Wonder how she voted?

Ever sit back and go, "Hey, I wonder how Congresswoman Nancy Boyda voted on the Native Hawaiian Reorganization Act of 2007. Where can I find out?"

Well, it's easy! 'Course, if you know the bill number going to this site is nice and simple, but if you're in a hurry, and you just want to scroll through the votes Rep. Boyda has cast, our suggestion is the Project Vote Smart web site.

Select, key votes cast by every member of the House and Senate are on display on the web site, as are ratings of individual members by special interest groups (no, none for Boyda yet, she hasn't been in office long enough). It's a great resource, and hours of entertainment for those with nothing better to do.

(She voted in favor of the Native Hawaiian Reorganization Act, by the way- it allowed Native Hawaiians the right to form a government that would be recognized by the feds, similar to the agreements the USA has with mainland Native American tribes).

Not affiliated with...

While we know this post won't do anything to stop the conspiracy theorists, this is something we've never officially said: this blog, our Facebook presence, and the folks that post here, have no affiliation to Congresswoman Nancy Boyda, her official congressional office, or her campaign, other than being supporters and periodic volunteers in real life for the campaign.

Nothing we post here is reviewed or revised by anyone associated with the congresswoman, and, while saying this won't actually change anything for the nutjobs out there, none of the commentary on the site should be interpreted as being "what Nancy believes." When we want to tell you what Nancy believes, we will always quote her directly. If we don't tell you what you're reading is coming from Nancy, assume that it isn't, and that it's coming from the witty minds of the folks writing the blog.

Like we said at the top of the post, for all of those who are just sure Nancy's staff is behind this we're sure this won't change a thing. We decided we needed to go on the record and make it clear what reality actually is.

Boyda holds forums, helps senior citizens

Congresswoman Nancy Boyda held a series of forums dedicated to answering questions relating to Medicare across the district this week, including one in Columbus (in the extreme southeastern corner of the state) that was covered by The Joplin Globe.

It's a long article, and a good one, detailing many of the problems our senior citizens face while trying to facilitate a basic need: getting their medicine.

Here's an excerpt:

Boyda said President Bush and many Republicans in Congress want to cut funding for services to senior citizens, but she said he would fight to prevent it.

“In December, you’re going to see some showdowns on the House and Senate floor,” she said.

Boyda said that in comparing plans that are offered, one should keep in mind that if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. She said 52 plans are offered to Kansas residents under the Medicare drug plan.

“The marketplace can be pretty brutal, honestly,” she said. She said a company’s profit motive doesn’t always coincide with what is the common good.

Boyda also reiterated her belief Medicare should be able to negotiate with drug companies for cheaper prices- a no-brainer solution to a massive problem that the Republicans in Congress and the White House continue to ignore.

According to the official site, a total of five forums were held.

Lynn Jenkins and her 13-room mansion

We must have hit a cord.

Yesterday's post about Jim Ryun and Lynn Jenkins giving themselves fist fulls of money that had been given to their campaigns certainly garnered a lot of attention- as we expected.

Thing is, it didn't come from the candidate we expected it to come from. No, people didn't rush to Jim Ryun's aid, telling us why it makes perfect sense for him to have given himself $17,000 out of his campaign treasury. Instead, it was Lynn Jenkins who people (or, perhaps, one very prolific person) came out to aid, pointing out the fact Lynn Jenkins isn't independently wealthy like Nancy Boyda, so, of course she couldn't afford to just suck it up and use her own money to pay for her campaign- related expenses (like Nancy Boyda does).

Excuse me?

This blog won't deny the Boydas have money- that would be silly. Anymore, anyone running for federal office has got to be wealthy to even make it out of the gate. It is also ridiculous- simply out-of-sight stupid- to say Lynn Jenkins and her husband aren't also a pair of really wealthy cats.

In fact, Lynn Jenkins, the Treasurer of the State of Kansas (annual salary of $83,905), lives in the very most affluent neighborhood in Topeka (Clarion Woods), and, in fact, owns a 13-room mansion, fully equipped with four full bathrooms and seven- yes seven- bedrooms.

Oh, don't forget the two fireplaces, finished basement & attic (about 4,000 sq. ft. total)- worth just shy of $300,000.

Also, recall Lynn also gave herself $100,000 in the 2nd quarter this year...not something a non-wealthy person could ever do.

