsider magic."

Emboldened by the success of Scott Brown's outsider campaign in Massachusetts, State Sen. Chuck Purgason's campaign appeared to be picking up a little steam at a stop in St. Joseph last night.  In his report on Purgason's visit to St. Joseph, News-Press reporter Ken Newton writes that Purgason's campaign "carried an extra spark" because of Scott Brown's victory in Massachusetts Tuesday. 

Indeed, Newton reports that Purgason now has the public support of two area legislators -- Reps. Jim Guest and Rob Schaaf.  

“Maybe he’ll be the Scott Brown of Missouri,” said state Rep. Jim Guest, R-King City, referring to the Massachusetts senator-elect...

State Rep. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph, offered Mr. Purgason his endorsement. “He’s the true Republican in this race,” the representative said.

Purgason has relentlessly criticized Roy Blunt straying from "the principles of our party" in Washington, especially for Republicans' deficit spending, support for earmark spending, leadership in passing the TARP bailout and support for the Cash for Clunkers stimulus program. 

In the wake of the MA special election, one thing is clear - Roy Blunt is no Scott Brown. 

Blunt’s long time party insider status means he can’t portray himself as a Washington outsider like Massachusetts State Senator Scott Brown did.  In fact Congressman and Abby Blunt, seen below, are on every Washington VIP party guest list. Both Abby and Congressman Blunt have been named top partiers in Washington, DC.

Conservative Radio Host Mark Reardon commented on KMOX this afternoon:

I said this at the beginning of the show. There is no Scott Brown in Missouri. Congressman Roy Blunt is not Scott Brown. He's a party guy.