Phillllllllll Kline back in the news!

If you've been a reader of this blog you know I'm a Libertarian leaning conservative and I abhor abortion. I believe every soul is precious and God-created for a purpose.

I also believe that the ends don't justify the means. I also believe that hand in hand with that notion if you consider yourself a Christian is that doing whatever you do must be done above reproach AND with excellence. A zealot is a zealot regardless if they do it in the name of Christ or Allah.

I get that there is a vendetta against Phillllll Kline but I also think he has brought much of this on himself and that he has SO sadly kidnapped the support of the Pro-Life crowd and continues to use it for his own gain. I have said repeatedly that he would take advantage of the Pro-Life crowd and become their sweetheart and use it to get as rich as possible. So far he has leveraged it into a teaching position at Liberty University when otherwise after losing several elections he would have been begging for a job as an assistant trim carpenter for John Toplikar.

If he hadn't been so slimy all along the way he wouldn't have given people ammunition and he could have stood on higher ground. He brings us all who believe life is precious down with him. For that he should be ashamed.

The charges against Planned Parenthood deserve a fair and full hearing. Steve Howe's office is responsible to see that happens.

The problem for me is I like people like Jill Stanek who have made it their life work to end abortion but I'm puzzled why someone like her would want to be connected with a person like Phill Kline. I do not. I think it is horrible that she use this to raise money. I'm disappointed in her. Phill Kline is no martyr. Phill has duped good people on the national pro-life scene and it makes me sick.

I don't believe that the current action against Kline is meant to scare and intimidate future prosecutors from action against Planned Parenthood as much as it is meant to keep the integrity in our legal process and the two shouldn't be confused by either side. I've got no problem with hardball but I have little tolerance for a lack of ethics.

We'll have to see how this current action with the Kansas Ethics hearings against him turns out. I don't care either way. He will make his money from the Pro-Life crowd speaking and teaching but thankfully his welcome in Kansas is effete.

Phill Kline is no martyr. Just like Jerry Johnston.......what comes around goes around. The church I attend is debt free and lives within it's means.

Post Election Thoughts

While from many corners of the conservative blogosphere you will in all likelihood see anger directed in all kinds of directions this morning I plan to tact a different course.

Watching the results come in didn't shock me in fact I think many of us were already prepared like a son who has to watch a father slowly succumb to cancer knows when the end is nearing.

I have just a few initial thoughts on the Presidential race and I think they come from the Johnson County conservative perspective. Kansas went almost 60% against Obama so there are plenty of people in the state today whose man didn't win. It was an amazing historical night and it will be an interesting ride.

First, I thought John McCain's graciousness in concession was another fine example of how much this man loves his country. Starting with and including me I don't know if I can remember a person who loves his country more. Truly, we all knew it based on his sacrifices but his eloquence in the face of defeat to put his country first resonated with me to the end. The way he asked for good will and called Barack Obama HIS president was a strong statement. It made me recall the nastiness and divisiveness of past democrats after the Bush victories where they would say, "He isn't my president" and the nasty speeches of Gore and Kerry after 2000 and 2004. I hope that as conservatives who opposed Obama that we can follow his example. I thought of that wonderful example McCain demonstrated and that I felt it just wasn't words but that it was heartfelt. It made me proud.

I was very much looking forward to Obama's speech because you just know he is going to give a good speech. Truly, what is it about many African Americans that gives them the ability to deliver such incredible speeches? From MLK, to Jessie Jackson to JC Watts....but not Colin Powell.....even Bill Cosby and Maya Angelo have delivered some of the most inspiring words and speeches I can recall. I'll never forget how SNL played on that idea when they had Jessie Jackson read "Green Eggs and Ham" one night during their Weekend Update segment. It was amazing. I wish I could inspire people in that way. Anyway, the speech on points of inspiration didn't disappoint. If he has a successful presidency it will go down as one of the great American speeches. Like the Gettysburg Address and the MLK's "I have a dream speech" it will be as beautiful read as heard.

Now we'll see if he is the ideologue he has been all of his life or the pragmatist he claims to have become. I think this country elected the pragmatist. We'll see if he is the ideologue who was the fourth most liberal in the Senate by voting record and the guy who voted against Justices Alito and Roberts because they didn't share his views but have proven highly qualified or is he the pragmatist who said we need everyone to solve this country's problems? Does he mean that he wants to work with all of us only so long as we agree with him? When he said he would listen the most when we disagree will he be genuine or will he use the same old rhetoric and call us partisans? It is my sincere hope that he is not the guy he has been in the past. He has spent the past 21 months assuring us he isn't. It is my sincere hope that the ultra liberals in the house and senate who have been his friends don't keep him from moving to the center as he promised. Once the glow of last night wears off we'll see where he lands. It was a masterfully run campaign with few mistakes. He has the chance to be very special. I pray and hope he seizes it.

