Opinion: Hawver Report - At the Rail - Week of November 19

By Martin Hawver

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Almost eerily quiet; this Thanksgiving week the Statehouse is going to be nearly empty, no interim committees meeting to thrash out possible legislation for the upcoming session, not even freshly elected legislators likely to be wandering the halls wondering where their offices are going to be.

Martin Hawver, Columnist

Of course, nobody has won anything until the State Canvass Board meets later this month to certify that those election results are official, that the county officials counted right, that the candidates who were named winners in their local courthouses get the final OK in the Kansas Secretary of State’s office.

But pending that Topeka stamp of approval, there are still going to be 125 members of the Kansas House, and at least 27 of them are new, or at least relatively new (some served earlier terms, quit or were defeated, and came back). Five of those new or relatively new faces are Democrats, 22 are Republicans. A recount out in Hays will determine if Rep. Eber Phelps, D-Hays, or Republican Barbara Wasinger, Hays, wins the vote, which could change the number of new faces.

If Wasinger wins, the ratio stays at the current 85 Republicans, 40 Democrats. If Phelps wins, that makes it 84 Republicans, 41 Democrats. Not a “blue wave” in the House of Representatives.

That eerie quiet in the Statehouse is going to be offset by what will be hot phone lines, e-mails and voice messages between House members who will be campaigning within their party for leadership offices.

Now, everyone knows that the big job, the most powerful job in the Kansas House, is the Speaker. He/she with the help of the House Majority Leader decide what is going to be debated, and when.

That top job appears to be locked up by current Speaker Ron Ryckman, R-Olathe, who doesn’t have any serious opposition for the post within his party.

House Minority Leader Jim Ward, D-Wichita, may see a scrap for his post, largely because it doesn’t appear that he’s been able to increase Democrat numbers in the chamber, which is considered a major responsibility.

Everything else? Well, look for a GOP scrap over the No. 2 job in the chamber, Majority Leader. It’s the Majority Leader, moderate Republican Rep. Don Hineman, R-Dighton, who is facing at least two conservative Republicans who hope to build on the shift to the right of the House GOP caucus.

It’s that under-the-sheets campaigning that will to a large degree determine whether Democrat Gov.-elect (now Senator) Laura Kelly, Topeka, gets much of her budget and legislative agenda approved.

And that, again, is where the leadership of the House becomes a key. That House leadership appoints members to committees which will not only come up with their own bills but hold hearings on Kelly-proposed bills.

Don’t like the Kelly bill? Just have the Majority Leader send it to a committee that will knock it down or amend it. That’s why the power to name Republican members of committees is almost thermonuclear.  The House party breakdown means 23-member committees are 16 Republican/7 Democrat; 17-member committees are 12 Republican/5 Democrats and so-on,

So how does a fresh-faced new legislator who doesn’t even know where all the Statehouse bathrooms are, get a flashy committee assignment, say, Appropriations or Tax or Commerce or Federal and State Affairs?  How about pledging to vote for a member of leadership, a little tradeoff and the first real use of a freshman’s power.

Democrats? They’ll make their own committee assignments, but not with the leverage that the Republican committee assignments carry.

Wonder what the upcoming session is going to look like? Wait for the leadership races to trickle down to committee assignments.

We’ll see…

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is the publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com

Opinion: The Hawver Report - Nov. 14, 2018

By Martin Hawver

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How would you like to be elected governor of Kansas by about 46,000 votes on Tuesday and on Friday learn that you’re going to have $306.4 million more to spend than you thought?

Martin Hawver

Doesn’t get much better than that, does it? Well, that’s exactly what has happened to Gov.-elect Laura Kelly, who by the way beat Republican Secretary of State Kris Kobach who pledged during his campaign to start cutting taxes quickly if elected.

Well, Kelly isn’t talking tax cuts, she’s talking investment in schools, expanding Medicaid and balancing the budget without new taxes—and that was before she heard about the $306 million windfall which the Consensus Revenue Estimating Group unveiled Friday. The CREG meets twice a year, in November and April, to predict upcoming state revenues.

This might be an interesting four years ahead with a governor who wants to first take care of the state’s responsibilities that have been avoided the past several years before talking about tax cuts. The new money is good, of course, but we’re not yet constitutionally “adequate” on state aid to schools and are making little progress in restoring money that has been “swept” out of agency budgets for highway construction, pensions and such.

No, we’re not looking for Kelly to start handing out tax cuts while she’s waiting for her stationery and business cards to be printed up.

In fact, even before that $306 million windfall, Kelly was talking about waiting until next April’s Consensus Revenue Estimate before giving much thought to tax cuts—after she’s nailed down the spending necessary to restore state government duties.

Part of that, of course, is her experience as a member of the Senate Ways and Means Committee—which makes the appropriations and cuts necessary to balance the budget. It’s been more cuts than appropriations in the past few years, and she’s made clear that restoration of services is first in line, ahead of tax cuts.

What’s it mean? Well, from a Statehouse viewpoint, it probably means a rather complicated “State of the State” message when lawmakers come back to town in mid-January. She’s a details person, likely to talk more about programs that need to be rebuilt or financed adequately than new programs that Republicans tend to spend a lot of time trying to think up catchy names (or acronyms) for.

Don’t look for flash.

Now, remember that she’s going to face an overwhelmingly Republican legislature that is probably going to be more interested in cutting taxes than rebuilding the state payroll of social workers and helping local school districts rebuild their staff of teachers and aides.

