Month: September 2022

Kobach defends Bannon, deflects personal responsibility for alleged border wall corruption

Kansas AG nominee says Bannon’s contempt conviction ‘purely political’

Kansas attorney general candidate Kris Kobach, who served as general counsel to We Build the Wall, deflected responsibility for alleged fraud against the organization and defended Stephen Bannon, who faced indictment for financial misconduct at the crowd-sourced organization created to build wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. (Photo by Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector)

by Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector


Olathe — Kansas attorney general candidate Kris Kobach offered a sweeping defense of former presidential adviser Stephen Bannon amid allegations of fundraising fraud against We Build the Wall Inc.

Kobach said alleged wrongdoing involving the organization that raised millions of dollars for construction of barriers on the U.S.-Mexico border took place before he was hired as general counsel for We Build the Wall. He has continued to work on behalf of the organization as it moved toward an orderly shutdown.

“All the allegations revolved around supposed agreements made when the thing was first started,” Kobach said after a candidate forum Wednesday night hosted by the Kansas Chamber. “I came on after that. They brought me on to figure out how to build a wall on private land legally. That was my job.”

Kobach, who served two terms as Kansas secretary of state, said he was convinced that he wasn’t in jeopardy of being indicted.

Kobach said he cooperated with prosecutors by sharing emails related to activities of We Build the Wall. He said he was listed as a witness for the prosecution and defense in the criminal case against Colorado businessman Timothy Shea that ended in a mistrial. Two other We Build the Wall defendants have entered guilty pleas.

Kobach said he was approached in 2019 to work on the project that raised about $25 million for wall construction on the southern U.S. border. He said he “jumped at the chance” because the country suffered because of the porous border.

Bannon, the onetime advisor to President Donald Trump, surrendered Thursday to state prosecutors in New York City. He was expected to be indicted for fraud related to We Build the Wall.

“My guess is that it will be similar to what the federal prosecutors claimed two years ago,” Kobach said.

Bannon was indicted by federal prosecutors in 2020 along with three other people accused of mail fraud and money laundering through diversion for personal expenses of crowd-funded donations to We Build the Wall. Trump pardoned Bannon in 2021 to thwart prosecution in U.S. District Court for allegedly misusing $1 million in donations.

Kobach said he first met Bannon at the Trump golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, when Trump interviewed Kobach for potential appointment as secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Kobach has appeared more recently on Bannon’s “War Room” podcast.

“We’ve gotten to know each other pretty well,” Kobach said. “He did great work with the We Build the Wall organization. I think he’s doing great work with his Bannon War Room program.”

Kobach dismissed as not a “garden variety” case Bannon’s conviction in July for contempt of Congress. Bannon refused to comply with a subpoena issued by the U.S. House committee investigating the Jan. 6 assault of the Capitol.

“I think the congressional contempt prosecution is purely political,” Kobach said. “He made a decision based on the fact that he was trying to protect executive privilege. That constitutional position is one I agree with. This was him taking a constitutional stand with which the current leadership of Congress disagrees, but I anticipate leadership of Congress come January will completely agree.”

Kobach, of rural Lecompton, won the Republican Party’s nomination for attorney general in August by defeating two rivals, including GOP Sen. Kelli Warren, who was endorsed by the Kansas Chamber PAC and other conservative political groups. Kobach is running against Democratic candidate Chris Mann, a Lawrence attorney and former police officer.

The chamber’s leadership said there was concern Kobach couldn’t win a campaign for attorney general and raised questions about whether Kobach could “adequately and effectively represent Kansas businesses and individuals successfully in court.” Kobach lost a 2018 general election for governor and the 2020 primary campaign for U.S. Senate.

“The Chamber made a decision in the primary that obviously I disagreed with, but I’m hopeful that as time goes on they’ll see that I’m a friend of Kansas business,” Kobach said.

If elected attorney general, Kobach said he would attempt to unwind involvement in a collection of private cases. He has filed suits against President Joe Biden and represents military members challenging a COVID-19 vaccination mandate.

“You have to be careful how you back out of a case,” Kobach said. “You have to make sure there is somebody there who can step into your shoes and is capable of litigating that issue. I anticipate that I would try to hand off the cases.”

