Speculation came and went in regards to who would and would not run for the seat. District 28 State Rep. Rob Schaaf was unopposed in his party’s primary until John Destefano filed on the last day to create what has become one of the state’s more interesting primary contests.
After four terms in the Missouri House, Rep. Rob Schaaf, also a practicing medical doctor, has taken a strong stand against federal healthcare legislation and has focused a great deal on health/medical related issues. He attended Missouri Western State University and the St. Louis University School of Medicine. The 53-year-old from St. Joseph is married to his wife, Debbie, and has two children. In addition to practicing in St. Joseph since 1985, he helped form the Missouri Doctors Mutual Insurance Company, owned by doctors it insures, and serves as chairman.
Rob Schaaf
John Destefano
What inspired or motivated you to run?
S: What first inspired me was the difficulty I was having as a physician getting my patients the care they needed. I have been working for a conservative agenda as a state representative since I was elected in 2003, and as one of the few health experts in the House, have had a hand in most health related legislation. Now, with the legislative experience I have, I would like to focus on creating jobs by helping businesses through lowered health care costs and tax relief.
D: I believe I have the leadership skills and knowledge to make Missouri a place where people want to raise a family and businesses will want to expand and locate. When I retired from KCP&L after serving as CFO, I didn’t retire from life; I continued to serve others in our community. I see this as an opportunity where my financial background and conservative principles can help the state in a time where we are dealing with tough financial issues.
Why are you the best candidate? What are voters looking for on August 3rd?
S: Voters are looking for a true conservative who will work for them and not special interests. Their top concerns now are jobs and the economy, healthcare (especially concerns about ObamaCare), and illegal immigration. Most Republicans believe in our free market system to control costs, support Arizona-style immigration reform, and would not support liberal democrats. Between myself and my opponent, I best fit this description. Explanation: In order to help businesses create new jobs, we must free up some of their expenses. Tax Reform or a Fair Tax would reduce the tax burden on businesses and free up money that could be used to hire new workers. Similarly, reducing the cost of healthcare through competition in the health market would allow businesses to hire more workers. Thus, for eight years, I have been trying to increase competition in the medical market, but my efforts have been blocked by the hospital and insurance industries. As a senator, I would be in a much better position to succeed at that goal. But those special interests don’t want competition and are supporting my opponent. The hospital industry endorsed ObamaCare and now supports my opponent. In contrast, I dropped out of the American Medical Association when it endorsed ObamaCare. I personally torpedoed a huge expansion of health welfare two years ago, while my opponent was quoted in the Kansas City Star (Nov 1, 2006, page 11) as saying “Everybody should have a stake in their health insurance and pay according to their means.” He outlined to the star a mandatory health insurance program, which is the central feature of ObamaCare. In contrast, I intensely oppose forced health insurance. In 2008, I voted for and helped pass HB 1549, which prohibits any illegal alien from receiving state welfare benefits. My opponent attacked me for voting for this bill, (see quoted sources given for his TV ad) which also allows state police to enforce federal immigration law, something my opponent is on record as opposing (2006 Missouri Catholic Conference Candidate Survey). My opponent has also contributed to the election of democrat governor Bob Holden. If Republican voters in the upcoming primary election believe that opposing mandatory health insurance, increasing competition in the health market, fighting illegal immigration, and supporting Republican candidates are important, then I am the better candidate.
D: I am a family man, a veteran and a businessman. I am not a career politician. As a former member of the Green Berets, I know what leadership means and how to get things done. I have been a businessman for over 30 years, creating jobs and balancing multi-million dollar budgets. I think voters are looking for citizen legislators with fresh ideas who can stick to their values and get things done in Jefferson City.
What are the two or three main issues facing the State of Missouri?
S: Jobs and the economy are the number one issue. We are also in a severe budget crisis, and our state budget is currently balanced with 900 million dollars of stimulus money which will disappear next year. That means we will be faced with severe choices. Having been on the state budget committee for five years, I am best prepared to meet this challenge.
D: The economy is on the top of everyone’s minds; its effects can be felt throughout our communities, our families, schools and our churches. We must get people back to working at good jobs that can invest in our communities and make Missouri a leading state. We must get State Spending under control, long term budget planning is something the state has always lacked and is an area where with my unique background I can make a difference. Taxpayers deserve to know that everything possible is being done to fight illegal immigration. As a state we must get the federal government to do its job of enforcing the borders, and if they won’t, the state must step in and make sure our citizens are protected.
What would your top 3 priorities/goals be as a State Senator?
S: I believe that the reduction in health care costs that would occur by increasing competition in the healthcare market would have a major positive effect on businesses and their ability to hire new workers. I would also work for comprehensive tax reform, and I favor the concept of a fair tax exempting the necessities of everyday life, so that our poorest citizens would pay no taxes at all while at the same time helping everyone save and invest. Finally, I would continue to push a conservative agenda by stopping tax increases, stopping increases in welfare and stopping any moves backward in our pro-life and second amendment agenda efforts.
