Ryun's New TV Spot Focuses on BRAC, Misleads Voters

For those of you watching television in the Topeka media market this morning you've probably already seen it, but Jim Ryun's newest campaign commercial takes credit for keeping Kansas military bases from being closed during the last round of the Base Re-Alignment and Closure program (BRAC).

UPDATE: And here's the ad:

Never mind Ryun & his old buddies in Congress dropped the ball at the very end of 2006 and refused to fund 2007 BRAC projects, specifically Kansas BRAC projects...never mind Ryun, because of his inaction, nearly lost Kansas military bases more than $300 million.

From the Topeka Capital-Journal:

Bottom line, the lame-duck Congress didn't pass a fiscal 2007 budget last fall. Instead, the 109th Congress approved a continuing resolution, financing the Base Realignment and Closure Commission at 2006 levels but eliminating money for projects at both Fort Riley and Fort Leavenworth.

That's money Ryun cut- and that Congresswoman Nancy Boyda put back in. She did better than just put back in, though:

By late January, with the second continuing resolution on the verge of expiring, the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed another resolution that actually raised BRAC funding by $1 billion.

Never mind that.

Boyda Buys $3K on Radio, Distributes Newspaper Inserts

Over the course of the next week, more than 130 radio spots will advertise the newest installment of Congresswoman Nancy Boyda's newspaper inserts, one of the grassroots campaign tools Boyda used in 2006 to provide voters in the Congressional district with as much information as they could possibly want regarding where she stood on the issues.

The first installment this year follows a similar vein, but rather than feeding the voter's desire for policy, this insert, instead, focuses on what Boyda had done since being elected in 2006.

It's 20 pages long, and over the next week will be distributed in 48 Kansas newspapers.

From the campaign press release from yesterday:

"Democracy depends on a thoughtful, informed debate, and newspapers are the perfect forum for engaging voters," Congresswoman Boyda said. "Voters are sick and tired of seeing the most important decisions in our democracy fought out in 30-second ads. They want real, in-depth information. They want to be respected and included."

[...]

Among the features of the Congressional Update:

• County by County, Working for You: A section detailing Congresswoman Boyda's official visits and accomplishments for each of the 26 counties of the Kansas Second Congressional District, including her 58 Congress on Your Corner events.
  
  
• Working for You in Kansas: An update on the constituent service work by Congresswoman Boyda's office, highlighting the 2,600+ Kansans her office helped in 2007. Also featured are several success stories written by constituents, including a cancer patient who was denied coverage by Medicare and a church group leader who sought help with passport applications for a mission trip.
  
  
• Working for You in Washington, D.C.: An in-depth section focusing on two laws that Congresswoman Boyda has helped to author during her first term in Congress: the Heroes Earning Assistance and Relief Tax Act, which permanently ended the Soldier Tax; and the Honest Leadership, Open Government Act, which abolished Congressional pensions for convicted felons.

A PDF of the insert, along with an .mp3 of the radio ad can be found at Boyda's Campaign web site.

Boyda's newspaper inserts aren't what you'd call a traditional part of a modern political campaign, and while there isn't any academic research on them to back up their effectiveness, Boyda certainly believes in them- and two of Kansas's top political scientists seem to like them, too:

"There's no academic work on this at all," [KU Professor Burdett Loomis] said. "But I think the last time (Boyda ran), it clearly didn't hurt. It may have worked very well."

[...]

"It honestly works better for an incumbent because the sheer volume of stuff she's done, the numbers of cases she's done, passports helped with, is pretty impressive," he said.

[...]

Washburn University political scientist Bob Beatty said it appeared to work.

"I think it'd be great if all the candidates did the 30-page circulars and ran a few TV ads and told voters, 'Make up your mind.' "

He noted that Boyda took an unusual approach last time with the newspaper inserts and low-dollar TV ads that countered the slick politician image.

"The anti-campaign campaign was sort of their strategy," Beatty said. "I think the newspapers did help, though we'll never know how much."

Now Boyda will want to hold onto those voters who read and were swayed.

"If she picked up only a few thousand votes it's worth it, because they're so relatively cheap," Beatty said. "In modern political campaigning that's not a lot of money."

Distribution and printing of the insert cost approximately $50,000.

