One must look no further for evidence of this than KAKE Channel 10′s website where a condensed version was published under the byline of the Associated Press with no mention of “Analysis,” “Opinion” or otherwise with it.

The fact is in the past decade, “Analysis” has become in vogue with the press to justify using opinion pieces as news. Some claim it to be the brainchild of the mainstream media attempting to further influence the electorate. More likely it is simply the symptom of a press corps seriously strapped for cash partly due to them being completely out of touch on how to report real news relevant to the public.

Whatever the reason, it’s clear they are written in an attempt to publish select facts and influence the public. In this instance, it appears Milburn is attempting to explain away Brownback’s superior proposals on education in Kansas. It’s interesting that in attempting to place blame on the courts rather than the politicians for out of control education spending, Milburn actually validates past arguments by conservatives that unelected judges in Kansas virtually control over half the state’s budget.

While in the actual piece this isn’t necessarily the explicit message, it’s interesting to note this piece from the KAKE Channel 10 revision.

Both Republican Sam Brownback and Democrat Tom Holland say they will focus on preserving what they see as an excellent system of K-12 schools. Where they differ is how they would steer the behemoth system that consumes more than 50 percent of the state budget.

History would suggest that it’s more likely that litigation, not pontification, will decide the course.

In the past two decades, action or the threat of from the Kansas Supreme Court has played a bigger role than activity in the Statehouse.

If these last two sentences are true, then that means that unelected and unaccountable judges control our tax dollars and how they are spent, not elected officials who represent the people. This stronger language by KAKE 10 shows the power of “Analysis” pieces by the press and how they can morph into a story of their own. It just so happens that KAKE happened to take the piece in a direction that highlighted past arguments made by conservatives.

The piece also once again highlights Holland’s curious stance against revising the state’s finance formula due to increased property taxes while simultaneously advocating for increasing a district’s local option budget.

In any case, the public can analyze this, “Analysis” is just another word for “Editorial.”

It’s an interesting strategy that so far seems to be reaping what it is sewing. While Holland has consistently and loudly attacked Republican Sam Brownback from the halls of the state capital, he swung and missed when it came time for his innovative ideas on how to move Kansas forward.

The Topeka Capital Journal highlighted Holland’s non-sense best when it quoted Holland as saying Brownback’s education plan would result in, “significantly higher property taxes and guaranteed litigation.”

Too bad for Tom that Kansas schools have been suing the state for more than a decade and in fact won a verdict for more than $1 billion in additional funding, all under the direction of a Democratic administration. The state is faced with even more litigation this year, again under a Democratic administration. So far it seems to me and many Kansans that if a Democrat like Holland had a better idea, he’s had more than enough time to propose and pass it. Holland must be pretty dense to make such a statement in light of current and previous litigation.

But Holland just couldn’t stop himself and topped off his statement by expressing his support for… you guessed it… higher property taxes.

Holland said if elected governor he would maintain the state’s constitutional obligation to equalize opportunities for children while supporting a move to grant local school boards authority to raise additional property tax for schools through the local option budget process.

Tom, what do you think “local option budget process” means? Uhh, property taxes Tom, it means property taxes. And you just said you’d support raising them.

Tuesday we found out that Holland is just more of the same when it comes to what Kansas Democrats want to happen to our state. More money for the education bureaucracy, at a time when our state can least afford it, higher taxes and more government. That isn’t a detailed plan, it’s a hastily laid sketch for disaster.

While Holland has been screaming at the top of his lung, hoping to stick anything he can to his opponent, Sam Brownback has been touring the state, actually meeting with voters and fulfilling his promise to visit every one of Kansas’ 105 counties. So far Holland has become familiar with Shawnee County, especially the capital grounds, but so far has failed to meet many folks outside of that area.

A new KWCH/Survey USA poll shows that Holland is way behind Republican Sam Brownback. Brownback leads Holland 67% to 25% with a margin of error of only 3.9%.

It’s unfortunate that Holland has decided that campaigning means calling press conference after press conference at the capital and then saying one thing when he supports another. But perhaps Holland knows he doesn’t stand a chance against the Republican wave that’s coming to Kansas this November and this is just his last desperate attempt to spend as much time as he can in the capital.

And will an un-elected Democrat Secretary of State give Republican candidates the run around?

State Representative Bill Light

State Representative Bill Light withdrew his candidacy for re-election to the Kansas House May 12. Light was facing a strong conservative challenge in the August primary by Dan Widder of Ulysses.

In a Hutchinson News article, Light claimed that his retirement had nothing to do with his conservative challenger, even claiming that he didn’t know Widder. However, the article notes that Light filed for re-election in January and told the Hutchinson News in November that he liked to file in January before the start of a legislative session, “so that all will know my intentions.”

