Chairman's Update
KSGOP Chairman Mike Kuckelman
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After spending last weekend in Manhattan with many of you at the Kansas Republican Party's 2021 convention, I feel energized for the upcoming elections. The enthusiasm we saw last week was promising as we work to Keep Kansas Red in our upcoming local elections and the 2022 midterms.
I was excited to see so many young people at our convention with a strong showing from our College and Teenage Republican organizations. They are doing great work around the state to recruit more young people into the Republican Party.
We had record-breaking attendance for our Manhattan convention with over 750 registered. The highlights of the weekend included a Minority Outreach Panel moderated by Mercedes Schlapp, the Why Run for School Board Panel moderated by State Senator Renee Erickson, a Legislative Forum where we heard updates from some of our statehouse leaders, and of course, the multiple trainings and meetings we held.
We ended the weekend with our Keep Kansas Red Dinner where our keynote speaker was South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem and our emcee for the evening was American Conservative Union Chairman, Matt Schlapp. Their message was promising and motivating as we work to fight back against the Democrats' radical agenda.
A big thank you goes out to all of our volunteers who helped make last weekend's convention a HUGE SUCCESS!
Lastly, I want to thank all of the state delegates who supported me in re-electing me to another two-year term as KSGOP Chair. We have big plans as we look ahead and I am excited to get to work with my team.
Congratulations to our newly elected KSGOP state officers:
Vice-Chair Sue Schlapp (Wichita), Treasurer Cheryl Reynolds (Topeka), Secretary Emily Wellman (Alden).
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Some Highlights from the Convention
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Federal Update
Congressman Ron Estes (KS-04)
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This month we’ve seen more of the same Democratic-power-grab tactics in Washington, with Pelosi, Schumer and Biden openly embracing unconstitutional and radical policies that abandon our founding principles.
Yet Republicans are poised to take back the House in 2022 – history is on our side with the President’s party typically losing around 27 seats in their first midterm election. And just this week, we saw Republican-leaning states like Texas and Florida gain seats after Americans have fled the tax-and-spend policies of liberal states like California and New York (and hopefully they remember what caused them to leave those states when they arrive at the ballot box).
That means that our five-seat deficit today could easily become a Republican majority after November 2022, so Nancy Pelosi is rushing through as much bad legislation as she can to maintain power.
House Democrats passed their sweeping election reform bill H.R. 1, the so-called For the People Act. That bill stalled in the Senate, which is one of the reasons they’ve been so vocal about ending the filibuster – giving them unlimited potential to ram through some of the worst policies in American history.
But their quest for complete control doesn’t end there. Last week House Democrats voted to make Washington, D.C., the 51st state, giving them an extra voting House member and two solidly Democratic senators. This is simply unconstitutional.
With unilateral rule over the executive and legislative branch, that only leaves the judicial branch. In April, Democrats officially introduced legislation for their “bonehead” idea to pack the Supreme Court with liberal justices – just to ensure that if their other terrible ideas are ever challenged, they will guarantee themselves a winning outcome.
The evidence is clear – with H.R. 1, eliminating the filibuster, making D.C. a state and packing the court, Democrats are racing down a path toward complete control of our federal government – and our lives.
Despite this incredibly bleak outlook, I have renewed confidence in our country following recent events. Just a week ago, hundreds of Kansas patriots gathered in Manhattan for the KSGOP convention. I was encouraged to spend time with common sense Kansans who love our country, and I believe we can carry that enthusiasm to the polls next year to take back the people’s House and the Governor’s mansion. Additionally, the Republican response from Sen. Tim Scott Wednesday night was a welcome and unifying message of hope, resilience, and redemption that resonates with all Americans.
While the news out of Washington is distressing, Republicans continue to work hard to restore and preserve our nation.
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State Update
Insurance Commissioner Vicki Schmidt
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The COVID-19 pandemic has been a challenging time for our great state, but I want you to know I have been leading with our Republican principles and working to ensure the people of Kansas are the top priority at the Kansas Insurance Department.
During the pandemic, the Department was the first in the nation to get our licensing process open and get people back to work. The financial services industry plays an important role in the lives of many Kansans and in the Kansas economy. It was important to me to do our part in getting the sector back up and running to help the economic recovery.
While other state agencies shut down and quit serving Kansans, we kept working. And today, I believe we are one of the only state agencies back in the office full time. Customer service is important to me during a normal year and twice as important in a year with a pandemic. Since I have taken office, I have prioritized consumer assistance and the Department has returned more than $15 million dollars to Kansans.
This legislative session, I championed a bill that would improve Department operations and streamline agent licensing, but the most notable part of the bill is that it cuts $5 million in revenue to the Department annually and returns it to those paying fees to the Department. When was the last time you heard of a state agency cutting its own revenue by $5 million or at all?
Pandemic or not the Kansas Insurance Department is open for business! We are working to make Kansas a more competitive insurance market and the Department, the most efficient and effective state agency. If you, your family, friends, or neighbors run into an insurance issue please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Department at 1-800-432-2484 or [email protected]. We would love to help you!
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