Kehoe appoints Hanaway as next attorney general
Marie Moyer
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
With Attorney General Andrew Bailey set to head to Washington, D.C., this September to work for the FBI after being tapped by Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel, Gov. Mike Kehoe has appointed the state’s first female Speaker of the House.
Kehoe said Tuesday that Catherine Hanaway will take over Sept. 8. She will be the state’s first female attorney general.
“Catherine will be and is tough on crime, and we look forward to continuing our partnership with the Attorney General’s office under her leadership and our number one priority, which is public safety,” Kehoe said.
Hanaway was a Republican House Speaker from 2003-05, the only woman to hold the post. During her time in the Missouri House, Hanaway was one of the main sponsors of a 2003 concealed carry bill. The bill was initially vetoed by then-Governor Bob Holden and later overruled by the General Assembly.
Hanaway also served as a U.S. Attorney, focusing on drug trafficking and child exploitation. She also sued the Texas company Cathedral Rock Corp. in 2007 for the mistreatment of elders in several St. Louis retirement homes.
“Working with local prosecutors, sheriffs, police and the highway patrol fighting crime is and will remain job one for this office,” Hanaway said. “I look forward to having a close and collaborative relationship with law enforcement as I did when I was United States attorney.”
Bailey, a Republican, previously challenged COVID-19 masking in schools as well as gender-affirming care such as puberty blockers. Bailey also created the anti-human trafficking task force and was a strong supporter of pro-law enforcement legislation.
Bailey also has a record as a state official loyal to President Donald Trump, supporting administration policies with dozens of legal filings since he took office in January 2023. Former Gov. Mike Parson appointed Bailey in 2022, and he was elected in 2024.
Democratic House Minority Leader Rep. Ashley Aune said in a statement Monday that the House Minority Caucus hopes Kehoe will appoint a “competent attorney general.”
“Bailey’s departure gives the governor an opportunity to appoint a competent and professional attorney general who will defend the rights of all Missourians instead of wasting taxpayer money on frivolous culture war lawsuits that regularly get laughed out of court,” Aune said.
Following Kehoe’s decision, Aune called Hanaway “a solid upgrade as Attorney General.”
“Catherine Hanaway will be a vast improvement over her incompetent and unprofessional predecessor,” Aune said in a prepared statement. “One question is which Catherine Hanaway will we get as attorney general: The one who served capably and honorably as House speaker and U.S. attorney, or the one who intensely fought to help Eric Greitens cling to power while facing impeachment. But unless she proves us wrong, House Democrats believe she can restore integrity to the office.”
Other supporters of Hanaway include Ranking Minority Member of the House Judiciary Committee Representative David Tyson Smith (D-Columbia) and Ranking Minority Member of the House Crime and Public Safety Committee Mark Sharp (D-Kansas City)
“Catherine Hanaway is a solid pick and was a good Speaker of the House,” Smith said in a statement. “Hopefully, she will maintain that posture moving forward and will restore confidence in that office.”
“In today’s political climate, it can be very tempting for leaders to take part in partisan politics and it can also be tempting for opponents to focus solely on one person — the Attorney General,” Sharp said in a statement. “This appointment provides a fresh opportunity for the office to demonstrate fairness, integrity and a strong commitment to public service.”
Chair of the Senate Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Sen. Travis Fitzwater (R-Holts Summit) called Kehoe’s pick “inspiring,” adding, “We look forward to working with her.”
Hanaway works for the law firm Husch Blackwell, representing white collar clients in areas such as lobbying law, fraud and money laundering. One of her clients is the Grain Belt Express, a renewable energy project that Bailey staunchly opposed.
Hanaway did not say how she plans to act as attorney general on the Grain Belt suit; however, she will remove herself from the case.
“Since I had that matter in private practice when I switched over to the Attorney General’s office, I’ll have to recuse myself, but the team that is there, the great team that is there, will be able to go forward without my input,” Hanaway said.
The Missouri Farm Bureau has previously criticized Grain Belt Express. In a statement, the group thanked Bailey for his hard work and added that they expect Hanaway to do the same.
Missouri agriculture has a true friend in Andrew Bailey, and he has been an unwavering advocate for farmers and ranchers,” MOFB President Garrett Hawkins said, “The list of issues we face as an industry is long, and we expect, as Attorney General, she will continue the work championed by her predecessors.”
Kehoe added that he continues to be a supporter of private property and will continue to work towards property protection.
“I’ve said all along, I’m a big believer in private property rights, and if I had a century farm and somebody came and said I used eminent domain and I’m going to go across your farm now, I wouldn’t be very happy about it either,” Kehoe said.