Kansas Reflector stories, www.kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/09/08/kobach-defends-bannon-deflects-personal-responsibility-for-alleged-border-wall-corruption/

New law to lower prescription drug costs will help Kansas residents

U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-3rd Dist., said allowing Medicare to negotiate for lower drug costs will help put money back in residents’ pockets.

Rep. Davids recently held a roundtable discussion on new provisions to lower the cost of prescription drugs in Kansas. Davids also joined Glenda DuBoise, state director of AARP Kansas for a virtual town hall to speak directly to Kansas seniors about these new cost-saving measures.

Americans pay two to three times what citizens of other countries pay for prescription drugs. Thanks to a new federal law, beginning next year several policies will go into effect to help Kansans afford their medications, including a cap on insulin prices for Medicare beneficiaries, rebates if pharmaceutical companies raise prices faster than inflation, and the first-ever out-of-pocket cap on seniors’ medication costs.

“There’s no reason Kansans should pay so much more for medicines than people in other countries, and we’re finally starting to change that,” Rep. Davids said. “Allowing Medicare to negotiate for lower drug costs has been a priority of mine since coming to Congress, and I am so glad we were finally able to get it done. These new provisions will put money back in Kansans’ pockets and reduce the stress of having to choose between life-saving medications and other necessary expenses.”

New, key provisions that will save Kansans’ money on prescription drugs include:

• Capping insulin copays at $35 per month for Medicare beneficiaries. An estimated 28,000 Kansas Medicare beneficiaries used insulin in 2020. Starting next year, their costs will be capped at $35 a month for life-saving insulin.


• Capping seniors’ out-of-pocket costs at $2,000. Starting in 2024, Medicare prescription drug plans must offer improved financial protections and in 2025, a $2,000 out-of-pocket cap will take effect. Each year, that will benefit about 18,000 Kansas Medicare beneficiaries who would otherwise have out-of-pocket costs above the cap—and, for the first time, all 401,000 Kansans with Medicare Part D will have the peace of mind of knowing their pharmacy costs are capped.


• Allowing Medicare to negotiate prices for high-cost drugs. Approximately 5 to 7 million Americans on Medicare will likely see reduced costs on their most expensive medications thanks to Medicare negotiation. Additionally, billions of taxpayer dollars will be saved and put towards reducing the national debt.


• Addressing skyrocketing prescription drug prices. Starting next year, companies will be required to pay Medicare a rebate if they increase prices faster than inflation.

While these savings were included in the Davids-supported Inflation Reduction Act, comprehensive legislation to lower health care and energy costs and reduce the national debt by more than $300 billion, Rep. Davids has been working to lower health care costs since before her election. She led her colleagues on similar actions to lower the price of prescription drugs and co-sponsored legislation to do so. She also released a report on the high price of insulin in the Kansas Third and held a roundtable with local parents to discuss how the rising cost of insulin impacts their family after voting to cap insulin co-pays at $35 a month for all Americans.

  • Story from Rep. Davids’ office

Warm weather continues through Saturday

National Weather Service graphic

Above normal temperatures are in the forecast through Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.

Temperatures may reach 89 today and Friday, and 86 on Saturday, before a cold front moves in with a high of 74 on Sunday, the weather service said.

While rain and storms are possible Saturday night and Sunday, the threat of severe weather is low, according to the weather service.

Today, it will be sunny, with a high near 89 and a south southeast wind of 3 to 7 mph, the weather service said.

Tonight, it will be clear, with a low of 63 and a south wind around 7 mph, according to the weather service.

Friday, it will be sunny, with a high near 89 and a south wind around 7 mph, the weather service said.

Friday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 63 and a southeast wind of 3 to 6 mph, according to the weather service.

Saturday, it will be sunny, with a high near 86 and a calm wind becoming north northeast around 6 mph in the afternoon, the weather service said.

Saturday night, there is a 40 percent chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 1 a.m., according to the weather service. The low will be around 58. Between a tenth and quarter-inch of rain is possible.

Sunday, there is a 40 percent chance of showers before 1 p.m., with a high near 74, the weather service said.

Sunday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 54, according to the weather service.

Monday, it will be sunny, with a high near 78, the weather service said.

Monday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 56, according to the weather service.

Tuesday, it will be sunny, with a high near 83, the weather service said.

Tuesday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 59, according to the weather service.

Wednesday, it will be sunny, with a high near 85, the weather service said.

For more weather information, visit www.weather.gov.