In Missouri politics, money doesn’t just talk — it decides who runs, who wins, and who never gets a chance. A growing chorus of insiders and reform-minded conservatives are warning that the state’s campaign finance system has become a gatekeeping machine, where access to funding — and political survival — depends on loyalty to a small, unelected donor-consultant class.
An anonymous exposé published by HickChristian offers rare, firsthand insight into how this system operates. It doesn’t require backroom deals or secret ballots. All it takes is control over the money.
“Power is held not by the voters or even by the politicians, but by the funders and the consultants they empower,” the author writes.
(Source: Missouri’s Political Omertà)
Donors, PACs, and the Price of Independence
Missouri law allows unlimited contributions to political action committees (PACs), and many donors use LLCs to make large, anonymous contributions that are nearly impossible to trace. These funds are then funneled to candidates via trusted consultants — often with strings attached.
Candidates who challenge the system — by filing ethics reform bills, refusing “preferred” consultants, or stepping outside the donor lane — are routinely defunded, attacked, or replaced in primaries. Legislators who toe the line are rewarded with safe seats, PAC support, and upward mobility.
“The machine doesn’t need to win every race,” the insider writes. “It only needs to win enough to keep people scared.”
Which raises the question:
Is this the reason politicians like Rusty Black and Tim Taylor refuse to represent the interests of their constituents in favor of wealthy individuals and corporations outside their districts?
The Kehoe Example
Lieutenant Governor Mike Kehoe’s campaign for governor is cited as a product of this system — not because of wrongdoing, but because it follows the pattern. His support from established PACs and consultants places him squarely within the donor-backed structure. The article uses Kehoe’s rise as an illustration of how campaigns are built and protected when they align with networked power.
“Kehoe’s campaign represents the model: built by the network, funded by the network, and protected by it.”
Reformers Shut Out
Reform legislation — such as bills to limit PAC-to-PAC transfers or require real-time donor disclosures — rarely see the light of day. The legislators who file them often lose committee assignments or leadership roles and are told, quietly but clearly, that they’ve stepped out of line.
No one says it directly. They don’t have to.
A New Path Forward?
As Missouri voters grow increasingly disillusioned with both political parties, talk of structural reform is growing louder. Some conservatives are now exploring something more ambitious: creating an entirely new political party committed to grassroots accountability, local leadership, and full transparency in campaign finance.
The Chariton Beacon will soon publish a deeper look at this movement — and how the proposed Conservative Party of Missouri could offer a new home for voters and candidates shut out by the current machine.
Until then, the insider’s warning rings out:
“You’re not just running against your opponent. You’re running against a machine.”
