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Chambers – The political shenanigans of the Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce are only outdone by those of the Kansas Chamber of Commerce. Both have contributed to conservative challengers who are running against moderate Republican incumbents in the Aug. 7 primary. Not content to endorse and help finance those upstart challengers, the Wichita chamber sent out mailings blaming the incumbents for Boeing’s decision to leave Wichita – a decision that left as much egg on the face of the chamber itself as anywhere else. We are proud that our local chambers in both Winfield and Arkansas City have resigned from the state chamber. When this political season is over, our chambers can get back to the business of promoting business, with credibility. We wonder if the Wichita and state chambers will ever recover their standing as organizations chartered to speak and act on behalf of business, without a narrow political agenda.
Winfield Daily Courier
Senate primaries – Both Gov. Sam Brownback and Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer are campaigning actively in the upcoming election. They are throwing their support and helping steer the dollars of outside interests behind conservative candidates for the Legislature. As the House already is controlled by the conservative wing, Brownback and Co. have targeted the Kansas Senate in particular. If successful, there will be no effective opposition to the governor’s wildly implausible fantasy. Brownback’s road map for Kansas leads straight to a cliff.
Hays Daily News
It’s the Kansas Senate that has kept Brownback from achieving even more of his social re-engineering of the state on his way to building a base from which to seek another run at the presidency. So Brownback has put a target on the backs of key senators in an attempt to get them removed. While it’s beyond unseemly for a sitting governor to attack members of his own party, it’s just politics. And when it comes to politics, the idea of civility and compromise took a sharp downward turn when Brownback came home to run for president.
Salina Journal
It’s easy to see how Brownback’s push to oust moderate Republicans who would stand in the way of his radical agenda has become a rallying cry for Democrats to register as Republicans. One such key race has Republican Larry Powell of Garden City, a Brownback ally, hoping to unseat Senate President Steve Morris, R-Hugoton – a change we do not need. As a leader in the Statehouse, Morris could be counted on to work with colleagues of all political persuasions to get things done.
Garden City Telegram
Education funding – We find it both disconcerting and disappointing that state educational funding continues to lag below what is mandated by the state constitution, and what is needed to provide a well-educated and trained workforce for businesses either already here or looking to invest in this state. The recent cuts in both state income taxes and state sales tax will make it doubly difficult to come up with more money for educational funding next session. But legislators may have no choice if the courts rule in the school districts’ favor.
Daily Union, Junction City
