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Sunday, May 20, 2012
So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish
Posted Friday, August 13, at 5:37 PM
Douglas Adams's title to the fourth book of his Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series sums up my feelings as I am departing the Southeast Missourian. After five years in Cape Girardeau, I am taking a position with the Columbia, Mo., Daily Tribune, a newspaper where I worked for 12 years in the 1980s and 90s. ...

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Emerson tops Sowers in second quarter fundraising
Posted Tuesday, July 13, at 4:16 PM

U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson had her best fund-raising quarter of the election cycle, taking in more than 1-1/2 times than Democratic challenger Tommy Sowers. Emerson, a Republican who is seeking her eighth term, said in a news release that she will report raising $526,000 from April 1 through June 30 when financial reports are filed this week. ...

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Sowers promise to give back salary may violate state law
Posted Wednesday, July 7, at 8:01 PM

During a town hall meeting on the Southeast Missouri State University campus Wednesday, Democratic Congressional candidate Tommy Sowers may have violated Missouri election law by promising to give back a portion of his salary if elected. After fielding a question about Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell's opposition to extending unemployment benefits, Sowers noted that members of Congress now receive a salary in excess of $170,000 per year...

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Sowers strikes first in air campaign
Posted Wednesday, July 7, at 2:14 PM

I saw this ad on a Fox Sports Midwest broadcast of a Cardinals game Tuesday evening, but the sound was turned down in the bar and I couldn't hear it. But it's Democratic Congressional candidate Tommy Sowers's first TV commercial in his campaign to unseat seven-term U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Cape Girardeau...

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Sowers adds Town Hall meetings in area
Posted Monday, July 5, at 6:13 PM

Democratic congressional candidate Tommy Sowers is in our part of the Eighth Congressional District as he continues his second "Boots on the Ground" campaign tour of all 28 counties. He was in Bollinger County on Monday and on Tuesday will be in Perry County, on Wednesday in Cape Girardeau County and on Sunday will be in Scott County...

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Emerson wins NRA endorsement
Posted Monday, July 5, at 6:07 PM

U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson announced Monday that she's been endorsed for re-election by the National Rifle Association. The Eighth District Congresswoman, who is seeking her eighth term, touted the endorsement in a news release. "I'm very honored to have the support of the NRA and of their many members in the Eighth Congressional District," said Emerson. ...

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GOP Auditor candidate Tom Schweich in Cape County next week
Posted Friday, June 11, at 2:46 PM

Republican candidate for state auditor Tom Schweich will have two public events next week in Cape Girardeau and Jackson. On Thursday evening, he will speak at the beginning of the Pachyderm Club meeting at Dexter Bar-B-Q. Schweich, a former ambassador among other public roles, will speak at 7 p.m., prior to the candidate forum in the Cape Girardeau County Recorder of Deeds contest...

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Democrats hold Barbecue Saturday
Posted Friday, June 11, at 2:43 PM

The Byrd Township Truman Day Barbecue will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Laborer's Hall, 773 Enterprise Drive. The event will start at 6 p.m., according to an e-mail from Cape Girardeau County Democratic Party chairman Mark Baker. Former U.S. Sen. Jean Carnahan is expected to be on hand to deliver short remarks, Baker said in the e-mail...

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Live from the Pachyderm Club's Cape County presiding commissioner forum
Posted Thursday, May 20, at 5:07 PM

Cape Girardeau County presiding commissioner forum...

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Sowers claims biggest fundraising quarter so far
Posted Tuesday, April 13, at 1:42 PM

Eighth District Democratic candidate Tommy Sowers announced this afternoon that his campaign to unseat U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson raised $295,000 in the first three months of the year, his best quarter so far. That puts his total for the race above $675,000, the most raised by a foe of Emerson since she won the office in 1996. In an e-mail announcing the total, Sowers said 99 percent of the money came from individual donors and 75 percent were from contributors giving $200 or less...

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Eighth District Libertarian Vandeven also attends Sowers event
Posted Thursday, April 8, at 8:40 PM

Conservative independent Larry Bill wasn't the only opposition candidate who attended the Cape Girardeau County Women's Democratic Club meeting with Tommy Sowers on Thursday. Rick Vandeven of Chaffee, who will be the Libertarian Party nominee on the Nov. 2 ballot, said he attended because he didn't know anything about Sowers...

