JEFFERSON CITY • Gov. Eric Greitens’ legal woes stemming from a 2015 extramarital affair are not affecting the operation of state government, top aides to the embattled governor said Thursday.
During a briefing with reporters, Greitens’ chief operating officer played down the effects of the governor’s criminal indictment on felony invasion of privacy charges, saying it has not been a distraction when it comes to running the state.
“The governor is fully engaged in all of this stuff here,” said Drew Erdmann, whom Greitens hired from the private sector to oversee state operations. “We are moving ahead full speed.”
Another top ally, Office of Administration Commissioner Sarah Steelman, said the directors of the state’s 16 executive agencies continue to meet on a regular basis to discuss the day-to-day operations of state government.
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“As a group, we share, we talk, we energize each other,” Steelman said. “The Cabinet is actively engaged in making state government better for the citizens.”
“And we do real work,” added Erdmann.
The comments come as the investigation into the Republican governor has expanded beyond the invasion of privacy case involving a photograph he took of his mistress in March 2015 and into his fundraising practices.
Attorney General Josh Hawley, a Republican, is expected to update reporters Friday on the status of his inquiry into the St. Louis-based The Mission Continues veterans charity, which Greitens founded in 2007.
The governor faces the possibility of similar probes by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner and a Missouri House panel that is investigating the first-term chief executive.
Among the issues investigators may scrutinize is whether Greitens or the charity violated federal tax laws that forbid charities from taking sides in elections. Charity insiders also are barred from using organization assets for personal gain. Hawley’s probe is expected to focus on two chapters of state law, including one on nonprofit corporations and a second on merchandising practices.
Greitens’ campaign already has admitted to using one of the charity’s donor lists to raise money during the 2016 election. But in a March 5 letter to its donors, The Mission Continues stressed that it did not coordinate with the 43-year-old former Navy SEAL when it came to financing his first bid for public office.
While aides say the governor’s legal problems have not been a hindrance, the Republican-led Legislature appears poised to ignore several of his proposed initiatives, including the creation of a special $25 million infrastructure fund and a $250 million loan program for paying income tax returns.
Lawmakers also have largely ignored the governor’s push for tax cuts and have forged ahead with their own versions.
For now, Greitens trial in the privacy case is set to begin May 14.
His attorneys had sought to move the date to early April, but St. Louis Circuit Judge Rex Burlison said Wednesday that he was keeping the May date in place.
Greitens has not yet requested a bench trial instead of a jury trial, but his attorneys said he planned to do so.
Greitens was indicted last month on the felony charge of invasion of privacy in connection with taking a nude picture of his then-lover without her consent. He has been accused of threatening to release the photo if she ever mentioned his name. Greitens admitted the affair but denied blackmailing her.