If anyone knows how active Boyda has been in her 2 years in office, it's those of us who write this blog, and those of you out there in Internet-land who read us- but we were taken aback by how much she has actually done. After 10 years of a man who did literally nothing at all, Boyda's track record is amazing.

Iola Register Endorses Lynn Jenkins in Primary

In the very first media endorsement of the 2008 Republican Primary, Lynn Jenkins has received the endorsement of the Iola Register.

Kansas Treasurer Lynn Jenkins and Jim Ryun oppose each other for the Second District Republican nomination for Congress in the Aug. 5 primary election. Jenkins deserves the nod.

A certified public accountant, Jenkins has served in the Kansas Legislature and is now state treasurer. She is energetic, considers herself a moderate and would be a strong advocate for reducing the federal deficit.

Ryun represented the Second District for 10 years and was listed among the most conservative members of Congress on social, economic and political issues. He was not noted for any particular legislative accomplishments and was a dependable supporter of the Bush administration and congressional Republican leaders.

He is one of the reasons that the reputation of the U.S. Congress fell to such depths over the past decade.

It will be disappointing to moderate Republicans in the district to learn that both Ryun and Jenkins want to repeal the estate tax and make President Bush’s tax cuts for the rich permanent. Those positions, if they prevail, will make balancing the federal budget much more difficult, if not impossible, and will widen the gap between the rich and the middle class in America.

Nevertheless, Republicans eager to see America’s challenges addressed should choose Jenkins over Ryun. Experience tells them that Ryun is no force for change. With Jenkins there would be hope.

— Emerson Lynn, jr.

This is potentially one of the most negative endorsements any of us have ever read- very much "vote for her because the other guy is just terrible." And kudos to Mr. Lynn for backhanding Jenkins for supporting the rich or regular Americans.

In the end, Jenkins should be an obvious choice for Republican primary voters, really, and this endorsement says as much with "experience tells them that Ryun is no force for change" and that "with Jenkins, there would be hope."

That hope for someone better than someone as miserable as Jim Ryun should propel her through the primary, it should have made her a shoe-in. But...it hasn't. Right now, she's far, far behind in polling, she's still not on television, and still acting like her heart really just isn't in it. And that should scare her supporters (and her staff) half to death.

29 days to pull it out. Just 29 days.

Best Way to Lose a Primary....Not Campaign in Your District!

Where will Lynn Jenkins be only 15 days before Republicans will determine whether or not she has a future in elective politics in Kansas?

Campaigning- just like you'd imagine she would be.

Ah, the "stoopid" catch: She'll be rubbing elbows in Wichita at a reception in Old Town.

Um, Lynn? We know you've already raised most of the money for your campaign for the 2nd District seat in Wichita & Kansas City, but you do realize they can't actually vote for you, right?

KS GOP: Almost Right, But, Alas, Exactly Wrong

From Harris New Service, as published in the Hutchinson News:

Freshman Congresswoman Nancy Boyda's partisan critics pounced this past week on her response to a reporter's question about whether gas taxes should be raised to pay for road improvements.

"I don't know that any politician wants to stand up here today and say they support increasing the fuel tax, but that's how roads are built," Boyda said during a news conference.

State and national Republican groups blasted the statement, which was only printed in part.

"With fuel taxes too high, fuel prices through the roof and Kansans feeling the pinch, Nancy Boyda wants to raise our taxes," state GOP Chairman Kris Kobach said in a written statement.

But Boyda never actually indicated whether she supports raising the tax.

The part of her quote that didn't make it into print:

"Again, I don't think there's a real stomach for putting more into a gas tax or raising it, which then comes to the question of how are we going to pay for it?" Boyda said of the road funding issue.

Damn! Foiled by facts again!

Sorry Christian & Kris...so close!

Cap-J: Ryun a ""Radical, Misogynistic, Fundamentalist on a Jihad from Hell"

Sometimes, the mainstream media just hands us gold- beautiful, unmitigated gold. God bless you, Tim Carpenter, god bless you.

Every political pundit, pretend or otherwise, from this blog to the halls of Kansas academia, have said the same thing regarding the "clean campaign pledge" Jim Ryun offered up to Lynn Jenkins: She would have had to have been a fool to sign it, and Ryun was a strategic genius for presenting it because, now, if Lynn ever does do the only thing she can do if she wants to win- bash Ryun over the head for being a horrible congressman- he'll "oh poor me" her all the way to the ballot box and a win in the primary.

