he'll run for president, I'm sure.

gold star for audacity

this neocon bastard is getting run out like the rest of the republican party. st louis already smells better.

The guy is a jerk!.. He really screwed the state over and over again.

Just to Marko knows, the capital of Missouri is in Jefferson City, not St Louis.

www.pafundi.com
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Number of Operations Iraq Freedom and Enduring Freedom casualties
as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 4390

Wasn't "having accomplished all of my goals, I decided not to seek a second term" the same lame-ass excuse that the Simpsons version of George Bush used in his memoirs? I swear, sometimes you can't make this crap up...

Thanks for the linkage, Logan! We are doing the "Happy, Happy! Joy, Joy!" dance over here on the left side of this red state!

For what it's worth, some of us think his sudden change of heart has something to do with a pending indictment. The Abramoff tentacles reached into Missouri and his 2000 run for Secretary of State. His State of the State last week was a campaign speech. There is something more here that he is not being forthcoming about.

He also commutes in a six-Suburban caravan from Springfield to Jeff City (dumping a ton of CO2 into the air every single day!) because his wife doesn't like our Mansion. Lots of us would like to know how he affords the monthly nut on that house he bought.

Lots of questions surround this, and no answers are forthcoming.

Everytime I see Matt Blunt he reminds me of Eddie Haskell from Leave it to Beaver.

He wants to spend more time with the Manson Family

What does his dad have in mind for him?

one can't run a state government from prison any more, just isn't done! (except Illinois, maybe, again, perhaps, well...)
Roger Miller said it best. "you can't roller skate in a buffalo herd"

He's opted for the "I don't work there anymore" investigation avoidance plan. Just ignore it and it will go away.
If it doesn't he can always start saving up for the shrub co. crime syndicate pardon plan.

Oh! One more thing! Ethics commission filings show that he paid $890,000 to the Lathrop & Gage law firm in KC in the last quarter of 2007 alone. His sister Amy is an attorney with that firm.

ROTFLMAO!

Another Rethugnican cretin going home to, er, uh, 'spend more time with the family.' Jay Nixon, the Democrat hotly pushing to get Blunt's office and Blunt into the pokey, must really have some very tasty goods on this miserable, lying, deceitful, John Ashcroft-esque, Medicaid-cutting jerk. Blunt's an Abramoff graft-taker who really merrits deeper investigation. I guess by bowing out of gubernatoral contention graciously now, the most interesting political dirt can't prompt the sort of investigation that could lead to a prison sentence right in the middle of another Blunt campaign for Missouri's top office, especially given the draconian 'prison reforms' Blunt implemented during his administration. Investigations during a campaign are always most embarrassing for the encumbant, even when exxonerated. Ask Ashcroft who lost a Senate shot to a dead man the same election he got to be Attorney General of the United States. Missourians can hold a grudge beyond the end.

Such a shame, though! Another rethugnican perp-walk pre-empted by elephantile cowardice passed off as expedience. A rat to the end!

Yet, another one bites the dust. Now grab your Republican brethren with you and slink back to the sewer, from where you came!

He's accomplished all his goals...

Wow, he stole all he needed in just 4 years?

More effecient then most Republic crooks...

Whats with Missouri? So many criminal GOP pols, so much voter suppression, so much corruption. Might be time to turn blue, Show Me State.

I went to High School with these Bums They are all fake bitches...His sister was a real bitch. The weirdest one was Jay Ashcroft. Lord help us because the roots of corruption run too deep.

The whole Blunt family are parasites living off their host........the taxpayers............and the economic elite who bribe them in order to screw the taxpayers for every dollar we have.
Just like the Bush Family.

After Missoureans were through with this Blunt did they raid the refrigerator to have canned cheese and whip cream swallowing contests?

As a former Missourian with family still there, Blunt won't run again because he damn well that the good folks of MO will not re-elect him. The people have had enough.

Go on home and spend more time with your family, Blunt. You've done enough damage.

moondancer @ 31:

Whats with Missouri? So many criminal GOP pols, so much voter suppression, so much corruption. Might be time to turn blue, Show Me State.

Actually, the state only went red in 2000, when term limits for the state lege were enacted. It has been touted as a red state lately, but really, we are a true swing state, with the only truly reliable red areas in the southern tier counties. As far as presidential election go, we have only failed to go with the winner once since the 1850's. Here is a bit of a primer. We are a swing state, but there is also a real live swing district - the 6th, which was mentioned upthread. And Sam Graves is going down. My former mayor, Kay Barnes, is going to kick his ass. He's a mean sumbitch - but she is a going to walk all over him wearing spike heels. His SCHIP votes and blind fealty to Bush is going to destroy him.

Oh - and there is the bit about him trying to hitch a ride on the ethanol gravy train - and getting into a conflict of interest kerfuffle.

I am from Missouri, and my thoughts are that either his father, Roy Blunt, or Senator Kit Bond plans retirement and he's going to take the money that he has raised for this campaign, keep it, and use it to go after one of those offices.

He was a terrible governor and you could put him, cheap suit and all, in your pocket, he is such a little man. My husband has always called him, Governor Fuzz, because he reminds him of Lt. Fuzz from the old Beetle Bailey comic strip.

Bye, bye. Don't let the door hit you in the rear as you exit.....

I'm from Missouri, and all I can say is "THANK GOD!!!!" Do you know how awful and stifling these past years have been with him as governor?!!!! He's like a George W. lite. I've been simply waiting for time to pass hoping that eventually someone competent would take office. And who in their right mind would have voted for him in the first place? His age alone reeks of inexperience!! What was he when he got elected, thirty?? I didn't even know what I wanted to be at that age, and apparently, he didn't either.

I smell a rat here. Little Boy Blunt knew he couldn't be re-elected as did the entire republican party. I suspect that the state republican party assumes that either Jim Talent (former Senator), Peter Kinder (Lieutenant Governor), Catherine Haneway (US Attorney and former Speaker of the House) or Kenny Hulshof (six-term Congressman from Central Missouri) stand a better chance of defeating Jay Nixon (Attorney General) who has some popularity problems of his own. Nixon polled well against Blunt, but then so would Satan, Hitler, or Paris Hilton.

The question is where the party would be most vulnerable where the republican vacates the current office. Jim Talent is not a current office holder, but he was beaten by Bob Holden when he ran for Governor in 2000 even though the State went republican in the Presidential election. He beat Jean Carnahan to win one term in the US Senate, but was beaten by Claire McCaskill in 2006. He's working with Mitt Romney's campaign, but he may see a limited future in that position. He could beat Jay Nixon. He's not wildly popular, but neither is he reviled. I think he'd do well in the Kansas City area, and in St. Louis County (but not St. Louis City).

If Kinder runs, and he probably will, he won't have much more popularity than Blunt, though he has been less partisan in recent years than he was in the past. If he vacates the Lt. Governor's office, there's a good chance it will go to the Democrats. Kinder is seen as being kind of wormy and slimy. He'd do OK in Southeast Missouri, but there aren't all that many people in Southeast Missouri. I think Nixon would take him fairly easily.

Kenny Hulshof is a moderate republican and a man of high principles. You may recall that he lost his place on the house ethics panel when he stood up to Tom Delay. If he vacates his seat in the House, there is no guarantee that the republicans will keep it. The seat is pretty well gerrymandered to maintain a republican presence, but it historically went Democratic until Hulshof came around. He could beat Jay Nixon. I'm not sure that would be a bad thing.

Catherine Haneway (I may not be spelling her name correctly) is a strong possibility even though the State does not hold a more repugnant person. When she was speaker of the house she was known as Hard Hearted Haneway. She opposed every piece of legislation benefiting the poor or middle class. She is very bright, but she's not very analytical. Her logic seems to follow polarized patterns. She rarely sees shades of grey and apparently thinks that "nuance" is a dirty word. She could carry western St. Louis County and most of Southwest Missouri, but I think she'd get killed in the rest of the state.

I think Blunt stepped down under pressure. I think the scandals would ensure his defeat and I think he's guilty as hell. By stepping down, he gives the republicans a chance to keep the Governor's office.

Kathy in St. Louis, I thought you were being a little too harsh in your criticism about Melanie Blunt's dress—maybe it's because I personally wear clothes that are decades out of date. But then I clicked to the site that you provided. My jaw dropped open. You weren't being harsh at all. I may look like I just walked out of Saturday Night Fever, but at least I don't look like the blueberry from Willy Wonka.

SKY @ 48:

Blunt got elected in Missouri because of the religious boob-heads. I know, because I live amongst them. They're kinda like the zombies in horror movies but they carry bibles and have "My Boss is a Jewish Carpenter" bumper stickers. You can always count on the religious folk here "to do the right thing". As long as a politician puts in a few "God bless yous" and "Praise the Lords" into every speech, then the constituency is a big push-over—kinda like a drunk virgin at a frat party. It doesn't matter if you own a brothel and two drug dens on the side, just stick in a few Hallelujahs into every sentence and you can easily get elected.
By the way, Missouri was a gigantic Democratic state for a LONG time when Stuart Symington was our Senator until 1976. Then he decided to retire. That's when the Dark Force took over. Minister (R)Jack Danforth won Symington's Senate seat, and blessed (R) Kit Bond became governor in 1973 at the tender age of 33. Glory Hallelujah!!

Jack Danforth was the only decent Republican to hold statewide office in my lifetime.
Gov. Kit Bond looks like somebody finally got him to do alcohol rehab, but his ideas are first, last and always totally repugnant. Catherine Hanaway is a creep, Jim Talent was one of the first Missouri Republicans to hold seminars on how the religious right could establish some political clout by taking over school boards and pushing their "family" agenda. The idea of him running for governor never occurred to me, so thanks to whomever brought that nightmare up. Sanctimony is this guys middle name. John Ashcroft got a no-bid contract for his lobbying/law? firm in Washington worth millions and millions of dollars as a payoff for leaving the AGs office quietly. Yes, we here in Missouri are proud of our Republican heritage. They've taken a state that was never very cutting edge and turned it into even more of a backwater.

ysbaddaden @ 37:

After Missoureans were through with this Blunt did they raid the refrigerator to have canned cheese and whip cream swallowing contests?

