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Missouri’s Parson and Galloway to focus on their base in final day of gubernatorial campaign

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Missouri’s two main gubernatorial candidates have busy schedules on Monday, one day before election day.

Governor Mike Parson (R) spoke Saturday at a rally in St. Peters with former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. That’s in St. Charles County, which has been a Republican stronghold. It’s an area Republicans need to do well on Tuesday.

The governor campaigns Monday in Jefferson City, St. Joseph, Kirksville, Palmyra, Cape Girardeau and Cassville, continuing his focus on rural towns. U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R) will join Parson at the Cassville event, in southwest Missouri.

Ann Dorn, the widow of slain St. Louis Police Captain David Dorn, will join Parson on Monday’s tour, along with former gubernatorial candidate John Brunner and the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association’s Mike Deering.

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Nicole Galloway, the state auditor, attended two church services Sunday in St. Louis. She also met with Democrats in St. Louis City and St. Louis County, two jurisdictions that are crucial to Democratic success in statewide races.

Galloway will begin Monday in Columbia, where she will attend a literature drop launch with area Democrats. She also speaks at the Missouri Democratic Party’s election eve rally Monday evening in Kansas City. It will feature all of the party’s statewide candidates: Alissia Canady, Yinka Faleti, Rich Finneran and Vicki Englund.

Galloway continues to focus on hospital closings, noting ten rural Missouri hospitals have closed since 2014.

Parson is focusing on rural values and experience.

Polls will be open Tuesday statewide from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m. The Secretary of State’s office says a combined total of 723,058 mail-in and absentee ballots have already been returned to Missouri election authorities. Most of those are absentee ballots.

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Parson and Galloway focusing on rural Missouri in final days of campaign; both appealing to blue-collar voters (AUDIO)

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The two main gubernatorial candidates are focusing on rural Missouri again Friday, and during the final days of the campaign.

Governor Mike Parson (R) brings his “Mike works bus tour” to four rural western Missouri towns: his hometown of Bolivar, as well as Clinton, Belton and El Dorado Springs. He’ll finish Friday evening in Springfield.

The governor tells Missourinet he feels confident about where the race is and that he’s on message. Parson also says that if he wins Tuesday, he’ll continue to focus on putting people first.

“I think what we seen what we did by taking the largest income tax cut in our state’s history, by creating 40,000 new jobs by focusing on workforce development and infrastructure,” Parson says, highlighting achievements of his term.

Parson will speak at Friday evening’s “Keep Missouri Red Rally” in Springfield, with former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Sanders will also join the governor Saturday for a rally in eastern Missouri’s St. Peters.

Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, will meet Friday morning with Teamsters Union members in Springfield and with UAW members in Pleasant Valley.

She campaigned Thursday in Columbia, before heading to southwest Missouri’s Marshfield and Springfield. During an interview with Missourinet outside her bus in Columbia, Galloway says rural voters tell her that Jefferson City is disconnected from what matters to them, in their communities.

“Rural hospitals are closing. Jobs are leaving the area,” Galloway says. “They’re concerned about funding for their schools, which are the center of those rural communities.”

The Missouri Hospital Association (MHA) says ten rural hospitals have closed in Missouri, since 2014. Click here to see the full map and years. To be clear, several of those closings happened when Governor Jay Nixon (D) was in office.

But several have also happened during the tenure of Governors Eric Greitens (R) and Parson.

While Parson and Galloway disagree on numerous policy issues, one thing they both have been doing during the campaign’s final stretch is campaign heavily in rural towns across the state.

Galloway says her top priority, if elected governor, will be implementation of Medicaid expansion.

“Making sure that not only folks have access to affordable health insurance, but also have access to health care, meaning we can keep our rural hospitals open and open clinics in parts of our state that desperately need it,” says Galloway.

In August, Missouri voters approved Medicaid expansion for residents between the ages of 19 and 64 with an income level at or below 133 percent of the federal poverty level. While the issue was defeated in 105 of Missouri’s 114 counties, Galloway notes it passed by six points statewide, and that hundreds of thousands of votes from rural residents were key to its passage.

Galloway also says Missouri needs a reset on COVID strategy, so people can get back to work.

