Letters: Dole endorses Brownback, former state party chairmen back Orman, abortion in Senate debate

Stand with Brownback

I have known Sam Brownback for several decades and watched his career rise from young state agriculture secretary to governor. Throughout those years of public service, I have been impressed and inspired by his steadfast dedication to the values and principles that were instilled in him by his parents on their farm near Parker.

As governor, Brownback inherited challenges that could only be solved by tackling them head-on. When he came into office, he found a state government that did not live up to the excellence of her people. He went to work to solve Kansas’ financial troubles, cut taxes to reduce the burden on small businesses, and invest in our great public schools. He had to take bold steps to reform state government in order to make it a better steward of taxpayer money.

Now, four years later, the left is coming after Brownback for keeping his promises and putting Kansas on a better footing. I know what it’s like to be the target of that criticism, but I also know that Brownback has the integrity and honor to stick to his principles and values. A true leader has the courage to stand tall for what he believes in his heart, always aspiring to do the right thing.

I’m asking Kansans – Republicans, independents and Democrats – to stand tall with Sam Brownback this Nov. 4.

Good governance?

In the end, when all the mudslinging is over, elections are about good government, not political parties. In 1903, William Allen White gave some advice to the citizens of Missouri in a hotly contested gubernatorial race between an upstart Democrat and a nominee of the Republican Party bosses.

White published an editorial in the Emporia Gazette that made headlines across the nation in which he reminded Missourians that “parties are means for good government and not its ends.”

This election, the question should be: Have the past four years of a divisive, if not disastrous, socioeconomic experiment been an example of good governance?

Liberal-thinking justices

Kansas Supreme Court Justice Eric Rosen stated that the court’s decision to overturn the death sentences of Jonathan and Reginald Carr was based on the duty to uphold the laws of Kansas (“Carr victims’ families seek removal of two justices,” Oct. 11 Eagle). We all know that justices can and do interpret laws entirely differently.

The two justices up for retention this year, Rosen and Lee Johnson, were appointed by former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. Keep in mind when casting your vote in the November elections that liberal governors will select liberal-thinking attorneys for the Supreme Court. Elections can have far-reaching consequences.

Orman seeks solutions

Democrats and Republicans in Congress seem to spend all their time yelling across the aisle at each other, playing partisan games, then wondering why the real problems do not get solved. This must change.

We are former chairs of the Kansas Republican Party and Kansas Democratic Party, former opponents and party warriors. We think that the upcoming election offers a way to push back against the destructive extremism that has come to dominate both political parties. We urge the election of Greg Orman as an independent senator with the ability to stand in the middle and find actual solutions.

Orman is a businessman who has made a career of bringing people together to find the best ideas and then implement them. Good ideas are not the exclusive property of either political party. As an independent senator, Orman would choose the best solutions without having to answer to a political party. He will answer to the people.

This election represents an opportunity to take bold action that will fix the mess in Kansas and also send a reverberating message to complacent, unresponsive, irresponsible incumbents across the nation. Orman’s election in Kansas will give incentive to overly partisan incumbents to clean up their act, not just for their own survival but for the good of our country.

Flippant attitude

In regard to the debate last week between Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., and independent Greg Orman (Oct. 16 Eagle): I, as a female, take offense to Orman’s flippant attitude toward women and abortion.

Women do not get pregnant by themselves, barring artificial insemination. Since when is abortion just for our reproductive health? Is Orman sure he comprehends the abortion dilemma a woman faces? What makes it so unimportant to him that we, as a country, need to move on because it is settled by law?

As a medical professional, mother and grandmother, I know that life begins at conception. At two weeks into my first pregnancy, I was well aware of changes in my body and that I had a precious life within me. If I had chosen to abort a baby, then I would be the one who would have to answer for the reason I aborted a person. Murder is murder, and yet there are reasons a woman might have to have an abortion. From Orman’s lack of concern, it should be apparent to all women that he has no business in politics.

Not up for debate

On Wednesday Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., and independent Greg Orman debated several important issues (Oct. 16 Eagle). As often happens in Kansas politics, the issue of abortion came up.

Orman believes that Kansas women are capable of making their own reproductive health decisions. Roberts called Orman’s position “unconscionable” and seemed under the impression that abortion may not be legal. Despite the best efforts of politicians like Roberts, abortion is still legal in the United States. Access to this legal medical procedure, on the other hand, is quickly dwindling.

As CEO of South Wind Women’s Center, an organization that provides reproductive health care to Kansas women, I am disheartened that, once again, the lives of women are up for debate. We live in a time when access to abortion is dangerously limited in many parts of this country. Some Kansas politicians have done everything they can to make it as difficult as possible to have a safe, legal medical procedure.

Orman is correct: Kansas women are responsible enough to make their own health care choices, without interference from out-of-touch politicians. He is also correct that we have focused far too much time and energy on this topic. Abortion access is a life-or-death issue for women, but it’s not something that we need politicians to spend any more time legislating. We need politicians who are willing to step away from abortion and spend their time working to make the lives of Kansans better.

This story was originally published October 18, 2014 at 7:03 PM with the headline "Letters: Dole endorses Brownback, former state party chairmen back Orman, abortion in Senate debate."