Perhaps because someone posted, also, that this blog was getting as biased as the conservative blogs (cut to the quick!), we'll happily source the above info: all verbatim from the Shawnee County Appraiser's Office. Never say we don't source our statements.

Oh, also, we dare you to look up the Boyda's house in Topeka- go ahead, compare.

NOTE: This should be clear- this doesn't make Lynn Jenkins a bad person or unqualified to be a member of Congress- after all, both Jim Ryun and Nancy Boyda are well-to-do as well- it is just awfully disingenuous to say Lynn isn't also a very wealthy lady- maybe even the richest person race.

Jenkins & Ryun: Lining their pockets from the campaign coffers

While Politico.com has a field day with a slew of GOP resignations in the US House & Senate today, Kansas political bloggers continue to be in the doldrums brought on by the Thanksgiving break. So, rather than mention (over and over again) the nifty post Blue Tide Rising had this morning, this blog is going to go back in time for a minute and wonder aloud: is it really OK for both Jim Ryun and Lynn Jenkins to line their pockets with campaign contributions totaling more than a worker living on the federal minimum wage makes in a year and a half?

I'm going to go ahead and say no.

To begin, please reflect back to the post made on this blog about the 3rd quarter fundraising reports filed by the two folks running for and the one woman holding the 2nd Congressional District seat in Kansas. 'Course, it's nice to remember Congresswoman Nancy Boyda ended the quarter with the most cash on hand- the only number that really matters, since, heck, it's the number that produces things like yard signs and TV commercials- but that's not the part you should pay attention to today: look, instead, to the amounts the two Republicans paid themselves during the reporting period.

Yep, both "fiscal conservative" Republicans decided their wallets needed a little fattening- to the tune a combined total of more than $20K.

I should admit an error- in my earlier post I said Lynn Jenkins gave herself more than Jim Ryun gave himself in Q3...that's not the case. While Lynn did indeed give herself $3,146.76 for mileage and "training," Jim's 3rd quarter total was $3,527.71- all in mileage reimbursements.

I don't really have much more to say about Lynn, other than to include she gave herself more than a person working on the newly increased federal minimum wage (thank you, Congress) would make in 13 weeks- such a person would have to work 538 hours to earn has much as Lynn Jenkins gifted herself out of her campaign coffers. Lynn, of course, has a job, and the people of the state of Kansas do continuing paying her to do that job- though, as she's done with every other elected position she's held, having a job doesn't seem to be preventing her from looking for a new one while still on our dime...but that's a different post.

Ah, but Lynn's offense, while depressing, isn't even close to the main event. Good 'ol former world record miler Jim Ryun wins this particular race in a walk. In 2007, Jim Ryun has taken from his campaign a shocking $17,184.53 in mileage reimbursements- $10,611.68 in the second quarter alone!

Now, I have no idea where Jim is going that he would ever be able to rack up that kind of gasoline bill- unless, of course, he's driving back and forth to Argentina in an effort to win Nancy's seat in Congress. (Certainly needs something that gets better gas mileage than the SUV at right, regardless of what make-believe places he's visiting).

Being the good conservative he is, though, I'm sure he's not bilking his donors into paying him a salary to run for Congress...no, surely not...

Because my Momma told me to never leave something up to other people to figure out: a person on minimum wage would have to work for nearly 74 weeks to earn that much money- or exactly 2,937.5 hours.

The stunning amount of money Jim Ryun's campaign has given back to the candidate isn't the only sad/hilarious disbursement on the records. In the 2nd and 3rd quarters the campaign spent nearly $300 at convenience stores and McDonald's ($292.87 in Q2 and $271.02 in Q3), including one $121.30 expenditure for "campaign meals" at a Kwik-Shop in Lawrence.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

Only ridiculous arrogance or vast stupidity could lead a campaign to spend that kind of money- tens of thousands of dollars- on reimbursing candidates for impossible numbers of miles and for $120 meals from a Kwik Shop.

Every Democrat in Kansas, and every single person that wants to see Nancy Boyda serve another term in Congress should be thankful the folks on the other side are this arrogant, stupid, and liberal with their campaign coffers.

