It’s understandable that House Speaker Melvin Neufeld, R-Ingalls, is frustrated about not being able to override Gov. Kathleen Sebelius’ veto of the coal-plant bill. But the resolution proposed by House GOP leaders to sue Sebelius is just plain dumb. Sunflower Electric Power Corp. is already challenging whether Kansas Health and Environment Secretary Rod Bremby had the authority to deny its air-quality permit to expand the Holcomb coal plant. The Kansas Supreme Court will decide whether Bremby followed the rule of law. It would be a waste of taxpayer money for the Legislature to go to court over the same issues.
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26 Comments
Thank you Phillip. I think your headline says it all.
“…just plain dumb”
No kidding.
Imgaine the Chaos if everytime a Governor or the president got sued everytime they used a veto pen.
Very well said Phillip. I concur 100%. Why not sue the Bush administration for their vetos?
If it’s dumb, it’ll get done. These people represent Kansas and have an image to uphold!
The Bush administration once claimed the EPA didn’t have the authority to do their job. The ultraconservative Supreme Court said that the Bush regime was being just plain dumb. Clearly Neufield is in the Bush leagues.
Neufeld can’t leave well enough alone. Truly a world-class numbskull, even without considering his new tactic of bundling the Holcomb proposal into practically every remaining piece of legislation to come before the House.
Speaker Neufeld, stop holding the voters of Kansas hostage to the demands of Big Coal. Stop the demagoguery, be responsible, and try to deliver some REAL economic development for Western Kansas.
Almost sounds like the Democratic Congress in D.C. They want to blur the lines of legislative powers by having their own “Salem Witch Trials.”
Suing to get their way legislatively if vetoed by an executive sounds too much like legislation from the bench.
Wow. The Kansas Legislature is completely dominated by Republicans, yet “Regular” manages to cough up “blame the Democrats” bile anyway. Truly amazing.
:::eyeroll:::
Hey CF, you know what is interesting about that? It was the end of protection for Cedar Bluff when neufeld got caught christmas treeing that stuff before.
He was a BIG supporter of Cedar Bluff, and I give him props for that. But he told us for years not to worry, that he had the lake protected by something he inserted into a budget measure, I think when he was head of Appropriations.
Well, guess what? That was struck down eventually and Hays and Russell went on to drain the lake. It was struck down because… as the sebelius team noted, it’s unconstitutional to have two subjects in one bill.
So, in good faith he did think he had the lake protected. But it ate our lunch in the end because THIS was the way he did it.
You’d think some folks would try something different instead of doing the same old things harder and faster. This tagging of holcomb on to every possible “economic development” bill wont work for Sunflower any better than it worked for Cedar Bluff.
I guess “some folks” never learn…
“And Daddy wont you take me back to Muhlenburg county…”
“I’m sorry my son, but yer too late in asking. Mr. Peabody’s coal train has hauled it away”.
thomaswitt
Posted May 5, 2008 at 1:52 pm | Permalink
Wow. The Kansas Legislature is completely dominated by Republicans, yet “Regular” manages to cough up “blame the Democrats” bile anyway. Truly amazing.
:::eyeroll:::
—————-
The proper graphical response is “colon roll colon”
:roll:
(chortles)
House Speaker Melvin Neufeld, R-Ingalls doesn;t make me ashamed to be a Republican, but it sure makes me ashamed that he is one. Drop it Neufeld. The system has spoken. As a legislative body, your job is over in the Holcomb matter. Get back to business. Or…….Just go home.
And what is Neufeld’s educational background, again?
The vote is in, the override failed. Suing is pointless after that. Sebelius did what she felt was the right thing and Kansas Congress agrees.
There’s nothing left to discuss.
Move on already.
Yup: Dumb.
This tagging of holcomb on to every possible “economic development” bill wont work for Sunflower any better than it worked for Cedar Bluff.
————-
farmgrrl, this bunch gives me the impression they think laws are only for the common folk and that doesn’t include superior beings like themselves who are above all that.
They want to make laws, not follow them.
Haven’t they also set new records for doing nothing? Guess for that we should be thankful. Imagine the damage they could have done.
LOL! Thomas . . .
Ruffin will now sue the state for “slot machine infringement” Can we sue the new stadium for “football team infringement?” (coke zero theme)
Someone should send Neufeld some cheese to go with his whine.
:)
Uh, if the Secretary of Health and Environment doesn’t have the authority to deny an air-quality permit to an obvious large-scale source of hazardous pollution, then why do we have such an office? So we can fantasize about being safe without the responsibility of actually doing anything, or so we’ll have somebody other than ourselves to blame when our children start dying?
A pollution sensor in a state park in a remote area of Kansas is registering ozone levels in the unhealthful range on some summer days. No one seems to know where the ozone’s coming from.
All Things Considered, May 5, 2008 ·
You can hear this surprising story at:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90201526
Not even the climate change deniers weighed in here?
Not even dinosaur fuel shill “Franklin”
Hoo boy Neufeld IS on a lost cause.
If lawsuits are a viable response to political problems, then perhaps Neufeld should be sued for being such a failure as a Speaker. The original override was only one vote shy. How can he call himself an effective Speaker when, after 3+ weeks of recess, he can’t find one more vote? It even appears that he lost Republican Joann Pottorff, who voted to sustain the veto this time, but was in favor of override before the recess. She is about as pro-business as they come.
Kelly – and don’t forget that Paul’s favorite Republic Bon-Bon got thrashed last year – providing the margin in that vote!
:)
Personally, I think it’s a great idea–what a precedent! I find a Rep pushing the idea somewhat akin to shooting oneself in the foot to win a marathon. Can you imagine the lawsuits piling up from the last 7 years?