When contacted, Widder stated that he had attended a legislative coffee a few weeks ago where he questioned Light about the upcoming budget debate. While he didn’t disclose his planned challenge to Light, he said that Light certainly knew who he was.

So apparently something happened during this legislative session that changed Light’s mind about serving another term. That something, I believe, is Light’s realization that voting for a massive tax increase and facing a serious conservative challenger meant his chances at winning another term were little to none.

When asked about Light’s withdraw, Widder reiterated that it changed nothing as far as he is concerned.

“I don’t plan to do anything differently,” Widder stated.

In his bid to be placed on the ballot, Widder and campaign volunteers collected the signatures of more than 175 registered Republicans in his district. Widder stated that he contacted the Kansas Secretary of State’s office prior to beginning to collect signatures and asked what the procedures were for being placed on the ballot via petition. Widder’s campaign then collected the signatures and submitted them to the Sec. of State’s office.

However the Sec. of State rejected the petitions stating that they needed to be signed by the volunteers that collected the signatures, according to Widder. So he directed all volunteers that collected signatures to sign the petition and resubmitted it to the Sec. of State’s office.

Once again, Widder said, the petition was rejected. This time another contact in the Sec. of State’s office said that each page of the petition needed to be signed on the back with the volunteer that collected those signatures. Widder stated that he simply put all the signatures together into one petition and had all volunteers sign together. Further, the Sec. of State’s office claimed that volunteers should have only signed and dated the petition after collecting all of the signatures. Due to time constraints and lack of communication with the Sec. of State’s office, Widder elected to file by fee.

Widder claimed that he made numerous phone calls to the Sec. of State’s office before beginning to collect signatures and at no time did anyone detail to him that volunteers must sign the back of each petition page they collected. Widder said each time he called he seemed to get a different reason why he couldn’t file via petition.

The Sec. of State’s office is currently being held by un-elected Democrat Chris Biggs. Biggs is one of five Democrats holding statewide office that were not elected but rather appointed by either former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius or current Gov. Mark Parkinson. Both Sebelius and Parkinson appointed only Democrats, regardless of the party affiliation of the previous office holder.

And as this Kansas Liberty article notes, Bigg’s appointment also means that the state’s three person canvassing board is now held entirely by unelected Democrats. The board is tasked with verifying the state’s election results.

The 124th House district may be a template for the rest of the state and a significant sign of how the August elections may pan out. Gov. Parkinson and other Democrats claim that they will be rewarded for raising taxes on Kansas families, but Light’s withdraw seems to indicate that liberal Democrats and Republicans know otherwise.

Democrat Dennis Moore also withdrew for re-election this year after voting in favor of national health care and multiple bailouts. The two situations are eerily similar.

Kansas Senator and KS-04 Congressional candidate Jean Schodorf

When push came to shove, State Senator Jean Schodorf clung to her pro-abortion beliefs and was the deciding vote in downing HB 2115, a compromise abortion reporting law that fell one vote short of a veto override in the Senate.

Schodorf claims that she’ll be working on a “compromise” bill in the future, but I wouldn’t hold my breathe. Former Governor and abortion cheerleader Kathleen Sebelius vetoed a similar piece of legislation last year. If Schodorf was serious about passing something meaningful then she should have been working on it during this session rather than waiting for another inevitable veto from current pro-abortion Gov. Parkinson.

The Senator further claims that she sided with pro-abortion legislators because of the way the bill was brought forward in the, “dark of the night.” One wonders if this distaste for the process covers tax increases and budget bills. I’m willing to bet it doesn’t. Her “reasoning” is nothing more than a lie, and if Schodorf votes in favor of a tax package not thoroughly vetted in committee then she’s nothing more than a hypocrite.

Couple this with the fact that next year there will be a different Governor who’s veto pen legislator’s won’t need to worry about and her vote was absolutely pointless. Pointless unless her aim was to make her pro-abortion beliefs crystal clear for far left activists. If that was the point, then she’s performed quite well.

See also:

• Lone State Senator with Congressional Ambitions Kills KS Abortion Override

“During Senate action today, Sen. Schodorf announced she was emailing an invitation to Kansans for Life and Planned Parenthood to meet with her to create a ‘compromise bill. Sen. Schodorf’s 11th hour announcement was the height of hypocrisy as she has already supported this exact language in 2008 — prior to her re-election. After she was elected, she voted AGAINST the provisions of HB 2115 in 2009, as she did again today.”

• “Mainstreet Republican”

They are going to debate this on the Senate floor as early as Monday next week. I don’t have a bill number handy but they all know what you talking about if you refer to the budget and proposed taxes.

This has not been a good week for conservatives in the Senate. On Wednesday the Senate defeated a motion to pull a proposed constitutional amendment out of committee – one that would have let you vote on federal health care this fall – and voted down a community of defense act. That last one is an example of how some Senators tell you one thing in person (of course I’m for lower taxes or health care freedom) but then when their vote matters, they vote differently. The Senators had known for weeks the CDA would be voted on when they returned as it was debated the last day of the regular session, then delayed until a date certain, that date being April 28. And still we have one Senator who voted yes, until it was passing, then switched to no. And as aggravating as that is to watch, what’s even more appalling is when I hear Senators voting no on this because it would cost some jobs – yet those same people want to raise your taxes. I suppose that makes sense in their minds, people can’t pay taxes if they don’t have a job, so who are we to say it’s a job that’s not good for society. Decency and morals apparently don’t factor in, whether it’s in how we make money or how we tax the people.

I think most of you would like to know how your Senator voted on the above measure. Our friends at the National Coalition for the Protection of Children & Families created a spreadsheet (linked here) showing you their votes and their contact info. Please feel free to use this information to let your elected Senators know your thoughts this weekend. I also encourage you to share your thoughts here on this blog as well!

As a quasi government agency, Amtrak has been loosing money for years and only continues to operate because of federal subsidies. While federal money is outside the control of KDOT, a KDOT press release notes the one time infrastructure improvement costs and annual operating cost of the four different plans.

For example, the first plan estimates an annual ridership of 92,500 at an annual cost burden to the state of $3.2 million. This doesn’t include an estimated $114 million in improvements for the line to operate. And the $114 million doesn’t include local improvements like platforms and train stations, which would have to be provided by local Kansas communities. Just taking into account the state’s annual costs, it comes to $34.60 per rider.

A more expensive alternative would bring in an estimated 174,000 annual riders but would cost the state $8 million a year in operating expenses. Excluding $476 million in infrastructure improvements, that’s just under $46 a rider. If one includes the infrastructure costs and extends out annual costs for 30 years, the cost per rider increases to just over $137 a rider.

Why would KDOT push for a service that would require $8 million a year be taken from their budget when they are canceling new construction and repair projects left and right? Rather than subsidize passenger rail service to potentially $46 a rider or more, couldn’t those millions of dollars be better spent maintaining Kansas roads that would benefit everyone rather than the few who find passenger rail service so nostalgic that they advocate government subsidies to keep Amtrak going?

Couple this with a continuing push to renovate the state capital because ‘material is so cheap’ and lawmakers so desperate to tax rather than cut spending that soda pop is now on the radar, and it certainly leaves Kansas taxpayers wondering just what happened to our government’s priorities.

Take the Kansas Democratic and Republican Parties. Kansas Republicans just recently celebrated Kansas Days. It was an opportunity for Kansans of all walks of life to gather together and discuss the future of the state of Kansas and the Republican Party. The Kansas Republican Assembly brought in spectacular guest speakers who’s work brought down the uber-corrupt ACORN organization and significantly reduced their federal funding.

Then take the Kansas Democratic Party. The last weekend in February they’ll hold their annual Washington Days convention. As the name suggests, Kansas Democrats could quite frankly care less about Kansas when Washington is calling. Just ask Kathleen Sebelius.

And who does the KDP choose to bring in as their headline speaker? Someone who roots out corruption wherever it may lay? Maybe a freedom loving open government fighter? After all, weren’t the Washington Democrats supposed to usher in a new era of openness? Oh no! They choose to bring in a California Democrat. Because California is doing so well, I guess Kansas Democrats think we should be more like them. After all, once you’ve celebrated Washington in all it’s corrupt glory, what’s left but to bring in a California liberal?

There’s a lot to be said about a name. And Kansas Democrats show their true colors by celebrating Washington and the power of the feds rather than the spirit and hard work Kansans bring to the table.

Wind turbines along I-70

According to a Lawrence Journal-World article this evening, the Kansas Supreme Court has moved to shut down wind turbines in the Kansas Flint Hills.

Whether or not wind power should be sought in Kansas is still up for debate. It is clear that wind power is unreliable and can not be used for base power. Further, wind power has been proven to be extremely expensive without government (taxpayer) subsidies.

But what can certainly be questioned is why wind power is such a wonderful thing for western Kansas but untouchable for eastern Kansas counties. Why are the Flint Hills exempt from wind turbines? I certainly agree the Flint Hills are beautiful. In fact, I would like to build a homestead there someday. But why is the state using taxpayer money to subsidize wind power in one part of the state and using it’s authority, vis-a-vis the Kansas Supreme Court, to block similar projects in another part of the state?

If wind power is such a wonder source of energy, why are we picking and choosing where we put it? If we’re truly in a global warming crisis, why aren’t groups like GPACE rushing to defend landowners rights to place wind turbines in the Flint Hills? Every bit helps, or at least that’s what we were told when the Holcomb project was fought tooth and nail. Or is this just another case of do as I say, not as I do from environmentalists?