To some of us who have been 'round the political playground in Kansas for while, this tactic from Mr. Ryun was eerily familiar- and a piece in the Topeka Capital-Journal on Sunday reminded us all why: Jim Ryun pulled the exact same shenanigans to save his political career in his very first campaign for office in 1996.

Ryun should have been a shoe-in in 1996- he was famous and all, and he was running against a Topeka attorney of whom no one had ever heard. But, John Freiden, Ryun's opponent in that first race, slammed away at Ryun for being what we all now agree he is: A man simply too radical and too out-of-touch to represent this district in Congress.

Ryun had offered Freiden the same clean campaign pledge he has now offered Jenkins, and Freiden rejected it for the exact same reason Jenkins did: The underdog can't give away the only trick they have when they're going up against the big cheese.

[Chris] Wilson, founder of the polling firm Wilson Research Service, said the 1996 Ryun campaign knew the pledge was a disadvantage to Freiden and that it would be foolish for him to sign. If Freiden joined in, Wilson said, the absence of meaningful TV ads would have made it impossible for him to gain traction among voters.

Good thing Frieden realized it, too, because harping away on Jim Ryun for being a loony nearly won him a seat in Congress. On that same coin, ignoring that pledge is also what lost him is seat in Congress, but only because Jim Ryun decided to ignore it, too.

Why on Earth did Ryun do that? He looked around, saw that he was losing, and tossed his own "clean campaign" pledge out the window, and slammed Frieden ceaselessly for hurting poor little Jimmy's feelings and calling him out for what he really is: A radical.

But, if there's one thing we call know now, Jim Ryun is really, really good at playing the victim, and the minute his pledge to wage a clean campaign was in his way, he went negative and he went negative hard to bash his message of victimhood home.

Freiden said Ryun and independent political groups struck in the final week of the campaign, starting with criticism of his dismissal of the pledge. Other Kansas political candidates surrendered airtime they had purchased to give Ryun and his advocates opportunity to consume all of the political oxygen, he said.

That move was accompanied by a telephone appeal in which callers claimed, among other things, that Freiden's position on abortion was responsible for "killing babies."

"You could see it going away," Freiden said. "He won with pure negative campaigning. That's how he pulled it off."

It all comes down to exactly the worst kind of politics of convenience, the very worst kind of "these are my values..until they aren't" politics, and a quality you wouldn't expect from a good Christan: A willingness to stand up in front of people and lie through his teeth. He was perfectly happy to stay positive as long as he was in control of the message and winning- the minute he wasn't....well, you get the picture.

Fast forward to 2008 and we find a telling quote:

"We're fully prepared to run a positive campaign, but we will defend ourselves against false and negative attacks," said Kyle Robertson, Ryun's campaign manager.

They'll defend themselves against false attacks & negative ones, too. Of course they should defend themselves from false accusations- no one can begrudge them that. But even take a negative tone against them, even for an instance say "Jim Ryun wasn't a good congressman because of X-Y-Z" they're going to come after you like a bat out of hell. Not because you lied, no siree Bob, but because you dared to say something not nice.

It's stunning Ryun and his campaign are as arrogant as they are, trying to flim-flam the voters into feeling sorry for them. But, in the end, our guess is Ryun is going to be able to moan and groan as loud as he wants that he's getting picked on...but, this time around, the voters just aren't going ot care.

The kicked you out for a reason, my man...and you just don't get it.

Social Network Battleground

Sorry to be late- but with the holiday we got a little behind on our updates. Regardless, here we are back with our weekly update of how each of our major party candidates are doing in the world of social networking.

We're tracking Facebook and MySpace only.

