Tonight, as the Missouri’s State of the State speech was going on, a bombshell report released by St. Louis CBS affiliate KMOV reported that Missouri’s Republican (and ex-Democrat) Governor Eric Greitens had an extramarital affair in 2015 with a woman and tried to blackmail her to keep the encounter hidden from public knowledge prior to his 2016 run for Governor.
This is from a man who preached about the importance of “family values” while on the campaign trail and during his time as the state’s Governor.
He won his party’s primary by beating several big poohbahs in the Missouri GOP (Peter Kinder, Catherine Hanaway, John Brunner) and ultimately the general by defeating the favored Democrat (and former Republican) Chris Koster in the Show-Me State’s big pro-Trump wave in 2016 that led to a statewide sweep of the offices and a narrow hold of the Senate seat.
Lauren Trager and John O’Sullivan at KMOV:
ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) -- Governor Eric Greitens on Wednesday night confirmed to News 4 he had an extramarital affair, an admission a months-long News 4 investigation prompted.
In a recording obtained by News 4, a woman says she had a sexual encounter with Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens and that he tried to blackmail her to keep the encounter quiet.
The details were provided to News 4 by the woman’s ex-husband, claiming the sexual relationship happened between his now ex-wife and Greitens in March 2015. News 4 is not naming the woman and she has not made an on-the-record comment about the story.
According to the ex-husband, the recording was made just days after Greitens’ and the woman’s first sexual encounter. And also that Greitens took a photograph during the encounter to use as “blackmail” according to the ex-husband.
During his campaign and while serving in his first year in office as Missouri’s Governor, Eric Greitens has billed himself a family man. During his campaign announcement, he stated: “I'm Eric Greitens, I'm a Navy SEAL, native Missourian and most importantly, a proud husband and father."
Will Schmidt at Springfield News-Leader:
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens admitted to having an extramarital affair with a woman before taking office, St. Louis TV station KMOV reported Wednesday.
The accusations were published a year and a day after Greitens was inaugurated and less an hour before the Republican governor was scheduled to deliver his second state-of-the-state address.
Kevin McDermott at STLToday.com:
JEFFERSON CITY • Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens and his wife, Sheena Greitens, issued an extraordinary statement late Wednesday acknowledging that he had an extramarital affair in the past and that the couple “has dealt with this together honestly and privately.”
The statement came as a St. Louis television stationed aired a segment alleging that, during that affair, Greitens took a compromising photograph of the woman and threatened to publicize it if she exposed him. The statement from Greitens and his wife didn’t address that part of the allegation.
[...]
In its report, KMOV (Channel 4) quoted the former husband of the woman who purportedly had an affair with Greitens. The station did not quote the woman in its story, nor did it name the woman or her husband.
Jason Hancock at The Kansas City Star:
JEFFERSON CITY : Gov. Eric Greitens has admitted he had an extramarital affair in 2015, during a time when he was exploring a campaign for governor.
The affair was first reported by St. Louis CBS affiliate KMOV. They interviewed the ex-husband of Greitens’ mistress, who secretly recorded his then-wife confessing the affair to him before they divorced in 2016.
He turned the tape over to the TV station.
In the audio recording she accuses the governor of taking a nude photo of her to blackmail her into silence. She said Greitens later said he deleted the photo.
Statements from Eric and Sheena Greitens, via Eli Yokley’s Twitter (@eyokley):
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens issued a joint statement with his wife, Sheena, via a lawyer tonight after reports of infidelity before he became governor.
— Eli Yokley (@eyokley) January 11, 2018
Quite a kicker: "I want the media and those who wish to peddle gossip to stay away from me and my children." #MOLeg http://pic.twitter.com/XCRGFJFiX2
Dave Catanese’s Twitter (@davecatanese):
The woman, whose identity is concealed by @KMOV says Greitens “taped my hands to these rings and put a blindfold on me” during their sexual encounter.
— David Catanese (@davecatanese) January 11, 2018
Then she alleges Greitens threatened her, saying “You’re never going to mention my name, otherwise there will be pictures”
This is yet more proof that Missouri made a grave mistake in the 2016 gubernatorial election. Hopefully sexual assaulter Greitens resigns, or gets thrown out of Jefferson City in 2020 at the ballot box, if he doesn’t resign before then!
Thursday, Jan 11, 2018 · 12:37:56 AM EST · JGibson
Even more Greitens creepiness coming out, via CNBC’s Christina Wilkie (@christinawilkie)’s Twitter:
Creepiest quote from the Greitens’ story: When Gov Greitens tells this blindfolded, tied up woman that she’ll stay quiet, or else. “He said, 'you're never going to mention my name, otherwise there will be pictures of [you] everywhere.'”
— Christina Wilkie (@christinawilkie) January 11, 2018
Seems unlikely this was his first outing. https://t.co/tmYVKYnsRn
Response from Gov. Greitens’ lawyer James E. Bennett, via Wake Up To Politics publisher Gabe Fleisher (@WakeUp2Politics):
NEW: Greitens attorney James F. Bennett responds to blackmail allegation against Missouri governor in statement: "There was no blackmail and that claim is false." http://pic.twitter.com/3GHneDka3Z
— Gabe Fleisher (@WakeUp2Politics) January 11, 2018
Thursday, Jan 11, 2018 · 3:20:31 AM EST · JGibson
More from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which had audio of Greitens previously embargoed:
Greitens’ attorney, James F. Bennett, issued a statement denying the blackmail allegation.
“There was no blackmail, and that claim is false,” Bennett said. “This personal matter has been addressed by the Governor and Mrs. Greitens privately years ago when it happened. The outrageous claims of improper conduct regarding these almost three-year-ago events are false.”[...]
KMOV (Channel 4), in its report, quoted the former husband of the woman who allegedly had the affair with Greitens. The station did not quote the woman in its story, nor did it name the woman or her husband.
The station played portions of an audio recording that the then-husband says he made in March 2015, surreptitiously, of his then-wife confessing to a sexual encounter with Greitens days earlier.
The Post-Dispatch also has possession of the audio and has interviewed the ex-husband. The newspaper had previously decided against writing a story based solely on the husband and the audio recording, because the woman in question has consistently declined to be interviewed. However, Greitens’ public acknowledgment of an affair made it necessary to revisit that decision.
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News Today: Republican Governor Admits to Repugnant Blackmail Scheme Following Extramarital Affair
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