In a room crowded with the Republican faithful Missouri Senator Gary Nodler (R-32) announced his intentions on May 28, 2009 to run for the 2010 Congressional seat that will be vacated by US Rep. Roy Blunt. Blunt is planning on seeking the Senatorial seat of retiring Sen. Kit Bond.
Nodler, 58, brought applause to the Bible-belt room after reiterating the right wing ultra conservative party line, basically promotion of Christian religious and traditional family values and the need to resist the expansion of federal power and federal spending represented by the Obama administration.
Previously, Nodler, a Joplin resident, had failed twice to attain the southwest Missouri seat, once finishing second to Mel Hancock in 1988 (to succeed Rep. Gene Taylor for whom Nodler was a protege) and later in 1996 when he lost to Blunt. Because of term limits, Nodler isn't able to seek a third state Senate term in 2010.
Others in the race include Missouri Sen. Jack Goodman of Mount Vernon; Billy Long, an auctioneer from Springfield; Greene County prosecutor Darrell Moore and Jeff Wisdom, an instructor at Ozarks Technical Community College.
The announcement took place locally at Granny Schaffer's Continental Banquet Center in Joplin. Nodler had announced his intentions earlier at The Discovery Center in Springfield.