Key there is for the governor to convince those conservatives in the Legislature that the not-very-flashy care of the poor and ill and their children are the best way to improve the state before cutting taxes.

Tax cuts? They will probably start with the sales tax on food. It’s a big deal for the poor who see the cost of a can of beans at 9% or 10% (depending on local sales taxes) more than the shelf price before they get it out of the store and into the kitchen.  Oh, and it also means that those steaks and salmon are cheaper, too, but it’s not an afford-it or not decision for more prosperous Kansans.

That $306 million? Well, it gives Kelly some negotiating room, enough spare cash to bargain a dab of tax cut in return for the social service, highway construction and health-care expenditures she’d like to make.

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But all that new direction in state spending that Kelly proposes will ultimately be keyed off of the makeup of the Legislature, and whether that top-heavy Republican majority in both chambers is solid enough to pass veto-proof legislation.

We’ll see. Check back in April…

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com

Opinion: The Contentious Words and Name Calling Turns

Kevin Surbaugh

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photographer Kevin Surbaugh

The November election is tomorrow. How many people will vote tomorrow? Last week Douglas County reported that 23% had already voted (through Oct 29).  Since then the Kansas Secretary of State has reported 300,000 had already cast a vote in early voting statewide.  That kind of turnout is unprecedented, for a midterm election. Will that turnout hold true through election day tomorrow.  We will see, but for now, let's focus on my endorsements for this years election.

On the Federal level, you probably already seen my endorsement of Steve Watkins over Paul Davis.

photographer Kevin Surbaugh

In the race for Governor of the Great State of Kansas, Laura Kelly (Democrat), Kris Kobach (Republican), and Greg Orman (Independent) are considered to be the three battling it out.  There are two others running, another independent and a Libertarian. They aren't even polling higher then single digits,  Then again, neither is Orman. So why is he considered a major candidate and the other two aren't? It goes back to when, he ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate against Pat Roberts, when without a Democrat in the race, he came in a strong second place.

Polling 

The Governor's race is interesting to me. It, of course, is the meat and potatoes in Kansas politics. Our focus boils down to Kelly and Kobach.  Polling, which I had alluded to already, have the race very tight. A poll conducted by Emmerson has Kobach edging Kelly 44% to 43% in a poll conducted between October 26 and 28.
In another poll, conducted about the same time (Oct 17-27), ISPOS and Reuters in conjunction with the Virginia Center of Politics reported that Kelly edged out Kobach 43% to 41%, in a statistical dead heat.

Backbiting

The race has been interesting, to say the least. Like both of the Congressional races in eastern Kansas, it has been contentious. With former Republican Governors and U.S. Senators endorsing the Democrat. Republicans who have ignored Ronald Reagan statement, "never say anything bad about fellow Republicans."  It is true that Republican politicians have supported Democrats before, likewise, Democrats support Republicans. However, those instances were done in secret. Not publicly broadcasted. It is part what is expected from the leadership of any party. I, myself have personally served as a precinct committeeman. A position that, in part elects the chair and other leadership of their respective party. In turn, they also help promote the candidates of their party, they cannot publicly support any candidate from another party. Doing so goes against the grain of what they were elected to do. So the actions and statements by that handful of Republicans (some of who I call friends) are disappointing.

Endorsement

So, who am I endorsing? Well, I actually cast my vote, with having to be in the office until 4:30 and then driving in rush hour traffic back to home, it was just easier. Even though I am among the 23% plus that has already voted, it is important for me to lay out my cards and tell my readers who I voted for and thus who I encourage each of you to vote for also. That candidate is Kris Kobach. True, there are issues I disagree with him on.  One of which is medical marijuana. Something that has been proven to offer relief for some kinds of pain and medical conditions. Something that Missouri and Utah are voting on tomorrow to join the growing list of states that will legalize it for those with a doctors prescription. I think Kobach could come around with some education.   His commitment to hold the line on taxes is a big reason I support him.

State Representative

In the race for state representative, Eileen Horn is running unopposed, so I wrote my own name in.  If you so chose, you can also write in the name of D. Kevin Surbaugh for state representative. I have not campaigned for the position, nor will I, but I will accept the position if there are enough write-in votes.

Live Reporting

Finally, I will be live posting results as they come in tomorrow night. The first post I expect will be around 7:30, thirty minutes after the polls close. Who will win? We will find out tomorrow night.

Opinion: A Look at the Second Congressional Election

Kevin Surbaugh

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It's that time of the year again. Yes, it's election time.  That is no surprise with all the contentious barbs that have been being traded this election cycle. In fact, it has been one of the most contentious I have seen in several years.  Even more so than the Trump v Clinton election two years ago.
My mailbox has been filled with a lot of mail from both sides.

