Mizzou political scientist Peverill Squire says it’s hard to tell if state lawmakers would be investigating campaign finance allegations against Governor Greitens if accusations about Greitens’ affair would not have surfaced. A Missouri House committee continues to probe the Republican governor’s alleged federal campaign finance violations and whether he took a charity donor list without authorization to fund his campaign.
Mizzou Political Scientist Peverill Squire
“For the public, it’s much easier to understand the allegations made against the governor in regard to his affair and his behavior in that affair,” Squire says. “I think politicians were troubled by all these other allegations. I’m not sure they would have had the political motivation to pursue them as aggressively as they had in the absence of the concerns about the governor’s behavior with his affair.”
This week, a felony invasion of privacy charge was dismissed against Greitens that centered around his affair. St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner says she plans to re-file the charge and request a special prosecutor. The governor’s defense team consider the move a victory and say there was no evidence of an alleged picture at the center of the case.
The Missouri Legislature will gavel in at 6:30 p.m. on Friday to begin a special session. Lawmakers will decide whether the governor should be impeached based on the allegations against him.
Tune in Thursday evening from 6:30 to 7 p.m. on Missourinet.com, some Missourinet affiliates and ABC17 in Columbia to highlight the upcoming special impeachment session.
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