Of politics and Kansas

Blessed are the Kansans who found it in their hearts to vote against the state's racist-in-chief Kris Kobach.

He was an evil man who would have been, well, entirely wrong for Kansas, which, despite all its shortcomings, is essentially a state filled with well-intentioned, albeit often misguided folks.

Why Kansas is a state with so many Republicans, or for that matter Democrats, is a mystery. Instead, I would think Kansas residents would be clamoring to register as independent voters, the parties be damned.

I say that because Kansas has been left behind by them both, and you can throw any minor-league parties into that mix. Bottom line, Kansas is and always has been a state that wants to do its own thing, often screwing it up, but trying just the same.

In some respects, I think the vast majority of Kansans are so anti-political that they really don't care who serves as governor or secretary of state or someone in the Legislature, that they'd rather leave the task of choosing the select few to someone else or another day. Same goes for those pesky politicians in Washington who have disappointed Kansans for so many years.

But there has been a change of late. And yes, I'm referring to the political shenanigans of Trump and his party of ill-repute — the Republicans. For Kansas, that includes the likes of Pat Roberts and Jerry Moran, long level-headed men who kind of meant to do the right things, didn't stir up too much trouble and were willing to step across the aisle and talk to people of the (gasp) other party.

Moran has long groaned about the abuses and wrongs that have been taking place in D.C., but has fully accepted and adopted the shenanigans, putting party above all else — especially Kansas and its residents. Roberts has gone with the flow so long, it was a change barely discernible.

They both disgust me, to say the least.

For some reason, it all seemed to change when the tea party folks, and Tim Huelkamp, stepped to the forefront, and katie-bar-the-door, everyone wanted to be outfront. Typically, that's a dangerous spot to be, due to the fallout that follows. But foolish minds never worry about the consequences.

Back in Kansas, the same trend was falling in place, with the party powerful — whoever that might be at the moment — was pushing trends and people who only had an agenda that failed to include Kansas. Instead, the quest was prosperity for those who bankrolled the situation, their friends and relatives and the power brokers who hid behind closed doors.

Read Sam Brownback into that equation, a political hack all the way back to his college days when he alienated his classmates. Sam seems to be a guerilla partisan, striking and then slipping into the woodwork, either to lick his wounds or let people forget. But he re-emerges, just as he did as state Ag Secretary, where he performed adequately and got his name out. Then he tried Congress before heading back home to destroy Kansas, by running for governor.

We all know how that turned out, with Kansas kicked in the teeth over and over, schools closing, and the list goes on. Jeff Colyer appears to have been the patsy in this event and will likely just go away.

But look at the debris and destruction old Sam left behind: An emboldened Kris Kobach, whose sole goal it seems was white supremacy, armed no less. He sought to strip voting rights, and expand gun rights.

His party of ill-repute went right on along with it, tossing a smattering of money his way to keep him in the game. They should have called him out for all his shenanigans.

Thankfully, Kansas voters saw through his ploy and said no, although entirely too many people approved of him. I'm not sure what that says of them, however.

But voters in the Sunflower state stuck with those who had been serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, except in one case. For that, I'm pleased.

However, and that's a big one, voters who were smart enough to reject Kobach were foolish enough to return Roger Marshall, Ron Estes and some new person that honestly I'm just not familiar with, but who leaves me with a really bad taste in my mouth.

I recognize I'm now branded a liberal, although I had always considered myself more middle-of-the-road on politics than left-wing. Considering the religious right we now have in power, I guess I am liberal, so take that all into account.

But Marshall is solidly Republican, never mind Kansas, and only favors the rich and famous or those knighted by his king, Donald Trump. Estes reminds me of the guy who wants to be everyone's friend, but doesn't have a clue what's really happening in the first place. He just keeps smiling, who gives a damn about the devastation surrounding him.

So what's all this mean?

Kansas is better than this. The state and its inhabitants know right from wrong and actually do care about their fellow man, whether they are black, brown, yellow or white. It's time we all step up and take charge of this state, deciding who can represent us and what they can do. It is, after all, our future.

We must decide where Kansas has been, and where we are going. And we must do it quick.