One piece of mail came from a group calling itself the Center for Voter Information, out of Springfield, MO.  Once it was opened up, I found the mailer was a liberal organization, twisting the truth. The first problem is that it is out of state interest group, interjecting itself into a Kansas election.  The second, it claimed that Steve Watkins wants to cut the taxes for millionaires.  Trying to insinuate that he wants to raise everyone else's taxes.  The real fact is that he wants to lower the taxes for everyone, especially the poor.  The fact that millionaires are also included, is a good thing.  If the millionaire's taxes are lower, they have more money to pay employees. Yes, millionaires tend to be the ones who own businesses. As such they create jobs.  More money they have, the more jobs they can create. The more jobs they create, the more people are working and paying taxes.  Which, is a big win for the government.
The fact Paul Davis is shady is, or should be by now obvious, with his being present in the back room of a strip club, receiving a lap dance when the club was raided for drugs. One could say, as Davis tries to, that was thirty-years ago. Does change the fact, that as a lawyer he should have known better.  Sure people can change, but it's hard to not overlook that fact.  I admit, I have done things in my past, that I would rather forget. Especially in my youth. That, however, was just that I was not a lawyer, I was not someone, who was representing the law in any way. I was young and ipressionable, I since grew up.  Davis was a grown man, working as a lawyer.
He in turns tries to paint Watkins to be just as shady. I for one am not buying it. Yes, I have qualms about the GOP nominee (I endorsed and voted for Caryn Tyson in the Primary), but I cannot in good conscience, vote for someone, who wants to raise taxes on Americans.  Which in turn, if it happened, would raise unemployment.  The fact is, we must cut Government waste.  If a candidate, isn't willing to look at cutting government waste first and foremost then I am not interested in voting for them,  It is for that reason, I am endorsing Steve Watkins for Congress in the second district of Kansas,  

Opinion: Hawver Reports

By Martin Hawver

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We’ve come to the point in the campaigns that political ad after political ad after political ad drag on long enough that there’s time to microwave popcorn and not miss the cop show on television.

Martin Hawver

Yes, and for those of you who have other things to think about during the commercials…one of those thoughts might just be what happens to the Kansas Legislature after the next federal census in 2020.

That’ll be the 24^th national census, and it is designed to tell us what the population of the nation is, and where those people are located—and likely whether Kansas remains a four-congressional district state.

Is that official April 1, 2020, headcount a little far off? Why think about it now? Well, if you live in one of those Kansas House or Senate districts out west, say, west of US-81, the north-south Interstate that is the dividing line between western Kansas and eastern Kansas, you might want to start thinking about it now.

It’ll be 2022 when the first statewide election occurs after the census, based on that federal census and where it says the people are. That’s the key data for reapportionment of Kansas House and Senate districts. Oh…and the state’s four congressional districts.

And that reapportionment is based on U.S. Census population data which the Legislature will spend more than a year dissecting into 40 Senate districts and 125 House districts, and, yes, those four Congressional districts.

What’s worth thinking about now ahead of that reapportionment? Probably for much of western Kansas it’s what the Republican Party efforts to further regulate immigration and the “close the border” talk has to do with populations out west of US-81.

Yes, it is western Kansas, with its agriculture and food processing industry that stands the best chance of seeing foreign workers not participating in the census or maybe misstating their legal citizenship for fear of deportation. Oh, and there are lots of foreign-born workers and their children in other parts of the state, too.

Now, the GOP and President Donald Trump make a decent case that immigrants should come across the border with Mexico legally. They ought to get the visas and such, and probably some clearly defined path to becoming a full United States citizen, with a stake in how this country is run, and the right to vote.

But this concentration on immigration, while a strong national political issue, will undoubtedly have some effect on headcount in the census.

So, if the historic trend of adults and their children moving out of western Kansas is accelerated by federal immigration regulation that makes the census inaccurate, count on many who have come to this country and state for a better life to decide just not to participate.

And that means likely less census-counted population in parts of western Kansas, and by the time the Legislature has mapped out new House and Senate districts based on population, fewer state representatives and senators from areas where the population count is down.

That means fewer, and larger, Kansas House and Senate districts out west, and likely more districts in urban areas of eastern Kansas—Wichita, Topeka, and Missouri-bordered northeast Kansas counties.

Now, it’s based on population, and that’s fair, but it likely means less attention will be paid to western Kansas (except for highways) and more attention to population-heavy areas based on their representation in the House and Senate because the members of the House and Senate will be tilted toward urban areas—which, by the way, are easier to gerrymander based on voter political registration.

Something to think about during those commercials, isn’t it?

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com

Opinion: The Trump Factor

By Martin Hawver

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We have less than a month to figure out whether the Topeka rally by President Donald Trump will see if his endorsement of GOP gubernatorial candidate Secretary of State Kris Kobach is going to move the tight race in Kobach’s favor.

Martin Hawver

Similarly, we’re going to see whether his endorsement moves the tight race for 2nd District Congress to Republican Steve Watkins, who has virtually no government experience—or even experience at voting—to the relatively little-known Republican.

While a presidential visit to the state is always front-page news, Trump had his issue Saturday which was celebration of the Senate confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh as the newest, and perhaps tipping-point on life issues, nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The question, of course, is will that matter to Kansas voters next month?

At the rally, Trump talked a little about general issues, the ones that rile the Kansas Legislature each session, like taxes and spending and illegal immigration. But nothing specific that would bring Kansas notoriety as a national leader or strong supporter of Trump policies on those issues. But…it’s not going to be difficult for candidates for governor and congressional seats to raise those issues to show that if they are elected, well, the president is on their side for whatever political and legislative advantage that might yield them and their constituents.

There weren’t many legislative candidates visible at the rally. Trump didn’t identify any by name, and searches of the 10,000-Republican crowd at the event didn’t turn up any legislative candidate who made it into the same photo frame as Trump.  It is those state legislators who, if Kobach defeats Democratic challenger Laura Kelly, will tip Kansas government next session either in favor of Kobach or away from Kobach in floor votes or in considering vetoes.

