The dangers of unfettered conservative power in Kansas
In the movie, “Less Than Zero,” one of the characters talks to his friend about her self-destructive behavior.
“You don’t look happy,” he says.
“But do I look good?” she purrs in reply.
Such seems to be the state of affairs in Kansas these days.
On a national level the recent election cycle yielded some interesting items. It appears we are becoming more accepting of, if not entirely happy with, the fact that big problems sometimes require big solutions, solutions which may be complex, lengthy and expensive.
Exit polling showed that a majority of voters do not blame President Barack Obama for the weak economy, at least not enough to deny him another term to keep working on it.
Record numbers of Hispanics, African Americans, young voters and women brought a necessary and refreshing balance to the electorate, which returned Obama to office.
A bump in the number of Democratic senators will hopefully promote a more productive balance between the two congressional bodies and the Oval Office.
All told, it appears that aggressive advocacy from various points on the political compass will exist to ensure that fiscal prudence, social responsibility and national strength all have a chance of being addressed.
Kansas has chosen to follow a different path. With “business friendly” as their mantra, elected officials are pursuing tax reductions and regulatory rollbacks.
The resulting decrease in state services and increase in budget deficits is supposed to be balanced by an influx of new jobs, attracted by those minimized tax and regulatory burdens. However, the number and average salary of new jobs necessary to offset the projected budget shortfall is a bar that even these measures’ staunchest supporters admit may be unreachable.
And all of this was prior to Nov. 6 and the further bolstering of conservative control in both houses in the state Legislature. “Supermajority” is the term being used.
The day after the election this new entity said further tax cuts and service reductions will be considered, and acknowledged that this will lead to even larger budget deficits.
I am worried about Kansas and my concern goes far beyond partisan differences. Strong policies do not come from one group holding almost unfettered legislative power.
They come from at least two distinct groups agreeing on the challenges that need addressing and then working out solutions from among differing approaches. The most recent election cycle in Kansas has almost guaranteed that this process will not exist.
This is to everyone’s detriment, no matter which party holds the majority. If differing opinions are too few and far between, no idea has to prove itself beyond the self-congratulatory atmosphere in which it was conceived.
The present all-in gamble to attract business to the state is an example. Kansas lawmakers see themselves as putting in place the vital components of an attractive atmosphere for commerce and employment.
In reality they may be well on the way to producing a barren landscape that holds no appeal for the families who would need to move here to fill those jobs. To say nothing of those already here.
Echo chamber decision-making does no one any good, no matter who holds the keys to the room. It produces weak ideas that may look good to their creators but can do real and lasting damage.
The character in the movie, “Less Than Zero,” eventually begins turning her life around but not before hitting rock bottom. I truly hope Kansas doesn’t have to fall as far.
Derek Martin, of Olathe, has been a pilot at FedEx for 16 years on both domestic and international routes. To reach him, send email to oped@kcstar.com or write to Midwest Voices, c/o Editorial Page, The Kansas City Star, 1729 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, Mo. 64108.
Mark Robertson
6 months, 1 week agoWould you mind if Kansas had one party Democrat rule? I thought so. Governor Brownback has shown great leadership working with his fellow Republicans to bring about strong tax cuts and deregtulation. Kansas wil soon be a boom state. It can be hoped that the surge in tax revenues won’t be wasted on worthless government programs, which is most government programs. Bring on the next round of tax cuts and deregulation. “Exit polling shows that a majority of voters do not blame President Obama for the weak economy,” proving that you can fool some of the people all of the time. Thank you. Mark Robertson Independence
Yanwen Xia
Overland Park
6 months, 1 week agoWhen one party in control of all, be it republic or democratic, there is no check and balance. Anything that party advocates goes. That reminds me of the situation in China. It is a bit scary.
Then again, it is democratic state. As long as the majority of people are happy with the consequence of one-party rule, be it tax cut or deregulation or toxic environment, the minority has to accept the rule of the majority. Otherwise, they are free to move and go.
Kevin Miller Miller
6 months, 1 week agoWell said Derrick, when ideas have no one to sculpt and shape them by opposition and argument it is easy to see bad ones become policy. Whether it is Rep or Dem control doesn’t matter. Good stuff.
Ethan Lovell
6 months, 1 week agoMark, your comment is a direct representation of this article’s most basic idea. If you were to voice that opinion in congress as an extremely conservative viewpoint, the republican supermajority would be completely in agreement with you, as they have already shown through their policy making. With an extremely disadvantaged number of democrats to challenge the opinion with their own ideas, it becomes a one party system. In one party systems (similar to that of China, as Yanwen pointed out), there is no manner of ideological discourse, and flawed ideas are often left unchallenged and eventually passed into law. This is an unfortunate consequence of a congressional supermajority (be it republican or democrat or socialist or libertarian or anything else). I can promise you that the founding fathers, who purposefully implemented a system of checks and balances (key word: balance), would be greatly disturbed by this, as it is obviously not conducive to good public policy which has been debated and deemed worthy of passage.
Derek, very well worded and well thought-out. You did an excellent job of remaining objective and pointing out a very basic and logical flaw in the current state of Kansas politics. I, too, hope that rock bottom will not be reached in Kansas before education and social services are again deemed worthy of consideration by the congressional and gubernatorial officeholders.
Phil Cardarella
6 months agoActually,having the Dems in control is probably a good thing for most folks. Would you rather live in California or Mississippi?
I did not say Kansas because until recently Kansas GOPers have been, if not liberal, at least sane. Seriously, policies that harm education but only serve to lure jobs from across State Line Road are NOT good ones — in the long run. Of course, if you expect the Rapture next month…
Mark Robertson
6 months agoIt’s not even close, I would much rather live in Mississippi with the current state of things in California,(although I do like the ocean) even more so now that Democrats have a super majority in the California legislature. And the dupes in that state just voted for a big tax increase. Did someone mention something about fooling some of the people all of the time. And the Founding Fathers believed in elections. The Republicans(conservatives) won big in Kansas. Do you think the Founding Fathers ever thought that one point of view could win big. Obviously, they did. Thank you. Mark Robertson Independence
Phil Cardarella
6 months agoMark, you can find an ocean in Mississippi. Just go south far enough and stop when your feet are wet.
But, don’t take your kids. The schools are…well, not top-notch.