The year is 2021, and the staff of Gov. Mike Parson is still sifting through the backlog of Sunshine Law requests that have not been fulfilled by Gov. Eric Greitens, the Republican outsider who lost in a primary to Parson while seeking a second term.
The new governor’s staff encounters a transcript of a text conversation between Greitens and me. It is from late 2017, after the governor had suffered through a series of self-inflicted blunders. The common denominator among the governor’s missteps? Secrecy.
Secret donors. Secret trips. Secret commission appointments. Secret documents. Even secret text messages.
Because Greitens and members of his staff were using an app called “Confide” that made text messages disappear, the transcript was a little difficult to follow:
ME: Governor, I saw in your statement after the education commissioner was fired that you seem to have a problem with superintendent salaries in Missouri. As I’m sure you know, those are set not by the Board of Education, but by local school boards. How will hiring a new education commissioner help you accomplish your goal?
GREITENS:
ME: Yes, I understand, you think they make too much money and you want that money to go to teachers. But how, Mr. Governor? School boards set teacher salaries also, and those school boards say their struggles with raising teacher pay are tied directly to state funding issues. So what do you plan to do about that?
GREITENS:
ME: Yes, sir, I remember that you were a Navy SEAL, but I’m not sure what that has to do with school funding. But, speaking of your service to our country, why did it take you so long to replace the members of the Missouri Veterans Commission, even though they were all sitting on expired terms?
GREITENS:
ME: Yes, governor, I did see the video of you rappelling into the arena in Springfield. But back to the veterans. As you know, dozens of residents of the St. Louis Veterans Home, family members and advocates had been calling on you to do something about the conditions at the home, and the poor administration there, since February. But you seemed to have been hoodwinked by sham investigations, and you resisted calls for change. Why?
GREITENS:
ME: I did see that you watched the Army-Navy football game in a bar in Chesterfield with veterans who were willing to give your campaign their personal information. But here’s what I want to know. When you stood in front of a tank (nice touch) at the veterans home a week ago, you said this: “When people are being hurt, when bureaucrats fail to act, when they fail to listen, when they offer only excuses — we’re gonna find out and they need to be fired.” Should that quote apply to you?
GREITENS:
ME: In fact, I did know that you boxed. Pretty obvious by how you dance around answering my questions. I’d like to get back to the employees at the veterans home, or even some of those low-paid teachers you have been talking about. Do you realize that when you signed Senate Bill 43, you made it harder for state employees who feel they are being harassed or discriminated against to protect their rights? There’s a lawsuit involving an employee of the veterans home right now, and Attorney General Josh Hawley filed a motion to dismiss, citing arguments from the new law, basically saying the employees have no legal recourse.
GREITENS:
ME: As it happens, I’ve heard you mention that before, this idea that you are focused on jobs in Missouri while those in Washington are spending the next generation’s money. But that raises a couple of interesting points. As you know, state workers in Missouri are the lowest paid in the nation. That’s one reason why the veterans home is struggling to attract good employees. Don’t you believe our veterans deserve better?
GREITENS:
ME: Yes, I’m well aware you balanced the budget without a tax hike. But what about next year? You were one of 20 governors to sign a letter supporting President Donald Trump’s tax bill, but economists point out that its structure could cost Missouri hundreds of millions in revenue because of changes to how state and federal taxes interact. How are teachers going to be better paid and workers who take care of veterans going to make ends meet if next year’s budget has to be slashed even more?
GREITENS:
ME: Governor?
GREITENS:
