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By Sherman Smith | editor-in-chief

By Mark McCormick

William “Willie” Francis Sutton Jr., the robber who plundered banks and jewelry stores during a 40-year career, said he targeted banks because, “That’s where the money is.” He stole an estimated $2 million and spent more than half of his adult life behind bars.

Were Sutton alive today however, he’d likely target the Department of Homeland Security. That agency has doled out tons of federal money to local law enforcement here in Kansas, and the Shawnee County Sheriff’s office has inked just such a deal. Kansas Reflector obtained a redacted copy of a memorandum of agreement between the federal government and the sheriff’s office.

Under the signed MOA, each “trained and credentialed TFO (task force officer) will receive up to $7,500 for essential equipment including a laptop and a mobile phone with cellular service upon becoming operational.”

TOPEKA — The Kansas State University College of Arts and Sciences faces a $2.6 million annual budget shortfall in addition to millions owed for loans from the administration, a situation that may eliminate academic programs and cause faculty layoffs.

K-State officials presented a plan to address $13.5 million the college owes to the school’s administration, as well as the projected annual shortfall, at a September town hall, the Collegian reported.

The reverberations from that meeting, where employees were told about likely layoffs and an assessment process that will occur to determine a reorganization plan, worried professors.

TOPEKA — The Kansas gubernatorial campaigns of Republican Ty Masterson and Democrat Cindy Holscher landed endorsements that echo the political alliances they developed while serving in the Kansas Legislature.

Masterson pocketed support from the Kansas Farm Bureau PAC, while Holscher bolstered her resume with backing from the Missouri-Kansas-Nebraska Conference of Teamsters.

Kansas Reflector opinion editor Clay Wirestone spent years researching and writing about mid-century opinion writers in Kansas, culminating in a book, “Opinionated: Kansas Journalists Who Proved Why Commentary Matters — Then and Now,” which was released Sept. 29.

In conversation with Kansas Reflector editor-in-chief Sherman Smith, Wirestone explores his writing process, explains his voice as an opinion writer and offers insight into the evolution of opinion writing in Kansas and beyond.

TOPEKA — President Donald Trump said Monday he will host a “Kansas Style rally very soon” to support U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall in his reelection campaign for U.S. Senate.

The Trump administration’s order to allow import of Russian diesel violates a 2022 law banning Russian energy imports while the country’s war with Ukraine is ongoing, according to a bipartisan group of U.S. senators.

In the course of a single election cycle, the backlash against data centers has grown from an issue at local planning commission and city council meetings to become a flashpoint in state and federal races across the country.

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