During a campaign stop Tuesday at Emery Sapp and Sons in Columbia, Governor Parson emphasized his rural roots, and talked about growing up in southwest Missouri’s Wheatland. He also discussed saying the Pledge of Allegiance in school.

He’s also emphasizing his experience.

“I think what people are seeing right now with everything we’ve been through is experience does matter at a time like this, and I think that’s one of the things I have,” says Parson. “All the way from serving my country in the military, law enforcement, being a business owner.”

Parson says it’s important to take a balanced approach to combating COVID, and that it’s crucial to look at the state as a whole. He says businesses are opening back up, and children are back in school.

Both candidates are appealing to blue-collar voters.

Parson praised their work ethic during his speech at Emery Sapp and Sons, talking about the workers wearing coveralls in the back of the room. He noted he had done work like that. It drew applause from the audience.

As for Galloway, she told her audience on Thursday that Governor Parson’s supporters want to make Missouri a right-to-work state. She’s pledging to veto a right-to-work bill, if she’s elected. That also drew applause from her audience.

Election day is Tuesday across Missouri.

Click here to listen to Governor Mike Parson speak to Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and other reporters at Columbia’s Emery Sapp and Sons on October 27, 2020:

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s interview with Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway, on October 29, 2020 in Columbia:

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Parson and Galloway blast each other repeatedly during Missouri gubernatorial debate

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Missouri’s two major gubernatorial candidates clashed during a Friday afternoon debate in Columbia on numerous issues, including Clean Missouri, COVID, Medicaid expansion and valet parking at the Capitol.

The debate, which took place at the Missouri Theatre in Columbia, was sponsored by the Missouri Press Association.

Missouri voters approved Clean Missouri in November 2018. It had several provisions, including one requiring a nonpartisan demographer to draw state legislative districts.

Governor Mike Parson (R) opposed Clean Missouri and supports Amendment Three, which will appear on your November ballot. Amendment Three transfers the responsibility of drawing the districts from the demographer to a governor-appointed bipartisan commission.

“None of the big money behind this ever talked about how the redistricting would work, they talked about everything but that (in 2018),” Parson says. “This is a major shift in how we do elections in the state of Missouri.”

But Auditor Nicole Galloway, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, disagrees. She backed Clean Missouri in 2018 and opposes Amendment Three.

“In November of 2018, over 60 percent of voters said they want a fair, transparent government and they wanted to get rid of gerrymandering,” says Galloway.

The candidates also blasted each other over COVID. Galloway says Missouri physicians support a statewide mask requirement.

“Because it is a proven way to contain the spread of the virus, protect the public health, get our economy going again,” Galloway says.

Governor Parson says he’s taken a balanced approach on COVID and has also emphasized the importance of personal protective equipment (PPE).

“You’ve got to be able to deal with the virus, you got to be able to deal with the economy, you’ve got to get kids back in school safely,” Parson says.

They also clashed over the recent special session on violent crime, with Galloway saying the governor “struck out.”

The Legislature did approve two of Governor Parson’s top priorities during the special session: a witness protection program and legislation eliminating the residency requirement for St. Louis police officers, firefighters and EMS personnel. But the Legislature did not pass the governor’s proposals regarding juvenile certification and one involving St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s (D) office.

Governor Parson says the special session was successful, and will help against violent crime.

The two candidates also had differing opinions on the cost of Medicaid expansion and also clashed on valet parking at the State Capitol in Jefferson City, an issue that hasn’t been talked about much during the campaign.

Governor Parson accuses Galloway of politicizing her office, and Galloway says Parson has failed the test of leadership.

Libertarian nominee Rik Combs and Green Party nominee Jerome Bauer also participated in the debate, which was produced by KOMU-TV in Columbia. The debate aired live in mid-Missouri on Channel 8.

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Galloway tells Missouri Democrats she’ll put Jefferson City back on the side of working families (AUDIO)

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Missouri’s presumptive Democratic gubernatorial nominee is urging voters to approve a Medicaid expansion proposal on the August ballot. State Auditor Nicole Galloway addressed the Missouri Democratic Party state convention this weekend.

Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway (D)
(Missourinet file photo)

“We’re going to bring our (Missouri) tax dollars home, to invest in our people,” Galloway says. “Giving coverage to working people, saving health care jobs and creating new ones in parts of our state that desperately need them.”