Now, some more interesting local races. Hayden and Toplikar is too close to call. Toplikar lost a close one to Ruth Ann Hackler years ago for State House. Hayden has a slight lead and I can't believe that the idiot, Toplikar, is even making this a race. If he survives Hayden what can the Johnson County Commission do to discipline one of their own for his behaviour? I'm guessing that early voting played a role.

I had a few things to be joyful about last night. Lynn Jenkins beat that smug ass Nancy Boyda and that made me smile. Walking out on General Petraeus was a really, really bad idea. Johnson County Question 1 failed and now Tim Golba and Phill Kline have been handed yet another defeat. Speaking of another defeat Steve Howe beat Rick Guinn as people said they wanted to move past Phill Kline. I remember several readers told me that I was a fool for not supporting Kline and the Guinn would kick Howe's ass. Tim Golba and his crew need to find a new strategy.

I want to focus on how we beat Dennis Moore. I keep saying we need a better candidate. Nick Jordan kicked Dennis Moore's ass in the only debate I saw but I don't think anyone else saw it. Jordan wasn't a bad candidate but his campaign too slow out of the gate and not well enough funded. Our best chance is in 2012 when the area gets redistricted and it becomes a more conservative voting area. So, do we find a sacrificial lamb for 2010 and focus on 2012?

I was shocked to see that James Azeltine was beaten so soundly by Dave Lindstrom. I guess I didn't get the dynamics of the race and I certainly don't understand Lindstrom's base. I expected it to be much closer and a Azeltine win. I am going to keep a closer eye on the Johnson County Commission over the next few years.

I guess from a national perspective it is a new day. For today, I'll choose to celebrate how far we've come as a country to elect the first half black....er half white....whatever.... President of the United States. I'll celebrate that democracy survives even while we may be seeing the end of capitalism as we know it.

The republican party deserved this smack down because of the way they acted and what they became over the past 6 years. We don't just need a better strategy we need to act better and once again be the champions of not just taxing less but spending less. The good news for us is that the Republicans have no clear leadership, no status quo to hold us back from reclaiming our roots. We've got work to do.

Your November 4th Voter Guide

As promised here is all you need to go to the polls....as early as now for early voting at your County Election Office. Don't worry. Jocoeveryman has researched the issues and will tell you how to vote. I won't bore you with elections in Missouri or elsewhere because that is just commentary. I've done lots of research here for you so pay attention people. Here is what you need to know. Your Johnson County Voting Guide.




Johnson County Question #1 on electing Judges: NO. See my previous blog on this topic for details.



Johnson County Question #2 on the Research Triangle: YES. It is a bitter pill to approve a new tax especially one without a sunset clause but this is the cost of economic development that will be recession proof. As long as there are people dying of cancer business will be good. It also unlocks tons of federal money for our region. Tracy Thomas is for it...enough said.




Johnson County Commissioner District 2: John Patrick Segale. Is doing a good job. Keep him there.



Johnson County Commissioner District 3: James Azeltine. Lindstrom seems to be a nice guy who doesn't seem that passionate about the $50K a year, 1 day a week gig. Azeltine is energetic, conservative and wants the job.



Johnson County Commissioner District 6: Calvin Hayden. Toplikar continues to be unbelievably poor at his job but either his voting block of Olathe seems to like stupidity. Hayden offers a real choice as a conservative and the intelligence and energy to make good things happen. If everyone who isn't apart of Toplikar's vast family in Olathe would stand up they could get this done.



Johnson County District Attorney 10th: Steve Howe. I've blogged about my reasons which I'd encourage you to read. He is the one not connected to Morrison or Kline and would take the politics out of upholding our laws.



US House 3rd: Nick Jordan. Moore is a liberal lap dog for Pelosi in Washington and plays the blue dog democrat back home. I like him as the blue dog democrat back home so let's keep him here and take back the 3rd. I researched his voting record. He can't deny it. All the liberal groups give him great ratings and conservative interests give him poor ratings......



US House 2nd: Lynn Jenkins. I really wish this was my district. Boyda is horrible and an embarassment our government hasn't seen since Carol Mosely Braun. Lynn Jenkins is a fiscal conservative and has a great chance to take back this seat. Jenkins is the perfect fit in this district that has become increasingly moderate and Jenkins plays well to that group. Boyda is way too liberal for this red area and only won because the incumbent Republican she ran against last time had scandals surrounding him.