The rally, though, probably had a positive effect on conservative Republicans trying to move some of those moderate GOP candidates toward conservative policy.  There are going to be those House candidates who point to conservative party leadership, and their degree of support for that conservatism may jiggle the Legislature’s votes on state issues ranging from tax cuts to school finance to expansion of Medicaid (KanCare) to voting rights.

And there are going to be moderate Republicans who vote along with Democrats on key state issues who will be able to portray themselves as important brakes on conservative moves that would dramatically alter Kansas’ responsibility to care for the poor, the ill, the roads, the students from grade school through college.

Which side wins and which side of the GOP uses the Trump appearance to its best advantage in the general election are keys for candidates who are selling themselves to voters who are pro-Trump or anti-Trump. Democrats, seeing the GOP reaction to the presidential visit, may find ways to translate that into voter support for not taking that conservative tack in the upcoming Legislature.

Remember, when Trump carried Kansas in 2016 with 56.6% of the vote to Democrat Hillary Clinton’s 36%, that was before Trump actually had taken the wheel of the federal government. His tough trade policies that appeared for a time likely to make Kansas farmers just watch their crops and livestock they produced rather than seeing them sell at good prices, now are being shifted to what might become economic boons for those farmers. And restricting immigration, a key to Kansas productivity because those immigrants comprise a significant share of the state’s workforce, might just become another of those policy moves that may shift to help the state’s economy.

Kansans have a month to decide, or predict, what effect Trump has had on the state—and even their Kansas House districts. And then vote for or against it.

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com

Opinion: Letter to the Editor: Need Government Officials Representing All of Us

Letter to the Editor by Sam Gellhorn (of Baldwin City)

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The people of Kansas need hope for progress and change. We need government representatives representing all of us and not just the one (1) percent. The people of Kansas have good strong values. Taking food and healthcare from the poor to give tax breaks to billionaires is not one of them.
Progress and change. Yeah!

Sam Hellhorn

Baldwin City, KS

Editorial: Changing Focus

by Kevin Surbaugh

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Kevin Surbaugh (1994)

Two and a half years ago (closer to three-years), this town awoke to the news that the local newspaper was closing. Though the paper was not local, it was a print paper and it was ours. That pride was shattered, with the announcement. That disappointment was short-lived, however. That same day, the news became public, a middle-aged man who studied Communications (Journalism) at Washburn University stood up and said, we can't have this, and launched an online newspaper.  The publication quickly jumped to an average of a hundred a day.  A position it maintained. At times it averaged a hundred-fifty, but the over-all average never dropped below the one-hundred per day.  The readership was there, but the widespread support was not. Still, the publication persevered and strived to bring the community the news.   In some aspect, at great financial difficulties.
Last week, a new print paper launched.  That paper which is free also, appeared in our mailboxes this past Tuesday. As the publisher of the Gazette, I support Vern Brown and the Baldwin City Community News.  It had been my hope to give him the Gazette name, as we worked to together,
but I didn't hear from him.  That is okay though, I look forward to seeing the new paper strive and flourish.  I still hope to work with him in some compacity. 

Future of the Gazette

As for the Gazette, we will still be around.  The focus will be a little different. Still providing the news, the Gazette will have a more statewide focus. With coverage of politics, government, business and of course college sports (especially Baker). With the contacts, I have made over the last thirty-years I hope to have more in-depth interviews with the people who govern us or hope to.
As we move forward, the Gazette will simply be the Baldwin Gazette.  Acknowledging our Baldwin City roots, while also acknowledging our forward move towards serving the statewide community. 

Hawver: Will Kansas Governors Race be a Traditional General Election Race

by Martin Hawver

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If there was ever a predictable pattern in Kansas—and possibly even national politics—it is that Republican candidates for nearly every slot on the ballot tend to spend the primary election cycle pandering to the most diehard conservative members of their party to win the general election nomination.

Martin Hawver

Now, Democrats tend to do the same thing (with the move toward the more liberal Democrats), but in Kansas, it’s to smaller numbers of primary election voters. But it works with Democrats, too.

But after that primary in both parties, it’s been traditional that the party’s standard bearers move their campaign to the middle of their party, and in some measure to the middle of the general voting age population.

Well, this will be a year that will make it worth watching whether that generally Republican move to the middle of the party after the primary election occurs.

Chances are good that Sen. Laura Kelly, D-Topeka, the Democratic nominee for governor, will not have to move very far. She’s a practical Democrat who probably dreams about budgets and line-item vetoes and cutting a deal with moderates in the Kansas Legislature to keep government moving.

And chances are good that Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who is the Republican nominee for governor, won’t move back to the middle. We’re figuring he dreams about a border wall with Mexico—or possibly Oklahoma—or that new Trump necktie that he wants…

Oh, and best-known independent candidate Greg Orman is probably dreaming about how to snag votes from both.

This year things are going to be different. Don’t expect Kobach to move toward the political middle in his campaign. Now, short-term Gov. Jeff Colyer might have, but he conceded, remember.

So, we come to a campaign where the narrow conservative side of the GOP—which includes Kobach, of course, and unsuccessful gubernatorial nomination candidate Insurance Commissioner Ken Selzer—isn’t looking for any move to the center. Nope, and had Kobach lost the GOP nomination, we’re betting he wouldn’t have let Colyer move to the center, either.

