Category: Gov. Laura Kelly

Unsolicited text messages amplify Derek Schmidt’s lies about Kansas drag show

by Sherman Smith, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — Derek Schmidt’s lies about a nonexistent connection between Gov. Laura Kelly and a Wichita drag show are being amplified through unsolicited text messages to Kansas voters.

Schmidt, the GOP candidate for governor, has used a false story from a U.K. tabloid to attack his Democratic rival as their bitter campaign enters the final two-week stretch. No state funding was used to support or promote the performance.

Schmidt also equated the drag show to the sexualization of children, a nod to bigotry often directed at the LGBTQ community. As evidence, his campaign distributed photos of a drag show performer who was actually a woman.

Text messages delivered Tuesday night touted “BREAKING NEWS” about Kelly being “under fire for her Department of Commerce’s role in taxpayer funded ‘all ages’ drag shows involving children.”

Kelly’s campaign said it reported the text messages to the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission for review.

“Schmidt should be embarrassed,” said Lauren Fitzgerald, a spokeswoman for Kelly’s campaign. “First, he’s unable to provide evidence about his own false attack at a press conference. Then he digs in his heels after reporters debunk his lies, and now he’s spreading lies to voters through text messages.”

The Commerce Department provides funding to an arts commission that gave a grant to a Wichita organization to pay for an artist’s residency. That Wichita organization hosted the drag show, which was actually funded by the Knight Foundation and local retailers.

The unsolicited text messages provided a link to a U.K. Daily Mail story, published Monday, that falsely claimed the drag show was taxpayer funded.

“Read more, plus see the shocking pictures and video,” the text read.

The text and story feature images of FaeTality, a Wichita dancer who said in an interview with Kansas Reflector that she just likes to dress up and perform.

Some Republicans incorrectly assumed the dancer was a man. FaeTality said she has been female since birth, was a member of her high school dance team, and was a dance major in college. She described the routine as “tame.”

“This is literally just because I love to dance,” FaeTality said. “I love to put on the costumes and the makeup and everything, and go out there and perform.”

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/2022/10/26/unsolicited-text-messages-amplify-derek-schmidts-lies-about-kansas-drag-show/

See earlier story at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/10/25/kansas-republicans-seize-on-false-report-about-drag-show-to-attack-gov-laura-kelly/

Ribbon-cutting held for new $400 million URBN distribution center

Gov. Laura Kelly and other dignitaries cut the ribbon for the new $400 million URBN distribution center in Kansas City, Kansas, on Wednesday. (Photo from Gov. Kelly’s office)
Gov. Laura Kelly, second from left, visited at the ribbon-cutting for the new URBN distribution center in Kansas City, Kansas. (Photo from Gov. Kelly’s office)

Gov. Laura Kelly cut the ribbon for URBN’s new 1.5-million-square-foot omni-channel fulfillment center in Kansas City, Kansas, on Wednesday.

Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie are among those who will be using the $403 million facility bringing 2,000 new jobs in Kansas City, Kansas, by June 2023. The new facility is located near the Kansas Speedway.

“There’s no doubt: This is a transformational project for our state, bringing a brand recognized worldwide and 2,000 good-paying jobs to our doorstep,” Gov. Laura Kelly said. “URBN’s decision to partner with us further shows that we are successfully making Kansas the most pro-business state in the country.”

In addition to Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie, other brands in the URBN portfolio include Free People, Nuuly, FP Movement, Terrain, BHLDN, and Menus & Venues. The collection of unique retail brands moving through the Kansas City market will provide good jobs for Kansans, according to the governor.

The fulfillment center, which services wholesale, retail, and direct-to-consumer channels, is the company’s first in the United States. It also is URBN’s largest and most automated facility and will be considered the company’s “North Star Showcase for North America.”

“We thought Kansas City was the best position for reaching customers in the shortest amount of time,” URBN Chief Development Officer Dave Ziel said. “The state, including Governor Kelly and Lieutenant Governor Toland, really put their best foot forward. The relationship got off to a great start because of their pro-business perspective.”

“URBN is a company that strives to put people first and that always stays on the cutting edge of not only style trends, but also logistics and distribution best practices,” Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland said. “They are exactly the type of partner and employer the Kelly administration envisioned recruiting when we prioritized logistics and distribution in the Kansas Framework for Growth.”

URBN appreciated the easy cooperation found among all local organizations and level of government.

