Danny Gibbons on Koster, Missouri Plan, and AG Tensions

A friend of mine was flying home from St. Louis the other evening, and found herself seated next to two brash young republican types. What follows is her account of her enlightening trip, enhaned only by my bolding of my favorite parts:

The kid by the window starts giving his compatriot a crash course in Missouri politics, and I can't help but overhear him. Turns on that he first goes on to say what a huge deal for Republicans in Missouri the Chris Koster switch is, and how everyone in the Republican party is just shocked. He goes on to say that Koster had this big problem with wanting to support stem cell research which "isn't a Republican issue", but that Koster had been a good Republican soldier for Medicaid cuts, and MOHELA, and all that, so basically they are all just shocked. He then goes on to posit that the real reason Koster left the party is that he is worried about running for MO AG against the kid's dad in the Republican primary, which is when I figure out that the kid is Danny Gibbons, 20-something son of Michael Gibbons, the illustrious Republican President Pro Tem of our state senate, if it even deserves that title anymore.

The kid then turns his attention to the recent Supreme Court panel, where he states that the whole deal was totally unfair, because the best candidate who had applied, and whom our illustrious governor had clearly indicated that he expected to be on the panel, is the kid's dad-Mike Gibbons again. He says that the Repubs are all in shock and anger that Gibbons didn't make the panel after the governor indicated that he wanted him on the panel, and the fact that Gibbons didn't make the panel is proof that the system doesn't work, and that the selection is not non-partisan. You would have been proud of me; I did not jump into the conversation to point out that failing to put a guy on the panel for the Supreme Court who is barely a practicing lawyer, let alone isn't a judge, and who apparently doesn't really have much of a commitment to the position, since he is running for Attorney General at the same time, can hardly be considered partisan, but I just keep listening, in awe and horror, as the kid goes on to try to explain that this is what is wrong with the Non-Partisan Court plan-it clearly is partisan because the sitting governor can't get any political hack appointed to the Supreme Court at the snap of his fingers. The kid then goes on to say that Blunt is not going to appoint anyone from this panel, and that the Repubs plan to use this as a big campaign issue.

The kid then goes on to say some more interesting stuff, like that his mom doesn't really want his dad to run for AG, because she doesn't like Jeff City and because she doesn't want to have to give up her job, and she makes as much as the dad.

So, it appears the Republicans are going to refuse to appoint any of the three highly-qualified attorneys on the current panel (including a Republican Ashcroft appointee) and try to use the Missouri Plan as a wedge issue to drive zealots to the polls, and it appears that they are shocked that a "good Republican soldier" like Koster defected over stem cells, which is "not a Republican issue" - just another wedge issue they use.

Normally, I dislike people who talk loudly on planes. Sharing your insider political knowledge with a planeload of people is rude, and not necessarily wise.