So…where does this gubernatorial race go? Who gets elected governor and has the authority to take that preposterous stuffed buffalo head off the wall of the governor’s office and, of course, run the rest of the state?

Does Kobach come up with something new that will appeal to moderate Republicans, most of whom voted for someone else in the primary? Does Kelly come up with something that will see the moderate Republicans, who are probably most of the GOP voters, furrow their brows and vote for her as long as nobody’s watching?

Or, does Independent Orman turn out to be the safety valve for Republicans who are to the left of Kobach but just can’t bring themselves to vote for a Democrat, under the suspicion that their Republican friends will find out?

And you gotta figure that moderate Republican former Sen. Jim Barnett, of Emporia when in office and Topeka now, who drew the more liberal Republican primary voters, though not enough of them, isn’t going to be touting Kobach or even letting him put a sign in his yard.

Surprising that this election might come down to the conservative Republicans of the state and the Democrats, with Orman as a possible off-ramp for those who at least talk about the general conservative values and have never read the Kansas Republican Party platform.

Oh, and whoever wins the governor’s office must remember that in just two short years, whatever the governor pushes for or against splashes back on members of both parties in the Kansas House and Senate.

We’ll see, won’t we…

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com

Hawver Opinion: The Widening Division in the Kansas GOP

Martin Hawver

Martin Hawver

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Best advice, if you’re a Republican voter, well…wait at least another week to pull off that bumper sticker that shows you supported the losing candidate in your party’s gubernatorial primary election.

Might be this weekend, maybe next, but you might just leave the sticker alone…unless you are trying to sell your car to a Democrat who will probably try to bargain you down a few bucks figuring you don’t make good choices.

Yes, this election cycle has become more intriguing for political junkies as Gov. Jeff Colyer and Secretary of State Kris Kobach scrap in the technical, complicated after-Election Day determination of just who is the Republican nominee for the office of governor.

First, the Election Day results were statistically close--191 votes out of the 310,429 cast for all seven Republican gubernatorial candidates separated Colyer and Kobach. Kobach and Colyer won a total of 82 percent of all those votes. By Saturday, that margin had narrowed to 110 votes, Kobach still ahead…

But figuring who won the most of those votes…well, that’s what this week is about. Used to be simple, someone was an obvious winner. This year, it’s not simple. Colyer and Kobach are now scrapping for every possible vote, whether already counted or some of those mailed-in ballots and the provisional ballots.

Provisional? It just means that a voter’s name and address didn’t match the official voter list that the election workers had in front of them on election day. Maybe a voter moved, changed his/ her name (some recent brides, for example, if they take their spouse’s last name, probably had to file provisional ballots even if they wore a wedding ring to vote). Provisional ballots are also some of those unaffiliated voters who declared themselves Republicans at the voting place, so they could participate in the GOP primary.

Those provisional Republican ballots are the key to this race. All week and even next week, county officials will be meeting to decide whether those provisional ballots will be counted, and to weigh whether mailed-in ballots were in fact mailed on Election Day, not the day after.

Oh, there have been tense county canvass meetings over elections for county commissioners or members of the Legislature, but not the top of the state ballot.

The fuss and time spent on the GOP gubernatorial race essentially makes Democratic gubernatorial nominee Sen. Laura Kelly, D-Topeka, the only major party gubernatorial candidate who will sure-enough be on the November ballot.

And the more sticks and stones that Colyer and Kobach throw at each other—oh, and Kelly is keeping track of ‘em—the more the biggest party in the state divides itself, and moderate Republicans start looking for a candidate who hasn’t been mud wrestling.

And let’s not forget the independent candidate—if he has enough valid signatures on his petition to get a place on the general election ballot. That’s Greg Orman, who has run statewide before, losing to U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., four years ago. Already there are questions about his petition signature-gathering, and whether some of those signatures will be loudly, publicly rejected—a little stain on the record of a guy who maintains that he represents a choice for voters who don’t like either major political party.

Could it get any better than this? For Kansas, probably, but for reporters it’s a gold mine. A story, an allegation, a slight by one candidate against another, scraps over whether this ballot or that ballot should be counted.  For the news media it’s like a house fire to cover every day.

Oh, and reporters don’t have to worry about those bumper stickers.  They shouldn’t be on reporters’ cars, anyway…

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com

Editorial: August Primary is August 7

by Kevin Surbaugh     

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Election day is upon us. As voters all over Baldwin City, Eudora, and all of Douglas County head to the polls there are those that have already voted. According to Jamie Shew, of the Douglas County Clerks office, there were 2,864 votes cast in advance voting countywide, of which 99 were cast in the four precincts that make up the Baldwin City/Vinland area.  For those that haven't made it out to vote yet, I encourage to get out there and cast your ballots in the Democratic or Republican primaries. As those voters head to the polls, we at the Baldwin City Gazette will be paying attention the results.  We will be live tweeting the results as election results come in tonight.  In particular, we will be paying attention to the crowded race for Governor in both parties.  In addition, we will be looking at the results of the contentious race for the Republican ticket for second district Congress. 
The two candidates that seem to be the front-runners are Steve Watkins of Topeka, a man we have learned, was not even registered to vote until just before he announced his campaign for Congress. A man, who campaigns as a conservative, who supported Donald Trump for President, yet he wasn't even registered to vote until last year. The same candidate, who, according to Shawnee County Democratic officials in Topeka, say met with them about a potential run as a Democrat before he announced his campaign as a Republican.  Someone that has never held or run for elected office before.
 The other candidate that is considered to be a front-runner, Caryn Tyson, of Parker. Someone that; as I have many of the other candidates, I have known for many years. Her husbands family and I went to the same high school.  I helped to some extent with her father-in-law's campaign for the state Senate seat she now holds. She has been endorsed by the Kansas Farm Bureau, President Trump's campaign manager, Brad Parscale, who is a native of Kansas, the National Right to Life, Kansans for Life, National Association of Realtors, Kansas Realtors PAC, the Madison Project, the Susan B Anthony List, and Maggie's List. 