Candidate	# of Friends	# of Friends	# of Friends	# of Friends
	6/14/08	6/21/08	6/28/08	7/06/08
Rep. Nancy Boyda (D)
FB Profile	493	607	874	959
FB Page	820	847	853	872
FB Group	415	431	457	600
MySpace	1,912	1,933	1,941	1,985
Frm. Rep. Jim Ryun (R)
FB Profile	142	152	163	173
FB Page	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
FB Group	27	90	105	121
MySpace	12	13	14	14
Treasurer Lynn Jenkins (R)
FB Profile	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
FB Page	92	92	99	104
FB Group	265	266	274	273
MySpace	10	10	10	10

Our first week that brings us anyone with falling numbers- Lynn Jenkins managed to lose one person from her "Send Lynn to Washington" group on Facebook. Sign of the apocalypse, right? ;-). Jim Ryun's numbers continue to increase steadily, but Congresswoman Nancy Boyda's numbers are frickin' unbelievable. There is either a very real enthusiasm behind her, or she's got really, really good Web 2.0 staff. Either way, great job Team Boyda!

Remember, each week we'll indicate any up and down movement by putting increasing numbers in bold and falling numbers in italics.

Time Not Ripe for Ryun; Jenkins Lacks Substance

Happy post- 4th- we certainly hope everyone had a fine time (and that you all still have all of your fingers still intact.

With the Republican primary now only one month away, it's good (for Congresswoman Nancy Boyda) to know people in Kansas are still in basically the same place they have been since both Lynn Jenkins & Jim Ryun announced they were running for Congress: They still don't want Jim Ryun back and they still think Lynn Jenkins is just a little to far down the weight scale to be able to be even at all effective in the United States House of Representatives.

A column from Thursday's Topeka Capital-Journal paints the "oh, not again" to Jim Ryun sentiment, along with the "really, if only Lynn Jenkins knew...anything" vibe, too.

When Jim Ryun lost his congressional seat to Nancy Boyda in 2006, the defeat was a crushing blow. Most politicians deal with devastating voter rejection either by finding another line of work or running for a different office.

Ryun, however, believes voters got it wrong and wants a do-over. His logic on this one is puzzling.

Sing it, sister!

Ryun was defeated in 2006 in a voter backlash that handed Democrats control of Congress. Polls and political wisdom suggest Democrats will do even better this year. Anti-Republican sentiment and a growing sense that America is headed in the wrong direction are sharply higher now than two years ago. As George Bush's approval ratings fall over the edge, Ryun is on record voting with the president 89 percent of the time.

The issues also have shifted since 2006, and not to Ryun's advantage. After a slew of weather-related disasters and media alerts about the melting ice cap, more Americans think maybe there's something to this global warming business. However, Ryun's voting record during five terms was rock bottom on environmental issues.

Additionally, more voters now believe the Iraq war was a mistake, and Ryun, as a strong supporter of Bush's initiative, finds himself on the wrong side of that one, too.

Can we get an "amen"?

To regain his seat, Ryun must persuade voters he is a different candidate than the one they booted two years ago. So far, he hasn't gone there. A campaign ad emphasizes Ryun's career as a track star and his traditional values, credentials that weren't compelling enough last time around.

We'd call Ryun's ploy (I'm a track star! Ignore the fact I was in office for 10 years!) "moronic" but that'd be a smidge to harsh. How about "desperately out-of-touch" or "pathetic"? Better?

Now, on to Ms. Jenkins:

Moreover, in this election cycle Ryun must clear a hurdle before he can have his rematch with Boyda. He has a primary opponent in Lynn Jenkins, a moderate who hopes to trace Joan Finney's steps from the state treasurer's post to higher office.

Honest to God this writer laughted out loud with the comparisson between Jenkins & Joan Finney. Governor Finney was a wonderful, wonderful woman, but her trajectory frpm Treasurer to Governor to one-term failure isn't one we'd imagine Jenkins would like to be compared.

Jenkins purports to offer voters "new leadership" and fiscal accountability in a time of soaring national debt and economic anxiety. Though Jenkins embraces the GOP, she recognizes that Democrats aren't the only scoundrels in Washington, a more realistic approach this year.

Keep the brand while rejecting the brand. Not an easy tight-rope to walk in a party primary.

The pivotal question is whether Jenkins will be willing to take a page from Hillary Clinton's playbook and attack Ryun's vulnerabilities. To defeat Ryun, she will need a pointed message that portrays Ryun's 10 years in Congress as part of the problem.

And on such logic died the "clean campaign" pledge- though we haven't yet see Lynn actually, you know, attack Ryun in any way more than a handfull of voters could digest.

