Second on our list of wayward wingnuts is Missouri Senator Josh Hawley. Despite a pedigreed education and privileged job opportunities afterward, Hawley never actually practice law or prosecuted a single case before becoming Attorney General of Missouri.
Hawley loves to rage against “coastal elites” despite having attended both Stanford and
Yale himself. He rails against career politicians,
despite the fact that before becoming senator, the vast majority of his limited resume
included a Supreme Court clerkship (a federal job), working at a state-run school as a
professor, and then cashing a paycheck as a public employee (Attorney General)
During his campaign, Hawley was charged by the FEC with an elaborate scheme to illegally coordinate efforts with the National Rifle Association.
Once in office, Hawley’s mismanagement overwhelmed the Attorney General's Jefferson City office. The New York Times thoroughly documented his lack of oversight and organizational skills back in 2018. The piece highlighted his lack of oversight and organizational skills, which resulted in millions of legal costs for a state that was hovering on the brink of insolvency.
Hawley first attracted controversy by whitewashing the investigation into the former governor's illegal use of self-destructing text messaging app. Hawley also helped sue the Trump government to overturn protections for overtime pay, costing over a quarter of a million Missourians over $29M in lost revenue.
As Attorney General, Hawley hemorrhaged staff on a scale much greater than any of his predecessors. His teams have been chastised by judges in court for not providing necessary documents to opposing counsel. He is required by law to live in Jefferson City and only after the St. Louis Post Dispatch report on that issue did he acquire an apartment in the state capital.
After he was elected Senator, Hawley was investigated by Missouri for misappropriating public funds for his Senate campaign, although charges were never brought. He has also been violating Missouri law by claiming to reside at his sister’s home in Ozark, Missouri, while actually living full time in northern Virginia.
Since the election, Hawley has joined with Trump in various lies regarding the election-- mail-in voting is fraud; sending out universal ballots is fraud; "urban" voting is fraud; all ballots cast in "Democrat run" places are fraud.
On the day of the Capitol Attack, Hawley provide public support for the insurrectionists, leading many major newspapers and peers in the Senate to call for his resignation. Simon and Schuster cancelled his book deal. Supporters began canceling fundraisers. Hawley mentor and former Senator John Danforth said that “supporting Josh Hawley ... was the worst decision I’ve ever made in my life.” Senator Ben Sasse, a fellow Republican from neighboring Nebraska, called Hawley a "dumb-ass." Revulsion for Hawley is even on the rise in his hometown of Lexington, where support once seemed guaranteed.
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