  She has the proven leadership having served in the Kansas House from 2010 to 2012 when she was elected to the State Senate and reelected in 2016.  With her impressive list of endorsements coupled with that experience, she is the candidate to vote for in tomorrows important election. 

Hawver: Slow Internet Causing You to Grind Your Teeth?

Martin Hawver

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For you folks who grind your teeth when that little circular arrow is spinning on your computer, or who see the screen on your computer go blank during that Netflix movie, well, help eventually may be on the way.

That help? The Statewide Broadband Expansion Planning Task Force, which is the Legislature’s start on making sure that from border to border there is fast, reliable and affordable broadband Internet access.

Martin Hawver

And for you folks who by now try to remember where you put your walker before heading out to pick up the newspaper on the driveway, this is a whole new level of “universal access.” The old version? That was when the state’s effort was to make sure that everyone in Kansas had access to a black dial telephone back when phone poles were sparse in areas where cattle outnumbered Kansans and where there were more combines than lawn mowers.

The effort: To first map out the areas of the state where access to fast Internet service is important to Kansans, to businesses and industries and to governments and organizations. That’s going to be tricky, because nobody doesn’t want the fastest Internet available, whether it’s for watching movies, sending e-mails, the kids doing school work at home or competing for contracts for intellectual services.

It’s different than the old days when a paved road was a major boost for economic development, isn’t it?

The issue has turned out to be not just a rural issue where cell towers and cable services are sparse and a hill or a grain elevator can hamper that fast Internet service. There are blocks in major Kansas cities where the skies are obstructed by cable wires and a forest of antennae atop buildings, there are down times when that service isn’t available or your computer or phone can’t get on line.

Figuring out where that Internet over wire or through the airwaves is substandard or not dependable is going to be tough. For rural areas, it’s going to require cooperation among providers and some cost sharing between state and federal governments and the providers of Internet access to get that signal everywhere—at a profit.

Because, now that we’ve all got phones, broadband Internet access is joining water, electricity and mail as basic services that Kansans are demanding.

At some point, it’s probably a good thing that the Legislature has decided to jump into the complicated issue of getting that broadband to everywhere in the state, and to some point, it’s going to be interesting to see where the priorities are on that service.

Spend money, or maybe impose a tax on Internet service so that the high-demand areas help finance the rural areas? That’s what happened with telephone service, as your phone bill tells you.

Does that access become a right, like access to public schools, which by the way want more broadband access so that students can study from home and the schools can provide study materials from around the world, not just the occasional e-mail or those textbooks which once printed aren’t updated?

It’s going to be interesting to watch and important for the state…

But…those little circular arrows are spinning on the task force, because its members haven’t all been designated by legislative leaders, and there’s not a list yet of the non-legislative members who are supposed to figure this broadband business out for us.

Yes, there is this election coming up, and in some rural areas of the state there are candidates talking about bringing high-speed broadband to every acre of Kansas.

But for now, that little arrow is still spinning…

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com

Hawver: Kansas Democrats Have a Choice This Year

By Martin Hawver

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It’s likely to be one of those years—first in (practically) 24 years—that Kansas Democrats might want to carry a note into the primary election voting booth to remember the name of their favorite gubernatorial candidate.
For most of the last 24 years, it’s been just checking the box on the only Democrat in the race. Made it pretty simple, and you didn’t have to remember the name, just the office.
Democrats had their last “official” primary election race for governor back in 1998, but it was the late Rev. Fred Phelps, of Topeka, and now-Rep. Tom Sawyer, D-Wichita, who were on the ballot back then, and the votes were about 15,000 for Phelps for all the reasons that the anti-gay Topeka minister preached about…and anyone else on the ballot…Sawyer.