What does this mean?

Then he proceeded to kick more than 100,000 low income Missourians off of the state’s health care program at the same time he dramatically slashed health care benefits for another 300,000 Missourians. And that doesn’t even get into why his administration is being investigated for corruption.

Once again a poor repug is misunderstood and persecuted for his vision. Most people don't recognize true genius when they see it, that's why Matt Blunt is not running next term.

He is an expert in the new theory of Darwinian evolution, only the richest will survive. It is obvious that genetic fitness has nothing to do with natural selection anymore. It is the size of your bank account that matters in the repug world. Matt is just doing his evolutionary duty by cutting those 400,000 parasites from the state handouts. Once they die due to lack of proper health care, Missouri ( or is that Misery ) will be well on it's way to properly evolving only rich white people.

Matt will also have his hands full with his new job working for the medical insurance industry, probably as a lobbyist or board member.

Apparently the author didn't actually listen to what Blunt said. He did say part of the reason he's leaving was to spend more time with wife Melanie and son William Branch, he even mentioned them by name. If he would have stayed in Jeff City in the gov's mansion instead of commuting back and forth to Springfield (several hundred miles away) on the taxpayer's dime, he could have spent more time with them. They said they were afraid for their safety because of the workers in the mansion. What a pompous treasonous ass. While this is good for Missouri in that he won't be gov. anymore, I have no doubt he turn up somewhere, either in his brother's lobbying firm or John Asscroft's lobbying firm or continuing the treason with his daddy, Roy. And in regard to an earlier poster, Blunt got elected because he stole it, this was proven by a group from New Jersey. The other Repukes that have been kissing ass for years now to get this job, Rod Jetton and Pete Kinder are no better than Blunt and may even be worse if that's possible. Missouri sucks.

Jack Danforth was the only decent Republican to hold statewide office in my lifetime.

Amen to that. John Danforth is a good and decent man, not at all interested in partisanship, but in what is best for as many people as possible. As a lifelong Democrat, I would vote for John Danforth over and over and over again. He may be a Republican, but he is first and foremost a statesman and a man of the people.

Kathy,
You're right about Danforth. He really is a good and honorable man, despite his ties to Clarence Thomas. My only beef with him, is that he opened the door for a whole era of Republicans to take over who weren't so good--like Kit Bond, Jim Talent, and my favorite, Roy Blunt. My district was Democratic all the while I was growing up--it was wonderful!! Then Mel Hancock came along, followed by ROY BLUNT. And I perpetually feel like I'm the only sane one around here!! I've read about (D) Ike Skelton and his progressive stance on various matters. And I often think "He's from Missouri?" I would sure like to have a Dem represent me from my district. Unfortunately, people like Jack Danforth don't come along very often. But he certainly had a flaw in judgement when he pushed for Thomas to get the Supreme Court position. I watched every hearing with Anita Hill, and I could easily tell there was something not right about him. All of his decisions on the bench have thus far confirmed my misgivings.

Kathy,

You're right. Melanie looked more like she belonged on a Christmas Parade float as a snowflake or a white XMAS tree. But maybe she was pregnant or something at the time. There is surely some logical explanation for that. I know some of my clothes choices have been hideous, which I later used for Halloween outfits.

Sorry guys, but I don't buy this crap that Danforth was an honorable man. He may have written a nice book, but I also remember him during the Clarence Thomas hearings. While Hatch and Specter were going after Hill like pit bulls, Danforth defended Thomas to no end. It was a high-tech lynching alright, but not of Thomas. The noose was around Anita Hill's neck. Danforth not only let it happen, but stood around and watched, pushing it from behind the scenes—saying what a great guy Thomas was. He was the one who recommended Thomas' name for the nomination. And now, thanks to his superb judgement, we've got Mr. Asshole for a Supreme Court Justice who I guarantee will live to be 110 years old. And all the while, Thomas didn't give a rat's ass about being a Supreme Court Justice anyway. He was in it for the ego. (Read his book). I hope Danforth is real happy with himself. He can live with that decision to his grave.

SKY @ 63:

Kathy,

You're right. Melanie looked more like she belonged on a Christmas Parade float as a snowflake or a white XMAS tree. But maybe she was pregnant or something at the time. There is surely some logical explanation for that. I know some of my clothes choices have been hideous, which I later used for Halloween outfits.

She designed it herself. This is a true story.

MoFisherman @ 4:

Actually he was quoted in the press yesterday that he was leaving to spend more time with his family.

And because the MO Republican Party doesn't want Blunt's obvious email scandal to get more mileage and threaten their seats in the state's congress.

Kathy in St. louis @ 60:

Apparently, George Will has never spoken to anyone in Missouri or he would know what a little weasel most of the citizenry think he is.

OH WOW I laughed out loud at that one! George Will speaking to a Missouri resident? He wouldn't talk to anyone from Missouri unless he was lobotomized. Don't you know we're "just flyover country?"

By the way, as a St. Louis girl myself, I am SO HAPPY to see Blunt the Runt go. He has fucked up our state enough. I never thought I'd say this, but go Nixon!