Amendment Two will be on the August 4 statewide ballot. 36 states have approved Medicaid expansion.

The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry announced its support of the August ballot measure on Friday.

“Let’s not miss this chance to bolster our economy during this recovery, while expanding access to healthcare for our fellow Missourians,” Missouri Chamber President Dan Mehan says, in a written statement.

The Missouri Chamber describes the Medicaid expansion proposal as a “pro-jobs measure that will help fuel economic growth throughout our state.”

The Missouri Hospital Association says ten rural Missouri hospitals have closed since 2014.

Governor Mike Parson (R) and House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, oppose Medicaid expansion. Speaker Haahr says it would take dollars out of the classroom, noting it requires a ten percent match, for the 90 percent draw down.

During her Friday evening address, Galloway also condemned George Floyd’s recent death in Minneapolis. The Columbia Democrat says America’s criminal justice system is fractured.

“Addressing it begins with accountability, accountability for the law enforcement officers involved. And accountability in the systems that perpetuate systemic inequality,” says Galloway.

Galloway says the disparities in our criminal justice system are real.

The former Minneapolis police officer who was charged with murdering Mr. Floyd is now charged with second degree murder, and the three other officers have been charged with aiding and abetting.

Galloway also addressed the issue of voting, during her presentation. She is urging Governor Parson to issue an order that would allow any Missourian in 2020 to vote absentee, without notarization.

The governor signed absentee voting legislation this month.

It expands absentee voting to those 65 and older, or who are vulnerable to COVID-19. Elderly people are considered at greater risk. Notarization is not required for those 65 and older or who are vulnerable.

The bill also expands voting by mail for everyone, but requires notarization.

“Missouri’s notary requirement is voter suppression, especially during a pandemic,” Galloway told the convention on Friday.

Galloway faces four primary opponents in August: Jimmie Matthews of St. Louis, Antoin Johnson of St. Louis, Kansas City’s Eric Morrison and Robin John Daniel Van Quaethem of St. Louis.

Galloway is expected to face Governor Parson in the November general election.

Click here to listen to State Auditor Nicole Galloway’s full eight-minute address to the Missouri Democratic Party state convention on June 12, 2020:

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Are Missouri polling places safe for Tuesday elections? Parson says if people are worried, they don’t have to vote

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On Tuesday, some Missourians will vote in local elections, including about ballot measures and candidates running for city council or school board. During a press conference this week, Gov. Mike Parson was questioned about the message he would give voters who are deciding whether the polling atmosphere is safe for them during the coronavirus outbreak.

Gov. Mike Parson

“I hope people feel safe to go out and vote. But if they don’t, the number one thing is their safety should be number one. So, if they don’t, then don’t go out and vote. I don’t know that I’ve ever heard myself say that,” says Parson. “If you didn’t feel safe, then I wouldn’t do that. But I hope people feel safe enough to go out and vote. Those elections are important – they’re important for what happens down the road as we all see right now what elected officials on the local level are doing.”

Parson says he thinks election workers are well prepared to help prevent voters from getting the coronavirus. He mentions Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, a fellow Republican, making visits last week to election authorities across the state.

“I think they’re going to make that as safe as anywhere else you go in the state of Missouri,” says Parson.

Ashcroft’s office says the Secretary of State delivered nearly 17,000 face masks and 17,000 face shields, more than 500 gallons of sanitizer, 1,200 8-oz. pump bottles of hand sanitizer, 16,000 posters advocating physical distancing and more than 40,000 bright yellow floor strips to set distancing expectations.

“We have been working for months to secure the supplies that local election officials need to ensure the safety of our upcoming elections. Delivering these supplies to each of our 116 local election authorities the past two weeks provided a great opportunity to speak personally with them. You can have a different kind of conversation when you’re face-to-face. I also wanted to personally thank the county clerks because they are working very hard to keep your elections running smoothly. I want Missouri voters to know that we are working together on the local, state and federal levels to take every precaution to make voting safe and streamlined in the upcoming elections,” Ashcroft said.

The governor’s comments do not sit well with some elected officials on the other side of the aisle, including State Auditor Nicole Galloway, who’s running for the Democratic nomination in the governor’s race.

On Twitter, Missouri House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, also fired back.