As to Nancy Boyda? Hasn't reimbursed herself for any mileage at all, or for any newspapers or Big Macs. I'd guess she pays for those sorts of things out of her own pocket- just like a regular, average Kansan would.

Boyda seeks resignation of consumer protection chief

It's horrifying that we have of Bush appointees falling down on the job and allowing toys to enter this country that are unsafe. Luckily, we have a representative in Washington looking out for all of our kids this holiday season.

As reported by the Lawrence Jounrnal-World and WIBW TV (video & text), Congresswoman Nancy Boyda has now publicly said she wants the Chairperson of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, Nancy Nord, to resign. Nord's organization is responsible for ensuring products sold in the United States are safe, and, unfortunately, has refused offers of added funds and other assistance from Congress to beef up obviously lax protection.

“If she is unwilling or unable to keep our kids safe, then we need to replace her with somebody that is,” said Boyda. -Lawrence Journal-World.

This is a nonpartisan issue, and, particularly as we move into the holiday season, something Americans of every strip can get behind.

Boyda was joined at her press conference by Jan Stegelman, coordinator of Safe Kids Kansas, who offered some guidelines for folks buying toys this year.

Giving thanks to the "netroots"

It's a slow news week with Congress being out of session and all and families on both sides of the partisan divide hunkering down for some turkey and mashed potatoes, so I thought I'd do a quick rundown of some of the web-related things all of us involved with BoydaBloc are thankful for this holiday season:

1. We're thankful for the 200 people who have decided to be our "friend" on Facebook. While the second 100 took give-or-take 3 weeks to join up, the first 100 "friended" us in a little less than 4 days. That kind of response is truly remarkable- and something none of us ever anticipated.

2. We're thankful for the 232 people who are members of the "Boyda for Congress" Facebook group. We didn't start the group and are only recent joiners, but those folk are part of an awesome bunch of excited and energetic supporters.

3. We're thankful for the 734 people who have decided to support Nancy Boyda's re-election via the US Politics application on Facebook.

4. We're (way) thankful for the 1,468 people who are Nancy Boyda's friends on MySpace.

5. And, finally, we're thankful for the more than 2,000 page views we've had since the blog launched in October. Even though a good segment of our readers aren't what you would call "Nancy fans," we're truly blessed to have been so successful so quickly.

Each of the above things to be thankful for are reasons to believe Congresswoman Boyda's seat in the House of Representatives is being, and will be, well defended from the outlandish attacks she'll have to suffer from the radical Right.

This blog, and all of the people who are our friends and/or Nancy's friends and supports are an impressive little army- and we'll kick tail in November!

For Treece, Nancy Boyda and Pat Roberts are knights in shining armor

You know, even in political blogging, sometimes spin isn't appropriate. Sometimes you have to be adult enough to say, "Hey, the other side just helped us do something extraordinary."

While that is a virtue I certainly don't ever expect to see from partisan bloggers anywhere in the country on either side of the political divide, today it's something I'm proud to display here with a big heaping "thank you" to both Congresswoman Nancy Boyda (D) and Senator Pat Roberts (R) for their bills to facilitate a voluntary by-out of the city of Treece in Cherokee County.

For those of you who don't know the story of Treece, the Lawrence Journal-World did a brilliant series of articles on it detailing the devastating effects coal, lead and zinc mining had on southeastern Kansas and northeastern Oklahoma.

According to articles that ran in both the Wichita Eagle and the Lawrence Journal-World, a year ago, now threatened by sinkholes and contaminated water, the city of Picher, Oklahoma was given a federal grant to relocate residents to a safer location thanks to the work of Republican Senator Jim Inhofe.

The Eagle quoted Congresswoman Boyda as saying "Treece residents have wondered whether their turn would ever come." Well, because of the efforts of state and local elected officials, and the hard work of both Boyda and Roberts, hopefully their turn is just around the corner. The bills introduced by the bipartisan pair would provide $6 million in assistance to move any resident of Treece, that wanted to go, to a safer location.

That would be on top of $680,000 requested by Gov. Kathleen Sebelius in her budget that was approved by the Republican state legislature.

From start to stop, it's a bipartisan game. The LJ-World carries this quote from Democratic State Legislator Doug Gatewood:

“My hat’s off to Congresswoman Boyda and Senator Roberts for the fight they are making on behalf of the people of southeast Kansas and Treece, in particular."

