A lot of Americans believe that all politicians are greedy and corrupt. The Abramoff scandal, which is now reaching mainstream America, just reinforces that view.
As Richard Cohen wrote in an op-ed piece for The Washington Post: “What’s stunning about Washington — as opposed to, say, Las Vegas in the bad old Mafia days — is how open the whole process was. Abramoff had his own restaurant, a place called Signatures, and supplied skyboxes for sporting events the way old-time political bosses used to send over coal in wintertime. Abramoff could send a cooperative and worthy congressman on a golfing trip to Scotland or to a day at the beach in Florida. He liked to quote from "The Godfather," but Don Corleone was a model of discretion compared with Abramoff. The Godfather’s olive oil business was a front. Abramoff skipped that step. His fake business and his real business were one and the same — influence peddling.”
Perhaps, though, the public will begin to take politics back by demanding meaningful campaign finance reform and other changes to a system that is arguably out of control.
Posted by Melissa Cooley
U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas Donohue (in photo) said Wednesday that the United States must improve education to ensure an adequate supply of workers. As a result, the U.S. Chamber plans to measure and rank the performance of state school systems, with the aim of helping businesses decide where to locate.
“The bottom line is that this nation cannot rightfully expect to lead the 21st century’s information and technology-driven global economy when we have upwards of 30 percent of our young people not even graduating from high school,” he said.
That’s not the message that the Kansas Chamber has been sending in recent years. It has resisted increased spending on education and discounted Gov. Kathleen Sebelius’ contention that investing in education is a key to economic development.
Will it change its message now?
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
“Flock of Dodos: The Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus” is a new documentary on the Kansas and Dover, Pa., evolution trials. Filmmaker Randy Olson, a former University of Kansas student and marine biologist, said part of his intention was to explore how ID proponents successfully sold their ideas to the public.
One shrewd move: They hired a public relations firm. Scientists and environmentalists aren’t so media-savvy, he noted. They “don’t understand the fact that we live in a society where the facts alone are not sufficient,” he told the Lawrence Journal-World. “Science absolutely requires two elements — you do the science and then you communicate it. Science really neglects the communications side.”
He’s right about that — scientists have not done a good job of defending evolution theory in language that the lay public can understand.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Judge Samuel Alito looks to be in a strong position going into his Senate confirmation hearings next week. He received a “well-qualified rating” Wednesday from the American Bar Association, which based its rating on confidential interviews with hundreds of his colleagues and on analysis of his court writings.
The growing sense is that Alito is solidly conservative but not an ideologue; he garners high praise from former colleagues and students, even liberals, who have worked with him, as having a judicious and fair-minded temperament, with a healthy appreciation for minority rights.
Tough questions remain about his views on Roe v. Wade, executive powers and other knotty issues. But so far, Alito remains on a fast track to the Supremes.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
President Bush said Tuesday that partisan politics were blocking the full reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act. And spokesman Scott McClellan charged that Senate Democrats are doing the bidding of liberal special interest groups.
It’s true that most of the lawmakers who resisted the law’s full reauthorization were Democrats. However, they are joined by some Republicans who care about civil liberties and privacy rights. And there are conservatives outside of the Senate who are consistent in supporting individual rights and limited government. Former GOP Rep. Bob Barr, for example, heads a group called Patriots to Restore Checks and Balances. He argued: “Unless this bill contains meaningful reforms restoring much-needed constitutional checks and balances to the law, the privacy of all Americans remains in grave jeopardy.”
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius signaled a mild interest last week in stepping into the Kansas State Board of Education races of four of the six conservative Republicans responsible for the embarrassing new science standards. Unfortunately, her statement to The Topeka Capital-Journal — “That could happen. I think it’s a critical position” — was hardly a war cry, and in keeping with her tepid postvote declaration that the board had taken a “step in the wrong direction.” But the state board has damaged the state’s reputation and risked the integrity of the schools’ science education. As the state’s CEO, Sebelius should fight back.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Dave Bayouth’s arena-over-the-river idea is too late and probably too expensive, but the Sedgwick County Commission was wise this week to ask arena architects for a quick assessment of the idea, just to cover all the bases and address public questions.
The river arena proposal has garnered at least some public support, although not enough to warrant spending much time and expense doing a detailed analysis.
County Manager Bill Buchanan said they’ll ask the architects for “ballpark info” on the costs and practicality of the plan. The most obvious stumbling block could be the added expense of such an ambitious engineering project.
Of course, the public still hasn’t seen the arena design plans for the east site. Those drawings, if exciting enough, could end the discussion of alternatives.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