Name recognition carried Ryun, the track star, through three re-election campaigns, despite an undistinguished performance in office. Jenkins must introduce herself to Republican voters in a meaningful way to offer a clear alternative.

On her Web site, Jenkins touts herself as a relative of the man who wrote the lyrics to "Home on the Range." That won't do it. This year, voters are hungry for substance and won't settle for less.

Nope, it sure won't do. And, honestly, the longer Jenkins just sits on her haunches and lets Ryun control the message & the airwaves in the vast majority of the district, the more and more likely it is she's going to get her hat handed to her in exactly one month.

Get ready for the home stretch, folks- here's hopin' for a barn-burner!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy July 4, everyone- have a fun & safe time with your families (and/or political campaigns).

Ryun Drops $30K on New TV Spot

We've just learned the Jim Ryun campaign has purchased another round of TV, spending almost $30K on 276 spots in the Topeka and Joplin markets.

Indicators point to this buy being a new ad, but we don't yet have confirmation on that.

UPDATE: Make that 294 ads- he also bought 10 spots on KTMJ, the Topeka FOX affiliate. The ad will be up July 8.

UPDATE: Freedom's Watch Radio Ad Buy

As we reported on Monday, the radical group Freedom's Watch has radio ads up and running as we speak attacking Congresswoman Nancy Boyda for the price of gasoline.

And, as we expected, the ad throws up the claim that Boyda is standing in the way of new domestic drilling (without actually cite any instances where she has done any such thing), which, as we've also showing you all week long, simply isn't the case.

To echo what Boyda has already said: There is land available now for drilling that isn't being used. She supports a gas tax holiday. She has already voted in favor of new domestic energy exploration. And, biggest of all, nothing we do now will do anything in the short tern to lower the price of gasoline. We must, for a long term solve, invest in alternatives to oil. And, as long as oil companies are seeing world-record profits, they deserve not a single dime of taxpayer money. With the price of gas, we simply can't afford given them anything more.

If you'd like to listen to the ad yourself, click here.

It doesn't matter that much regardless- the ad buy from big, bad Freedom's Watch was TINY- only 20 spots on two stations totally $570.

Lord, if that's all it takes, maybe this blog should become a federal PAC...

BB Poll Closed: Jenkins Pulls it Out

Our Boyda Bloc non-scientific poll just ended, and after Jim Ryun holding the lead for most of the week, Lynn Jenkins pulled it out in the end.

Final results:

Jim Ryun: 43% (36 votes)
Lynn Jenkins: 56% (46 votes)

So...again, not what you'd call a scientific poll...or even one that is remotely valid as an indicator of reality. But it does prove one thing: Jenkins supporters are better at the 'net than Ryun's...or, at least, more people who like Lynn read this blog. Either way- good for them.

For these results to come true Ms. Jenkins is going to have to do something, anything, to increase her name recognition outside of Topeka. That probably means significant TV time, because let me tell you, if you leave Topeka and go in south you see nary a one Lynn Jenkins yard sign.

Could it be Jenkins thinks she can win the primary on the backs of Shawnee & Jackson counties with massive loses everywhere else? That's a dangerous bet.

More from Boyda on New Off-Shore Drilling

From KTKA 49 News Topeka:

So, lets all say it together now: Congresswoman Nancy Boyda is in favor of new domestic oil exploration- as long as we pair it with the real long-term solve of research into alternative fuels.

Jenkins Goes Up on TV, Ryun Lies About It

The Ryun campaign sent out an email this morning announcing Lynn Jenkins had purchased nearly $9,000 worth of TV ads, and, of course, encouraged his supporters to ante up so he could stay on the air.

At first, we thought Ryun was lying through his teeth, because we couldn't find any evidence Jenkins has purchased any ad time- nothing in Topeka, nothing in St. Joseph, then we found the buy- both stations in Joplin. Total buy of $4,490.31.

A far cry from $9,000, and not on air until July 15, but at least he wasn't telling a complete lie.

We're not sure why Jenkins has decided to play her hand this way- we're assuming she knows he name recognition is highest in Shawnee County and plummets dramatically the farther away from Topeka you get- but, still, $4,000 in Joplin isn't going to buy her much airtime, and isn't going to put her in the living rooms of the vast majority of her would-be constituents. But, like our good friends at Left Brain Kansas said earlier today- it's looking more and more like Lynn has given up on this race for Congress and is, instead, preparing herself for 2010.