It's only too bad it couldn't have happened sooner- but the people of Treece have Nancy Boyda's dedication to her district and Pat Robert's service to the state to thank for the fact it happened now.

Yet again, Boyda sees unanimous approval of legislation

Yesterday, the House of Representatives unanimously passed Congresswoman Nancy Boyda's bill to close a loophole in federal child pornography laws that allowed a Kansas City man go free.

Boyda was quote thusly in the St. Louis Examiner:

"We need to get these guys in jail and keep them there," Boyda said. "It's about keeping our kids safe from these predators."

This news comes out just as TheHill.com runs an article detailing the successes of the Democratic Party's freshmen members- including Boyda's work to strip members convicted of felonies of their pensions.

Republicans tell us Congress- and specifically Nancy Boyda- hasn't achieved anything. Obviously, that isn't true.

Boyda to "Freedom Watch"- It's time to be responsible

In response to a misleading and deeply irresponsible full page ad placed in the Topeka Capital-Journal by the conservative organization "Freedom Watch" in regards to the Iraq war, Congresswoman Nancy Boyda told the Huffington Post it was imperative we strengthen our forces by responsibly redeploying from Iraq.

"In an age of global threats, I do not believe our nation is best served by devoting so many of our military resources to Iraq," Rep. Nancy Boyda (D-KS) told the Huffington Post, responding to the conservative broadside she faced in the Topeka Capital-Journal Tuesday morning.

Boyda unseated a Republican incumbent by a narrow margin in 2006, and her seat has been identified by GOP strategists as a prime 2008 target. But she responded aggressively to the Freedom's Watch ad, which ran in the districts of seven freshman House Democrats.

"I believe the best way forward from here is to gradually, responsibly redeploy from Iraq," Boyda added. "We need to give the Iraqi people every opportunity to secure a sustainable peace, but our ultimate focus must be to strengthen our military's ability to respond to future threats."

We can't afford "stay the course" politics any longer, and it's time the Republicans stopped playing politics with our men and women in uniform.

Nancy Boyda's anti-child porn bill up for a vote

According to a story from WIBW.com and a press release on Congresswoman Boyda's web site, the House of Representatives was expected to vote today on a bill introduced and authored by Boyda to clamp shut a loophole in federal anti-child porn laws.

According to the WIBW.com story, the bill amends the language of the current law to" expand it from actual transmission between states to include any instance that "affects(s) commerce" or a "facility of interstate commerce."

I will now sit patiently for a Boyda basher to tell me why this is a horrible, awful, no good kind of thing...

Boyda's Best Week Ever- a P.S.

I missed this editorial from the Parsons Sun last week- just another bit of good news.

Just an unbiased reminder that the people of the 2nd District still think of Nancy Boyda as being an independent voice for them. She's only not been in the district a handful of weekends- including one spent in Iraq. But she's here, home, with her constituents nearly every weekend, and that, more than anything else, will keep her independent from the Washington machine.

Pause to Remember

Nancy Boyda's Best Week Ever

Last week was another week that showed, first, exactly how effective Congresswoman Nancy Boyda is in Washington, DC- and, second, showed off (again) that the Kansas Republican Party hopelessly desperate.

As already detailed on this blog (below), Congresswoman Boyda secured hundreds of millions of dollars in federal spending for her district this week, adding money for projects at Ft. Riley and Ft. Leavenworth- and monies straight into the Topeka economy with an earmark dedicated to Goodyear Tires. That's on the heels of the House passing a huge tax break for military families that had been introduced by Boyda.

Undoubtedly a red-letter week for any member of Congress- and certainly excellent news for the people of Nancy Boyda's congressional district (and the whole state, for that matter).

'Course, the Republicans just couldn't stand that much good news for the people of Kansas, and they lashed out in their usual way: ham-handed attacks that, unfortunately for them, fall awfully flat. The KS GOP, Jim Ryun's campaign and all the anti-Boyda blogs sent out e-mails and posted pieces attacking Boyda for a fundraiser scheduled for Friday with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

Ryun's campaign said (with passive sexism) this:

You my know that San Fransisco's very own Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is flying into Kansas tonight straight from Washington in a top-of-the-line, Air For passenger jet.

[...]

