Mo. gov. goes overseas for European trade mission

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Gov. Matt Blunt will be traveling in Europe until the end of this month.

The governor's 18-day trade mission started Sunday and includes stops in Great Britain, Spain, Germany and the Netherlands.

A spokeswoman for the governor said Blunt will attend the Farnborough Air show with Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and defense industry leaders. Blunt also is to attend a London reception with governors from several states and hold a dinner for Missouri aerospace companies.

Then, he will speak to the Confederation of Employers and Industries of Spain and meet with the U.S. ambassador in Madrid. From Spain, Blunt is to return to London for a meeting with Thomson Reuters, which employs about 1,000 people in suburban St. Louis, before going on a weekend vacation with his wife, Melanie Blunt, in France.

Blunt then is scheduled to meet with German and Dutch business leaders, and go back to France for a vacation until July 30.

The trade mission is being paid for by the Hawthorn Foundation, a not-for-profit Missouri group that finances government economic development efforts.

Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder is to serve as acting governor until Blunt returns in the evening July 31. Kinder is expected to make several appointments to state boards and commissions and will continue with a planned state tour to discuss senior issues.

Last month, Blunt was scheduled for a 12-day trip for business recruitment, an aide's wedding and national conferences with stops in Canada, Colorado, California and South Carolina. That trip started in Montreal to make a sales pitch for an airplane manufacturer that had considered building a new plant in Kansas City. Bombardier Aerospace announced Sunday that it would instead build in Canada.

The June plans were cut short to deal with Mississippi River flooding.