Wallingford's statement on abortion

Voters know there's only one seriously contested local race in our county. They can't wait to hear when candidates for House District 147 will debate. They have many questions for my opponent, Sen. Wayne Wallingford.

Voters are curious to know why Sen. Wallingford filed with the Missouri Election Commission to form a statewide candidate committee in November 2016, immediately after his final Senate election. The filing shows that he already had in mind the election date Aug. 4, 2020, and they wonder which statewide office he sought.

Voters might wonder what happened to his plan. Did Sen. Wallingford ever truly consider a statewide campaign, or did he just wish to keep a candidate account open for special interest lobbyists to stuff full (which they did).

Voters want to know what Sen. Wallingford was thinking about women when he casually joked on the Missouri Senate floor that, "Maybe we should send people that want an abortion to the St. Louis Zoo, because we know it will be safer." This mentality about women who are making the most difficult and deeply personal decision of their life has no place in the 147th House District. Sen. Wallingford has a graduate degree in Healthcare Administration and knows that every hospital and clinic in the state is subject to inspection -- both regularly scheduled and by surprise -- at any time from multiple government agencies.

To hear this awful "joke" for yourself, go to: https://www.senate.mo.gov/2017-audio-archive/ and select the Senate audio record April 5, 2017. The topic of debate begins at minute 33, but no context is required to understand the truly poor taste of such a statement, so you can just skip to minute 49:35.

He simply does not get it.

We are going to retire Sen. Wallingford, because we believe, as you do, that fairness, integrity, and respect for all are essential for healthy communities. We need your help. Please contact us at LeightonForMO@gmail.com or find us at Upballot.com/Andy-Leighton. We know we can do better together.

Andy Leighton, Cape Girardeau

Paid for by Leighton For MO, Roy Leighton, Treasurer