Steelman's Buddy: The Kind of Help She Needs?
An interesting profile of GOP gubernatorial hopeful Sarah Steelman shows up in the most recent issue of the Riverfront Times. The most compelling factual information in the piece, which is largely a biographical rehash, comes buried more than two-thirds of the way through the story in an anecdote:
During the pre-dinner mingling in St. Charles, Steelman gets an assist
from Willliam "Buddy" Hardin, a local activist and friend of her
consultant, Jeff Roe. Hardin, a barrel-chested man whose suit lapels
are covered with stickers, introduces her to several people. Steelman
greets each of her new acquaintances with a long, earnest handshake.
"She's not your traditional, kiss-a-baby, look-how-great-I-am
politician," Hardin says.
That's eye-catching for a few reasons.
At first blush it would seem to indicate positive momentum for Steelman, as it represents some support for her campaign from among the core of Matt Blunt's political base --most of which stands squarely with Kenny Hulshof. Hardin, after all, is a Blunt fee agent (O'Fallon license office) and a regular co-conspirator in many of the political schemes hatched by prominent Blunt-allied political consultants.
The snippet is also useful because it represents recognition by a traditional media outlet of a connection that we've made here for quite some time, describing Buddy Hardin as the "friend" of Jeff Roe. Despite Hardin's ubiquity in many of the pay to play and influence peddling schemes, little effort has ever been made outside the blogosphere to decipher his place within the Blunt GOP network even though there's ample evidence of a relationship with Roe. The mention by the Riverfront Times is at least a start.
A final thought on the above graf regards its larger meaning to the Steelman campaign. Sure, the peeling off of Hardin from some of the other Team Blunt regulars who've moved over to Kenny's camp en masse may seem a boon, but it's vital we remember what she's getting. Hardin is, after all, a guy who:
*Led the effort to organize Missouri Mormons online for the wildly successful Presidential campaign of Mitt Romney;
*Was a trailblazer for the Matt Blunt re-elect effort, going so far as to create his own vanity tag that read "BLNT-08".
*Was an ally of now-incarcerated Nathan Cooper, and didn't hesitate to drop cash into Cooper's legislative district committee when Cooper dragged the bag past Hardin's license office.
Jeff Roe may have brought Hardin along with him to Steelman's team, but it's worth wondering if --given his track record-- Sarah might not have been better served by seeing him left behind.
