Candidate for auditor visits Cape Girardeau

The state auditor should work cooperatively with agencies, not seek to embarass or attack them, a Republican candidate for the job said Friday.

The current auditor, Democrat Claire McCaskill, has too much of a prosecutor's approach, state Sen. John Loudon of Chesterfield said. Loudon is one of two Republican lawmakers seeking their party's nomination to replace McCaskill, who is giving up the post to run for U.S. Senate.

Too often, Loudon said, McCaskill has engaged in "fishing expeditions" when the job should be handled more as an internal auditor, giving guidance to state and local agencies being examined.

Loudon's opponent in the GOP race, state Rep. Jack Jackson of Wildwood, said he viewed McCaskill's methods as part of her ambition for higher office. McCaskill blocked Gov. Bob Holden's re-election by defeating him in the Democratic primary last year before losing the general election to Republican Matt Blunt.

"The tendency to look down the road to moving up, that clouded her work," Jackson said.

The choice between Jackson and Loudon is a choice between a long-time politician and someone with little experience in state government. Loudon, 38, has been in the legislature since 1994. Jackson, 62, is a former Marine pilot and chief test pilot for Boeing in St. Louis.

At this early stage of the contest, Loudon has raised more money than Jackson. On the Democratic side, Buchanan County Auditor Susan Montee is running against Senate Minority Leader Maida Coleman of St. Louis.

Loudon and Jackson both have strong pro-life records, an attribute that both agree has little to do with the state auditor's job. Loudon, who sponsored the bill to bar the transport of minors out of the state for abortions without their parent's consent, said a candidate's record helps voters understand them.

But, he said, he intends to "talk primarily about what the state auditor's office really deals with."

One source of friction for McCaskill has been whether she can go beyond purely financial matters to examine the effectiveness of state programs. Such "performance audits" are not specifically authorized in state law, but Blunt has told her state agencies will cooperate by making records avilable under the state Sunshine Law.

Examining state programs for effective work as well as financial compliance should remain a priority for the auditor's office, Loudon said. "There is not a specific constitutional or statutory authority to do performance audits, but it needs to be done."

Those exams are important, Jackson said, and the first place to do a performance review would be the auditor's office itself. "The department itself needs to have a total internal review."

Both Loudon and Jackson are little known outside their St. Louis County districts.

Loudon, who runs a small public relations firm with his wife, has taken a strong interest in the business practices of state and local governments and the ability of citizens to stand up for themselves in the face of government power.

A law passed in 2004, sponsored by Loudon, made it easier to dismiss defamation lawsuits filed by government officials against citizens who speak out at public meetings. Two such lawsuits in St. Louis prompted the bill, Loudon said. The lawsuits were ultimately unsuccessful, but they had a costly effect on the people who were sued, he said.

"I would put the right of the people to speak publicly without fear of retribution as the most important right," Loudon said. "It is the bedrock of our soceity."

In 2002, Loudon sponsored a bill designating Dec. 15 as "Bill of Rights Day" and encouraged school districts to teach students about the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

"If you don't know what your rights are, you can't exercise them," Loudon said.