D: 1.) We must get Missourians back to work, unemployment has been too high for too long. I believe with my 30 years of financial experience I will be a strong leader in the Senate to make sure Government stays out of the way and doesn’t stifle growth in the economy. 2.) I will work to bring accountability back into state government, it is unbelievable that while our economy is hurting our state budget continues to grow. 3.) We must fight hard to ensure that our social values are not compromised. I am proudly endorsed by Missouri Right to Life and will stand strong to stop abortions and expand adoption opportunities and fight against illegal immigration.
In your opinion, what are the challenges of being involved in public service and politics? What do you see as the upside or positives?
S: I know from experience how to be more effective as a public servant. I put on legislative forums every week during session, and would continue to do so as state senator. Constituent services are key, and it is a challenge but important to try to answer every request for assistance as quickly and completely as possible. It isn’t easy to respond to every letter, call and email, either. Long hours and late nights at the capitol away from home are stressful, but I have always kept in mind that there are soldiers serving our country whose stress makes mine seem trivial. The greatest upside I experienced was the knowledge that the infection control bill I authored in 2004 has saved many lives through a reduction in hospital infections; this is an example of the rewards public service can offer. I feel that I had a very positive effect on our state, not only with legislative work I did myself, but as part of the Republican team that never raised taxes (and cut some instead), reduced welfare and the size of government and protected our freedoms. I would like to continue that work as state senator, and it has been an honor to serve as state representative; it would also be an honor to serve in the senate.
D: The large numbers of issues that must be dealt with in the State Senate can be overwhelming, but with my strong work ethic and my diverse background, I believe I have the skills to address the issues facing the state today.
What is your current assessment on our state's economy? What should the state be doing to stimulate it?
S: As I said above, our economy is in trouble. Many people are out of work, and we must stimulate business growth to provide them with jobs. The best way to do that is by reducing the expenses of businesses. Among those are taxes and health care costs, and by working to reduce these, businesses would have more resources to spend on wages for workers. Economic development at the state level must also take into account that we are competing with other states that offer better incentives; to get businesses to choose Missouri, we will need to play on that field, but with guarantees that the incentives we offer will actually stimulate jobs and growth.
D: There is no doubt that families and businesses are hurting. I think the state government must get its budget under control and make sure we have the long term budget planning for businesses to know that Missouri is stable. By creating a stable environment with lower taxes and less bureaucratic red tape, businesses will see the advantages of locating and growing in Missouri.
What issue(s) do you believe you might be able to work on with Democrats across the aisle?
S: I have learned that the vast majority of issues are not partisan, and that Democrats as well as Republicans have good ideas. As committee chair, I worked in a very bipartisan fashion with my Democrat colleagues. For example, in 2008, my committee studied Insure Missouri, a huge expansion of health welfare proposed by the Department of Social Services, and after 54 hours of hearings, every member of my committee, Republican and Democrat, signed a letter to the Secretary of State asking that the emergency rules offered to implement the program be rejected on the grounds the proposal was not done lawfully. I have worked with Democrats on many bills, and would enjoy doing so as state senator.
D: I believe that while you must stick to your values, you also have to be able to build a consensus to your positions; I look forward to working with members of both parties to get people back to work, cut continued government spending and fight illegal immigration.
Republicans currently hold a strong majority in the Missouri Senate. Pending an unlikely change, if you were to become a part of that majority what do you believe members of your party can or should be doing better?
S: As a representative, I was very frustrated when good legislation frequently died in the senate for lack of leadership to move important bills. I would be a voice of reason, working to forge compromise whenever possible. That said, with an overwhelming supermajority, there is no reason the senate could not use its ability to break filibusters more frequently. The senate’s reluctance to break filibusters has stood in the way of important legislation too often, and I would work when necessary to prevent a small minority from derailing important public policy initiatives.
D: Not enough has been done to keep Missouri’s budget from growing, in the last 8 years the budget has increased by 20 percent, while our economy continues to hurt. People expect better from their elected officials both fiscally and socially. I believe there is still room for more ethics reform, including outlawing legislators working as campaign consultants, and I support a ban on all lobbyist gifts including travel junkets, meals, and tickets to events.
What is one issue where your position is significantly different compared to your opponent? Or what is the most significant difference between you and your opponent?
S: As I noted above, my intense opposition to forced purchase of health insurance such as that required in ObamaCare separates me from my opponent. His outlining of a mandatory health insurance program is confirmed by the support he is receiving from the hospital industry which recruited him and which endorsed ObamaCare. (See the source quoted above.) I also believe that police in our state should vigorously enforce federal immigration laws, just as in Arizona, something my opponent opposes (see above source).
D: My opponent served 8 years in the Missouri House, he has a record of spending in Jefferson City that he doesn’t like to talk about. I believe that when our economy is hurting, it is more important than ever that there is someone in Jefferson City that understands finances and how increased bureaucracy hurts communities and families.
