Missouri attorney general candidate interview: Andrew Bailey

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

ABC 17 News is interviewing candidates in the August primary ahead of the election. Below is an interview with Andrew Bailey, one of two Republicans seeking election to the attorney general's office.

Bailey's opponent in the Republican primary is Will Scharf.

Democrat Elad Gross is also seeking the seat but has no challengers in August.

Morgan Buresh: I want to start with just, can you tell a little bit about your background and your bio and why you are qualified to be attorney general? 

Andrew Bailey: Yep. Grew up in Mid-Missouri in Columbia and went to Mizzou on an Army ROTC scholarship in 1999. Planned on going to law school. 9-11 happened. My plans changed. I volunteered for a combat arms branch service, then volunteered to go to Iraq, had the privilege of leading soldiers in combat, deployed to Iraq twice, came home, went back to Mizzou Law School on the post-9-11 GI Bill, and only wanted to be a prosecuting attorney. I ended up as an assistant prosecutor in Warren County, Missouri, loved working with law enforcement officials to lock up bad guys and find justice for victims, and keep communities safe.

Would have done that job the rest of my life, but my wife and I became foster parents. We adopted kiddos and all of a sudden I couldn't afford to be an assistant prosecutor in Warren County. So, I started working at Missouri Department of Corrections on June 1, 2018, the day Governor Parson took office. He was building out a staff and saw me working at DOC and pulled me up to be on his staff. And I'm grateful that he's given me the opportunity to serve the people of the state of Missouri. And when Eric Schmitt was elected to the United States Senate, it was a privilege to be considered and ultimately appointed to serve as the 44th attorney general in this state's history. 

Buresh: Already doing this a little bit, I'm sure you've kind of got a grasp of it, but what is the role of the attorney general in your eyes?

Bailey: We're the law firm for the people of the state of Missouri. I mean, we fight every day working with law enforcement and prosecutors to lock bad guys up and keep them locked up and again, to find justice for victims. We work in the civil division to defend the state of Missouri, to support our counties and to ensure in our Consumer Protection Division that Missouri consumers aren't defrauded by predatory business practices. Last year alone, we recovered $32 million in settlements and judgments. That's real dollars that go back in the pockets of working Missouri families in our Consumer Protection Division. And then we fight for our constitutional rights as well. We have numerous lawsuits against the federal government and Biden's federal overreach in order to protect the sovereignty of the state of Missouri and the individual rights secured by our United States Constitution. 

Buresh: I want to talk in specifics a few of those things. Specifically, you mentioned crime, and just what crime is plaguing Missourians right now that you see?

Bailey: We see a rise in violent crime and in property crime and controlled substance use across the state of Missouri. It's not unique to one area or one region. It is a regional, statewide problem. Crime does not realize that there's 114 counties plus the city of St. Louis. Crime doesn't care that there are 46 judicial circuits. And so having an attorney general with a state-focused approach I think is really beneficial. When we removed the Soros-backed prosecutor in the City of St. Louis, that allowed us to shore up our criminal justice system on the eastern side of the state. And I've gone circuit-by-circuit meeting with prosecutors, sheriffs and police chiefs, and that's netted a 133% increase in criminal prosecution from my office. So really proud of the work we've done working within the criminal justice system to fight back and make safer communities. 

Buresh: And going off of that, what do you think works when it comes to stopping violent crime and stopping the drug flow in Missouri?

Bailey: Well, I think prosecution. I think that other folks can work on crime prevention, that certainly our policy positions, our General Assembly and other state agencies can take. But from the AG's office, it's imperative that we work with, again, sheriffs, police chiefs, state patrol and with local prosecutors to enforce the laws as written. Hold wrongdoers accountable. 

Buresh: And you mentioned consumer protection. What are some of the big scams you see facing Missourians and how do you plan, if elected to a full term, to really work towards those and stop them? 

