(Photo/MOGOP)
— When Missouri Republicans get together for their annual Lincoln Days event, they will begin to consider major questions about the direction of their party for this election year.
The two day event kicks off Friday evening in Kansas City, and, while multiple campaigns from across the state will be represented, one of the most anticipated events is a town hall forum featuring all three Republican U.S. Senate candidates.
John Brunner will make his debate debut Saturday morning, joining the stage with U.S. Rep. Todd Akin and former state Treasurer Sarah Steelman, who have already participated in two debates. The event will be a major opportunity for Brunner, who has struggled to gain traction among some Missouri Republican activists.
At the forum, hosted by the Missouri Republican Party, candidates will face questions written by audience members, but asked by moderators. All candidates will have time to respond to each question, explained a state Republican official.
In the party’s other contested race — the gubernatorial contest between St. Louis businessman Dave Spence and Kansas City attorney Bill Randles — there will be no such forum. Spence trailed Randles in the most recent public poll, taken nearly three months after he kicked off his campaign.
Spence has the backing of much of the party’s establishment that backed Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder for governor, while Tea Party activists are lining up behind Randles. Randles, who launched his campaign at last year’s statewide Lincoln Days event, plans a “Rally for Randles” Saturday afternoon.
Friday and Saturday evenings will be capped with addresses from two national Republican figures. Friday, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal will address a banquet, and Saturday, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, a major supporter of Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign, will address attendees.
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Dave Spence ill prepared for a real campaign. Over the course of three days, the Missouri GOP’s two candidates for Governor were given a grand total of “two or three minutes each” to address “several dozen members of the Missouri Republican State Committee.”
It appears that Spence’s handlers and party leaders are afraid of how he’ll match up against Bill Randles, so the public was give a mere few minutes to hear the Gubernatorial Candidate so they could protect there pet boy Dave Spence!!