Wagle, eyeing diplomatic post, enlisted Trump friend after vote to aid his gaming interests

Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle, seeking a White House appointment to a diplomatic post in 2018, listed billionaire Phil Ruffin, a close friend of President Donald Trump, as a reference days after she voted for a bill beneficial to Ruffin’s business interests in Kansas.

Wagle, a Wichita Republican now running for U.S. Senate, expressed interest in serving as an ambassador to Ireland, Belize and Belgium, among other positions. She outlined her aspirations in a May 7, 2018 email to a political operative soon after the legislative session ended that year.

“I’m thinking its an excellent time,” to leave Kansas politics, she wrote, asking the operative to forward her cover letter, and resume that included Ruffin as a reference, to a White House official.

The request came 10 days after Wagle cast a vote to ease the way for racetrack casinos in Kansas, a longtime goal of Ruffin, a Las Vegas-based casino mogul who owns both the Wichita Greyhound Park and the Woodlands racing track in Kansas City, Kansas.

The bill failed. But Wagle’s vote went against years of opposition from the state senator to expanding legal gaming in Kansas.

In 2014, Wagle criticized Ruffin’s efforts to hold a new vote in Sedgwick County to allow slot machines at the Wichita Greyhound Park after voters narrowly rejected the idea in 2007.

“Those of us who oppose gaming don’t have millions of dollars to fend off Mr. Ruffin every time he wants to push a ballot initiative,” Wagle said.

Wagle campaign spokesman Matt Beynon said in an email that Wagle’s vote in favor of the 2018 gaming bill came “after meeting with Mr. Ruffin and other leaders in the Wichita business community and after learning about the uneven tax treatment that had been leveled on the industry. Tax fairness and tax equity is a top concern for Senator Wagle.”

In a brief interview, Ruffin said Wagle would be a good U.S. senator, adding that she knows a lot of people and “handles herself well.” He dismissed the idea that her change in position on expanded gaming led to his support, saying “we lost anyway” and that “her vote didn’t matter one way or the other.”

Wagle’s pitch to serve as an ambassador came weeks after another Wichita Republican, Mike Pompeo, was confirmed as U.S. secretary of state in April of 2018.

Pompeo, a former Kansas congressman, became the second top state official to join the State Department in the Trump administration. Former Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback was named ambassador at-large for international religious freedom earlier that year.

But Beynon said Pompeo had no role in promoting her name at the White House.

“While she does not recall speaking to Secretary Pompeo about her interest in serving in the Administration, she did reach out to the President’s team and some of their mutual friends, including Phil Ruffin, in this process,” Beynon said.

“Anyone who knows Susan knows how important faith is in her life, so she had specifically explored opportunities to serve in predominantly Catholic countries that had a strong Catholic faith tradition.”

Ruffin, who grew up in Wichita, has long-standing ties to Trump, who was best man at his 2008 wedding. They co-own Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas, where the president stayed this week when he visited Nevada for a campaign rally.

The hotel paid Trump $28 million in 2016, the same year as his successful presidential run. Ruffin previously told The Star the money was for back fees owed to Trump when the payment drew scrutiny during a congressional hearing last year.

Ruffin was also an early mega-donor to Make American Great Again PAC, which formed in 2015 to support Trump.

In a brief interview Thursday, Ruffin said he never spoke to Trump or anyone at the White House about Wagle, but confirmed that she had been interested in becoming a diplomat.

“I think she wanted to be an ambassador, but I never took any action,” Ruffin said. “She commented that she wanted to be an ambassador, which a lot of people do.”

After spending years on opposing sides, it’s unclear what led to an improved relationship between Ruffin and Wagle. Ruffin gave $1,000 to her state Senate campaign in October 2017, about six months before she cast her pro-gaming vote.

Since then, he has donated an additional $1,000 to Wagle’s state Senate campaign and contributed $5,600, the maximum donation under federal law, to Wagle’s federal campaign.

After a few questions, Ruffin’s tone turned combative and he hung up.

“What are you trying to find out, young man? What are you trying to do? I’ve answered your goddamn questions -- what’s the reason for this call? I told you I was supporting her,” Ruffin said. “Goodbye. You know, I don’t know what you people are trying to dig up, say. You people are dishonest, for God’s sake. I told you I support her, what else can I say? Goodbye.”

At the Kansas Capitol, Wagle is orchestrating a blockade of Medicaid expansion until an anti-abortion amendment to the state constitution clears the Legislature. But even as the maneuvering has made her the central figure in Kansas politics at the moment, the 2018 job pitch reveals her ambitions had turned to Washington.

“Even though I have two and a half years left in my Senate Presidency, I’m thinking its an excellent time to transition out of Kansas politics as we elect a new Governor,” Wagle wrote in a May 7, 2018, email to Travis Smith, a political operative at Axiom Strategies, a political consulting firm based in Kansas City.

Wagle asked Smith to send her cover letter and resume to Johnny DeStefano, a Kansas City native who was at the time serving as the director of presidential personnel for Trump.

In her cover letter, Wagle wrote that she was “inspired by the work the president has done” and that was why she was asking to be considered for an ambassadorship.

“I am willing to discuss any opening, but I am particularly interested in Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues, Ambassador to Belize, Ireland, Belgium or any United Nations Ambassador post,” Wagle wrote.

Wagle was never nominated and it’s unclear whether the White House seriously considered her for a position. A former administration official remarked in an email that “about every state senator in the country thought they should be an ambassador.”

The White House declined to comment on Wagle’s attempt to land an ambassadorship.

Beynon said that Wagle like many Republicans “was excited about the opportunity to serve in President Trump’s administration and she explored opportunities to serve in capacities like an ambassadorship… And while this opportunity never materialized, it was a good example of when one door closes another door opens to serve – now running for the United States Senate.”

Beynon said that Wagle was committed to going to Washington to work for Trump’s agenda. Wagle met with the White House political team on February 11 to discuss her campaign for U.S. Senate while in Washington for a fundraiser.

On her resume, Wagle listed Ruffin as well as Lisa Nelson, CEO of the American Legislative Exchange Council, as references. Wagle currently sits on ALEC’s board of directors.

She also suggested she could obtain a letter of recommendation from Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley, a Topeka Democrat who has served in the Legislature with Wagle since the 90s. Wagle wrote that although the two have their differences, they are “close friends” who have sponsored legislation together.

Hensley said Wagle’s description of their relationship was true and that he would have considered writing her a letter. But he’s not sure if he would now.

“She’s made such a mockery out of the legislative process by tying Medicaid expansion with abortion,” Hensley said.

The Star’s Jason Hancock and McClatchy DC’s Michael Wilner contributed reporting

This story was originally published February 20, 2020 at 4:44 PM.