Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arguably never stopped running for president after losing in the 2000 GOP primaries to George Bush. So it surprised no one Sunday when he said he’s setting up the necessary committee to raise money for a 2008 run. Two big questions: Will the big business contributors and the conservative faithful favor him this time? And will voters be comfortable with a 72-year-old first-termer?
Meanwhile, Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., sent another signal Sunday of his willingness to run for the Democratic nod. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., continues to acknowledge that he’s thinking about it.
One big problem facing all of the above, along with other likely contenders such as Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and even Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., is voters’ traditional disdain for sitting senators who seek the presidency. The complete list of those who bucked the trend consists of John F. Kennedy in 1960 and Warren Harding in 1920.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
It’s been a great few days for topical comedy, what with Donald Rumsfeld and Kevin Federline both getting the hook. But now what? “Not since Oct. 10, 1973 — when Vice President Spiro T. Agnew [in photo] resigned just hours after Elvis and Priscilla Presley unplugged their marriage — has topical humor received such a body blow,” wrote Hart Seely in a Los Angeles Times commentary. Reflecting on the previous departures of John Ashcroft and Tom Ridge, Seely also mourned the passing from the limelight of George Allen, Mark Foley and “that congressman in Pennsylvania who denied choking his mistress.” Joke tellers will just have to mine what they can from Dick Cheney, John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Thanks to Ken Miller of Wichita for the winning caption in this week’s contest. Perhaps the guy in this cartoon should have had a few less bruises on him, considering the "thumpin’" K State gave to the Texas Longhorns this past Saturday. Anyhow, here are some of the best of the other entries. The numbers were down again, incidentally, for this one. Maybe I should stay away from sports issues when I draw these things. Glenda Freitag came very close to winning with her caption which took off in a completely different direction: "Thank goodness the voting is over! Now we can get back to what’s important." Brad Allen, also of Wichita, kept it short: "Finally! Some uppers!" Ruth Allen of Wichita was less than optimistic: "Take 2 aspirin and call Merlin the Magician in the morning." Jaime Simpson concentrated on WSU: "Just a spoonful of Turgeon helps the medicine go down!" Richard Julius of Belle Plaine submitted: "Is that the light at the end of the tunnel, or am I still seeing stars?" And from Bruce Cole of Wichita: "Doc says I’ll feel better if I spend more time INSIDE."
The White House has long contended that the Iraq war is not about oil. But the Washington Post noted that President Bush’s pre-midterm statements suggested otherwise. Or maybe it’s that it wasn’t about oil to begin with but now is. In any case, Bush said in Colorado, for example: “You can imagine a world in which these extremists and radicals got control of energy resources. And then you can imagine them saying, ‘We’re going to pull a bunch of oil off the market to run your price of oil up unless you do the following. And the following would be along the lines of, well, ‘Retreat and let us continue to expand our dark vision.’”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
There is some talk about whether Kansas should consider a constitutional amendment to protect stem-cell research, as Missouri voters approved last week. Don’t bother. Unlike in Missouri, a constitutional amendment in Kansas has to receive two-thirds approval in the Legislature — and that’s not going to happen.
Rather than passing yet another amendment to our constitution, voters should make clear to the Legislature that they don’t want undue restrictions on stem-cell research. A poll commissioned last year by the Kansas Coalition for Lifesaving Cures found that 79 percent of voters agreed the state policy should be that “any stem-cell research, therapies or cures that are permitted by federal law should be allowed in Kansas — provided that such activities are conducted ethically and safely and do not involve human cloning to create babies.”
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
The Sedgwick County Zoo just keeps getting bigger and wilder and better. The latest news: An anonymous donor (thank you, whomever you are) recently gave $1 million to the zoo to start a new tiger exhibit, scheduled to open in late 2008 or early 2009.
Tigers, the largest cats in the animal kingdom, are also among the most popular zoo attractions, but the Sedgwick County Zoo hasn’t had an Asian tiger exhibit since the 1980s.
They’ll generate a lot of excitement when they return.
Among the zoo’s other ambitious plans in coming years: adding four more elephants and expanding their acreage to roam, doubling the size of the jungle exhibit, and adding sea lions.
Wichitans tend to disparage the cultural offerings in their city, but they should be proud of this first-class regional attraction.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
With $10 million in federal funding to work with over the next three years, advocates of charter schools are pursuing ways to expand on Kansas’ 27 such schools. One proposal would open two charters in Topeka’s historic former Sumner Elementary School. Charters are championed by controversial Education Commissioner Bob Corkins, though state law still requires that each charter be approved by its local school board and the State Board of Education. State board member Bill Wagnon got at one good reason for skepticism about this charter push: “My general concern about the whole notion of charters is that it’s premised on the assumption the public school system is not responsive to innovation. I don’t buy into that one bit.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
