This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Feb. 25, 2011 - State Sen. Scott Rupp, R-Wentzville, was sporting a "Rupp for Secretary of State'' sticker Friday night -- and he said his aim, if elected in 2012, is to make the statewide job more business-friendly.
"We are heavily considering all of our options,'' Rupp said, as he made the rounds of the hospitality suites at this weekend's statewide Lincoln Days gathering in Springfield, Mo. Fellow state Sen. Bill Stouffer, R-Napton, already has announced his candidacy.
Rupp noted that Missouri's secretary of state is the state's chief official overseeing many business activities, including the registration of businesses and regulating securities sold in the state.
Rupp contended that incumbent Secretary of State Robin Carnahan -- a Democrat seeking a third term -- "has been a little hard and unfair to businesses. You don't need government to be unfair to business."
Rupp offered no time table on when he might make a decision on his 2012 plans, explaining that first he must focus on his current chief assignment: redrawing the state's eight remaining congressional districts. Rupp chairs the Senate panel, which held its first hearing earlier Friday in Springfield.
Rupp chuckled that 40 people showed up for the three-hour hearing, but only one testified: a professor at Missouri State University who talked about the need to maintain certain federally mandated criteria in the drawing of districts..
Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Todd Akin, R-Town and Country, played down Lincoln Days whispers that he might be considering a run for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Democrat Claire McCaskill.
(Other attendees tossed out on Twitter the name of another Republican congressman -- Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth.)
Akin said he was considering all of his options for 2012. But his chief objective at the moment, the congressman said, was redistricting. "My main focus is to make sure that the 2nd congressional district is a good district,'' Akin said.
He was referring to various hypothetical scenarios, some floated at Lincoln Days, that have the 2nd District taking in south St. Louis County and perhaps the northern half of Jefferson County. Such a shift assumes that the 3rd District, now represented by Democrat Russ Carnahan, is eliminated since Missouri has to give up one of its nine congressional districts.
Some Republican activists close to the redistricting process privately say that, if the 3rd is tossed out, Akin's 2nd District may take in more Democrats than the congressman would like.
Akin may want to talk to Rupp.
UPDATE: Luetkemeyer said in an interview that he had no interest in joining the U.S. Senate contest. He said his family has had to deal with a number of stresses and tragedies over the past year, including the death of a daughter-in-law in a car accident. "I'm not ready to jump into another stressful situation,'' the congressman said.