US Senate: Pat Roberts. Not even close and neither will the election. Slattery is a Washington wine and cheese elite who couldn't even be bothered to show up when he did have an elected job. He probably mocks us as stupid farmers to his Washington buddies.



For Kansas House of Representatives and Senate there are far too many for me to understand beyond my own district but here are some to support:



House District 14: Lance Kinzer. The incumbent stalwart conservative. Olathe.


Senate District 7: David Wysong. Champions smoking ban. Mission Hills
Senate District 10: Mary Pilcher Cook. Strong supporter of limiting abortion. Jordan's old seat.


Senate District 23: Karin Brownlee. Good conservative. Olathe.


House District 24: Ronnie Metsker. Has done a nice job in filling mid term vacancy.


House District 27: Ray Merrick. Stilwell incumbent who isn't afraid to challenge the status quo even in his own party. The McCain of Kansas.




State Board of Education District 2: Sue Storm. Her challenger is Republican Mary Ralstin and doesn't have the chops of Storm yet basically supports the same positions. Both are moderate and party affiliation shouldn't matter in this race.




President and Vice President of the United States of America: John McCain and Sarah Palin. Don't believe a guy who has been among the most partisan members of Congress based on his voting record who says he wants to govern from the middle but has never voted anything but liberal and says he won't raise your taxes. If elected Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid will own this guy and we won't be able to stop it. He couldn't govern from the middle if he wanted to because they won't let him. Pelosi and Reid really scare me.




The following are hold your nose and pull the lever votes. In other words, they aren't my kind of candidate but they are better than the alternatives.




KS Senate 11th: John Vratil. A moderate who has significant power in the KS Senate. Better to try to control him than replace him. A key to the Johnson County delegation. To replace him would be lunacy.



KS Senate 9th: Julia Lynn. She is running against former Olathe School Super Ron Wimmer who left the district in the ditch. She is filling O'Connor's unfilled term but needs to show herself more accessible to her constituents. This is dangerous race because Wimmer knows the issues and has name recognition. Don't vote for Lynn, vote against Wimmer.




KS State Rep 28th: Pat Colloton. Another of the Johnson County moderates but she is running against an 18 year old who can't wipe his own nose and would rather be at the Bottleneck in Lawrence than campaign. Conservatives need to coach her up. She has clout in Topeka.




Judges up for Retention Votes: YES.....19 times. Look, if activist Tim Golba who is heading the effort on question 1 won't post any recommendations on his site then none of them must be bad enough to kick out. Do you realize my sample ballot has TWENTY judges to vote for regarding retention? Imagine if we had to endure a partisan campaign from all of them. This would be a boom for printing companies. Think of all the yard signs, bumper stickers, mailers.......gives me a headache just thinking about it. The only NO vote is Charles Droege (Div. 8) who is an ultra liberal appointee of Sebelius. We should get rid of him before he becomes comfortable there.


Go vote! It is your responsibility as a citizen. Don't just waste it.





Say what you want about George W. Bush but this woman got the right to vote because of his resolve and leadership and her daughters will get to go to school and learn to read and learn math and maybe solve some of the biggest problems of our lifetime like maybe a cure for AIDS or cancer or maybe cold fusion or something cool like that...... under the Taliban little girls were not allowed to go to school and their moms not allowed to vote. How cool is voting to her????

And never forget that this guy made it possible. Vaya Con Dios!!!!

Rick Guinn versus Steve Howe

If you read the blog you know I have a deep disdain for Phill Kline (link here and here) and the damage he has inflicted on the republican party in Johnson County. I've gone against many dear conservative friends in not supporting him.

What we have left still feels like it is all about Phill Kline. Rick Guinn proposes to continue to politicize the office by firing anyone that Phill Kline hired. It is this tit for tat attitude that will continue to keep the DA office politically contentious for years to come if we don't stop it now. This is yet another example of why we don't need to be electing our judges. Do we really want more of this in our judicial system? Rick Guinn is even running a TV commerical stating that he will fire them.

In a very interesting read, check out this blog post about an ethical lapse on Rick Guinn's part. In summary, it says that disgraced DA Paul Morrison informed Rick Guinn of his affair and predatory behavior and yet did nothing about it. The post cites lots of legal statutes for lawyers about how they are suppose to act and it appears that when given the opportunity to do the right thing he chose to stay quiet. Is this how Rick Guinn will act in the future when dealing with friends who may be in conflict with our laws? He is starting not to sound as trustworthy.