Martin Hawver

Before that, it was the 1994 five-way Democratic primary which saw 7-term former U.S. Rep. Jim Slattery, D-Kan., and running mate Carol Sader take the primary easily, later losing in the general.
But this year, for the first time in 20 years, it’s going to be a three-way; four, if you count a high schooler who has officially filed for office. Nobody’s heard from two other Democratic potential candidates, Salinan Robert Klingenberg and Olathe doctor Arden Anderson. While there are two clear leaders—Sen. Laura Kelly, D-Topeka, and former state Rep. Josh Svaty, of Ellsworth and later Topeka—just how they come out is uncertain.
And, nobody yet knows just what the candidacy of former Wichita Mayor Carl Brewer will have on what most are predicting to be the split between Kelly and Svaty. There’s always the upset, and either Kelly or Svaty could do something or say something that immediately costs her/him the election, but both are careful and in interviews appear to quietly think through their answers before they utter a response.
Yes, it’s going to be considerably different for Democrats than the good old days of the summer of 1998. Is it going to be the former lawmaker Svaty who has roots in rural Ellsworth which is west of Salina, and running with businesswoman Katrina Lewison of Manhattan? Or maybe the current senator with Topeka roots, and running mate Lynn Rogers of Wichita who sits just to her left in the Senate chamber? Or Brewer of Wichita where he was elected, then elected again as mayor, and his running mate former Gardner (that’s Johnson County) Mayor Chris Morrow?
Is geography a big part of the decision? Any chance a Democratic nominee from your area gets your local roads repaired, or at least at the top of the list for repairs? Maybe it’s not geography, though it doesn’t hurt…
If it comes down to experience, well, that comes down to experience doing what? Is it experience running a government that deals closely with its constituents—we’re thinking the mayors here—or does it come down to experience in state government? That’s probably the Kelly and the Svaty teams. Svaty served four and a half terms in the House before Gov. Mark Parkinson named him Secretary of Agriculture in 2009, and he was out the day that Republican Gov. Sam Brownback took office. Things have changed a lot in the last eight years.
Kelly? Four terms in the Senate, starting under Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and later Parkinson. And she’s been there in the eight-year Brownback/Gov. Jeff Colyer regime. The question, for Democrats, is whether she can use the Brownback/Colyer years to her advantage.
Wonder how this is going to work out…who remembers what…and their names…

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com

Opinion: Value-added producers benefit from grants, according to report

by Cora Fox, Center for Rural Affairs

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Businesses that receive Value-Added Producer Grants (VAPG) are less likely to fail and are more likely to hire employees, according to a May 2018 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) report.

Cora Fox

The VAPG program, administered by the USDA, supports farmers and ranchers who want to access value-added markets by offering funds for business and marketing plan development; feasibility studies; and working capital for processing costs, advertising, and some inventory and salary expenses. Value-added goods can be fruit made into jam or milk made into cheese, which both fetch a higher price than the base ingredients.

Taking a look at 1,020 businesses, the USDA study found those supplemented with VAPG dollars were 89 percent less likely to fail within two years of receiving the grant, compared to nonrecipient businesses of the same age and characteristics.

Additionally, the research found VAPG-funded businesses are more likely to hire employees. Between one and five years post-award, grant recipients employed five to six additional employees, on average. Prior to receiving funds, no significant difference in employment levels was found.

Lastly, the study found the success of a business correlated to the amount of funding received. After two years, businesses awarded with more dollars were less likely to fail. The increase also corresponded with job creation, as those with higher funding allotments were more likely to employ more workers.

The results show VAPG is important. Businesses that receive funding invest in their communities, support rural economies, and create jobs.

Opinion: Print or Digital

Kevin Surbaugh

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© Kovaleff | Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images
Edited by Kevin Surbaugh

Recently the Baldwin City Chamber has made overtures towards trying to get a print newspaper in Baldwin City. Something that as a journalist I would love, but there are some realities that cannot be ignored in this process.
First and foremost print papers around the country (and even the world) are closing down. Primarily because the readership is dwindling as the readership moves to broadcast and digital formats for their news.  There are those that don't have access to the internet, that still depends on print. However, the cost of print is rising.  Especially since the first of the year, that is when the United States Department of Commerce started imposing steep tariffs of up to 32 percent on newsprint imported from Canada. This additional cost on an industry that has seen subscriptions falling for several years is costly. In a report entitled, "Newspaper Industry Lost Half Its Workforce Since 2001 Due to Digital Media Rise," we see what appears to be a bleak picture for the print industry.   According to the article which predicts that the digital platform will grow by 9.8% annually and the non-digital platform will experience a fall of three percent during the current period of time (2015-2020).  The same article continued to say,

"The number of U.S. newspaper employees fell from 412,000 in January 2001 to 174,000 in September 2016 as per the data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. On the other hand, the number of jobs in the Internet publishing and portal segment increased from 67,000 in 2007 to 206,000 in 2016. This reflects the transition from the print to the digital media sector causing several job cuts in the newspaper industry.
The same report confirmed that the number of newspaper industry businesses declined about 18%, from 9,310 in 2001 to 7,623 in 2016. Meanwhile, the number of Internet publishing and web search portals increased 150% from 2007 to 13,924 in 2016. Even magazines, book publishing, and radio broadcasting showed a decline, whereas the television industry jobs have been stable since 2001. The number of periodicals declined from 9,232 in 2008 to 7,566 in 2016."

Which segues into the second fact declining ad dollars is another factor in the decline of print media.   In the same article mentioned earlier, the writer said,

"Many publications have closed as print-advertising revenue went down 80% since 2005. The New York Times Co (NYSE:NYT) alone spent $72.0 million, about five percent of its operating cost in 2017. It had also affected hundreds of smaller papers having limited financial resources."

 That pretty much sums it up, without the advertising dollars, especially for a free publication, whether it be print or digital, the newspaper cannot survive. No advertising dollars means no community support. It doesn't matter how many readers the publication has, if it doesn't have the advertisers, it cannot continue.  That is the primary reason the community is losing Baldwin City Radio.  The Gazette itself needs to have at least 100 classified ads every week, along with business advertisers, who will place the banner ads in the pages.  Without that level of support, the writer cannot derive a salary to keep the digital paper going. Without a salary, even a one-person staff cannot cover the community the way it needs to be, due to outside work priorities. The level of advertising commitment is higher for a print paper due to the cost of the paper, printing, distribution, and mailing.  Again, I would love to publish a print paper, but the community does need to step up and support whatever form of paper that the community has.

