I am wary of politicians, whether it’s Jimmy Carter or Sam Brownback, who wear their religious faith on their sleeves, especially during campaign seasons.
Politics is not usually a career path to sainthood.
As I say in my column today, Attorney General Phill Kline’s recently revealed campaign memo, in which he instructed his staff in great detail to get him in the pulpit and organize churches for the purposes of money, publicity and votes, struck me as a cautionary example of the danger of mixing religion and politics.
No, Kline is hardly the first politician to use houses of worship for political ends, but he’s obviously raised it to an art form.
It seems tawdry and leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Churches should be about leading people to faith, worship, and God — not the voting booth.
What do you think, bloggers?
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Connie Morris, who was soundly defeated in her re-election bid to the Kansas State Board of Education, is taking two taxpayer-financed trips before she leaves office. Talk about galling — especially after Morris tried last year to bill taxpayers nearly $3,600 for a conference she attended at a Miami resort. And what’s the great educational purpose of these conferences? One that she will attend next month, the Associated Press reported, features speakers on subjects such as how international baccalaureate programs undermine U.S. citizenship; how mental health screening affects gun ownership rights; and minority and low-income families as psychiatric guinea pigs.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
To their credit, top GOP lawmakers such as Sens. John McCain and John Warner are taking a stand against President Bush’s pressure on Congress to redefine the Geneva Conventions to allow harsh interrogations of terror suspects. The GOP rebellion gathered momentum Thursday when Colin Powell, Bush’s first secretary of state, came out against the president’s plan.
“The world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of our fight against terrorism,” Powell wrote in a letter. Bush’s bill “would add to those doubts. Furthermore, it would put our own troops at risk.”
Powell is the loyal soldier to a fault, which only underscores the depth of feeling against this misguided effort.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Not coincidentally, Kansans who have given their e-mail addresses to Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline’s office in order to receive more information about the new concealed -carry law or other office matters have received e-mail from Kline’s re-election campaign.
Carol Williams, executive director of the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission, told Harris News Service that there is nothing in current law to prevent this — in part because the law predates the electronic communication revolution. But it’s a good issue for legislators to consider as they update campaign finance laws. The benefits of incumbency should not include the power to harvest e-mail addresses from the office Web site to hit up people for campaign contributions. These e-mails are especially galling coming from the guy in charge of the state’s no-call list.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Saddam Hussein took control of his own genocide trial long ago, but it’s still amusing to watch the proceedings lurch ever closer toward outright farce.
The judge in the case took it upon himself Thursday to assure the defendant that he wasn’t all that bad: “You were not a dictator,” Judge Abdullah al-Amiri said. “However, the people or the individuals and officials surrounding you created a dictator (out of you).”
“Thank you,” Saddam replied.
I’m glad that’s been cleared up. But there’s still this matter of genocide. A couple of days earlier, the ex-president vowed in court to crush the heads of Kurdish witnesses testifying about the horrors they endured under his rule.
Posted by Dave Knadler
Medicare is attempting to save the financially troubled health care program by charging wealthier beneficiaries higher premiums — even though the wealthy use Medicare the least. But the real ethical dilemma facing Medicare and all health care insurers is whether premiums should be based more on health risks. If someone makes the lifestyle choice to smoke, he will use more health care dollars in treatment. Someone who has paid taxes, saved money and chosen to avoid fatty foods can reasonably argue he shouldn’t have to bear the brunt of those who chose to “supersize.”
Posted by Angie Holladay
After Sept. 11, 2001, the French publication Le Monde declared in a headline, “We are all Americans.” That was then. On the fifth anniversary Monday, it carried an editorial (link in French!) headlined “Bush’s mistakes.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
