Missouri Governor Eric Greitens Career In Politics Is Ending Ugly

Greitens is another one of those fake Democrats the DCCC and DSCC love so much but who found his true calling when, like so many Blue Dog types, he officially became a Republican (in 2015). A much-decorated former Navy Seal, now 43, he was elected governor of Missouri in 2017. He was a Rhodes scholar who earned a doctorate from Oxford University. When he switched parties and decided to run for governor, he wrote a scathing OpEd for Fox, denouncing Democrats as "world-class hypocrites." In 2016 he beat Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster 1,424,730 (51.29%) to 1,261,110 (45.40%). Today he was indicted by a St. Louis grand jury on a felony charge of invasion of privacy involved in an extramarital affair in 2015 to which he has already admitted. His is a case of #MeToo ugliness on steroids. Where is Kirsten Gillibrand when someone actually needs her?

Greitens seems his military service entitled him to break the law at will. During the campaign, he was constantly getting into financial trouble for the unethical ways he ran his very sleazy political operation. . But Missourians weren't ready for the scandal that started when he threatened to release a nude photograph of the woman he had being boinking, taken while she was blindfolded and her hands were bound, if she ever spoke publicly about the affair.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner launched a criminal investigation of the allegations last month shortly after they become public. The indictment accuses Greitens of not only knowingly photographing the women with whom he had an affair, but also transmitting the image “in a manner that allowed access to that image via a computer.”


...The allegations against Greitens surfaced shortly after he delivered his annual State of the State address last month. The ex-husband of the woman with whom Greitens had an affair gave St. Louis TV station KMOV an audio recording of her confessing the affair and accusing Greitens of threatening to blackmail her.


...The investigators, both of whom have FBI experience, were back in Jefferson City this week interviewing more lawmakers.

According to lawmakers who were interviewed, the questions focused on the conversations and interactions legislators had with the governor about the affair and alleged blackmail before and after the story went public.

The allegations facing Greitens have hung over the Capitol for weeks.

A handful of Republican lawmakers quickly called on Greitens to resign. And earlier this week, while debating a bill that would outlaw “revenge porn,” Republicans overwhelming supported amending the bill to make it a felony to threaten someone with releasing a sexually explicit photo.

Greitens has bucked calls for his resignation, but the indictment could lead lawmakers to begin impeachment proceedings and potentially force him out of office.

Sen. Rob Schaaf, a St. Joseph Republican, said that the Missouri House “should move quickly to resolve the issue. They should investigate and let the process work… They should act quickly.”

Rep. Nate Walker, a Kirksville Republican, called news of the indictment “tragic for the state of Missouri.”

“I think it’s tragic for Gov. Greitens and his family,” Walker said. “I find no joy in it, but sometimes people have to be held accountable for their actions.”

Walker, an early Greitens supporter, called for him to resign in the days after the allegations surfaced. He renewed those calls Thursday when asked whether the House should pursue impeachment.


“I called for him to step down three weeks ago because I thought this was going to happen… My understanding was he was led off in handcuffs and that’s not a good sign for our executive of the state of Missouri,” Walker said. “He should resign.”