The just released documentary Not Evil, Just Wrong highlighted a glaring problem with the environmental movement where they pick and choose what they want done with property that belongs to someone else. In the documentary, a very passionate environmentalist advocates keeping poverty stricken people in Africa in poverty rather than allowing industry and jobs to come to town. The environmental movement finds poverty ‘quaint’ and ‘homey’ while those living in it disagree strongly.

Is this the same logic that’s now being applied here in Kansas?

Ironically, if government (taxpayers) didn’t prop up wind power with unfair subsidies, there wouldn’t be a demand to place wind turbines in the Flint Hills in the first place.

According to records obtained by the Kansas Meadowlark, SEIU donated $100,000 to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius in the last election cycle. Is this new request a payback for all of that invested money? It certainly is beginning to look that way.

According to an SRS spokesperson, the department will ensure that the information is not used for “marketing purposes” and that SEIU will be picking up the expense of the request. And how does the SRS or any other government agency plan to enforce the use of information already handed over to the SEIU? Ask for it back? Shake their finger and say, “Bad SEIU, bad!”

Governor Parkinson and his agency heads should quickly abandon this payback scheme and a full legislative investigation should occur. It’s quite troubling that a simple KORA request can result in personal information being released to the public without the employees knowledge.

For more coverage, see Kansas Liberty.

Queen Kathleen and Democratic Senator Arlen Specter attended a town hall meeting in Philadelphia where the two were trying to convince a large audience that they knew what was best for the nations health care system. Imagine their surprise when the audience insisted they read legislation before they pass it and stop and think about what exactly they’re doing before they vote. Sounds reasonable, right? Not for Queen Kathleen.

Now, isn’t Kathleen Sebelius the one who was Governor of Kansas when they passed legislation, which, by the way, no Representative or Senator had read, that allowed the state to become the first in the nation to own casinos. And since that time, hasn’t the state only broken ground on one casino when four were planned and has had to bid and rebid casinos across the state because company after company passes on building in Kansas? Now, wasn’t gambling supposed to solve all of our state’s financial problems forever and ever Kathleen?

So, how did that bill that nobody read work out anyway???

So with that in mind, get a load of the explanation she tries to pass off to the crowd.

“I’ve never been in Congress.”

I love it! But you had no problem signing a bill as Governor that you knew full well no one had read. And look what it’s gotten us!

Oh, and isn’t Arlen Specter one of three “Republican” Senators who voted for a “Stimulus” bill that none of them had read?

That crowd had every right to boo not only Specter, but Sebelius right off the stage. Both have a clear history of endorsing the kind of behavior that has gotten us into this mess and they both deserve to be told exactly what they heard yesterday in Pennsylvania.

According to the Kansas left, Sebelius was more interested in her own political ambitions during her time in Kansas than in helping grow the Democratic Party. As Kansas Confidential puts it:

I know, it’s sacrilegious in the KDP to speak ill of Sebelius, but in truth she left us in this mess. Who chose Republican running mates each time she ran for Governor? Who recruited a Republican to run against Kline in 2006 (a great idea until the scandal)? Who pulled the ladder up behind their own assent, so that upon leaving office has left the party seeking a viable candidate for Governor, Senate, and 3 Congressional seats? Yep…it all points back to one person.

This comes as no surprise to Kansas Republicans. Every move made by Sebelius was calculated to further herself and her career. Things like Kansas citizens and even her fellow politicos came in a distant second.

The liberals in Kansas have even more problems in 2010 and beyond not only because of a lack of candidates amongst themselves, but because Republicans are fielding such strong candidates across the state. Even if Kansas Democrats were able to field even a well known candidate, they would find it very difficult to gain votes against better organized and well financed Republican candidates.

And after unprecedented success in 2008, Kansas Republicans are learning that a conservative message is what wins. What the national party needs to realize and follow is what Kansas Republicans already know; that watered down liberalism masquerading as “Republican” doesn’t win elections.

Yes, things certainly do look bad for Kansas Democrats next year.

A TEE Party activist displays his T-shirt

Around 80 citizens attended AFP’s TEE Party in the capital. Activists stood outside the House chambers to greet legislators as they entered and then moved to the viewing balcony to see our government at work. One activist had a campaign flyer from her Senator stating that she had worked to remove the franchise tax, eliminate the estate tax and make Kansas a more tax friendly state. She planned to remind her Senator what she said on the campaign trail.

At noon activist regrouped for a quick lunch. A few legislators joined the group including Sens. Susan Wagle, Dick Kelsey, Mike Petersen and Rep. Steve Brunk. A few organizers quickly addressed the group, including FairTax from Kansas City, Sedgwick County Commissioner Karl Peterjohn and grassroots activist and TEA Party organizer Amanda Grosserode.

FairTax activists have plan in place to bring the FairTax to Kansas. A bill is currently working its way through the Missouri Senate. Advocates noted the devastating effects that could happen here in Kansas if Missouri becomes much more business and tax friendly than Kansas.

