GOP gubernatorial candidate Randles makes Cape Girardeau campaign stop

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Randles made Cape Girardeau one of his final campaign stops Friday as Tuesday's primary draws close.

While speaking to a gathering of candidates for local offices and supporters at a monthly meeting of the Cape Girardeau County Republican Women at Dexter Bar-B-Que, Randles was candid about his plans for the governorship should he best St. Louis businessman Dave Spence, seen by many as the GOP front-runner, and go on to win November's general election.

Randles supports making Missouri a right-to-work state and claimed he could accomplish that through work with the General Assembly in one session. Randles also cited a need for comprehensive regulatory reform and said the freedoms and rights of Americans and the economy are becoming "paralyzed by rules."

Randles said if elected he "will be the most sued governor in Missouri history" for the fight he will give to the federal government over various regulations which he said restrict freedom and hurt the economy.

A former pastor, attorney and businessman who now lives in Kansas City, Randles grew up in northwest Arkansas, graduated from Harvard Law School and said he is one of the few true conservatives to attend the school and have "escaped from behind enemy lines."

His wife Bev is on the board of directors for the Missouri Club for Growth, a conservative political action committee, and is originally from Sikeston, Mo.

Following his presentation, Randles spoke briefly about what he sees as important political issues in Southeast Missouri by tying them to his overall platform message of restoring freedom to the people.

Randles said his main objective as a governor would be to "get the state government back in its proper role."

"We have to put our own house in order with right to work, regulatory reform, judicial reform and tax reform," he said. "We are suffering [in Southeast Missouri] not because we don't have great workers, and great resources. We have all that. It's just that government is crushing the ability of the folks to use their land, run their businesses and conduct their own affairs."

A self-described "let people make their own decisions kind of guy," Randles applied that view to reforms he said are needed in the state's education system. He told Friday's attendees he supports giving out vouchers to parents so their child can attend the school of their choice and said Missouri should stop complying with federal education laws.

He attacked Gov. Jay Nixon several times during his presentation, but never brought up Spence, who he has strongly criticized during public appearances in recent months.

Randles called Nixon's performance in improving the state's economy the worst of any governor in the nation and claimed Nixon has supported government intrusion.

Missouri Democratic Party spokesman Isaac Wright responded to Randles' statements on Nixon Friday.

"These attacks are silly and far-fetched, but folks tend to say crazy things right before an election," he said. "Missourians know that Governor Nixon has balanced the budget every year without a single tax increase, protecting our perfect AAA credit rating and bringing our unemployment rate well below the national average."

A recent poll conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and KMOV-TV showed Nixon had a 9-point lead over Spence. Forty-one percent of Republicans in that poll favored Spence as the GOP candidate while 15 percent chose Randles. The Post-Dispatch endorsed Randles on Tuesday. The newspaper's editorial board wrote Randles "has the courage of his convictions and outlines his clear positions on issues."

Craig Arnzen, a spokesman for the Spence campaign who attended Randles' appearance, said Spence is the best choice for voters because he has dealt with other states, so he knows how their business processes work and can bring the best of those to Missouri.

"The real difference is the thing we need right now in Missouri is jobs, and when you look at who to elect, you look at the job creator," Arnzen said. "We haven't elected a businessman to be Missouri's governor since the '30s, and I think its time to try that again."

He referred to Randles as a "well-educated lawyer with a pretty speech."

John Weiler of Pevely and Fred Sauer of St. Louis are also running in Tuesday's Republican primary.

eragan@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address:

236 S. Broadview St., Cape Girardeau, MO