Anheuser-Busch heiress Trudy Busch Valentine was accused of trying to "buy" the Democratic Party nomination for U.S. Senate in Missouri.
Lucas Kunce, who is also seeking the nomination, unloaded on his opponent with 27-tweet Twitter thread posted on Friday evening.
"My name is Lucas Kunce. I’m a 13-year Marine vet and the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination in Missouri’s Senate race," Kunce wrote. "Our record-breaking grassroots movement has the lead heading into the August 2nd primary — but we could still lose. Let me explain why… In our broken system, wealthy elites can dump millions into any race without restriction. And that’s happening in Missouri. New FEC reports show our billionaire heiress opponent, Trudy @BuschValentine, has dumped in $4M to try and buy the nomination. Our primary is in 11 days."
"And when I say BUY the nomination, I don’t mean some kind of abstract campaign metaphor—I mean BUY it. This is a purposeful effort to avoid scrutiny by the voters and instead flood the state with TV ads. It's a pattern that started with refusing to debate," Kunce continued.
He noted the controversy over the fact his opponent was crowned “Queen of Love and Beauty” at the Veiled Prophet Ball, which is the focus of a new ad from the Kunce campaign.
\u201cToday on TV - \n\n[#MOSenate] Lucas Kunce comes out swinging against Dem primary rival Trudy Busch Valentine. This ad highlight\u2019s the beer heiress\u2019s membership in the controversial \u2018Veiled Prophet Society\u2019, an organization w/ alleged KKK connections.\n\nPicked up in St Louis\u201d— CMAG (@CMAG) 1658340880
"She owns stock in defense contractors, Big Pharma, Wall Street banks — and her family estate has hosted fundraisers for Republican candidates and the NRA," Kunce noted. "We can’t miss this chance to flip a Senate seat—we have to end the filibuster and save our democracy. And the stakes are far too high for us to lose to a criminal like Eric Greitens because we have a nominee running the same broken campaign we’ve seen year after year in Missouri."
"Served active duty for 13 years. Iraq once, Afghanistan twice," Kunce said. "Between tours, one of the hardest things was coming back home and seeing what was going on in my old neighborhood. Our community had been stripped for parts."
Here is the full thread he posted:
\u201cMy name is Lucas Kunce. I\u2019m a 13-year Marine vet and the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination in Missouri\u2019s Senate race. Our record-breaking grassroots movement has the lead heading into the August 2nd primary \u2014 but we could still lose.\n\nLet me explain why\u2026\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534258
\u201cAnd when I say BUY the nomination, I don\u2019t mean some kind of abstract campaign metaphor\u2014I mean BUY it.\n\nThis is a purposeful effort to avoid scrutiny by the voters and instead flood the state with TV ads. It's a pattern that started with refusing to debate.https://t.co/yPaNDXxC8Y\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534258
\u201cShe\u2019s failed to show up for rural Missouri.\nhttps://t.co/zem0kuTb5r\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534258
\u201cShe doesn\u2019t know about some of the most significant threats facing our democracy, like Citizens United (go figure).\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534258
\u201cShe\u2019s brought a legacy of a white supremacist, anti-worker, elitist institution to our party\u2019s Senate race.\nhttps://t.co/rL7Ryi0oXU\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534258
\u201cShe owns stock in defense contractors, Big Pharma, Wall Street banks \u2014 and her family estate has hosted fundraisers for Republican candidates and the NRA. https://t.co/ewpyTpRp3R\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534258
\u201cWe can\u2019t miss this chance to flip a Senate seat\u2014we have to end the filibuster and save our democracy. And the stakes are far too high for us to lose to a criminal like Eric Greitens because we have a nominee running the same broken campaign we\u2019ve seen year after year in Missouri.\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534332
\u201cFor decades, the American people have been victims of economic warfare waged by the most powerful people in our country. That's why we need to send a warrior to the U.S. Senate who will fight back \u2014 not another billionaire, and not another criminal.\n\nAnd I'm ready to serve.\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534433
\u201cA bit more about me... I'm fighting for an America where no one has to live one emergency away from disaster because, like most people, I've lived it. Back in Cole County, my family struggled paycheck-to-paycheck. When my sister was born with a heart condition, we went bankrupt.\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534546
\u201cServed active duty for 13 years. Iraq once, Afghanistan twice. Later I was on the Joint Staff negotiating arms control agreements with NATO and Russia. And in my final year, I worked to upend the corporate defense monopolies that leave our country less safe.\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534594
\u201cThe whole time we were risking our lives, corrupt politicians in both parties were wasting trillions sending us out to fight their forever wars for oil \u2014 when we should have been investing in towns like St. Joe. St. Louis. Joplin. Fenton. Independence. Normandy.\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534686
\u201cIn the Senate, I\u2019ll fight to end our forever wars and invest in our forgotten communities. I\u2019ll fight to rebuild the Midwest and put America first in renewable energy production. I\u2019ll fight to break up giant corporations dominating our economy, abolish their PACs, and codify Roe.\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534833
\u201cThat message is resonating. It\u2019s why we\u2019ve outraised every Republican we're up against. It\u2019s why we have grassroots supporters in every Missouri county. It's why we've put this race on the map. And it\u2019s why people are fired up and ready to go.\nhttps://t.co/aDbILIfMNE\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658534919
\u201cCan't chip in right now? If you have time to volunteer by making calls or knocking doors, I could really use your help too \u2014 grab a shift here: https://t.co/S70vycgIbZ\u201d— Lucas Kunce (@Lucas Kunce) 1658535215