The very second we have Jenkins' ad, well post it for you all to see.

Off Shore Drilling

Tuesday morning's appearance by Rep. Nancy Boyda on the hit Topeka radio program hosted by Jim Cates brought up some complex discussion with regard to our nation's energy policy.

You may listen to the audio here but the specific issues text is below

Nancy Boyda: We have the ability to drill as we speak right now. There are 68 million acres of federal lands, onshore, and I forget the number of millions of acres of land offshore that are already open to drilling.

Caller: Are they viable?
NB: Yes, and they are being leased. The vast majority of federal lands are already open to public drilling.

Jim Cates: Why are you trying to protect ANWR? There's nothing there. It's a barren wasteland.

NB: That's not a bad question, but we've got 68 million acres that are already leased. There's more that isn't leased available. There's 68 million acres that are leased and not being drilled on.

JC: Everybody wants to drill in ANWR because we know definitively that's where the oil is. Not everybody, because I know liberals don't want us to drill there, but what are they trying to protect? Going back to the Alaskan pipeline, which has proven to be so environmentally friendly, why in God's name are we trying to stop drilling in ANWR?

NB: I have said that if you want, put ANWR in the mix. It's more of a symbol. But the people that have stopped the drilling offshore, they make it sound like it's Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats (who oppose drilling). Jeb Bush, on offshore drilling, said absolutely not. Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Republican governor of California, said over my dead body are you going to drill off our shores.

Let me state what my energy policy is. My energy policy has always been that we need a three-legged stool. Domestic oil and drilling has to be a part of it. Coal has to be a part of it, but absolutely we have to look forward, and we have to be aggressive with alternative fuels. I have said that we have to be aggressive in researching nuclear energy.

For more information on drilling here is the clip from the CNN explination


And the recent discussion from Sunday's Meet the Press

Pittsburg Supporting Boyda

Another encouraging op-ed in the Pittsburg Morning Sun today, detailing the support for Rep. Nancy Boyda in the 2nd District.

Dear Editor:
It has been a reassuring two years since Congresswoman Nancy Boyda was elected to the Second Congressional District. Nancy hit the ground running and has aggressively worked for the people. She has been available to all of her constituents on a regular basis. As a freshman, she wrote a successfully passed bill which eliminates retirement benefits for members of Congress convicted of wrongdoing.

Nancy recognizes the elderly and retired have not been helped by a Congress which passed a confusing Medicare pharmaceutical bill that has not lowered the cost of drugs. She understands universal health coverage is not only the humane thing to do, in the most advanced society in world history, but is economically sound policy because it provides the 47 million uninsured and the 20 million underinsured with comprehensive preventive care.

Nancy has supported every single issue which helps ordinary working people and has steadfastly refused to accept money from lobbyists who represent large multi-national corporations that have the political and economic power to influence unhelpful domestic and foreign policies affecting us all.

How nice it is to have a congressperson who can write legislation which benefits ordinary folks and who wants to end the ill advised decision to invade and occupy Iraq. It is now time for a change in the senate and the executive branch.
Harry L. Humphries
Pittsburg

We certainly agree with Harry's assessment. Rep. Boyda has gone above and beyond to look at issues that help our families.

Boyda to Introduce Legislation to Fix Highway Fund

Rep. Nancy Boyda met with Kansas Transportation Secretary Deb Miller to discuss the joint project to fix Kansas Highways yesterday. According to the release, the two agree there is a "looming transportation funding crisis facing both Kansas and the nation.”

This morning's Cap Journal reports

Congresswoman Nancy Boyda will introduce legislation next week to refill the federal highway fund in an effort to stave off a $120 million shortfall in Kansas transportation funds, she said Monday.

The move comes after the House and Senate last week removed $8 billion from a bill that would have temporarily fixed the depleted fund used for road projects across the country.

According to the release

Boyda said “I can’t tell you how frustrated I am by the situation. Congress should have seen this coming and taken action. We had a good, common sense fix that got caught up in politics. This provision would have simply reversed a transfer made from the Highway Fund to the Treasury Department in 1998. There would have been no additional cost to the taxpayer to shore up the Highway Fund and address the immediate shortfall. Instead, the provision was stripped away in order to ensure Senate passage of the FAA Reauthorization Bill.”