Andrew Bailey: Well, the types of scams that are plaguing Missourians have evolved over the years, but the statutes have not kept up with that evolution in those offenses. And so I think it's time that I work with the General Assembly to get a legislative package put forward that updates the statutes to better protect seniors from online scams. The no-call list is another one where, you know, that statute, I don't believe has been updated since 2015. And what is going on now is that a lot of those predatory calls that violate the No-Call list are moved overseas. And so we've had success working with other states and going into federal court to get injunctions and monetary compensation for those who have been aggrieved by violations of the No-Call list, but again, there's a lot more work we can be doing to protect seniors online and protect all Missourians who don't want to be harassed by predatory phone calls.

Buresh: When it comes to the economy, do you have any plans for, you know, just trying to make things just more affordable for Missourians? 

Bailey: Yeah, I think working within the Consumer Protection Division is really critical, again, to protect Missourians from market manipulations and inflated prices–price gouging I think is the better term for that. And we see that a lot of times in your rural communities where the marketplace is stilted towards one entity. And so making sure that it's a free, fair and open marketplace, but that the consumer has a fair shake and is not being deceived when they're engaging in commerce, I think that's the best way we can protect Missourians' hard-earned dollars.

Buresh: Kind of staying on that topic, what will your priority be when it comes to your office's spending?

Bailey: Well, you know, we always operate within the budget enacted by our General Assembly, the people's elected representatives, set the budget for the attorney general's office. And we have historically and consistently operated within that budget and will do so in the future. I think that we're going to do a good analysis of workload in each of the divisions within the AG's office to ensure that we are effectively flexing resources to meet the needs of the people of the state without going over budget. And I'm committed to that. Let me go back to your other question, too. You know, when you talk about protecting Missouri tax dollars in one 15-month period, we have obtained seven complete defense verdicts in employment lawsuits against the state of Missouri. That's $0, zero of your viewers' tax dollars paid out to the plaintiff in those cases. So through an effective recruitment, retention and mentorship program, we are showing up and fighting and winning to protect Missouri tax dollars. 

Buresh: And just to kind of go back to the office's spending, is there anything that I guess sticks out that you want to focus on more when it comes to spending or resources or anything. You know, crime, consumer protection, economy, what sticks out?

Bailey: Yeah, crime and consumer protection would be the top two. I certainly think that with that 133% increase in criminal prosecutions statewide, the relationships I have with law enforcement, with local prosecutors, mean that we're going to continue to be called on to deploy resources from the state level to assist in securing the safety of our smaller communities. And so making sure that we have adequate resources to meet those needs to fight violent crime and to protect Missouri consumers.

Buresh: I kind of just want to hit on a couple other topics before I let you go. A little more open-ended, but how involved do you think the attorney general's office should be on the topic of education? And are there any topics there that you're focused on? 

Bailey: Yeah, absolutely. Look, I see a situation in the state of Missouri where you've got local control of school boards, but because you have this odd election cycle for, quote-unquote nonpartisan positions on those school boards, oftentimes parents feel like their voices aren't heard. And parental rights are some of the most important constitutional rights we have. I mean, those rights come from God, not from the government. And Missourians don't co-parent with the government. And so ensuring that parents have a voice in their children's education, in the policies, the curriculum, the books in the library, that all of those things comport with the parent's value system is really critical. And so we've used the Missouri Human Rights Act, we've used Missouri's open records and open meetings laws to ensure that parents' voices are respected and heard and that parents' rights are scrupulously honored. 

Buresh: Same question, but for healthcare. Any topics you're focused on in that realm? 

Bailey: Yeah. Look, the health care market behaves differently than any other marketplace. If you go to the doctor or to a hospital, you are consuming goods and services without having any idea how much those goods and services cost. And then you layer on insurance and other federal and state programs and so there's a lot of obfuscation and clutter in that marketplace. And I don't think it always serves the consumer. And so working with stakeholders moving forward and potentially using the Missouri Merchandizing Practices Act to ensure, you know, again, a free, fair and open marketplace I think is critical.

