A shadowy organization that exists only on paper, Better Government for Missouri, is paying for a $200,000 direct mail hit job on Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder, according to documents filed Monday with the Missouri Ethics Commission.
As noted earlier in the Turner Report and other sources, Better Government for Missouri was created July 13 as a limited liability company and one day later funneled $100,000 to the St. Joseph-based Missourians for Conservative Values PAC which, in turn, passed the money along to Nebo Media, Washington, D. C. to buy $100,000 worth of air time for the Horny Toad attack ads against Kinder.
Five days after Better Government for Missouri was formed, it gave another $200,000 to Missourians for Conservative Values for a direct mailing against Kinder, according to the eight-days-before-election report filed with the Ethics Commission.
Prior to the formation of Better Government for Missouri, the St. Joseph PAC only had $5,140.01 in the bank. After spending the $300,000 and an additional $115 for expenses, the PAC is left with $5,025.01, according to the report.
The use of these types of groups isn't unique to state politics. "Citizens for Growth" did similar things in the last Neosho city council election. The difference is that NONE of the paperwork required by state election law was filed until after the election. This prevented any scrutiny of funds that were paid to out-of-state corporations.
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