KDOT Secretary Deb Miller: “Failure to address the Highway Trust Fund shortfall will mean a cut of more than 30 percent – or about $120 million – in funding to Kansas. That will significantly impact our ability to complete the Comprehensive Transportation Program as scheduled. And, it will have a ripple effect on our ability to do other projects.”

“The transportation shortfall is very real,” added Boyda, “and there are additional concerns. We are working with an outdated policy. While Big Oil continues to receive billions of dollars in subsidies – at the expense of hardworking Kansans – the 18 cent gas user fee has not been changed in more than a decade. Meanwhile, construction costs have gone through the roof. This is a crisis waiting to happen not only for our highways, but for infrastructure overall.”

This is another effort by Boyda to create a stronger and safer infrastructure in Kansas and nation wide and more in a long line of attempts by Boyda to bring federal dollars back to help the people of Kansas.

According to the CapJournal

Kansas is entering the last year of its 10-year highway plan, and the funding shortage threatens at least four of that plan's projects yet to begin in Douglas, Riley, Barton and Sedgwick counties.

Nationally, the fund had a running $15 to $18 billion balance in past years, said Deb Miller, secretary of the Kansas Department of Transportation. By 2009, that balance will be gone.

Officials estimate the federal fund's shortfall at $3.4 billion, though that outlook may be artificially rosy because it was released before revenues from the gas tax began to decline. Miller said the fund easily could face a $5 billion debt.

That translates to at least a $120 million shortage of funds for Kansas projects. In Douglas County, $109 million of grading and bridge work along 11 miles of US-59 highway are one project. Riley County's $33 million project along K-18 also is in jeopardy.

Money to replenish the federal highway fund was included in an aviation bill, but some complained about the relevance of road funds in an airplane industry measure. It was removed after it appeared its inclusion would drive off votes.

Right-Wing "Freedom's Watch" Launch Radio Ads Attacking Boyda

The right-wing radical group "Freedom's Watch," which has already run full page ads in area newspapers attacking Congresswoman Nancy Boyda, and only weeks ago launched a blitz of robocalls lamely attacking Boyda first on military pay and then on gas prices.

We're guessing they're learning the hard way people hate robocalls, because they're newest volley comes in the form of radio ads.

"Since last year, gas prices are up 75 [percent]," says a narrator at the start. "Everything -- from bread and milk, to airline tickets, even diapers -- costs more."

The ad then details a series of energy votes by the targeted Democrats that have blocked attempts to lower costs.

"But, Nancy Boyda stands in the way," says the narrator. "While we cut back on gas and groceries, family outings, and summer vacations."

(We haven't found the whole transcript of the Boyda ad yet- we'll let you know when we do).

So, really, nothing more than the partisan finger pointing we've been hearing for months- the same drivel that ignores anything and everything proactive that doesn't result in drilling in Yellowstone National Park. They willfully ignore votes taken by Boyda to increase funding for alternative fuels (which are, in the end, our only real way out of this mess), her endorsement of a federal gas tax holiday, and for more domestic exploration.

These ads aren't about informing voters, they're misleading voters with half-truths and misdirection.

Since we don't have the exact votes from the radio ad, we can't go at them one-by-one, but we can promise you from a purely non-partisan position we wholeheartedly agree with what Chris Cilliza said when he broke this story:

Gas prices are the latest political football in the positioning of the two parties in advance of the fall election. The simple truth is that neither congressional Democrats nor Republicans can do much of anything when it comes to lowering the price of gas. There is no good short term solution.

Skyrocketing gasoline prices are neither a Democratic nor a Republica problem, they weren't caused by either party, and both parties would do anythign they could to lower the price today. The only problem is- there isn't anything- nothing at all- that will lower them short-term and keep them down. Every solution discussed from alternative fuels to more domestric drilling will solve the problem in 10 years, not tomorrow.

When faced with problems like these, we need politicians who are prepared to think about what will actually fix the problem, not what will be expediant- Boyda's looking toward the future while trying to do anything she can, along with the rest of the Democratic majority, while groups like Freedom's Watch can't see passed their own noses.

