Outgoing Attorney General Phill Kline is appointing Wichita attorney Don McKinney, an anti-abortion activist, to handle his case against Wichita abortion doctor George Tiller — regardless of what happens at today’s Sedgwick County court hearing on whether to reinstate misdemeanor charges against Tiller. “This appointment of an independent special prosecutor will remove this investigation from a highly charged political process,” Kline claimed. Oh, please. This appointment is about trying to continue an ideologically motivated investigation and forcing incoming Attorney General Paul Morrison to have to end it.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
UPDATE: Judge Paul Clark refused today to reinstate the charges against Tiller.
Like so many presidents, Gerald Ford looks better in hindsight than he did in live action, when every move he made was tainted by his pardon of Richard Nixon. The points of pride of the 38th president’s 895-day tenure include: His courage in stepping into a constitutional crisis. His humility, honesty, hard work and lack of opportunism. His inspiring wife, Betty, who proved just as well-grounded as he did. Both his respect for Congress and his fearless use of the veto pen — 66 times. Kansans also can feel a special connection to Ford because of his Nebraska roots and his selection of Russell’s own Bob Dole as his running mate in 1976.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
During the heat of a legislative session, when politics is on full display in the Statehouse, few would have the courage to declare legislators underpaid. But credit goes to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius for calling attention to the issue last week. “I think, frankly, we are overdue to look at salaries across the board,” she said, noting that Attorney General-elect Paul Morrison will see a $50,000 pay cut in leaving the Johnson County district attorney job. The fact is that even with the available add-ons for interim work and expenses, the average $23,300 salary per legislator does not cover the lost income and other costs of serving, especially those associated with constituent service in geographically large districts. Better compensation might attract better-quality lawmakers, too. Avoiding the issue of whether they deserve more pay “makes it more difficult for good people to look at public service,” she said.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
I was surprised when President Bush said last week that Social Security reform was one area on which he hoped to reach an agreement with the new Congress. After all, Bush’s plan for private accounts was a nonstarter with many Democrats — and couldn’t even get a hearing in the GOP-controlled Congress. But Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., also promoted private savings accounts as a bipartisan solution in a Washington Post op-ed piece this week. Under his plan, an individual personal retirement account would be “established for every American at birth and would be endowed with a $1,000 contribution from the federal government.” Then, beginning in 2009, “1 percent of every worker’s paycheck would be automatically deposited into his own account for the first $100,000 earned annually, with his employer required to match this 1 percent contribution.” Assuming a 6.59 percent rate of return, Sessions calculates that someone making the median household income ($46,000 in 2005) would retire with almost $300,000, and that money could be passed on to heirs.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., isn’t doing well in Iowa, according to a poll last week. He is tied for sixth place with four other possible GOP presidential candidates, each with only 1 percent support. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani were the top Republicans with 27 percent and 26 percent support, respectively.
Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., also isn’t faring that well. She came in fourth among Iowa Democrats, with 10 percent support. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and former Sen. John Edwards were tied for first with 22 percent each, and Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack was third with 12 percent. Meanwhile, Obama has erased Clinton’s big lead in New Hampshire, according to another poll.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Federal investigators already determined that $1 billion in aid to Hurricane Katrina victims was misspent. Now they are estimating that another $1 billion may have been wasted on no-bid contracts with businesses. Some waste is expected in a crisis, but not $2 billion worth.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
