Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline told The Eagle editorial board Tuesday that he isn’t bothered by a leaked campaign memo that reveals his aggressive strategy for fundraising in churches. In the detailed memo, Kline instructs staff to “get the pastor to invite five ‘money people’ whom he knows can help.” And he says that on Sundays, he is “able to preach at several churches where service times are different” to maximize his political outreach.
“Get me in their pulpits,” Kline also writes about Wichita pastors Terry Fox and Joe Wright, whose fundraising is needed “to match Tiller’s blood money,” referring to local abortion provider George Tiller.
There’s no evidence Kline is violating any campaign laws about church-state boundaries in such activities. As Kline, who often speaks about his Christian faith, told the editorial board, “I’ve been talking to churches for years — this is nothing new.”
But the memo could hurt Kline by reinforcing some Kansans’ perception that he is too closely tied to religious conservatives’ social agenda.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
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