Letter to the Editor: Medicare Cuts

A letter to the editor in the Sunday edition of the Topeka Capital-Journal from Congresswoman Nancy Boyda:

Medicate Vote
Sunday, June 29, 2008

If you needed a reminder of how important elections are, it comes this week. Tuesday, Medicare is going to get a lot worse for almost everyone. Last week, Congress had a chance to do something about it. In the House, where every member is up for re-election this November, the fix-it bill passed by a vote of 355 to 59 despite opposition from the president.

Unfortunately, only one-third of the Senate is up for re-election this year. When the Senate voted, the 50 Democrats (Sen. Ted Kennedy is still away fighting cancer) were joined by all of the Republicans facing tough re-election races in the fall. However, almost all the rest, including Sen. Sam Brownback, stuck with the president, and the bill fell one vote short of the 60 needed.

Doctors and other providers will see their payments cut by 10.6 percent. Those in rural areas will see their payments cut even more. The bonus payments that allow rural areas to keep their laboratories and ambulance services will expire. Patients who need rehab therapy will face tight caps on their number of sessions.

The bill we voted on blocked all of these changes. It also made some improvements, including help for pharmacies, rural clinics and low-income seniors, and it did it without increasing the debt.

The president opposes the bill because we pay for the improvements by cutting an insurance company subsidy, called Medicare Advantage, that will cost taxpayers $65 billion over the next five years.

I think Americans think it's good policy. That's why everyone who has to answer to the voters in November supported this bill.

Democracy is a team sport. This is a great example of why you need to be part of the debate.

REP. NANCY BOYDA, Topeka

Boyda Fights to Stop Medicare Reimbursement Cuts

Every single member of the Kansas delegation to Congress, all of them- save one- voted last week to prevent massive cuts from Medicare from going into effect- and to prevent very real hardship from hitting folks back at home and all over the nation.

Medical care options may be reduced after lawmakers packed up and left Washington, D.C., this week without stopping a 10.6 percent decrease in Medicare reimbursements made to physicians.

Primary care physicians with the Cotton-O'Neil Clinic will stop accepting new Medicare patients on Tuesday as a result of the cuts that go into effect that day.

"We urge citizens to communicate with your elected officials and ask for their support to repeal cuts to their Medicare benefits," said Kent Palmberg, chief medical officer for Stormont-Vail HealthCare, of which Cotton-O'Neil is a division.

Legislation was needed to block cuts that otherwise occur automatically under a formula. Congress has blocked similar cuts in the past.

The bill to prevent Bush Administration supported cuts passed the House overwhelmingly- 355-59. It was the Senate that become the problem, with responsibility resting directly at the feet of Senator Sam Brownback.

But in the Senate, the legislation fell just short of mustering the 60 votes needed to pass the measure under expedited rules. Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, fell out of line with other members of the state's delegation, voting against shutting down debate so senators could vote on the measure. Phone calls and an e-mail sent to Brownback's office on Friday weren't returned.

If Brownback had joined his fellow Republican from Kansas Senator Pat Roberts, the bill would have had enough votes to get passed the Republican filibuster and could have gone on to an up-or-down vote. But, instead, he voted in lockstep with the Bush Administration and prevented any action. His one vote cost thousands of Kansans, and millions of Americans, their medical coverage.

Don't like it coming from us? Take it from Pat Roberts, then:

"I urge my colleagues to put politics aside to pass this bill for seniors and our health care providers," Roberts said in a statement released by his office. "I hope the Congress and the administration can work together to adopt these reforms as soon as possible."

Congresswoman Nancy Boyda was, rightfully, "shocked" when she got the news the Senate had refused to act.

"I think this is where I'm hoping there is nothing short of outrage on this," Boyda said. "Public policy follows public opinion."

In addition to eliminating the planned reduction, Boyda said the legislation would have addressed problems that are driving small pharmacies out of business and leaving some rural counties with no pharmacies. The legislation would have continued to make bonus payments to physicians working in rural areas, kept caps off of physical therapy and increased Medicare payments to doctors by 1.1 percent in January.

Boyda said she worries about seniors losing out on medical care options.

"They don't need one more thing to worry about," she said.

It's nothing shy of sad Sam Brownback let politics get in the way of protecting the health and well-being our our senior citizens. We agree with Boyda- we hope Kansas is outraged.