Morgan Buresh: And same question, but for housing. I know we have a lot of homeless people in the state or at least in Mid-Missouri and a shortage of housing here. 

Bailey: Yeah, we need, we are in a housing crisis and I serve on the Missouri Housing Development Commission. And I think that using the low-income housing tax credit program to incentivize increased housing to provide for our lower-income state residents is critical. And you've seen that work in other instances. Again, this is a Republican program that was instituted under President Reagan in the 1980s and has long served the people of the state of Missouri, and I think that we need to look at ways to improve and expand that program. 

Buresh: And on immigration?

Bailey: Yeah, look, immigration is plaguing our communities. We saw more than 1,500 deaths from fentanyl exposure in one year, more than 1,100 reported incidences of human trafficking. And so the harm is very real and palpable out there in our in our city streets and in our communities. Biden's failure to secure our southern border is not only an affront to our national sovereignty and to the rule of law, but it's harming real Missourians.

And so, again, working with local prosecutors and law enforcement to hold the wrongdoers accountable is critical. I've seen a recent spate of crimes committed against Missourians by illegal aliens. And so we've got three lawsuits pending right now against the federal government to try to force their hand. We won the lawsuit to force the president to finish building the border wall. We're trying to end the catch-and-release program and put a stop to his abuse of the parole process. And you'll see my office rolling out additional initiatives in the coming days and weeks as we move into an election cycle to secure the integrity of the election process and to remind prosecutors that we have resources to assist them to fight back against those who are trafficking fentanyl and humans across our state lines.

Buresh: I wanted to ask and you just mentioned, you know, the lawsuits against the federal government and holding them accountable. What role do you think the attorney general's office has when it comes to the federal government? 

Bailey: Well, Missouri is a sovereign state. You know, we are these United States of America and the states have authority under the 10th Amendment. And your viewers will recall that the 10th Amendment says that any authority not given to the federal government or explicitly denied to the states is enjoyed by the states and the people of the states. And we can't be trampled on by rogue bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., who want to usurp not only the concept of separation of powers but also our federalist system, where the federal government has limited enumerated powers and the states have plenary power. I believe that government is most responsive at the local level. And so supporting not only the state but our counties and localities to ensure that sovereign rights to protect their citizens are respected and honored is critical to the work that we do at the AG's office. 

Buresh: How do you plan, if elected to a full term, to work with other agencies, whether it is local, state, federal, to get your initiatives passed, push them through? 

Bailey: Yeah, we've got great relationships not only in the General Assembly but again across the counties. You know, the county sheriffs are very important individuals on the county-by-county level because those are the top law enforcement officials in each of the 114 counties. And so working with those individuals and the relationships I already have there and continuing to build upon those relationships is critical. Again, when you look at the General Assembly, I think that law needs to be constantly evolving to meet the needs of the people. And so since we're the tip of the spear in court in both local, state and federal court, you know, reporting what we're seeing and how the law is moving through judicial interpretation, reporting that information back to the General Assembly helps them operationalize changes in the law and set policy positions that serve the people of the state of Missouri.

Buresh: All right. Those are all the specifics I had for you. I wanted to give you a second, is there anything else that you just want voters to know? Any other comments you want to add? 

Bailey: Yeah, just proud of the work I've done over the past 18 months, leading a team of dedicated professionals at the Missouri Attorney General's office. Again, we've increased criminal prosecution. We forced President Biden to finish building the border wall and secure our southern border. We removed the Soros-backed prosecutor and are fighting to protect Missourians' hard-earned dollars through consumer protection every day of the week. 

Morgan Buresh: Okay, well, Attorney General Bailey, thank you so much for hopping on here. It was nice talking to you. 

Andrew Bailey: Thank you. Appreciate you. Have a good one.