Mo. gov. candidate Steelman on 13-day bus tour

HARTVILLE, Mo. (AP) -- Republican gubernatorial candidate Sarah Steelman is rolling through the back roads of southern Missouri, spreading her call for a repeal of Missouri's ethanol mandate.

The 13-day, 59-town bus tour is Steelman's version of a door-to-door campaign as the Aug. 5 primary election approaches. She's stopping primarily at people's homes, speaking to groups of about 30 people.

Southern Missouri is livestock country. And many of the farmers at her campaign events have been complaining that Missouri's ethanol mandate is helping drive up the cost of corn -- and thus their livestock feed.

Steelman's Republican primary opponent is Congressman Kenny Hulshof. He supports Missouri's law requiring gas stations to sell a 10 percent ethanol blend whenever it is no more expensive than traditional gasoline.