Karl Peterjohn gave some tips on effective lobbying. He spoke about the important impact citizens can have on their government.

Amanda Grosserode mention another protest for Congressman Dennis Moore. Details will be announced on their website soon.

Participants were encouraged to visit legislators in the Docking State Office building and in the capital. Some plan to stay and hear the Governor’s address at 4pm if possible. Buses leaving for Johnson County and Wichita will still leave on time at 4pm however.

Reactions from citizens vary. A common theme seems to be the amount of taxpayer funded lobbying that is occuring under the dome. A group from invisiblekansas.com was also under the dome urging no cuts to their taxpayer funded activities. There seems to be every constituency imaginable under the dome lobbying legislators right now except taxpayer citizens.

The Community Living Opportunities website now features video and other stories from clients and their families about why CLO needs additional funding from the state of Kansas. The justifications can be found on every page.

Community Living Opportunities (CLO) was recently highlighted for their unusual protest and subsequent Medicaid reimbursement from the state of Kansas. The Board of Directors for the non-profit include Lew Perkins, athletic director for the University of Kansas and Larry Gates, chairman of the Kansas Democratic Party and former law partner of the newest Kansas Supreme Court Justice, Dan Biles.

The CLO website now features written and video testimonies from clients and their families on every page justifying the additional funding the group received. The main story on the homepage is an explanation of the additional costs to the state to operate this non-profit organization.

Although based in Lenexa, CLO’s website indicates it provides various services across the state and has offices in Lawrence and southeast Kansas in addition to Lenexa.

On a suggestion, I searched for properties owned by CLO in Douglas County. The search returned numerous pieces of property but only one was outside the city limits of Lawrence, a small tract northeast of Baldwin City. A further search of online records and a trip to the Douglas County courthouse raised further questions about the property.

The proprty was purchased in July 2005. A search of documents at the Register of Deeds office confirms a $400,000 lean placed against the property at that time. Sale prices are not public record.

2005 Appraisal. Click to enlarge.

2008 Appraisal. Click to enlarge.

2009 Appraisal. Click to enlarge.

Douglas County has appraisals online from 2007 to 2009. A search at the appraisal office shows a varied appraisal in 2005 before the sale of the property.

The actual market value of the land is difficult to determine because part of the land was appraised for residential, part farm, and part was exempt from property taxes.

The appraisal remains somewhat steady until 2009. Apprasied improvements in 2008 according to online tax records was $161,950. Combined with the land value, total appraisal was $263,950. According to the county appraisal office, the numbers do not reflect market value because the land is exempt from property taxes (CLO is a non-profit), so the property is summarily ignored by the county since it carries no tax liability.

However, appraised improvements to the property increased by nearly $1 million from 2008 to 2009. Because the property is exempt from taxation, any valuation of improvements likely reflects actual cost of the improvement versus any market value it might have.

A GIS map of the property.

A newly built pond in the southwest corner of the property.

A new structure in the northern part of the property. Away from public roads, it looks like a new house but one can't be sure.

A small sign at the entrance gives the name of the property as Midnight Farms

Pictures of the property reveal new and ongoing construction.

A pond has been newly built in the southwest corner of the property, in behind the existing house. New overhead poles have been erected above a new main driveway along with a small sign identifying the property as part of Midnight Farms, a subdivision, so to speak, of CLO.

“No Trespassing” and “Keep Out” signs have been posted around the property on both the road on the south side of the land and on the east, although some of these appear to have been in place for some time by comparing to Google Maps.

Most curious is a large new building built in the back of the property. Based on what can be seen from the road, it appears this is the main reason appraised improvements increased by nearly $1 million. Google Maps confirms the building was recently built.

CLO was called before a House Committee to give testimony justifying the over $700,000 in additional funds they received. If the non-profit is able to afford hundreds of thousands of dollars for a new piece of land and then nearly $1 million in improvements, why is additional funding from the state needed? Is CLO using their connections to get extra state funding to pay the mortgage on their newly aquired land? What other pieces of property does CLO own that they are using taxpayer money to buy and support which is then taken off the tax rolls?

It further raises questions as to how the non-profit was able to secure extra state funding while expanding operations. Was the ability of CLO to fund nearly $1 million in improvements taken into account by the Sebelius administration before authorizing more funding, or did the administration simply rubber stamp the extra money because of CLO’s connections?

CLO claims on its website that it receives special funding because, “(W)e serve Persons with Specialized Needs!” But don’t other non-profit health organizations in the state also serve people with special needs? Aren’t other health care providers in the state asked to make do with what the state can afford? Why should an organization like CLO be allotted more than their fair share simply because they are able to pull the right strings in Topeka while others play by the rules?

If CLO is in such dire financial straits, why justify their extra funding on every page of their website? How can CLO afford a $400,000 lean on a newly purchased property? How can CLO afford nearly $1 million in improvements if they can’t make ends meet without an extra $700,000 from the state?