Missouri does not have “no-excuse” mail-in voting. But a bill awaits Parson’s consideration that would let all registered Missouri voters cast an absentee ballot in this year’s August and November elections, if a notarized signature is included.

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Missouri Auditor launches tracking site for COVID-19 spending

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Auditor Nicole Galloway’s office launched its transparency portal to track COVID-19 response spending by the State of Missouri.

According to the site, the state has received $2.3 billion to date and disbursed $716 million.

The auditor’s COVID-19 Response page tracks not only how much is received and expended in relief funds, but also lists which state and local government departments, vendors and expense categories are receiving the most funding.

The Auditor’s Office is compiling the information for the COVID-19 response page from data taken from the Statewide Advantage for Missouri (SAM II) system, which handles billions of dollars in financial transactions each year for the state.

Auditor Galloway’s big job: tracking billions coming in quickly, needing to be spent quickly

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State Auditor Nicole Galloway has the job of overseeing the billions of federal dollars coming into the state to be spent quickly on various programs to ease the COVID-19 health and economic crisis.

“The [Parson] administration is going to have a lot of discretion and decision-making authority over this money and so citizens deserve to know how this money is coming in, where it is going and how it is benefitting them and their communities.”

The Auditor’s office is creating an online tool for Missourians to track CARES Act money. She says it’s similar to the way Auditor Tom Schweich monitored the incoming 2009 federal stimulus money in the Great Recession.

Galloway is just as concerned about the state’s reserve funds. “We will recover from this and as we recover we need to truly manage our state’s finances in a conservative way,” she says.

State Auditor Nicole Galloway

In October of last year, Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway warned that the state’s “rainy day fund” is not ready for a recession or disaster. 

A complete copy of the report is online here.

Today, in the midst of a coronavirus-caused economic downturn, her predictions are playing out.

“I have been consistently advocating for the state to be in a better financial position and that includes the state reserves,” she tells Missourinet.  She says that after a deep dive in the state’s finances, their work “revealed the difficult realities of Missouri’s budget due to years of policy decisions based on unrealistic expectations by lawmakers.”

“We knew that because we are not prepared, the state is going to have to significantly cut expenditures and services, investment in things like education and infrastructure — and that’s exactly what we’re seeing,” she says.

The fund is most often used to sustain the state’s daily operations cash flow, for example paying off tax refunds. The Parson administration borrowed $500 million in 2019, according to audits.  In 2018, Moody’s Analytics ranked the state near the bottom in its economic preparedness stress test.

It would take a governor’s recommendation and then two-thirds of both the House and Senate to access the reserve funds. According to the Missouri Office of Administration, the funds would be paid back over three years starting the next fiscal year.

Medicaid expansion emerging as key issue in Missouri gubernatorial race

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Missouri’s GOP governor and his likely November Democratic opponent clashed over the issue of Medicaid expansion, during separate press conferences Tuesday in Jefferson City.

Former Missouri House Speaker Todd Richardson opens a special session on June 11, 2018. Richardson is now the state’s Medicaid director (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Medicaid is a federal and state program that assists with medical costs for residents who have limited incomes. Missouri’s current Medicaid budget is about $10 billion, accounting for about one-third of the state’s $30 billion operating budget.

Governor Mike Parson (R) and State Auditor Nicole Galloway (D) spoke to Capitol reporters at separate press conferences, after they filed for governor at the Kirkpatrick Building.

Missourinet asked both candidates about the issue, during their briefings. Governor Parson opposes Medicaid expansion, saying the system is broken.

“When (Auditor) Galloway was there and (Democratic Governor Jay) Nixon was there, we had over one million people on the state Medicaid roll out of six million. So when you think of that practically, one out of every six people on Medicaid,” Parson says.

Parson also says no one verified the Medicaid rolls, for more than a decade. He also emphasizes that children who qualify for Medicaid should receive it, and that his administration wants them to receive it.

Auditor Galloway, the presumptive Democratic nominee, backs Medicaid expansion. She says rural Missouri hospitals are closing, and that thousands of children have lost their health insurance coverage, under Parson.

Galloway says Medicaid expansion is crucial.

“We have a governor that has kicked 100,000 children off of their health insurance, and he has no vision and no solution on how he’s going to fix that,” Galloway says.

