By Sherman Smith | editor-in-chief

Good morning! Opinion editor Clay Wirestone has some thoughts on U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall's excuses for not being available to the public. We're also reporting on Democrats' interest in building influence in state governments and a D.C. rally for voting rights.

Anna Kaminski/Kansas Reflector

OPINION

Milquetoast Marshall flees from Kansans and hides from reporters. Somehow, he still wants your vote!

By Clay Wirestone

Put down your coffee. Set the bran muffin aside. I have an exclusive for Kansas Reflector readers this morning. Here’s the complete list of public, in-person campaign events planned by U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas.

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Looks great, right?

Marshall claims to be on a 120-stop tour of Kansas, but his adventures across the Sunflower State have been conducted almost entirely in private, behind closed doors and without advance warning of his stops.

Michelle Griffith/Minnesota Reformer

Democrats aim to emulate Republicans in building state power

Progressive activist Gaby Goldstein thinks her opponents are brilliant.

Despite her deeply held liberal politics, she admires the work of conservative groups that for decades have built influence in state governments across the country.

“We on the left have left a huge amount of power on the table,” said Goldstein, the founder and president of State Futures, a nonprofit launched last year that coordinates hundreds of Democratic lawmakers across the states.

Ashley Murray/States Newsroom

Voting rights struggle continues, advocates say at March on Washington anniversary

WASHINGTON — Just over two months from midterm elections and four months removed from a U.S. Supreme Court decision that gutted Voting Rights Act protections for majority Black U.S. House districts, and 63 years after Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech there, thousands gathered again at the Lincoln Memorial Friday.

Organizers focused the anniversary march around a “Defend the Vote” message.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Kansas Reflector staff will participate in the following free public forums.

  • 3 p.m. Sept. 26, Washburn Library in Topeka. Opinion editor Clay Wirestone will participate in the panel “Why UPK: University Press of Kansas Celebrates 80 Years.” Host: Kansas Book Festival.

  • 2 p.m. Sept. 27, Red Rocks Visitor Center in Emporia. Host: Red Rocks.

  • 7 p.m. Sept. 29, Raven Book Store in Lawrence. Book release event for opinion editor Clay Wirestone’s “Opinionated.” Editor-in-chief Sherman Smith will moderate.

  • 6 p.m. Oct. 12, Riverbank Brewing in Council Grove. Opinion editor Clay Wirestone talks about his book and the latest news. Host: Flint Hills Books.

  • 6 p.m. Dec. 3, Prairie Star Restaurant in Manhattan. Host: League of Women Voters of Manhattan and Riley County.

If you're interested in having us talk in your town, email Sherman Smith at [email protected].

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