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Blunt was the focus of festivities at the annual Greene County Republicans' TARGET BBQ — which also served as a 20-year Sept. 11 tribute and an opportunity for party leaders and donors to shake hands and discuss the future.
The event served as a homecoming of sorts for the southwest Missouri native, who announced earlier this year he would not be running for reelection after 12 years in the U.S. Senate and decades in elected office. He was met with a video presentation outlining his legislative accomplishments and accolades, speeches lauding his service to the Show-Me State and a commemorative bottle of wine.
Thanking the crowd of roughly 300 in a speech, Blunt recounted his time in Congress, saying he had cast more than 12,000 votes in total between both chambers. He criticized the Biden administration on its southern border, tax and Afghanistan policymaking, and called on his party to prepare for next year's midterms and "take the last statewide office" not occupied by a Republican.
Speaking to reporters prior to the event, Blunt reflected on the conversations and policymaking he was a part of surrounding the 2001 terrorist attacks. Asked by the News-Leader about comments from his Senate colleague Lindsey Graham that the U.S. "will be going back" to Afghanistan, Blunt in part diverged from the South Carolina Republican.
"We've been able to have a fairly light touch there and get lots of benefits out of that, both for the people of Afghanistan and for us," Blunt said. "The only thing that would get us back into Afghanistan in the foreseeable future would be the kind of thing we don't want to see. It would take a huge provocation."
The senior Missouri senator also advocated for the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, but pushed back on recent federal orders for private businesses of certain sizes.
"I don't think telling people they have to get the vaccine at the federal level will get the right kind of result," Blunt said.
Southwest Missouri politics:Springfield Democrats chart a path forward in a state dominated by Republicans
Gov. Mike Parson called to mind the anniversary of 9/11 during the event, speaking on his experiences meeting the family of Lance Cpl. Jared Schmitz, a St. Charles native and one of 13 U.S. troops killed in an airport bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Missouri would continue to "stay the course" by "relying on Christian values and freedom," Parson said, urging Republicans in the state to organize and retake both chambers of Congress. The governor continued to criticize the recent Biden vaccine orders, which he said last week the state was preparing for a "legal fight" on.
He warned of an economy that he believed would worsen under Democratic leadership, and specifically called out U.S. Rep. Cori Bush, a progressive Democrat from St. Louis.
"That lady is so far out of tune with the people of this state that she's supposed to represent," Parson said.
Parson and U.S. Rep. Billy Long, southwest Missouri's congressman, both praised Blunt for his decades in the state's politics. Long and U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler, who are both running for U.S. Senate to replace Blunt, were both present at the event.
State Sen. Eric Burlison and Sam Alexander, who are running to succeed Long in the 7th District, also attended.
Galen Bacharier covers Missouri politics & government for the News-Leader. Contact him at gbacharier@news-leader.com, (573) 219-7440 or on Twitter @galenbacharier.
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