Medicaid expansion supporters, including “Healthcare for Missouri”, note that eight rural Missouri hospitals have closed in recent years. The group says Arkansas and Ohio have expanded Medicaid, and that they’ve used Medicaid-derived savings to cut income taxes.

Governor Parson sees it differently, asking why someone would want to expand a broken system. He also suggests that some lawmakers are grandstanding on the issue, and asks if they’ve trying to sign people up for Medicaid.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, also opposes Medicaid expansion. He says it would take dollars out of the classroom, noting it requires a ten percent match for the 90 percent draw down.

Two other Republicans filed today against Governor Parson in the GOP gubernatorial primary: State Rep. Jim Neely, R-Cameron, and Seneca resident Raleigh Ritter.

St. Louis Democrats Jimmie Matthews and Antoin Johnson have filed in the Democratic gubernatorial primary.

Filing will continue on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Kirkpatrick Building. The final day of filing is March 31.

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Galloway and Hawley blast each other over attorney general closeout audit

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Missouri’s Democratic state auditor and the former GOP attorney general are blasting each other over a closeout audit that was released Thursday afternoon in Jefferson City.

Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway (D) briefs Capitol reporters about the Hawley closeout audit on February 6, 2020 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Auditor Galloway’s Twitter page)

The closeout audit of former Attorney General Josh Hawley’s (R) office found that consultants paid with Hawley state campaign funds interacted with and advised Attorney General office staff. The review said while coordination between campaign consultants and staff gave an appearance of impropriety, there are no clear violations of law.

The audit also found that former Attorney General Hawley used a state vehicle and state employee as a driver/security detail for some trips where the business purpose wasn’t documented.

State Auditor Nicole Galloway (D) released the audit in her Statehouse office, which was packed with reporters. A stage was set up, to accommodate additional television crews that covered the briefing.

Mr. Hawley served as attorney general from January 2017 to January 2019, when he resigned after his U.S. Senate election. In a series of January tweets, Hawley accused Galloway’s office of using partisan Democratic staff. Galloway addressed the issue, with the Capitol Press Corps on Thursday.

“The unfair attacks by Senator Hawley were an attempt to deceive taxpayers about the nature of this audit,” Galloway says.

In his audit response, Hawley says Galloway audit team member Bobby Showers donated to then U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill’s (D) 2018 campaign and wrote recently that any senator who opposes removing President Trump from office “will go down in history as not fulfilling their oath to their country.”

Showers, who was overseeing the closeout audit of Hawley, was removed from that audit in January, due to what Galloway audit director Jon Halwes described as “the appearance of bias.” Halwes also testified that he had not found any indication of actual bias in the audit, when reviewing it.

Halwes testified on January 29, before the Missouri House Special Committee on Government Oversight, which held a hearing on the issue.

During Thursday’s press conference, Auditor Galloway reiterated what Halwes said, adding Showers simply had a different political opinion than Hawley.

During his January tweets, Hawley mentioned Showers and others. Galloway accuses Hawley of launching misinformation ahead of the audit’s release, knowing that she couldn’t respond until the audit was formally released.

“The abuse these dedicated employees and licensed CPA’s (certified public accountants) had to endure is unacceptable,” Galloway tells Capitol reporters.

Galloway says her staff members performed the audit in adherence to professional audit standards. She also says her office experienced “roadblocks and threats” from current Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s (R) office. Schmitt’s office responded by saying the auditor’s claims “are ridiculous and unfounded.”

Galloway says Schmitt’s office challenged her authority to perform the closeout audit.

Hawley accuses Galloway’s office of altering the audit, to make it more critical. He is especially critical of an e-mail from auditor Pam Allison, which used the term “beef up.”

The Missouri auditor’s employee who used the term “beef up” when referring to the closeout audit says her term meant that she would add more detail to the audit. Allison spoke at the press conference with Galloway, telling reporters she grew up on a Polk County family farm, where you send cattle to the feedlot to be finished.

“This inadvertently sent e-mail was not evidence of a lack of objectivity, rather it was evidence that we were appropriately evaluating audit evidence,” says Allison.

The email from Allison read: “I’m thinking I’ll just drop the confidentiality paragraph in the (closeout audit) report and beef up the personal email/personal calendar section.” She says the report was a work in progress at the time, and that more details needed to be added.