We know Speaker Pelosi need Nancy Boyda's reliable vote when it comes to raising taxes on Kansas working families and she will stop at nothing to make sure Jim Ryun is defeated! Your contribution today puts us one step closer to ending the reign of Queen Nancy.

Gosh. That's quite something- though, perhaps, Ryun should have, oh, read a newspaper sometime on Thursday or Friday so he could have found out the Pelosi visit, and Boyda's trip home, had been postponed. Seems the KS GOP caught it and sent out an e-mail- about five hours before the Ryun camp sent out theirs- declaring victory for scaring the Speaker of the House of Representatives away from Kansas.

What interesting spin- and how ridiculously far from the truth. Boyda's Kansas fundraiser still happened, but without Pelosi- or Boyda, for that matter, because the House was still in session.

Why was the House still in session? Because the Democrats were cutting taxes on the American middle class- yes, that's right, Jim, the fundraiser you lied to your supports about didn't feature any members of Congress because they were in Washington, DC lowering taxes on average Americans.

So: Boyda's tax cut for military families passes unanimously, she secures an almost $300 million investment in Kansas, Congress cuts taxes on the middle class, and Kansas Republican fall all over themselves to spin Democratic success- or, failing that, just lie to their own supporters.

Good work, Congresswoman!

Nancy Boyda opposes driver's licenses for illegal immigrants

As reported today by the Washington Times, Congresswoman Nancy Boyda vehemently disagrees with any plan to offer driver's licenses to illegal immigrants:

Rep. Nancy Boyda, Kansas Democrat, said the stance taken by her party's presidential candidates is very unpopular in her district.

"What I tell people back home is, 'It is not my day to watch them,' " said Mrs. Boyda, adding that her reputation as a political maverick and staunch opponent of illegal entry distinguishes her from the folly at the top of the ticket.

"It is ultimately about the rule of law," she said. "We don't give driver's licenses to people who are here illegally. We do something about the fact that they are here illegally."

Boyda secures $265+ million for Kansas

In a pair of press announcements, Congresswoman Nancy Boyda announced she has secured more than $265 million for military spending in the State of Kansas.

According to Boyda's official Web site and a story in the Manhattan Mercury, two Kansas military bases, Fort Riley and Fort Leavenworth, stand to gain $255 million in new funding under the 2008 Veterans Affairs and Military Construction (VA / MILCON) Appropriations Bill. The bill includes two specific earmarks requested by Boyda, one for a new chapel at Ft. Leavenworth, and another for a training facility for military dogs at Ft. Riley.

The other announcement reports Kansas will receive $10.8 million in funding earmarked by Boyda under the new defense appropriations bill. That $11 million includes a $1.2 million contract fro Goodyear Tire in Topeka for the production of military tires.

You can read more about Boyda's cash for Kansas here.

BREAKING NEWS: House unanimously passes Boyda's tax break for military families

From Congresswoman Nancy Boyda's official site:

"'It’s about time,' said Congresswoman Nancy Boyda (Kansas Second District), after the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act (HEART Act) yesterday on a unanimous, 410-0 vote."

The bill included the language of Boyda's previously introduced Tax Relief for Armed Combat Families Act of 2007.

Today, because of actions taken by Congresswoman Nancy Boyda and the Democratic Congress 150,000 of our service men and women won't see their taxes drastically increase next year.

Illegal Immigrants, Cheaper Prescription Drugs, & Ryun's Townhouse Deal

A quick rundown of some of the top stories relating to the 2nd Congressional District:

The Lawrence Journal-World carries a heartbreaking story about a teenager killed in a car accident by an illegal immigrant. Congresswoman Nancy Boyda spoke about the accident at a press release for the introduction of a new bipartisan bill to enhance immigration enforcement. According to The Hill, "The Secure America with Verification and Enforcement (SAVE) Act focuses on three areas: employment enforcement, interior enforcement and increased border security."

The bipartisan effort has cosponsors ranging from Congresswoman Boyda to Republican Congressmen Duncan Hunter and Tom Tancredo.

Also, The Hill reports more on Boyda's efforts to increase Medicaid reimbursements to pharmacies (and the efforts of a bunch of other members, too).

