Did $13,000 given to Gov. Sebelius play part in Supreme Court Nominating Commission appointment?
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Thursday’s Kansas Register announced Gov. Kathleen Sebelius’ appointment of Katherine Taylor DeBruce, a Democrat from Mission Hills, to the Supreme Court Nominating Commission. Did the $13,000 contributed to Gov. Sebelius by Katherine DeBruce, her husband Paul DeBruce, and his DeBruce Grain company, have any influence on Sebelius’s appointment to the Supreme Court Nominating Commission? And what about the $5000+ DeBruce Grain gave to the Kansas Democratic Party in 2006 for “plane travel”?

Mission Likes to Spend Taxpayers Money
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The city of Mission continues it’s leftward tilt on spending and global warming agenda building by approving to hire firms to conduct separate inventories of the roadways, sidewalks and greenhouse gas emissions throughout the city. Council members approved all three inventories in votes of 5-2. Council member Steve Schowengerdt voted against all three inventories and asked if the city couldn’t do some of the work in-house to save money. “I think as a city we need to watch how we spend money,” he said. Council member John Weber also opposed all three inventories.

Johnson County School District’s Continue to Spend
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Design work is also under way for the district’s Center for Advanced Professional Studies building. The center will be a place for high school junior and senior level students to take course work not available in the high schools. The district just completed a new support services center on the district office complex, which opens this summer.

Lawrence Going Broke But Still Buys Old Train Depot
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Staff members said repairs and renovation could be expensive. A preliminary analysis estimated it could cost about $400,000 to bring the building into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and upward of $100,000 for several repairs such as fixing a leaky roof. It is also estimated to cost the city about $60,000 a year for routine maintenance and operational costs.

Kansas Senators say no to Ft. Leavenworth Gitmo
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Sens. Sam Brownback and Pat Roberts tell their colleagues that the disciplinary barracks at Fort Leavenworth lack the space and security to handle the detainees. Kansas lawmakers are discouraging any talk of moving detainees from Guantanamo Bay to Fort Leavenworth.

Missouri & Kansas releasing inmates
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A new Justice Department report shows Missouri was the only state to see consistently declining prison populations over an 18-month period. Missouri was the only state to show inmate reductions in each of those three periods. Neighboring Kansas also showed reductions in the first two periods.

Kansas Supreme Court: Gambling law is constitutional
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The Kansas Supreme Court has ruled that the state’s expanded gambling law is constitutional. Friday’s unanimous ruling puts to rest the question about the constitutionality of last year’s law that calls for four state-owned and operated resort casinos plus slot machines at racetracks in Kansas City, Kan., and Frontenac.

Kansas Governor Keynote at Liberal “Earthjustice” Event
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On June 26, 2008, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius spoke at an event hosted by Earthjustice. Evidently, Earthjustice, previously known as the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, was involved in the events leading up to the denial of the permit for Sunflower Electric Power Corporation’s Holcomb Station coal-fired electricity generating plant expansion.

Kline Files Criminal Charges on Cockfighting Operation
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Johnson County District Attorney Phill Kline on Friday filed 345 criminal charges against two men in an alleged cockfighting operation on a homestead near Gardner. Murillo Fernando Tapia, 37, of Eudora and Juan Carlos Rodriguez-Machain, 50, of Olathe each were charged in Johnson County District Court with 172 counts of unlawful conduct of cockfighting. The charges are misdemeanors.

Strip Club Attorney running for DA in Topeka
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Liberal Democrat and Shawnee County DA candidate Jerry Berger was an investor in Baby Dolls, a men's nightclub in Topeka. Other DA candidates indicate that the sex industry is running Berger for district attorney in order to gain a foothold into the prosecutor’s office. Berger was the lawyer who brought topless bars to Topeka, first with Baby Dolls, then buying interest in others and he will be well-financed by the sex industry.

Topeka Chief Okay with 911 Consolidation w/ Sheriff
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In a good showing of fiscal responsibility Topeka Police Chief Ron Miller says it is a good idea to have the Shawnee County sheriff's office run the county's consolidated emergency communications center. Putting the sheriff in charge will bring increased accountability because the sheriff is elected while the center's director is appointed, Miller said Friday to the board that oversees the center.