The closeout audit concluded that AG Hawley’s office did not always follow communication and retention policies, and that the use of personal text and email to communicate official business was a violation of Attorney General Office (AGO) policy.

Senator Hawley’s written response to the audit describes the audit changes by Allison as “deeply inappropriate, unethical and potentially a violation of state law.”

In a tweet Thursday after the audit was released, Senator Hawley also said: “You (Auditor Galloway) should also come clean to investigators about putting political operatives on state payroll and manipulating audits to help your campaign for governor.”

Missouri Republican Party Executive Director Jean Evans has also issued a statement, calling for an investigation into Galloway’s audit. Evans accuses Galloway of abusing her office for politics.

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Missouri audit: Hawley’s AG office might have used state resources to support his U.S. Senate bid

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A state audit released today says Republican Josh Hawley’s office as attorney general might have used state resources to support his run for U.S. Senate. But State Auditor Nicole Galloway, a Democrat running for governor, says there were no clear violations of law. During a press conference today at the Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City, Galloway points to a lack of record keeping in some cases.

State Auditor Nicole Galloway

She talks about meetings held during regular state working hours between staff and campaign-paid consultants that sometimes did not explain the reason for the meetings. The closeout audit shows private emails and personal calendar meeting invites obtained indicate other meetings or phone conferences might have been held but records of those meetings were not kept or provided. The use of personal text and email to communicate official business and the use of a Google calendar for official meeting invites were in violation of the Attorney General’s Office policies.

The review also says Hawley used a state vehicle and driver/security detail for some trips without always explaining the purpose.

“A state vehicle was used to travel to Lincoln Days in Platte County – an event that is clearly political. In some cases, the state employee serving as driver and security detail took vacation time and received separate payment from federal campaign funds for the time of those specific meetings,” she says. “In his responses, the former attorney general claims to have reimbursed the state. There’s no record of any reimbursements to the state for the use of a state vehicle on these personal and political trips.”

Missouri law allows campaign resources to be used for government purposes but does not authorize government resources to be used for campaign purposes. Section 130.034.4(2), RSMo, permits campaign funds to be used for “ordinary and necessary expenses” incurred in connection with an elected office. But, Galloway says this section neither defines “ordinary and necessary expenses” nor specifies whether using campaign funds to pay consultants to provide administrative guidance is allowable. Section 36.157, RSMo, prohibits state employees from engaging in “political activity” while on duty or while using state resources. But, she says this section does not define “political activity.”

U.S. Senator Josh Hawley greets a supporter at GOP headquarters in Winchester on October 23, 2018. (File photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI)

Galloway says the audit details incidents of current Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s staff putting up roadblocks, bullying, and threatening her staff.

“None of this is acceptable and is disappointing how the current Attorney General’s Office conducted itself,” she says. “The former attorney general and the current attorney general have asked for our help in public corruption cases using our audit procedures, our audit standards, these exact auditors that they are questioning now. They don’t have any problems with us doing these exact same procedures with the exact same folks in those public corruption cases, but all the sudden they do. The abuse these dedicated employees and licensed CPAs had to endure is unacceptable. I assume he did not like what this audit said.”

Schmitt’s spokesman, Chris Nuelle provided this statement:

“Auditor Galloway’s claims are ridiculous and unfounded. He says no such claims are even hinted at in the audit report prepared by her staff. From the beginning, Nuelle says the Attorney General’s Office worked tirelessly to cooperate and work with the State Auditor’s Office. That means dedicating thousands of man hours to gather, review, and transmit hundreds of thousands of pages of records, line up interviews and meetings, and respond to requests, all while continuing to perform the normal duties of the Attorney General’s Office. The correspondence from our office showed that we operated in a professional, cooperative manner.”

On Twitter today, Hawley says Galloway’s office engaged in partisan manipulation and potential unethical practices and says the audit was not independent. He says the report reaches the same conclusion as Secretary of State’s report one year ago: no wrongdoing by his office. He has filed a complaint against Galloway with the Board of Accountancy.

Another audit is underway of the general operations of Hawley’s office as attorney general. Closeout reviews are standard procedure when a state elected official leaves office.

To view the audit released today, click here.

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