The Kansas House and Senate have passed a $13 billion state budget set to begin July 1. The budget makes some minor cuts to K-12 education and major cuts to other areas, but in the end signifies only a 6.8% decrease in general fund expenditures in comparison to 2009 spending levels.

While 6.8% sounds like a significant decrease, it’s just a drop in the bucket compared to previous spending sprees. And once again K-12 has only been dealt a 1% cut in funding even though it’s budget amounts to half state general fund expenditures.

But that number, $13 billion, that really got my attention. After multiple bailouts, billions and trillions just seem to mesh together in my mind and have become meaningless. It reminds me of the demonstrations done in high school to show just how far away Pluto was from the Sun or changing seconds into years to try and get a handle on millions/billions of years.

So, in order to understand just how much $13 billion is, I thought I’d break it down a bit.

First, $13 billion for the year means the state will spend just over $35.5 million every day. That’s just under $1.5 million every hour, or $24,734 every minute. Most frightening, that’s $412 every second of every day for an entire year.

$13 billion divided by nearly 3 million Kansans (2.776 million to be exact) means the state will spend $4,683 for each citizen. That’s $18,732 of spending for a family of four in one year. That means Kansas will spend $13 every day on each Kansan or $51 every day for a family of four. If you wanted to put money in a jar to pay your share, a family of four would have to add $2.12 every hour or about a quarter every seven minutes.

And that’s just state government. That doesn’t include money you’d have to give to local government.

Legislators made cuts in spending and they should be commended. But when put in perspective, the figures beg the question, “Does the government tax too little or spend too much?”

Would you make a $390 monthly payment for the services state government provides? Are you getting your money’s worth?

Fox News headlines Sebelius tax problems

News is breaking today that Kathleen Sebelius has paid over $7,000 worth of back taxes over a three year period, thus becoming just another Obama nominee who loves to tax but apparently hates to pay up.

You can see all the articles here.

So far, Senate Democrats seem to still be behind her nomination but one has to wonder if it’s because there truly isn’t any problem with not paying taxes or if the administration is simply running out of options for the HHS post. Sebelius has previously been passed over for VP, other administration posts and was the second line choice for HHS. Maybe it has less to do with what is ethical and more to do with limited options.

This combined with problems of favoritism in Medcaid reimbursements and political and financial support from abortionist George Tiller, who is now under investigation from the Board of Healing Arts, has to be taking its toll.

My question is, would the “unintentional mistakes” have been caught if Sebelius hadn’t been nominated for HHS? Probably not. And that’s over $7,000 that the rest of us honest taxpaying citizens would have had to cough up.

Perhaps we should ask Obama to nominate more elected Democrats. It seems to be doing wonders for the government’s tax revenue.

The most demonstrative pro-abortion governor in the history of the United States has been selected by President Obama to become the Health and Human Services Secretary. Even though I am excited to have our Governor “out of Dodge” due to her horrible tax and spend policies as well as liberal thoughts on energy, I have great concern for the impact she will have in our nation regarding health care.

As HHS secretary, Sebelius will have a major impact in crafting a health care plans that could cover abortions with taxpayer funds or require insurance companies to cover abortions in their plans. Sebelius could also, if confirmed by the Senate, issue new regulations overturning the protections President Bush put in place that protect pro-life doctors and medical centers.

Sebelius is best known for her close relationship with late-term abortionist George Tiller, who has escaped prosecution and accountability on many occasions until just recently when a Wichita judge ordered the green light that his criminal case should be tried.

As Kansas governor for 6 years now, Sebelius’ lax standards has caused criminal cases to go uninvestigated. She has also dominated liberal campaigns with tainted abortion money through her political allies, to whom Tiller has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars not only to these allies directly, but to Sebelius’ own “Blue Stem” Fund. Her position favoring abortion is so radical and extreme that Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City called her to stop receiving communion until she disowns her support for the “serious moral evil” of abortion.

Governor Sebelius vetoed a bill last April that the legislature approved that would have strengthened the state’s limits on late-term abortions. That followed by a year her veto of a bill requiring explicit medical reasons for a late abortion, which was preceded by vetoing other pro-life legislation in 2006, 2005 and 2003. She has appointed pro-abortion politicians to posts and committees that oversee agencies that investigate the violation of Kansas Laws on abortion. And she has allowed late term abortions to continue even though Kansas Law specifically does not allow the horrible procedure.

Sebelius has had secret fundraisers with Tiller and Planned Parenthood, many times at the governor’s mansion, which she failed to officially report as a campaign event. Once again using Kansas ’ taxpayer money to promote and honor abortionist and abortion related industries and to raise money for her or her friends campaign coffers.