And, finally, The Politico does a lovely piece on real estate in Washington, DC, mentioning how expensive it is to own in the District unless, well, you get a sweetheart deal from a Tom Delay front organization. I'll go ahead and quote the portion of the article dedicated to Mr. Ryun here:

One of the best — albeit tainted — deals appears to have been had by former Rep. Jim Ryun (R-Kan.). Ryun has been the subject of allegations that he received a sweetheart real estate deal from a nonprofit group tied to disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff and the GOP’s former “Hammer,” Tom Delay (R-Texas).

Ryun bought his D Street town house for $410,000 in 2000 from the U.S. Family Network, even though that group — allegedly a front for shady fundraising by a former DeLay aide — had bought the house two years earlier, in the midst of the property boom, for $19,000 more.

Either way, Ryun, who has denied any improprieties and said he has substantially improved the house, is sitting on a golden egg.

The three-bedroom, two-bath brick row house is currently valued at $920,870, according to D.C. property records.

Ryun’s house was at the high end, given its proximity to the Capitol.

The average going price for a house near the Capitol is $750,000 — up from about $330,000 in 2000, according to information from Coldwell Banker Real Estate. Real estate values in the rest of the District have risen even more.

Nancy Boyda: Good for the Middle Class

The assault on the middle class perpetrated by radical Republicans playing under the guise of being "fiscal conservatives" is one of the saddest stories that has come out of the 10 years of Republican leadership in the Congress. They cut taxes and cut taxes- but they've created a system in which the billionaire's secretary pays a larger percent of his or her income in taxes than the billionaire does- a system the is grossly inappropriate in the United States of America.

Yet another reason to be happy we have Nancy Boyda in Congress.

According to TheMiddleClass.org, a Web site managed by the non-partisan Drum Major Institute for Public Policy, Congresswoman Boyda has voted in support of America's squeezed Middle Class 89% of the time, supporting measures that will make college more affordable, improve Head Start, expand the Children's Health Insurance Program, and increase the minimum wage.

We commend Rep. Boyda for her dedication to re-setting the balance in Washington- giving the little guy a leg up instead of millionaires that simply don't need one.

One quick note- 89% is great- but it isn't perfect. It is better than the poor folk of the Kansas 4th get, though- Todd Tiahrt has only voted with America's Middle Class 22% of the time this year- and has been given an "F" by TheMiddleClass.org ever year since 2003.

Boyda stunned Ryun & the country in '06- she'll do it again

To quote an e-mail from the Kansas Republican Party sent out earlier today:

"Fellow Republicans:

Roll Call, a Capitol Hill newspaper, just released their list of the top 10 most endangered House incumbents. Not surprisingly, Nancy Boyda made it on the list.

Roll Call stated, "Boyda stunned (Republican) Rep. Jim Ryun last year after losing to him by 15 points in the previous cycle. Ryun wants his old job back, but he'll first have to get through a tough Republican primary against state Treasurer Lynn Jenkins. Whatever happens in the GOP contest, Boyda will have a fat target on her back, and no matter how hard she works, in a district that President Bush carried by 20 points in 2004, Republicans may be able to yell `bull's-eye' a year from now."

Roll Call is just pointing out something we have known all along...Nancy Boyda does not represent the values of the 2nd Congressional District."

Click here for the post on the Kansas City Star's Prime Buzz blog.

No one with any sense can quibble with Roll Call's general point: The KS-2 race will be tough- though they should have pointed about Nancy Boyda has the most cash-on-hand and that Ryun and Jenkins will be broke and bloody by the time of the primary election, giving her an added leg-up in addition to the general benefits of incumbency.

The Republicans do include one small, weird tangent in their e-mail- it's that last line- "Roll Call is just pointing out...Nancy Boyda does not represent the vales of the 2nd Congressional District." I expect strange, nonsensical spin from Christian Morgan over at the KS GOP, but I have to admit I don't understand how in the world someone could take anything from that Roll Call article and make it into a partisan indictment of Nancy Boyda's performance. It does say, and the KS GOP e-mail confirms, that partisan attack dogs will stop at nothing to take out an excellent member of Congress- and that the district's past Republican performance makes this a race to watch.

We know Nancy Boyda represents traditional Kansas values in Washington. Boyda's commonsense votes against amnesty, for cheaper prescription drugs, for SCHIP and in support of our veterans are exactly in line with her district, while Jim Ryun's ties to Jack Abramhoff, Tom Delay and the Republican Culture of Corruption are most definitely not. And Lynn Jenkins? She just doesn't know what to think.

