By Clay Wirestone | opinion editor
Good morning! As you may have heard, severe weather hit Lawrence late Monday and early Tuesday. Luckily, our staff escaped unscathed, but there were limbs down, floodwaters gushing and lights flickering aplenty. Thankfully, our old friend the news was there to see us through.
Sherman Smith / Kansas Reflector
Kansas attorney general urges governor to deny clemency to inmates who received death penalty
TOPEKA — Attorney General Kris Kobach on Tuesday urged the governor to deny clemency to Kansas inmates who have been sentenced to death.
Eight of nine people sentenced to death in Kansas formally filed clemency requests in May, according to a press release from the Attorney General’s Office. Kobach urged Gov. Laura Kelly to reject them.
“Granting clemency to multiple death row inmates — particularly in the final weeks of a gubernatorial term and based on personal opposition to the death penalty — would substitute one person’s policy preference for the considered judgment of juries, judges, and appellate courts,” Kobach said in the release.
Kansas Reflector contacted Kelly’s communication office by phone and email, but did not receive a response in time for publication.
The state has not carried out an execution since 1965, a fact Kobach said illustrates the state’s strict and thorough standard for capital punishment.
Donna Schneweis, chair of the Kansas Coalition Against the Death Penalty, said the punishment is outdated.
Tim Carpenter / Kansas Reflector
Sen. Roger Marshall points finger at Biden amid confirmation of screwworm in U.S. cattle
TOPEKA — U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas responded to screwworm infestation of livestock by blaming former President Joe Biden for allowing immigrants to carry the parasite into the United States “maybe on their flesh.”
Marshall, who previously represented the rural 1st District of Kansas containing approximately 4 million cattle, theorized on Newsmax and Bloomberg broadcasts Monday that Biden failed to do enough before leaving office 18 months ago to inhibit migration of a fly that lays flesh-eating larvae in animal hosts.
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OPINION
Here’s to Schlitz beer and the bar that helped make Manhattan’s Aggieville famous
By Grant Glenn
With the recent announcement that Schlitz beer would no longer be produced, I immediately recalled the Manhattan tavern named Kite’s. While I was a student at Kansas State University between 1969 and 1973, I frequented Kites as my second home in Manhattan.
Projected Social Security benefits cliff creeps up to 2032
WASHINGTON — Congress must act to shore up Social Security during the next six years to avoid an automatic drop-off in benefits in 2032, according to a report released Tuesday.
Trump launches new strikes on Iran after US Army helicopter downed
WASHINGTON — U.S. forces launched renewed strikes on Iran late Tuesday, in response to the downing of a U.S. Apache helicopter a day earlier, according to U.S. Central Command.
Republicans in Congress clear final hurdle for $70B boost in immigration enforcement
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans on Tuesday approved three years of funding for immigration enforcement without any new guardrails on how federal agents operate.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Kansas Reflector staff will participate in the following free public forums.
6:30 p.m. June 12, Kansas Museum of History in Topeka. Opinion editor Clay Wirestone will join a panel discussion: "From the Desk of William Allen White: What Can Journalism Today Learn from the Sage of Emporia?"
5:30 p.m. June 16, Bradbury Alumni Center at Washburn University in Topeka. Editor-in-chief Sherman Smith will lead a discussion on the proposed constitutional amendment to elect Kansas Supreme Court justices. Host: Kansas Appleseed. Register here.
6 p.m. June 24, Groover Labs in Wichita. Editor-in-chief Sherman Smith will lead a discussion on the proposed constitutional amendment to elect Kansas Supreme Court justices. Host: Kansas Appleseed. Register here.
6 p.m. June 25, Clint Bowyer Community Building in Emporia. Editor-in-chief Sherman Smith will lead a discussion on the proposed constitutional amendment to elect Kansas Supreme Court justices. Host: Kansas Appleseed. Register here.
7 p.m. June 27, Park City Senior Center. Host: Park City Community Pride.
2 p.m. Sept. 27, Red Rocks Visitor Center in Emporia. Host: Red Rocks.
If you're interested in having us talk in your town, email Sherman Smith at [email protected].
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