ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
Representatives from the United Kansas party had the chance to share information and their platforms in Liberal Saturday morning, and part of the meeting featured a Q&A session.
The first question asked by moderator Brent Lewis concerned why now was a good time for United Kansas to form.
“I’m a firm believer that if you see an issue, you need to work to fix it, and that’s one of the most straightforward answers I can give,” United Kansas Chairman Jack Curtis said. “There’s a problem in politics that needs to be solved, and there’s no time like the present to do so. There was a recent Gallup poll that showed three out of five U.S. citizens don’t believe the current two-party system is working. We also like to look at Kansas Speaks, which is a public opinion survey put out annually by Fort Hays State University. When you look at the data coming out of that survey ... no one else is going out and asking Kansans what they think the problem is, which is a real shame, because this part of the country has a very unique insight into what’s going on. If more people would listen to the Sunflower State more, we might be able to find a few more solutions. But Kansans are looking for change, and a survey from 2023 showed Independent voters make up 22.5 percent of the population, and when we expand that to Independents who might lean more left and Independents who might lean more right, it’s a much fairer scope of people who identify with that, and that number jumps to almost 50 percent. Half of Kansans don’t readily identify with one of the two major parties, and because of that, they’re disenfranchised, and it’s allowing the situation to go more and more extreme. Now is the time to put forward an opportunity, and now is the time to for us to put forward an alternative. And with that, to be able to redo what a political party should be – a political party doesn’t have to be some monolithic structure trying to dictate aspects of people’s lives. We want to bring in a new party because now is the time for a new party, one that’s going to listen to the people, one that’s going to make sure every part of the state is heard, not just the people of Wichita or Kansas City or the bigger cities.”
“I would like to emphasize how, if we don’t do something now, we’re going to get what we deserve. There are three issues at the state level right now that aren’t going to change if we don’t do something,” United Kansas Vice Chair Sally Cauble added. “One is, the Kansas Legislature gets mad because they’re told to fund public education, which we desperately need in this area, and they’ve been mad about that for multiple years. Then, there’s the issue of the courts and whether or not they’re going to be run by one major party if we don’t watch our judicial system. Hypothetically, if they get mad at something, they have the power – which voters have given them – to do anything they want. Our fellow board member, Don Hineman, who was unable for the town hall, has many stories from his time serving in the Kansas Legislature about how if someone didn’t vote the party line or with party leadership, they’d lose committee assignments/chairmanships as punishment, or they’d find their seat removed from the House floor. Those are bullying tactics. How can we tell our children in schools how bullying is not a good form of leadership if we stand by as voters and elect bullies and let them get away with their actions? We’ve got to do something to support those we do elect so they can stand up for their views and not worry about retaliation? We need to get involved and be active, and a third party that can do that is a good way to accomplish that. We’ve got to change the overall climate so our elected officials serve the people and not the party.”
Another question concerned the priorities of United Kansas compared to the other major political parties.
“United Kansas is working to do politics differently because our true north, our compass, is always pointed toward Kansas. We’re not part of any nationwide political party or movement, and we’re not having to play games with the folks in Washington, DC or bow down to national interests,” Curtis said. “For United Kansas, we’re focused on this state first and foremost. We want Kansas to have the economic opportunity to support itself and grow industries and promote small businesses. We want to make sure people have the ability to be here, we don’t want people to feel like they have to move out of the state just to find a job or affordable housing. We want to make sure Kansans are taken care of. We also believe in expanding healthcare access for people since the current system is not sustainable – my day job is working at one of the Topeka hospitals, and seeing good, hard-working people coming in who the system isn’t supporting, there has to be a better way to go through that.”
“I would speak more on the education side, we won’t have public education in Kansas in the way it’s currently going. If we do have public education, it’s going to be very small, and it’s a lot of funding will be going toward private schools,” Cauble added. “I believe in public dollars going to public education. In the state of Kansas, in order to be an accredited school, you have to be accredited by the Kansas State Board of Education, and it doesn’t matter whether you’re a private school or public school, so we’re all the same. There are no statistics that have been taken in the state of Kansas to prove a public school is automatically inferior to a private school – they all have to follow the same guidelines, the same curriculum, the same accreditation, the same standards, etc. So it’s a choice, many times, of religion – and I’m a firm believer in the separation of church and state – and that’s a big issue. I don’t want to see the state of Kansas follow Arizona, Oklahoma, Texas or Arkansas when it comes to private vs. public education. We’re following a model right now the Republicans have put forth, and they can lower the state budget by cutting funds to education, which is what they’re trying to do. You, as voters, have to decide whether taxpayer dollars are worth public education. The statistics show the best way to raise people into the middle class is through education, so if we want a strong economy in Kansas, we need a strong public education system. The irony is, your tax dollars, along with others’ tax dollars, really provide a more inexpensive way of educating the public. And the time is crucial since they just got through keeping the state money level, but they decreased Special Education funding again this year, which is money local school districts are going to have to find somewhere else. We need to move forward and save public education, and this is one way I’m fighting for that.”
Cauble said representatives also need a better focus.
“The powers that be in Topeka are spending so much time on social issues and not getting to the actual issues people are dealing with,” Cauble said. “They’re spending time on 1 percent of the issues facing Kansas. This board has chosen to say to everyone, what happens in your family and raising your children, is between you and your family and/or your doctor(s). Let’s get politics out of our healthcare on a daily basis in terms of what women want, gender issues, etc., because all of that has NO place in politics. That should remain in your family, and politics has no place in those issues.”
