Minerva @ Midnight: strange times in the Show Me State

What is it with Missouri? Extortionist governors, seditious Senators, child abusing state legislators, and now gun-toting, bee-killing ex-yuppies

Mark McCloskey, gun-toting St. Louis lawyer, considering Senate bid https://t.co/xYyZpVCfrd

— #TuckFrump (@realTuckFrumper) April 21, 2021

Mark McCloskey — the gun-toting St. Louis attorney who drew headlines last year for brandishing an assault rifle at Black Lives Matter protesters — says he’s looking at running for Missouri’s open Senate seat.

“I can confirm that it’s a consideration, yes,” McCloskey said in a brief interview on Tuesday evening. McCloskey, a wealthy personal-injury lawyer, said that he had no timeline for making a decision about whether to enter the race for the seat from which Republican Sen. Roy Blunt is retiring. This past weekend, McCloskey spoke at a Jackson County GOP dinner, which also drew former Gov. Eric Greitens and state Attorney General Eric Schmitt, both of whom have announced their candidacies.

In June 2020, McCloskey and his wife, Patricia, waved guns at protesters who were marching past their mansion on the way to the home of then–St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson. Images of the barefoot couple defending their home — which took place amid a summer of social unrest following the killing of George Floyd — almost immediately went viral. They were later indicted on charges of unlawful use of a weapon and evidence tampering.

The couple became a cause célèbre for conservatives and won the support of then-President Donald Trump, who used the incident to advance a central theme of his reelection campaign — that far-left activists were overrunning upscale communities. Trump retweeted video footage of the incident and defended the couple in a televised interview, saying it was “disgraceful” they were facing legal action.www.politico.com/…

FILE - In this June 28, 2020 file photo, armed homeowners Mark and Patricia McCloskey, standing in front their house along Portland Place confront protesters marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson's house in the Central West End of St. Louis. An affidavit in a court case shows that the white St. Louis couple who stood outside their mansion with guns during a protest have pulled a gun before. Mark McCloskey says in the affidavit that they pointed a gun at a neighbor once as a warning to stay off their property. They claim they own a small piece of land, while trustees of their private street say they own it. (Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP File)

If Greitens wins the Missouri senate seat and Gaetz hasn’t been sentenced yet 2023 could see the beginning of the bicameral revenge porn caucus.

— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) April 16, 2021

Kimberly Guilfoyle will serve as national chair of the Senate bid for Eric Greitens, the disgraced former GOP governor of Missouri who resigned from office in 2018 following a probe into alleged sexual and campaign misconduct. https://t.co/Xlfr6L3Epc

— Vicky Ward (@VickyPJWard) April 19, 2021

It's almost as if Josh Hawley knew exactly who he was catering to when he spoke out against certifying the election and spreading misinformation. His campaign made money off a deadly insurrection, and we will never forget that. https://t.co/nys9vlq7zv

— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) April 18, 2021

Excellent!
Let's talk about the Big Lie. #TheBigLie

It's the only thing I can think about when anyone talks about lying! #BigLie pic.twitter.com/KwVdh4fffv

— Jzikah (@jzikah) April 21, 2021

Missouri House member faces expulsion after probe finds he sexually, physically abused his children https://t.co/kElW0EhdKj

— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) April 20, 2021

https://twitter.com/marceelias/status/1383869938750742530?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw