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Welcome Ruckus our weekly food for thought fight over the news of the day and the trends of the times I'm Mike Shanin the Ruckettes join me shortly on our topics this week a Kansas City Star columnist predicts Tuesday's election results a New York Times columnist predicts a second term for Trump and a Sly way to enhance the mayor's power plus roasts and toasts but as usual we start with our newsmaker segment and focus on the gubernatorial race in Kansas primary election day is next Tuesday August seventh joining us now to talk about her campaign is democratic gubernatorial candidates state senator Laura Kelly senator Kelly was elected to the state Senate in twenty oh four previously she served as director of the Kansas recreation and park association.

Senator Kelly welcome to Kansas city of welcome Ruckus.

Mike it's great to be here you are the only female candidate in the gubernatorial race on either side does he have but you did this that surprise you or disappoint you ah well you know given what's going on all over the rest of the country it is a little bit of a surprise that I'm the only one on the governor's ticket but of you know it it's it's fine it probably works for me you see it as an advantage?

Certainly it does helps me stand out of being the only woman there of but I think it's time you know that we bring women back to the table and put them in positions of leadership as you well know there's not tons of coverage of state politics in Kansas city or probably most anywhere else in the state so for people who may be hearing you talk and saying you at some length for the first time how would you describe your political philosophy are you a liberal conservative moderate center right center left what what what how would you describe I would say it common sense and no nonsense of that to I tend to drive right down the center of the road I think my of my trademark is my ability to work across the aisle with my colleagues of the opposite party to really craft of good common sense public policy for the state I think you've cast some votes the Republicans might like you've been pretty supportive of expanding gun rights have you not?

Well ah for while I was, you know and I I or in the longer I have been a supporter of of the second amendment right I think the conversation has changed significantly since of some of my earlier votes and matter fact two two years ago I voted to ban guns on college campuses and last year voted to ban guns in public hospitals like KU.

You community health centers and public adult care homes of this past session I voted to take the guns from the hands of people with domestic violence convictions also voted for another of slew of amendments that would of really reinstated some guns sense policy in the state Kansas.

If I recall correctly you voted in support of the Kobach proposed law that became a law the people that needed to show proof of citizenship before they could register to vote am I correct a you are Mike I've always been a major supporter of the voting rights of for folks also saw the need to secure elections so that vote was meant to do exactly that out clearly Kris Kobach took it too far well I was going to ask you are you concerned therefore that it's been overturned by a federal judge well I'm glad that it has we actually I co sponsored a bill in twenty sixteen to repeal it of because what we had been promised would happened did not happen and that was that our department of revenue would have in place by twenty fourteen a system that will allow for automatic citizenship check when you go in to get your driver so you want some check on people going up to vote I think we need to make sure that people who are voting or legal but I'd I think this one went to went to far I know you talk a lot about education and your support for education what needs to be done more money Ah, well we've done that is that it?

You think enough now well no the court has said and and I would agree with them that we do need to account for the rate of inflation so there's enough money in the bank right now we did overturn the Brownback-Colyer tax experiment and so we've got we've got some money in the bank and we can take care of of the court it mandate to account for inflation we can do that January and continue on speaking of Mister Colyer either he or Kobach one of those is expected to be the Republican nominee for governor if you are the democratic nominee do you have a preference who would you rather run against I don't think either one of them are particularly good options for the state of Kansas, I thought how about in your campaign which would be easier for you to defeat?

I can I can I can beat either one of them quite honestly It would a be different kind of race of but you know the we've got Jeff Colyer who really is just Brownback 2 point 0. there's not an iota of ideological difference between those two and we would make that very clear of Kobach obviously is Kobach gotta stop shortly can you quickly give me two or three top priorities if you win the election for at absolutely I can early education with a heavy emphasis on early childhood education and then all the way through our higher education system that's the biggest economic driver in the state of Kansas and we need to reinstate our stellar school system then I will I will vote to expand Medicaid of providing healthcare access for a hundred fifty thousand Kansans and doing a lot to help of rural communities and then lastly I will look for ways to create ab innovative business environment in the state of Kansas to attract this thank you very much for coming in pleasure to meet you.

Has been a pleasure to be here thank you that is Kansas state senator Laura Kelly and democratic candidate for governor now let's meet the panel and start a Ruckus Terry Riley is a former councilman and now runs Transformation Consultants Steve Rose is a Johnson County civic leader and a columnist at the Kansas City Star Mary O'halloran as a media and communications consultant Patrick Tuohey director of municipal policy at the show me institute a free market think tank, good to see all of you thanks for coming in special thanks to Patrick filling in at the last minute for a panelist who had to cancel his appearance well even though there is no shortage of folks running for governor and other offices in Kansas Steve Rose says there's an enormous lack of voter interest While there is polling that suggests many voters are still undecided Steve has as in years gone by fathomed the outcome of the democratic and GOP gubernatorial primaries well before election day and he's not happy with his judgment that Kris Kobach is going to be the Republican nominee so Steve how did you come to that conclusion and why does it make you so unhappy?

Well let me correct one thing right away that I was wrong about in checking with the election commissioner in Johnson County I find that the registration I'll of of election of voters is higher than it's ever been and there has been a substantial increase in the number of Democrats who have registered so I want to clear that up because it's a that people are not asleep and I think it's because of a you've got these hot races that are going on with the Democrats and it's it's it's created some interest hum Kobach Kobach has his followers and and I think it's just I am not a Kobach fan by a long shot but it's hard for me to see where he is not the nominee I I think a Colyer still not well known even though he is the governor right now you may not be well known to be the governor I am easily easily.

Let me point was invited several times to come in and do that guest interview segment on Ruckus and always refused or didn't respond yeah he's kind of a low profile kind of guy and I think that is showing up he's, you know on the whole time he was lieutenant governor which was seven years they did the polling and nobody like nobody knew who he was he's and he's a very low key guy on the democratic side I think that that Laura Kelly who is just interviewed on the show it's far and away the candidate that I would say is it is clearly the front runner for that race and when there's a face off between Kelly and Kobach I would like to be on the show to discuss what's going to happen if Greg Orman the independent candidate stays in the race because if he's there and is very active in the race he will elect Kobach because he will take the votes from Kelly Patrick what did you think of senator Kelly I don't know if you've seen her talk or express her views before so all politicians are charming and they all know not to say I'm center left as she did to talk about being common sense and no nonsense will of course but those terms are meaningless I think people need to look at their track record you know a lot of Kansas think the second amendment is very important and she's shown an ability to let's say evolve on the issue and I can imagine that being troublesome but you know all these people are charming it's it's part of their job to be charming and so I try to pay less attention to the personality let me ask about the front page story in the Kansas City Star this Thursday morning and the editorial the lead editorial about Kobach and his involvement was cities where he has gone to work on immigration reform sure think is going to damages chances now I don't I don't know I suspect the people that follow Kobach like the idea that that I mean if this is one of the reasons why the following he's been an active participant in a national leader on the issue Mary are you a big Laura Kelly supporter I am but I just say that Laura Kelly up this is I agree this is an exciting election and they've got all this interest on for governor and the congressional race among Democrats Laura Kelly has managed to be a leader in the legislature while in the minority and you know what that indicates that indicates a style and a kind of common sense way of approaching things I have never heard anybody criticize Laura Kelly's performance as a democratic leader in the Kansas Senate she is so highly respected.

If she's the nominee of the Democratic Party I bet you hear a lot of critcism about her Terry you're watching from Missouri any thoughts about the governor's race I mean I think she'll make a a great candidate and and just like you said if if a Greg stays in the race as an independent that could be a problem but just to go back to the governor again Colyer Koback is first on on the ballot in Colyer is last Well they rotate yet so nobody no doing it alphabetically because I thought it was based upon when you know not all right it's just randomly rotate on ah before we run out time yeah Steve you made a prediction in the third district congressional races as well yes I predicted Tom Neirman would be the democratic candidate he's a school teacher and he is a school teacher and I think that well for Kevin Yoder is is he is not only the candidate but ultimately I think he's going to beat any Democrat who's coming out of the congressional on the democratic side you know leading into the two thousand fourteen elections if you did nothing but read the Kansas City Star you thought that these were going to be competitive races and that the Democrats were going to do well and then you wake up and day after election find out oh, Kansas voted all Republicans on state wide of course they did and of course they're going to this time well let's remember that the congressional district were talking about went to Hillary Clinton's by one point what by whatever it it she whatever by one point one point is something and it's enough to win it of really Kevin Yoder has made some really dramatic mistakes lately by his his screw up on the immigration stuff is really quite amazing is going to he's going to pass an amendment from Democrat North Carolina to be more open and liberal about immigration and gave a speech forit it passed then, everybody just wait until next week the argument over state versus local control of the Kansas City Missouri police department takes a new twist courtesy of the Show-me-Institutes Patrick Tuohey who is with us for the show his op ed in Sunday star argues that local control could now exist if the city's mayor an ex officio board member of the police board played a more decisive role in securing funds for critical projects Tuohey points out the mayor has veto power in city hall it takes eight council votes to override therefore Tuohey reasons a Kansas city mayor has great power over the budget process and that power makes the mayor a more consequential figure than any single governor police board commissioner or police chief and Tuohey calls on mayor Sly James and his successors to use that power so Terry based on your years at city hall do you think Patrick is on to something real here the only time that that you really have a time in which you can talk with the police department is doing the budget process after the budget process your your conversations over for one entire year the other person I can have a a lot of influence will be the budget chair in in in talking about the veto I don't think it takes eight I believe it takes nine based upon the changes in the charter in so it is and the mayor must keep a majority six other people to get this legislation through and so it might not be the most prudent thing to veto to the entire budget as a mayor because they can just Sorry the record here you I had nine in my script you told me eight someone thing which is that somebody from the star wrote to me and said it's actually eight now it may be nine is off of but <eps> somewhere between eight nine point as he has veto and it can be overridden now now a governor who we all know this is the this is the case governor or mayor does not have to actually veto that's the threat of veto that exerts power and if a mayor in Kansas city and and too often they've chosen to hide behind the skirt of the police commission if if the mayor said I feel these issues strongly I want to change the way the Kansas city police department spends money he can use that power the power of influence in the threat to veto to get an awful lot of what he or she wants to do but the fact is they've hidden behind local control it's a red herring and so when we have a years long spike in homicides our political leaders in Kansas city do nothing and that's unacceptable Your suggesting if the police department needs more money for let's say homicide prevention the mayor could go to the city council and proposed an ordinance absolutely say get this done I'm going to veto a no vote and I'm going to make certain that this happens the mayor and the city manager could go to the board and say look I want to spend less money on taken cruisers I want to spend less money on this type of stuff I want social workers or I want more police on the beat on on foot patrols and things like that I want less admin and more all uniformed police officers and that would be the beginning of a dialogue it would be consequential but instead mayors because it's politically convenient choose to wash their hands this mayor has done anything but wash his hands of the homicide rate in the violence that continues in our city in the police department issues outside the has he has done everything that he can do which is what under the current system why do you I'm not surprised that you would want has he done I would not so I'm not surprised that you would oppose a democratic approach to running city government we are the only city in the United States that does not control its police department by vote of the people directly for mayor and city council people is just ridiculous You can't police way into changing the way that things have that things are going on in the community there's a lot of fundamental changes need to happen once they were now I'll give it to Cleaver years ago Cleaver said look let's change the paradigm and they put more community police into the community whereby they have relationships with the individuals in those communities therefore crime did go down now you can't just say Hey I'm going police my way into it because a lot of these homicides take place inside of houses the police can't be in every household in these areas in which you have law economic deprivation low low income coupled with individuals being under the poverty line in that is historic and those are there some things that need to change there but I can't just say you let me destroy a whole bunch of police out there and that's going to change the paradigm my goodness Steve ah Johnson county doesn't have this kind of a issue does it there are not really because there are no police boards what we have in Johnson county individual cities is that the police chief really makes the recommendation and along with the city manager of the city has one and then the city council makes the determination all right we need to move ahead if the public opinion polls are correct about half our viewers will love this next topic and half will hate it a New York times columnist a conservative and part of the right wing anti trump coalition Bret Stephens has unexpectedly penned a recent column titled how Trump won reelection in twenty twenty Stephens forecasts Trump victory citing the earlier Bill Clinton campaign refrain it's the economy stupid Stephens says Trump will lose the popular vote to future democratic nominee Elizabeth Warren but will again win the electoral vote and therefore the election because of his economic programs the columnist also suggests the special counsel will issue a report critical of the president but no indictment while the column is apocryphal might it contain some reasonable speculation Patrick I hate predicting elections out but I think the overarching point of the piece is that I think so many people on the left frankly are taking a Trump at a it indictment or impeachment or loss as a fait accompli and and I think a lot of the ways they are acting and ginning up their base are the exact reasons that Trump may be reelected I think that's the point of the piece the this woman running out of New York was a democratic socialist and Nancy Pelosi saying we're going to raise your taxes and people wanting to abolish ICE play very well with the liberal base but again I think the point of the pieces don't be so smug because these are the very things that may cripple you by the way I I want this I'm not a Trump lover at all these ones that I really I agree he will be reelected and I also read Elizabeth Warren will be the democratic nominee I I think this guy is exactly what I was also Mary written by another New York times columnist saying why Trump will lose in twenty twenty but what do you think of this idea of writing a column as if the event had already happened I love journalism and I love it creativity and god knows we need interest in the political world to get people to read about and think about it and this is an interesting thing and I think it's it's fun to think about eight years of Donald Trump that that sends shivers down the spine of just about everybody I know but I know we need to broaden my friendship base of what will happen is that Democrats are going there are going to take a look at exactly what happened when we won the popular vote and did not win the election and that was that we neglected certain parts of the country and lots of Democrats were so sure that Hillary Clinton is going to win that even a percentage or two in Michigan Wisconsin and and the other are great lake states would make a big difference so no I don't think he's going to win I think you're going to see a country that is read it if he is impeached or if there is any other a major kind of legal trouble that lingers into the two thousand twenty then I don't think there's any way we Elizabeth Warren is the likely choice I don't think so you don't think so absolutely not I mean it's not my choice of say that of going back to your point the same and I really appreciate that Patrick the same I'll raise your taxes you know thing about tag for a for this book former speaker the Republicans say that they don't raise your taxes and you guys have raise the taxes you have raise the deficit time and time again and so now they want to use the same tactics of they're going to raise your taxes you guys are raising the taxes you put the burdens on my children right now that are twelve nine and seven for years to come because you got this big gigantic tax break for people in the upper income level it is not trickling down one of my friends will Terry I'm getting sixty two dollars more a month he adds as a be a conservative not so good for you I'm getting a lot more however good health and your bottom line so Terry Riley tax I love to see it look son if if if Democrats take Mary's advice and think that twenty twenty is just a replay of two thousand sixteen no it's not they are going to be taken drubbing because it is just the opposite it is that it is those states were unions have done well where people are making more that are gonna matter Steve you said you think Trump can win again in twenty twenty he can will the economy be the decisive factor ever be I think two factors that'll definitely be one and I think the others the Democrats are going to fragment themselves gone to far left the betweeen I think that the progressives are going to take control and I think that that that's what's going to sink the party it's not acceptable to enough America do you really think that it that it candidate a president with as much trouble as this guy is possible having been more popular than forty percent of can it doesn't matter Bernie Sanders or someone nominee or some Elizabeth Warren towards the middle and we're gonna select a candidate I don't know who in the middle Ya who we're going devastate and we start with Terry you know I thought about there's a lot roast with Trump and everyone else but today I'm going to toast my wife today today is my anniversary we've been married for fifteen years and so today I like to toast my wife you could send flowers instead Mary well I would like to toast for the first time on the show I think my state senator doctor Barbara Bollier doctor Bollier has done something in the state of Kansas hadn't been done for awhile and that is a moderate Republican with it with a big fan base she's a very popular politician and state legislator of came out and decided to endorse by Tom Nierman in the congressional race of for that she's being punished she's been of many think she ought to be kept out of the party out of office she also said that she wants to vote for Laura Kelly for governor and the reason because she's a moderate and if you're a moderate in the in the Kansas Republican Party right now you've got nowhere to go Steve that you're kinda Republican and your up next I don't believe that I'm going to toasts the Koch brothers but by god I'm going to because they have some real courage in the way they have separated themselves from the ethos of the Republican Party that says yes we will have tarrifs in yes we're going to run huge deficits in the Koch brothers saying I don't care what initial is before your name those are not acceptable positions for this country Patrick out well a tentative toasts to the Kansas city city council you may have read that Bayer AG eight ninety six billion dollar pharmaceutical company wants to expand factory in Kansas city and of course has come asking for subsidies the council has put off a vote until the end of August when the the the applicant can talk to the taxing jurisdictions but again if we want to be respected by businesses sometimes we have to say no and finally the equality and diversity committee at Bath University in England has told professors to stop saying "as you know" it could make students feel inadequate because they might not know what the professor assume they did by saying as you know and as you know this is total nonsense and as you know that's Ruckus for this week were back next Thursday at seven now for the Ruckettes and the crew I'm Mike Shanin saying thanks very much for watching and goodnight