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Daily Archives: Nov. 18, 2007
Another reason for Congress to fix immigration
Nov. 18, 20071:03 a.m.
New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer took a beating before abandoning his idea of issuing driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants. The issue also scuffed up presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who tried to admire Spitzer’s proposal without also supporting it. Spitzer gets credit, though, for identifying the problem. “The federal government has lost control of its borders, has allowed millions of undocumented immigrants to enter our country and now has no solution to deal with it,†Spitzer said Wednesday. Remember that it was not so long ago that even conservative Republicans such as Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Goddard, saw the common sense in trying to ensure that undocumented residents aren’t also unlicensed drivers. “If they’re working here, I want them driving legally here,†Tiahrt told The Eagle editorial board in April 2001. He changed his mind after Sept. 11. Now, illegal immigration is the most radioactive of political issues.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Rather walk than pay $10 to park
Nov. 18, 20071:02 a.m.
Here’s something to talk about for those studying parking around Wichita’s downtown arena: During Garth Brooks’ nine-show run at the new 18,500-seat Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., the 1,000-spot parking garage across the street averaged only 200 cars a performance. Rather than pay $10 to park in the arena’s garage, concertgoers opted to park in surface lots. “People are parking and they’re walking,†Bruce Campbell, Kansas City’s manager of parking services, told the Kansas City Star. “The whole thing about people up in arms about having to walk to the Sprint Center just has not happened.†You suppose Wichitans likewise would vote with their feet against convenient but pricy parking?
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Why Bush is no Lincoln, Reagan or Roosevelt
Nov. 18, 20071:01 a.m.
Maybe it takes a funny politician to know one. In any case, many will wonder about Bob Dole’s assessment of George W. Bush’s place among witty presidents: “I’d put him in the top 20,†the former Kansas senator told Bloomberg News. Dole’s book “Great Presidential Wit†only included the first 41 presidents, listing Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Theodore Roosevelt “in a class by themselves.â€
Two examples of Bush’s humor, which can be self-deprecating:
When asked last month about the prospects of a recession, he said, “You need to talk to economists. I think I got a B in Econ 101.â€
And after retitling Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff “the Homeland Guy,†Bush said, “Look, nobody has accused me of being Shakespeare, you know?â€
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Carbon emissions get around
Nov. 18, 20071:00 a.m.
Rep. Jerry Moran, R-Hays, told a Salina crowd last week that he’s hearing plenty of reaction around the state to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s denial of permits for more coal-fired power plants near Holcomb. In western Kansas, he said, there is a “real sense of, ‘Why are people from somewhere else telling us what to do in our own backyard?’†The reason, at least in part, is that the what starts in western Kansas’ backyard won’t say there, including the proposed plants’ estimated 11 million tons of carbon dioxide a year.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