The good news is that now the national spotlight is on Sebelius and her illegal activities will be investigated and looked at from people across the nation. They will find out that Sebelius political machine makes Chicago politics look like a day at grammar school. Sebelius is cunning and liberal. She is far from the Blue Dog Democrat that the drive by media portrays. And her day in the Obama spotlight will provide the nation with a glimpse of the embarrassment we Kansan’s call, Governor!

As HHS secretary her damage to our country’s health services will be significant and her abortion power unyielding. More abortion parties and fundraisers to come!

Except this time the event location will be 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue !

Feeling like the last kid to get picked for the playground soccer game, it looks like Governor Sebelius will finally get picked after all the “good” nominees are taken.

Sebelius jumped on the Obama bandwagon early and so it was with a bit of surprise and a lot of laughter that the state got to see her rejected for a VP spot, then time after time after time rejected for a cabinet nomination. Only after the fall of numerous nominees did Sebelius finally get her life long wish to leave Kansas.

It’s unfortunate that Gov. Sebelius might still be in a position to harm Kansans. If confirmed, she’ll have a national audience to try her brand of socialized medicine rather than just one state.

On the up side, I can’t wait for the U.S. Senate to dig into her ties to George Tiller. There have been numerous reports that her nomination was tied up due to her close ties to the notorious abortionist. What sweet justice that the man who was her main financier may be the one who keeps her from furthering her political career.

Another Tea Party will be held in Wichita tomorrow.

• Where: Sen. Sam Brownback’s office at 245 N Waco, Wichita (Farm Credit Union building – get directions here)
• When: Friday February 26, 2009 from 11:30am to 12:30am
• What: Bring homemade signs and you appreciation for Sen. Brownback and your frustration at the spending bill!
• Who: Contact Nancy Armstrong at (316) 990-6009 or email for more details.

It’s a grassroots phenomenon! Get sign ideas here and here. Confirm you attendance on Facebook here.

In a new American Tea Party, citizens across the USA are beginning to protest giant government programs that reach deep into their pockets. These programs create huge economic burdens on American families and threaten their livelihood now and into the future.

Come and join the fight if you can!

But one big thing was happening last week and the results of it have exploded in the Kansas news this week, dwarfing anything else I need to share with you. The Kansas Senate & House managed to pass a compromise bill dealing with the 2009 budget shortfall. All that’s needed as of this afternoon is the Governor’s signature and the current financial crisis is averted. Of course this means cutting spending, which the Governor had the power to do herself last November and still has the power to do today.

You’ve probably heard the dire warnings: Tax Refunds delayed, state employees won’t get paid on time, schools won’t be funded… none of which has to happen if the Governor just does her job. The sky is falling and it’s not my fault, those bad legislators won’t borrow money like I asked! They know they can do this, it’s no big deal, and we do it all the time!

Really, could that be true? As I looked into it, I found myself even angrier than I had been last week watching the circus in DC. You see, the Governor has at her disposal procedures she can take to cut non-essential spending, allowing the government to pay it’s essential bills on time. Has she done it? NO. Instead she’s out there scaring state employees by using taxpayer-funded-email lists to tell them that she cares about them but those bad legislators aren’t doing what I want so you might not get paid on time.

And meanwhile, I’m getting reports of what’s going on with our taxpayer-funded schools. Yes, that would be the schools that reaped a windfall in 2005 thanks to the State Supreme Court legislating funding. Kids are being told to tell their parents that they must call their legislators and beg them not to cut funding or class sizes will double, music and art will be cut from curriculums, and on and on it goes. I have in my hands a letter from a local high school principal, sent to parents with taxpayer funds, reminding them “it’s less expensive to educate children than incarcerate them!”

Honestly, as a homeschool mom who successfully graduated 5 children into community-involved adults without one penny of help from the state, I can assure you I’m quite aware of that little fact, that’s why I didn’t send my children to be incarcerated day after day in government-funded schools. What? You think this means I hate public schools and want them de-funded? Hogwash. See, I can use outlandish rhetoric and hyperbole, too. How about we discuss things rationally and try the truth in regards to funding and the state budget.

The fact is school funding makes up a HUGE percentage of the state budget. We can’t cut spending as much as we must without having the schools share in the cut – unless we are willing to make draconian cuts in other areas like social services and health care to those who can’t care for themselves, the mentally disabled, the elderly with no family, the orphans in foster care. We have a moral obligation to take care of those who cannot care for themselves and if that means a school district can’t build a nice new building this year or must cut a few administrators to make ends meet, well, that’s what’s it going to take. Face it, we can’t just print money and buy everything we want the day we want it. We must budget for it, plan ahead, make do when we can, and be practical in our spending. That’s what families do and that’s what government at all levels needs to do as well. Spending by government will not save us and taxing the people more will not magically bring the state increased revenues if the people cannot pay the bill!