“We are fortunate to have Urban Outfitters in Wyandotte County,” said Greg Kindle, president of the Wyandotte Economic Development Council. “Their interest from the outset to be a part of the community from their focus on providing transit, a commitment to hiring local, to working with local firms, and their socially conscious efforts are to be commended.”

Ziel said they were able to subcontract almost exclusively with local vendors, adding that “building this during COVID was incredible.”

“I have never worked with so many collaborative individuals to bring a project of this size to fruition,” he said.

“As the world’s demand on the supply chain continues, companies like URBN are making strategic investments to meet their customers’ current and future needs. URBN’s selection of Kansas City, Kansas, for its flagship facility reinforces the KC region’s position as a top logistics hub,” said Chris Gutierrez, president of KC SmartPort, an economic development nonprofit. “It’s great to see the URBN facility operational, and the company is making a lasting impact in KCK as it already created – and will continue to provide – resources to support the community.”

  • Story and photos from Gov. Kelly’s office

Poll: 72% of Kansans back Medicaid reform stalled by GOP legislators since 2017

Kelly to again seek Medicaid reform, Schmidt remains expansion skeptic

by Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — A majority of Kansans across the political spectrum endorse expansion of eligibility for Medicaid in a statewide survey also indicating nine in 10 registered voters believe a candidate’s position on health care influenced votes at the polls.

Kansas is among a dozen states declining to broaden access among lower-income people to affordable health coverage under Medicaid. Expansion legislation in Kansas was vetoed in 2017 by Republican Gov. Sam Brownback and the GOP-led Senate blocked a vote on a House-passed bill in 2019. Expansion states include Missouri, Oklahoma, Colorado and Nebraska.

The issue emerged in the campaign for Kansas governor with Gov. Laura Kelly promising to introduce a fifth Medicaid expansion proposal in January if reelected. Republican gubernatorial nominee Derek Schmidt spoke in opposition to substantive enhancement of eligibility for Medicaid.

The poll released by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, or ACSCAN, of 500 likely Kansas voters showed support to be almost universal among Democrats with backing from majorities of both Republicans and independents.

In the poll, 72% of Kansans favored expanding opportunities for Kansans to participate in KanCare, the state’s Medicaid program. The political breakdown in terms of those favoring reform: Democrats, 98%; independents, 64%; and Republicans, 56%.

The poll conducted by Public Opinion Strategies and Hart Research Associates showed 87% of respondents considered health care a pivotal issue in political elections. The poll for ACSCAN had a 4.3% margin of error.

“Kansans clearly understand the importance of affordable health coverage and want their lawmakers to take action to expand KanCare,” said Megan Word, who works for ACSCAN. “Voters want Kansas to join the 38 other states who have expanded their Medicaid program and they are paying close attention this election season.”

The number of Kansans potentially benefitting from a state law deepening eligibility for the Affordable Care Act has ranged from 120,000 to 150,000. The federal government would be obligated to pay 90% of the increased cost in Kansas.

In the poll, 81% said all Kansans regardless of income, location, race, gender or immigration status ought to have affordable health care.

Kelly, who is seeking a second term in the Nov. 8 election, said during the latest gubernatorial debate in Overland Park that expansion of Medicaid to the underserved would be the most significant health policy change she could champion as governor.

“I have proposed four different expansion approaches,” said Kelly, who claimed Republicans undermined Medicaid bills because the reform was among her top priorities as governor. “I will propose my fifth in January. I think the fact that I never will be on the ballot again can take politics out of it.”

Schmidt said conservative leadership of the House and Senate wouldn’t step aside to allow a Medicaid expansion bill reach Kelly’s desk. He also criticized Kelly for not convincing a GOP majority in the Legislature to approve expansion in her first term.

“It makes a good thing to talk about in the middle of an election,” Schmidt said of Kelly’s advocacy. “At the end of the day, the Kansas Legislature, if anything like its current composition, is not going to go that direction in terms of public policy.”

He said Kansas should focus on retaining the three for-profit insurance companies under contract to operate the privatized KanCare system during a period of inflation in the national economy. He said he would consider modest changes to KanCare such as the 2022 bill signed by Kelly extending Medicaid coverage to new mothers.

Kansas Reflector, www.kansasreflector.com, stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/10/10/poll-72-of-kansans-back-medicaid-reform-stalled-by-gop-legislators-since-2017/