Why Senators Roberts, Moran and Blunt aren’t listening to you
After hopes of even winning a rational debate in the U.S. Senate on gun safety fell apart on Thursday, a woman leaving the gallery said of the senators, “Who do they think they represent?”
Good question. Not the 80 to 90 percent of Americans who support modest measures such as … Read More »
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Let’s quit rewarding hospitals for mistakes
As polarized as we are over health care and how to pay for it, I’m pretty sure we can agree that hospitals should not be rewarded financially for bungling surgeries.
But it happens, according to a study published Tuesday in The Journal of the American Medical Association.
Researchers studied … Read More »
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A bad turn for Medicaid expansion prospects in Missouri
Medicaid expansion in Missouri seems to have died with a whimper, at least for this year.
The $900 million that Gov. Jay Nixon’s administration anticipated receiving from Washington in return for increasing Medicaid eligibility to comply with the Affordable Care Act does not appear in the budget that the Senate … Read More »
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A small chunk of change is a big deal to the poor
A thin lifeline for low-income elderly and disabled Missourians who live in rental housing is close to breaking. Gov. Jay Nixon wants it snapped, and now the state Senate does too.
The “circuit breaker” tax credit helps senior and disabled citizens cope when rent increases swallow up too much of … Read More »
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Today in bad ideas: Missouri’s ‘Don’t Get Sick’ bill
Missouri Rep. Steve Cookson, the Republican from the Poplar Bluff area who made news last session with his ill-fated “don’t say gay” bill, is back with another preposterous piece of legislation.
This time it’s the “don’t get sick” bill.
Cookson is sponsoring House Bill 1040. It is short and self-explanatory: … Read More »
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Political cowardice a disservice to the Sandy Hook victims
Court documents released today reveal the stunning extent of the arsenal that Adam Lanza kept inside his Connecticut home. He had enough weaponry to ward off a small militia.
The results of a search warrant also reveal what Lanza took with him when he left his house after killing … Read More »
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Know-it-all Kansas Legislature strikes again
Every week, it seems, the Kansas Legislature takes meddling to a new level.
This week, House members have adopted the role of wannabe hospital officials.
The chamber supported a bill that would require the University of Kansas Medical Center to establish a center to advance stem cell research — but … Read More »
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Medicaid expansion still big pill for Missouri GOP
Missouri’s Republican legislative leaders used their last few hours before spring break to make it known they are not on board with raising the state’s miserly income qualifications for Medicaid.
“We do not believe it’s prudent to double down on a broken system,” said Tom Dempsey, the Republican Senate president … Read More »
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Kris Kobach stuck as GOP moves forward
As it does nearly every year, the Kansas Legislature spent some time this week fretting about a state law that enables some young people who are undocumented immigrants to pay in-state tuition at state colleges and universities.
Speaking at a committee hearing in favor of repealing the privilege was none … Read More »
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Kansas abortion bill is cruel and ignorant
It’s difficult to gauge whether the anti-abortion bill up before the Kansas House today is more notable for its cruelty or for its ignorance.
House Bill 2253 would continue to prevent almost all abortions after 22 weeks, even if a pregnancy was the result of rape or incest.
In debate … Read More »
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Strange fixations of Kansas, Missouri legislators
Hey, Missouri citizen. When you woke up this morning and gulped your orange juice, did you obsess about United Nations resolution Agenda 21?
No? Well, you’d better believe your Missouri legislators did. Committees in the House and Senate have OK’d bills that forbid state and local governments from making any … Read More »
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Puffed-up Kansas House declares independence from D.C.
While proclaiming its emancipation from federal authority on gun laws today, the Kansas House simultaneously wants to stripped local city and county governments of the right to decide whether to permit the carrying of concealed handguns in their buildings.
On a 94-29 vote, the House declared that the federal government … Read More »
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Let the atheists march in St. Pat’s parade
Surely I’m not the only one who finds the exclusion of the Kansas City Atheist Coalition from the St. Patrick’s Day parade to be somewhat laughable.
OK, the atheist group was planning to march in the parade with signs saying things like “positively godless” and “morals without mythology.” But what, … Read More »
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Too many losers with Missouri tax cut bill
More detailed analyses are shining a light on the many weaknesses of the tax bill that the Missouri Senate passed on a preliminary vote last week.
It’s not just that the income tax cutting bill would blow a hole of half a billion dollars or more in the state budget. … Read More »
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Sorry to see New York soda restrictions slapped down
Score one for the supersized soda.
New York City’s move to scale back oversized servings of sugary drinks unfortunately was a loser in its first round in court. New York Supreme Court Judge Milton A. Tingling overturned the law this afternoon, less than 24 hours before the restrictions were to … Read More »