Folks, it’s time you take action. Usually we suggest you call your legislators and tell them what you think – and of course that’s still a good idea now as well. But this time we need something more from you. We need you to make your voices heard in your local paper, on the radio talk shows in your area, and in your communities at town hall meetings, school activities, wherever you are, you need to speak up and say enough is enough, stop the madness, it’s time we live within our means as a society.

There are a number of places you can get talking points and more details. I’m going to list a few of them below. I’m also going to link to the pages on our website that will help you find your local paper, talk radio and elected officials. Please speak up now while we can still make a difference in Kansas.

Charlotte Esau
KRA Executive Director

Links For More Info & Talking Points:

Go to the mainpage of the KRA website and click on your county on the map for local information regarding local papers, talk radio & elected officials. Or follow these links:

Who will blink first? House Speaker Mike O’Neal, R-Hutchinson, and Senate President Steve Morris, R-Hugoton, said it would have been illegal for the State Finance Council to have authorized additional short-term debt because state officials couldn’t honestly declare the state could pay the obligation by the end of the fiscal year.
 
House leadership responds to Sebelius lies  Statement from House Leadership regarding the Governor’s continued efforts to misrepresent her role in the events of the State Finance Council meeting and her responsibility to address a revised 2009 budget.

Governor’s Letter to State Employees – Caution! This link is full of the Governor’s spin!

What You Need to Know About the Kansas Budget Crisis

While we all can agree that these are trying times for Kansas families, seniors, and business owners the Kansas House of Representatives respectfully disagrees with breaking the law in order to gain political capital.

The idea that the Legislature is preventing state employees from being paid is the equivalent of shouting fire in a crowded theater. The Governor is attempting to draw attention away from the fact that she has multiple options to fix this problem. Her options do not include illegally issuing certificates of indebtedness when revenues, in this climate, cannot begin to repay the debt. She can easily sign House Substitute for SB 23 or fix the problem by issuing allotments.

The Governor is attempting to mislead the public in an effort to drum up support for poor public policy. The majority of the Legislature recognizes the severity of the current economic situation and is acting in a responsible manner. How the Governor can say on Thursday that we don’t have enough money and issue allotments and then turn around and on the following Monday say, we will have enough money when the numbers HAVE NOT changed is irresponsible and disingenuous. We strongly urge the Governor to use her power to make allotments and cut state spending rather than withholding tax refunds or paychecks from hard working Kansans.

The decision was made, by the Governor, to halt income tax refunds last week. Now that her back is against the wall she is using scare tactics to try to manipulate public opinion. We find it perplexing that she will halt income tax refunds due to not having enough money in the budget but will ask for additional certificates of indebtedness even though she knows the dollars for repayment will never materialize without a fundamental change in the 2009 budget. Kansas citizens deserve better.

The Governor did call a meeting of the State Finance Council to consider the issuance of a certificate of indebtedness. However, when it became apparent to all that the certificate could not be issued because it would violate state law, she reluctantly agreed to postpone the meeting. Incredibly, it was reported that Legislative leadership refused to meet. This is patently false.

Republican Leadership is happy to postpone any State Finance Council meeting until after the Governor has had a chance to review and to sign House Substitute for Substitute SB 23. We fully expect the bill to be on her desk by the end of the day tomorrow. While it was passed last week, the process to engross the bill takes a degree of time and is out of the hands of the executive or legislative leaders. There is still plenty of time for the Governor to responsibly address the concerns that she is raising. In the meantime, she should make allotments consistent with the provisions of House Sub. for Sub. SB 23.

Contrary to what the Governor is saying, the certificate has everything to do with the passage of a revised 2009 budget bill. We cannot issue more certificates if the funds will not materialize by the end of the year. Without the revised 2009 budget bill, there is no way that we can legally issue a certificate knowing full well that the money will not be available to retire the debt.

It is shame that the Governor continues to make the assertion that Legislative Leadership is not representing the people of Kansas in good faith. This (unlike her repeated attempts to leave the state in favor of a cabinet post in Washington) is the right thing to do to ensure that we are taking the necessary and legally permissible steps to fix the structural imbalance in our budget.

The Governor is asking the Legislature to be complicit in breaking the law by approving certificates of indebtedness outside of the parameters set in statute. Kansas law requires the Director of the Budget to certify that money will be present at the end of the year to pay off certificates of indebtedness, and there is no evidence that will be the case. There is no reason to believe that under the current budget such money will be available. It is irresponsible and illegal to act as if the money will be available when all economic indicators show that we may see even less.

If anyone is, as the Governor alleges, “jeopardizing our citizens’ pocketbooks” one should look no further than the Governor’s office. Fee sweeps, illegal certificates of indebtedness and non-existent gambling revenue is no way to provide a long-term solution to the economic issues facing our state.

Although we are glad that the economic crisis in Kansas finally has the Governor’s attention, playing a shell game is not the solution.