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Larry Bill says he's closing in on signature target
Posted Thursday, April 8, at 8:27 PM

I found independent Congressional candidate Larry Bill in an unusual location Thursday evening -- he was attending the Cape County Democratic Women's Club meeting at Dexter Bar-B-Que to hear Democratic candidate Tommy Sowers. Bill, who is using his roots among the tea party activists as the base of his campaign, said he's attending every event he can to find out about issues...

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Sowers campaiging in Cape Girardeau tonight
Posted Thursday, April 8, at 3:41 PM

Democratic Congressional candidate Tommy Sowers will make his first visit to Cape Girardeau since the Democratic majority in Congress pushed through a health care overhaul bill. Sowers, who said he supported the health care bill in a November interview, has been silent on the issue since then...

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C-Span archive offers a look at lawmakers at work
Posted Tuesday, March 16, at 5:09 PM

Do you want to see every speech U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson has ever made on the floor of the House of Representatives? How about U.S. Sens. Kit Bond or Claire McCaskill grilling administration officials in committee hearings? Thanks to C-Span, you no longer have to be watching live to catch up with what your lawmakers say in front of cameras in Washington...

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Parker: Voters need to ask "the hard questions"
Posted Friday, February 19, at 11:18 AM

Congressional candidate Bob Parker is in town today pursuing his quest to knock off Rep. Jo Ann Emerson in the Republican primary and, in a wide ranging discussion, said the key to his success will be voters taking charge of their government. Parker, a Texas County cattle farmer, seeks to make the case that Emerson, in office since 1996, hasn't been true to conservative values. ...

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Cameras, recording barred from Jetton hearing
Posted Thursday, February 18, at 5:02 PM

No cameras or audio recordings will be allowed Wednesday when former Missouri House Speaker Rod Jetton appears in court for a preliminary hearing on felony assault charges, Associate Judge Terry L. Brown decided today. Brown, who has the case on a change of judge, made the decision after consultation with the Scott County Prosecuting Attorney Paul Boyd during court sessions, Scott County Circuit Clerk Christy Hency said...

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It's open seat season in Cape Girardeau County
Posted Friday, February 5, at 6:06 PM

In just a few weeks, filing opens for offices on the partisan primary ballot for 2010. On Sunday, I'll have a rundown of who's retiring, who's not and who wants the open jobs in Cape Girardeau County government. A preview: Rep. Scott Lipike, R-Jackson, will be forced out of the Missouri House due to term limits. ...

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Eighth District fundraising maps
Posted Thursday, February 4, at 6:57 PM

I'll have a story in Friday's newspaper detailing some of the interesting things I found when I looked closely at the fourth-quarter fundraising reports of U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson and her Democratic rival, Tommy Sowers of Rolla. As a preview, it seems both campaigns are relying heavily on donors that are outside of the 28-county Eighth Congressional District and even outside the state. ...

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Emerson has strong fundraising quarter while Sowers continues to do well
Posted Thursday, January 28, at 4:23 PM

After being surprised by the unexpectedly strong initial fundraising effort by her Democratic opponent, U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson responded by nearly doubling her treasury in the final three months of 2009. Emerson, R-Cape Girardeau, raised $318,000 in the last quarter of the year, aide Josh Haynes said on behalf of the campaign. That brings her total for 2009 to more than $686,000...

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Catching up in the Eighth Congressional District
Posted Friday, January 22, at 4:25 PM

Keeping up with the sniping going on back and forth between the campaigns in the Eighth Congressional District could be a full-time job. Unfortunately, it is only a part of my job and that means I occasionally have to play catch up. For those who haven't paid any attention at all, our Republican U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson is being challenged within her party by cattle farmer Bob Parker of Texas County and Democrat Tommy Sowers of Rolla, a former U.S. Army major and college instructor...

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Rudi Keller is a reporter with 19 years experience covering government from city councils to the Missouri Legislature and politics from school board races to statewide political campaigns. A native of Louisville, Ky., Keller has worked at the Southeast Missourian since July 2005.