While I won't deny they both have a good track record as prosecutors I think Steve Howe, while lacking the years of experience that Guinn has (26 years versus 16 years) is the better choice. I think we need to purge ourselves of the the Phill Kline era as quickly as possible and simply putting in one of Morrison's guys to continue to battle between them is a little like continuing the feud between the Hatfields and the McCoys. Someday they won't even remember what they disliked about each other. For God's sake, Kline, Guinn, Howe and Morrison were all republicans at one point.

Stay Red Kansas writes a good post about Guinn's decision to change from being a Republican to being a Democrat in a manner full of hypocrisy and wreaking of being opportunistic. The article reminds us that Guinn courted Republican support to fill Morrison's term that was ultimately taken by Kline.

The easiest way to finally close the book on the Phill Kline era is to vote for Steve Howe.

Steve Howe has committed to take an even handed look at the Planned Parenthood case. I think it deserves an honest look. I personally think that they broke the law but if they didn't then let's leave them alone. I believe Steve Howe can do that in a fair way. I think Rick Guinn will quickly brush it under the rug.

Steve Howe will bring professionalism back to the office. He has said that he will not systematically fire all of Kline's staff but will offer them additional training if he feels they can do the work. I think this is an even handed approach and demonstrates he wants to get the politics out of the office. Rick Guinn's indication that he will fire them makes him no better than Phill Kline's actions when he took office.

In this year when supporting the candidate with the most experience doesn't seem to matter to many Americans based on the most recent polling data for president then it shouldn't matter in this race either. However Steve Howe DOES HAVE 16 years of experience and will perform ethically, sure handedly, and with honor. Further, I think he can repair the integrity of the office and keep it that way by serving for many years to come.

I hope you'll join me and vote for Steve Howe for Johnson County District Attorney.

Kline Surrogates get filthy on Howe

I retrieved the mail last night to find a completely nasty direct mail piece from a surrogate group of the Phill Kline campaign. It came from the "Victim's Voice Foundation, Inc" complete with a PO box in Lenexa for an address and not so much as an email address of phone number.

They are mentioned in a blog/website of Jill Stanek of Oak Lawn, Illinois who writes in this link about how the nationwide pro-life movement needs to support Kline and seeks to raise $300K in the final days of the campaign. She is correct in The Star's hatred of Kline....no doubt she got that one right.

I read in the paper this morning that Kline is getting a lot of help and interest from the Right to Life groups and featured a quote from James Dobson....the comb-over king of the evangelical right's Focus on the Family. Taking on Planned Parenthood appears to be good for business for Kline and I'm guessing even IF he loses this primary or election he'll have plenty of work in those organizations and probably at much better wages. In fact.....in a little digression I think this is part of Kline's longterm plan. Win or lose now, he will cash in with the right to life group as their hero and lawyer showing up in towns all over the country on their nickel to challenge abortion law, gay rights, whatever.....the Gloria Alred of the conservative evangelicals. I wouldn't be surprised to see Tim Golba's hands all over this thing.

Anyway, the campaign flyer states with a picture of scared woman on the front, "When prosecutors make mistakes.....Murderers go free.

The inside of the flyer is pretty large so I'll put it into 2 part but it is a tri fold. It features a Willie Horton type picture of the perp.......incredibly dirty.

The left panel of this trifold shows a picture of Steve Howe and this dim lighting of the picture is pretty accurate....it isn't just my scanner:

The back looks like this for a final little dig.........

So, this is some dirty little antics by Phill Kline. Now, Kline will say this isn't from him but you know absolutely he knows about everything done by these groups, is directing these groups, and should take responsibility for them. He won't. This is the way the game is played.

Within the context of the positive ads from Kline I heard on the radio this morning where he doesn't even mention Steve Howe but talks about his own record it is very interesting.

This, from an academic standpoint, is a very good strategy on Kline's part. If I were Howe, I'd play to where the money is coming from and ask Kline to denounce this types of ads. It is also very close to election day when there is very little time to respond. I missed the radio debate this morning....some of us have to work.

I have also been peppered recently from Kline's campaign with automated phone surveys. It must cost quite a bit run something like that....wonder who is paying for it? Anyway, it always asks if I'm voting and if I consider myself a conservative, if I am pro-life and if I know that Phill Kline is taking on Planned Parenthood.

Does stuff like this make you less likely to vote for Phill Kline? It has been said that nobody gets the opposition out to vote like Phill Kline.

You all mark my words here and now....win or lose.....Phill Kline will get rich by working with these groups in the coming years in the private sector. He is a courageous hero to the pro-life community in the US. Unfortunately, they have claimed an incredibly flawed and somewhat sleazy person for that role.

If Planned Parenthood violated the law I want them prosecuted and it does seem like Planned Parenthood is just trying to run out the clock on Phill Kline. I wonder if it will work?

Are you supporting Kline or Howe in the this race?