The tubes have Jim Ryun!

The Politico reported earlier today, and I just had to re-post it here, that Jim Ryun has seen a groundswell of support unlike any seen anywhere else in the race against Congresswoman Nancy Boyda: His fervent followers have made him a feature, albeit without consent, on an online community "outside of reality" called Second Life. (10 million people globally living "virtual lives" in an online, 3-D world).

Though, to be clear, they say it isn't associated with the campaign, they say they didn't know it was there, and that, frankly, they're as freaked out about it as I am.

Ryun’s campaign spokeswoman was downright wary. “We don’t condone or support it. I don’t think we’re going to look at it anytime soon,” said Jackie Harrison. “It’s intense. You have to download something.”

While I won't fault Ms. Harrison or the Ryun team for being hesitant to approach Second Life as a primary part of Ryun's comeback tour, the article makes a compelling case for expanding resources into more online networking. I mean, heck, this blog has nearly 200 friends on Facebook, so it can't be very hard.

But, well, we expect Democrats to be on the cutting edge of technology and we expect them to know how to use the Internets to their advantage- does it surprise anyone Republicans like Jim Ryun and Lynn Jenkins fall desperately behind?

Money, money everywhere...

...but who has the most in the bank?

(Hint...it isn't either Jim Ryun or Lynn Jenkins).

Boyda Bipartisanship: Save Our Pharmacies!

In modern politics it's important to remember not all issues are hard and fast partisan points- frequently, both sides of the aisle can see what is in the best interest of the country.

One of Congresswoman Nancy Boyda's signature issues is maintaining access to and supporting existing community pharmacies, and she has been on the forefront in Washington fighting against cuts in reimbursements that go to those vital businesses.

The problem isn't some phantom created by Congresswoman Boyda. A letter that appeared in Sunday's Topeka Capitol-Journal from Republican State Senator Vicki Schmidt and Rep. Don Hill relayed the exact same problems that Rep. Boyda has recognized.

In an effort to address the issues facing community pharmacies- particularly the low reimbursement rate Medicare pays for drugs, Congresswoman Boyda introduced the Save Our Community Pharmacies Act, which addresses the problem head-on.

These aren't Republican or Democratic problems- and they're American problems, and we need American solutions, and it's nice to see people from both parties working in the same direction.

Boyda, Democrats, & Topeka teen celebrate successes

Today the Democrats in the United States House of Representatives highlighted the monumental legislative successes we have all seen in the last year in an event marking the anniversary of the day the American people rejected the politics and the policies of the Republican Party and called for a New Direction for America.

Several Members, including Speaker Pelosi, highlighted the achievements of the last 11 months, trumpeting Democratic promises kept "to make America safer, to help restore the American dream, and to restore accountability and fiscal responsibility to the people's government."

Congresswoman Nancy Boyda, joined by Topeka High Senior Kelly Jacobsen, celebrated the passage of the College Cost Reduction Act of 2007, which makes it easier for students to pay for higher education.

Jacobsen wrote an article that appeared in the Topeka Capital-Journal on Sept. 25 that heralded the passage of the act as a "light at the bottom of the bank account."

"When I read Kelly's article, I saw a moving, first-hand perspective on the difficulty of paying for college. Her story drove home for me, and I'm sure for others, that the College Cost Reduction Act will make a real difference in the lives of Kansans."

And, using campaign funds, Boyda flew Jacobsen to Washington, DC to participate in today's event- putting that real face in front the national media.

"I couldn't imagine anyone better than Kelly to speak for Kansans about the College Cost Reduction Act. When Congress passes a law that invests billions of dollars in college aid, it's easy to forget that every one of those dollars helps a real student with a face and a story. This conference was a way to say, 'We're helping Kelly, and we're helping millions of others like her across America.'"

Congresswoman Nancy Boyda is helping. With achievements highlighted today that include bills to implement the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, to raise the minimum wage, and to restore honesty and accountability to the federal government it's impossible to not recognize the positive effect this Congress, and Nancy Boyda's leadership for Kansas, has had.

And, congratulations to Kelly Jacobsen for a truly awesome opportunity!

We Can't Afford Lynn Jenkins in Washington

And oldie, but still golden.