Opinion

L&T Publisher Earl Watt

One of the first actions President Donald Trump took when he returned to the White House was to suspend security clearance for former national security officials who signed off on the now infamous Hunter Biden laptop memo.

For those who forgot, more than 50 former senior intelligence officials signed a letter in the fall of 2020 during the height of the presidential race that the laptop in a repair shop in New York was not Hunter Biden’s laptop and, according to the memo, “has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.”

THE POSTSCRIPT, Carrie Classon

I don’t normally tackle controversial issues, but today I’m going out on a limb.

Baths are better than showers.

I don’t care what my husband, Peter, or my mother and father have to say on the subject. I don’t care about those people who take samples of bathwater and look at them under microscopes and tell you that you are bathing in minuscule amounts of dirt and microorganisms. They are all wrong, and I will tell you how I know.

GUEST COLUMN, Vance Ginn, Kansas Policy Institute

As the Kansas Legislature convenes on Jan. 13, 2025, lawmakers face key debates, including tax reform and the push for Medicaid expansion. Amid these discussions, one critical priority should be reforming the state’s budgeting process to enhance efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability. Enforcing performance-based budgeting (PBB)—a law passed in 2016 but neglected since then—offers Kansas a proven path to better fiscal stewardship and long-term prosperity.

GUEST COLUMN, Tracey Mann, Big First Representative

Last week in the nation’s capital, 6.8 inches of snow closed federal office buildings. Here at home, blizzards brought more than 18 inches of snowfall. Farmers, ranchers, and agricultural producers in Kansas didn’t have the luxury of closing for the week. When you answer the call to feed, clothe, and fuel the world, you’re required to show up—even when the temperatures outside are below freezing.