“The Kansas Democratic Party will field candidates in every State Senate district this year, for the first time in 30 years,” KAKE-TV reports.
“The Democrats announced Wednesday they also will have candidates in about three out of four state House districts. But the filing deadline apparently passed with no Democrat running for Tim Huelskamp’s seat in Congress.”
A new Trafalgar Group poll in Kansas finds Donald Trump leading the GOP presidential field with 35%, followed by Ted Cruz at 29%, Marco Rubio at 17% and John Kasich at 13%.
A new Fort Hayes Statue University poll in Kansas finds Donald Trump leading the GOP presidential race with 26%, followed by Ted Cruz at 14%, Marco Rubio at 13%, John Kasich at 3% and Ben Carson at 3%.
The Kansas Republican caucuses are on March 5.
There are more than 36,000 people in Kansas who have tried to register to vote since a voter ID law went into effect in 2013, but then did not complete their registration by providing a birth certificate or other form of citizenship, the New York Times reports.
“This month, under a rule adopted by the Kansas secretary of state’s office, county election officials throughout the state began to cull names from the voters list, removing people who had been on it at least 90 days. Those removed from the list must start the registration process over in order to vote.”
Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback (R) issued an executive order “prohibiting state government from taking action against clergy members or religious organizations that deny services to couples based on religious beliefs,” the Wichita Eagle reports.
“Among other things, the order is intended to protect religious organizations that provide adoption services for the state from having to place children with gay couples if that conflicts with their beliefs.”
New York Times: “The order comes nearly two weeks after the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry, paving the way for gay couples to marry across the country. It is the latest sign that the battle has shifted to the issue of religious liberties, and how much leeway people of faith have to opt out of providing services to or recognizing gay unions.”
“Kansas welfare recipients will be unable to get more than $25 per day in benefits under a new law sent this week to Republican Gov. Sam Brownback’s desk by the state legislature,” the Huffington Post reports.
“The bill also prohibits welfare recipients from spending their benefits at certain types of businesses, including liquor stores, fortune tellers, swimming pools and cruise ships.”
“During his State of the State address Thursday Gov. Sam Brownback declared the state would continue its ‘march to zero’ on income taxes, but the budget and tax plans he unveiled Friday morning showed it would not be marching so quickly. Brownback proposed increasing overall taxes by $211 million for the next fiscal year, which starts in July,” the Wichita Eagle reports.
“The governor offered a proposal strikingly similar to the one offered by his Democratic opponent, Paul Davis, during the election, which Brownback’s campaign had repeatedly attacked. Brownback’s plan would allow a very small reduction to tax rates for the lower income tax bracket to take place in 2016 and then freeze rates until state coffers are restored. He also proposes massive tax increases on liquor and tobacco products.”
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
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