So what is the future? With digital, the paper isn't limited to the printed words. Other mediums such as video content can be brought in to help tell the story.  In an article published by CNBC,  the CEO of the New York Times, Mark Thompson is quoted as saying that newspaper presses may only have ten years before they are obsolete.  I am not sure that I completely agree with that bleak picture.  In my mind, I believe that there will always be some form of the print media, but digital will be a big part of the future.
Another thought that I have read and heard about is that in the future newspapers will be transformed in a similar manner that what we now know as National Public Radio (NPR) did for radio. That being that newspapers will be non-profit.  Supported by a mix of free will donations and advertisers.  Perhaps each of these futuristic views could be in our future.  What does it mean for Baldwin City?  Only time will tell, but let us all work as a community and see what happens. 

Letter to the Editor: Legal Protection for Faith-Based Adoption Agencies

Wayne Lela, Downers Grove, IL

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Thankfully Kansas state lawmakers have approved legislation that would grant legal protections to faith-based adoption agencies that cite their religious beliefs for not placing children in LGBT homes.  But it's amazing and alarming that this country has sunk so low morally that such legislation is actually needed.  Placing innocent little children with parents who openly set immoral lifestyle examples for their children is almost super-obviously wrong and could be considered a subtle form of child abuse.
     Thinking people have known for centuries that homosexual activity is immoral and a bad legal precedent, plus have known that homosexuality is an objective disorder.  For example, Plato wisely and logically deprecated homosexual activity centuries ago.  Many other intellectuals over the years have also deprecated homosexual activity.  It is relatively easy to point out serious flaws in all the arguments homosexuals use to try to rationalize homosexual activity.  So, to put voluntary aberrant homosexual activity on the same level as involuntary skin color or age is clearly absurd and downright offensive to many people of color.
     It may surprise you that some colleges like Harvard now have officially recognized student groups devoted to promoting the acceptance of BDSM---sexually deviant bondage, discipline, sadism, and masochism. That's right. If you are a psychologically disturbed student who gets sexual thrills from hurting people, some colleges like Harvard now have groups for you! Is that bizarre or what. (Are Neanderthals running that school?)
     Those paying attention can see that the "logic" of heterophobic homosexuals is rapidly leading this society down a slippery slope to a more aberrant, disordered, and irrational society. Legal polygamy is coming soon. Maybe down the line, we'll see "marriage" between straight and homosexual consenting-adult incestuous people! Whoopee! Anyone who thinks this is progress is deluding him/herself.

- Wayne Lela

Marvin Hawver: At the Rail - Week of April 23

By Martin Hawver

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Martin Hawver

The experts, college professors, legislative staffers and all got together last week and computed/calculated/guessed/hoped that the state is going to take in $217 million more than expected in this now-waning fiscal year and $316 million more than expected in the fiscal year that starts July 1.

Well, that’s gotta be good, it means a little more change in the state’s pocket, and maybe nothing that we like to see our state tax money spent on must be cut, or at least not by much.

But it also appears ready to spark a fight among lawmakers. Do they just toss that $80 million into the K-12 school finance bill that got left out due to some last-minute rewrite of the bill and the shuffling of money within the K-12 budget and call it good?

That’s what many lawmakers believe the Kansas Supreme Court wants them to do to get that “adequacy” portion of the school finance operation up to high court standards. The Legislature has already apparently solved—or believes it has solved—the “equity” problem in the school finance arena, making sure that the money is split up among the 286 school districts fairly.

So, there’s just that $80 million now confirmed on hand—and which was actually on hand before that new smiley-face revenue estimate of last Friday—to write the check for, and then start scrapping over what to do with the rest of the $217 million they have to spend if they care to.

Care to spend? We’re betting yes, this being the year that the House members stand for reelection and are hoping to find something nice to do for registered voters who will decide whether they winter in Topeka the next two years.

So, what’s both possible and attractive to those voters in 125 House districts who decide whether legislators make it through this November’s general election?

Well, there’s an income tax cut bill that the Senate has approved, and the House may want to look at. It is a little complex, but basically, it uses money that is freed up by last December’s federal income tax cut. The less federal income tax you pay, the more of your money is available for the state to levy income taxes against. It means more revenue for the state—over and above the $217 million for the remainder of this year and the $316 million for the upcoming fiscal year. That’s a jackpot worth several hundred million dollars that the state didn’t levy, that will just roll in because Congress said so.

Now, everyone wants more money, and many legislators would like to have their name on a bill that hands Kansans money.

Looks like the big fight when lawmakers return for their wrap-up session on Thursday will be whether to hand Kansans an income tax cut.

That federal trickle-down, some lawmakers believe or are at least saying, isn’t the doing of the state and ought to be handed back in the form of election-year tax cuts.  Ideally, each legislator would be able to get that tax cut money for his/her district and distribute it in cash as they are going door-to-door to campaign. But that’s not going to happen.

But watch that new money. Does anyone really care about the cash balance in the State General Fund? When’s the last time you went to a party to celebrate a bigger state ending balance?

Or, do voters care about better health care for the poor, better roads, more law enforcement…or maybe push more of that money into their children’s and grandchildren’s schools?

We’ll see, won’t we…

Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is the publisher of Hawver's Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com