TOPEKA, Kansas — Fights between Republican lawmakers and the Democratic governor — over new taxes and her power to shut down businesses in a pandemic — threaten calls on both sides for political unity.
Meanwhile, conservatives in the Legislature push ahead quickly to amend the Kansas Constitution to declare it contains no right to abortion.
And lawmakers find themselves rushing on high-profile issues to outrun a pandemic that could force them to shut down the Statehouse if there’s an outbreak in the building.
The pandemic already took the pomp and circumstance out of the governor’s State of the State address — the chief executive’s high-profile chance to talk directly to legislators.
With COVID-19 lurking, the annual event went from a huge gathering in the House chamber to a simple speech recorded in a Topeka TV studio.
In the wake of violence at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Kelly called for lawmakers to set a positive example of civility.
“This isn’t like any other moment. We’re being tested like never before,” Kelly said in her speech. “This year, working together isn’t simply something I want – it’s something we owe to the people of Kansas.”
The coronavirus cut last year’s session short, so some fights that had been simmering before could bubble over this year.
The call for unity was mixed with hints of those conflicts.
In her speech, Kelly said tax cuts were a bad idea when the state tried them in the previous decade. She took a preemptive strike against Republicans eyeing tax cuts this year. She compares it to the government-cutting policies the state took after approving tax cuts when Sam Brownback was governor.
“My colleagues in the Legislature have already forgotten just how devastating that experiment was to our economy, our schools, and our future,” Kelly said.
The new Republican Senate president, Ty Masterson, sent a similar message, calling for working together when possible. But Masterson also said Republicans will consider tax cuts and further limiting Kelly’s power to close businesses or order mask mandates in response to the pandemic.
“We will not support the governor’s regime of unconstitutional mandates and edicts,” Masterson said in the GOP response to Kelly’s speech. “We trust you will always make the best decisions for your family – not the government.”
Kelly is making another sales pitch for Medicaid expansion, although that’s almost certainly doomed for yet another year by an even more conservative Republican majority.
The governor wants to spend more money for Medicaid expansion, education, mental health care and the state’s unemployment system.
